Cha Wa "My People"
While Fat Tuesday was March 1 this year, the carnival and parade season had been going on for weeks. If you're looking to inject a little New Orleans parade vibe into your playlist this week, look up My People, the new album by Cha Wa, on your favorite streaming service.
The Mardi Gras Indians tradition in New Orleans is a wild, wonderful and fascinating scene of organizations called tribes who dress in colorful costumes inspired by Native American ceremonial apparel, to lead the parades and festivities during carnival season. Ever wonder what the song “Iko Iko” is all about? Now you know.
Cha Wa comes from this tradition. Their sound is funky New Orleans backed by a brass section and a classic organ sound, in many ways reminiscent of famous NOLA bands like The Meters and The Neville Brothers (themselves associated with the Wild Tchoupitoulas tribe of Mardi Gras Indians).
My People, their newest release, is a relentlessly funky and uptempo onslaught of New Orleans music, with second line rhythms (the classic parade beat) everywhere, and cries and lyrics about “big chief”, “jokomo” and “spyboy” giving it a distinctly authentic feel.
Cue up My People and laissez les bon temps rouler!
