The premise of the Carolina Chocolate Drops was simple — to take back the African-American string-band tradition that flourished in the 1700s and 1800s, yet faded away in the early 1900s. As the 20th century progressed, the banjo, which originated in Africa, became a go-to instrument for white Appalachians and other musicians, along with the fiddle.
The Drops brought back those black string band traditions in a big way. A truly talented group of artists, they melded Celtic, Hip Hop and other influences with fiddle and banjo tunes and branched out from there.
The heart and soul of the Drops is Rhiannon Giddens, an amazing singer and multi-instrumentalist who is the last remaining original member.
The Carolina Chocolate Drops play at Miami University Hamilton Friday, Oct. 24. Find tickets/more info here.
This article appears in Oct 22-28, 2014.
