The daughter of Haitian immigrants, Leyla McCalla uses folk traditions and African rhythms to bridge the past and present, exploring the experiences of the Black diaspora. Her blend of folk music, showcasing her mastery of the cello, banjo and guitar, led to her role as artist in residence at the University of Richmond three years ago.

“Like all folk music, my music is the music of the people, but the African rhythms and drums make it more complex and layered,” she said. “It’s storytelling, the language and the stories across generations.”

During her time at UR, McCalla learned about East End Cemetery, the final resting place of an estimated 15,000 African Americans, some of whom had been enslaved. Her latest musical project, “East End Elegy,” explores the neglect, desecration and inequality of African American burial grounds in Richmond.

“There’s a lot of trash, and there’s been illicit activity,” McCalla said. “When you compare it to the pristine Confederate cemetery, it shows how much discrimination there is—especially with Black grief.”

She developed the idea of writing a cycle of songs for the project. To emphasize the music’s seriousness and importance in holding space for each other in life and death, she used the word “elegy.” Commissioned by UR, McCalla dedicated the project to those buried there and to the stewards and community organizers leading the cleanup effort.

McCalla was born in Bayside, Queens, and her parents moved to Maplewood, N.J., when she was young. She learned to play music in elementary school, and by the time she was 12, she studied classical music with her sights set on a music career.

While she was in high school, her mother’s work in West Africa took the family to Accra, Ghana. Heavily influenced by the local music, she developed what she calls a more diasporic style.

Then, at 18, McCalla attended a performance by Canadian American cellist Rufus Cappadocia, whose cross-cultural approach shaped her particular brand of Haitian folk.

After studying music at New York University, McCalla moved to New Orleans. She struggled to make a living and relied on gigging, teaching music and bartending. Her break came when the manager of the Grammy Award-winning folk group Carolina Chocolate Drops discovered her performing on the streets of the French Quarter and invited her to join the group.

Although her time at UR ends at the semester’s end, McCalla’s connection to Richmond won’t. She will serve as artistic director of the Shockoe Institute. The role will allow her to continue connecting the diaspora’s history through its art programming, which is part of the organization’s mission.

Meet a musician using her platform to ensure the ancestors are not forgotten and this week’s Personality, Leyla McCalla:

Occupation: Musician and performer.

Date and place of birth: Oct. 3 in Queens, N.Y.

Where I live now: New Orleans.

Education: New York University.

Family: 6-year-old twins and an 11-year-old.

What is the University of Richmond Artist-in-Residence Program: It’s a three-year residency that provides opportunities for artists to engage with the university and community, offering classes, workshops and public events.

How do you become an artist in residence: There is an application process, but I was scouted. How I describe myself as an artist: I’m a Haitian American musician.

Responsibilities as artist in residence at UR: I guest lecture in classes, coach chamber ensembles, mentor and perform an annual concert.

  

What piqued my interest in the program: I’m interested in passing knowledge and sharing ideas through my music.

The impact that I’d like to have on the college and Richmond communities: I hope that my music will help inform their creative and life journeys. I also hope the Richmond community will come to the campus for the performance because the music is so important.

How this experience has impacted me: My residency at the University of Richmond has allowed me the space to imagine new projects, time to research and has provoked me into a deeper relationship with my creativity. It also offered me a salary for the first time in my career.

What is “East End Elegy”: It’s a love letter in song to the people that tend the grounds at the East End Cemetery and a homage to the African American families buried there.

What is Friends of East End Cemetery: A nonprofit organization formed to clean up the grounds at the East End Cemetery. I was introduced to them by the Center for Civic Engagement at UR. Founders: Brian Palmer and Erin Halloway Palmer.

Why I became interested in Richmond’s African American burial grounds: I am interested in uncovering stories that should be better known and understood.

What is your hope for “East End Elegy”: I hope my work will contribute to more awareness and respect for African American sacred grounds in Richmond’s East End and beyond and that this work will lead to further collective inquiry regarding the neglect of Black grief.

How I will continue my relationship with Richmond: I’ve been brought on as artist director of the Richmond-based organization, the Shockoe Institute.

How to connect with my work and me: Follow me on Instagram @leylacello or go to my website, leylamccalla.com.

How I start the day: I hit snooze twice, then I wake up, make tea and try to focus on what needs to be the priority.

Three words that best describe me: Gregarious, inquisitive and dreamer.

Top three on my music playlist: Meridian Brothers, Les Gypsies de Petionville and Sunny War.

Something I love to do that most people would never imagine: I play soccer with my kids.

The person who influenced me the most: Rufus Cappadocia, a cellist.

Most influential book: “The World that Made New Orleans” by Ned Sublette ignited within me a deep curiosity about the historical and cultural imprint that Haiti left on Louisiana, which became extremely fertile ground for a creative journey.

Current read: “Secrets of the Eternal Moon Phase Goddesses” by Julie Peters. My takeaway is that there are so many barriers to our ability to understand the nature of reality.

Next goal: Learn to relax.