02/08/2022
Leyla McCalla announces her wild and beautiful album: Breaking the Thermometer on Anti Records today! The full album will be out May 6... but we'll share a few sneak peeks along the way
This record is the album companion to a music, dance and theater work inspired by the story of Radio Haiti, the first, independent radio station in Haiti to report news in Haitian Kreyol, ultimately underlining the critical importance of a free and independent press to democracy, self and societal liberation. Leyla's made an absolute masterpiece with this music and message, walking you through her personal story and the story of this station in English, French and Haitian Kreyol... backed by heavy Haitian vodou drumming, interspersed with recordings from the Radio Haiti archives.
It's brilliant... so excited to announce that the record is COMING!
I've been holding this back for so long! And now it can be told! Hallelujah!
My album 'Breaking the Thermometer' is set to be released on Anti Records May 6th, 2022. 🥳 For me, this is an album of stories, memory and ancestry. It is me wanting to understand my place in the rich history of the Haitian diaspora and to create conversations with my music about how to envision a more free and just world. It has been a deeply life altering journey to bring these songs into fruition. I've done tons of research and yet I know that I'm just scratching the surface. I feel both most vulnerable and stronger than ever. Releasing an album with ANTI has long been a dream of mine and I am deeply grateful to be on a record label that wants to uplift and support my mission.
This album is inspired by the theater work "Breaking the Thermometer to Hide the Fever" that I developed alongside Kiyoko McCrae. Guided by archivist extraordinaire, Laura Wagner we started doing research at the archive at Duke University in 2017 and it took me years of developing the songs for the theater production to see how these songs could exist in an album form. The title comes from a metaphor used by Jean Dominique, the vociferous agronomist turned journalist and radio station owner, where he describes the press as the thermometer of the people. The idea is that you can break the thermometer but it won't stop the fever. I continue to be awe struck by the commitment of Radio Haiti's journalists, all of whom risked or lost their lives fighting to be able to tell the truth about what was going on in Haiti. The stories are inspiring, heart wrenching and prophetic. There is much to learn from these stories.
It really takes a village to bring a project like this into fruition and I am just floored by all of the people that are in my corner. I am eternally grateful for the incredible collaborators that have graciously guided me on this journey. Thank you Duke Performances for commissioning me to create this multimedia performance that would stretch my artistry to the beyond. This album would not have been possible without the generosity of Michèle Montas, widow of and co-director of Radio Haiti. Michele generously gave me permission to use her voice and the recordings in the archive and transform them into art. Kiyoko McCrae, my dear friend and theater maker, wanted me to dig deeper into myself to realize the power of my story in helping me to understand this history. Laura Wagner helped me to understand what I could have never understood on my own. All of my collaborators Shawn Myers, Sheila Anozier, Jo Nazro, Markus Schwartz & Lakou Brooklyn, Jeff Pierre Music, Kyle Sheehan, Damas Louis, Zuri Obi, and their artistry went into these songs. I learned more from you all than I could ever quantify! You all brought the true spirit of collaboration to this process and I admire the hell out of all of you!
The album was recorded and produced by Kevin Ratterman at Invisible Creature in Los Angeles, CA in November of 2020. Kevin, you are a bright bright light in this world! You hatched the perfect plan for how to record these songs. You created the environment for us to flourish and it was magical. The songs feature my band Shawn Myers, Pete Olynciw, Nahum Zdybel with Jeff Pierre and special guest mélissa laveaux. Though I have been touring with my band since 2018, this is our first recorded project together. They bring their absolute best to the table and push me to be a better musician. I am so eternally grateful to your commitment to this project and to our synergy as a band! Excited to take this show on the road!
Thank you to my dear managers Carissa Stolting and Noelle Panepento for all of your support in bringing this work to light! These visionary women see beyond the commercial side of the music business and are charting sustainable paths for artists like me who want to make big crazy projects and explore all of the facets of their artistry. THANK YOU!
I am thinking of my parents, my relatives and my ancestors whose stories live in my bones and make me feel strong. One of our collaborators Damas "Fan Fan" Louis, a master drummer and hougan, entered the realm of the ancestors December 10th, 2019. He offered me the rhythmic foundation for these songs and set me on a path of exploring the cosmology of Haitian Vodou. My brother Daniel McCalla passed away on October 28th, 2021 and he always championed my work and would have loved to see this come to fruition. I know he is with me and has my back.
This album is dedicated to the legacy of the journalists of Radio Haiti-Inter - the first radio station in Haiti to broadcast in Kreyol, the language of the Haitian people. I can't wait to share more about this journey with you all over the coming months.
Preorder + stream “Vini Wè” now https://leylamccalla.ffm.to/breakingthethermometer
xx
Leyla
Cover photo by Noe Cugny
