On April 17 at Variety Playhouse, Tank and the Bangas will showcase their unique blend of poetry and music, led by the vibrant frontwoman, Ball.
As Ball enthusiastically stated, “If anyone is actually a fan and have been to the shows, they all know that my poems are my songs, and my songs are my poems.”
She emphasized that their performances are anything but lackluster, saying, “It’s still very dynamic and still very energetic and very entertaining. It’s not like a snooze fest or anything like that because it’s poetry.”
Dubbed “one of the best live bands in America” by NPR Music, the sextet brings a captivating concoction of poetry, hip-hop, gospel, funk, and rock to their shows, all under Ball’s exuberant direction.
Despite this eclectic mix of sounds, Ball clarified that their music does not adhere strictly to New Orleans styles.
“It comes from being a part of the spoken word community since I was young,” she explained.
Drawing from her experiences in New Orleans’ poetry scene, Ball shared how her group incorporated music and poetry in a unique manner, which she had never seen before.
“[We combined music and poetry] in a way that no other team did before. It was very unique, and our songs were so catchy, and we had hand movements and everything to go with it,” she recalled.
Ball’s crew left a mark on the New Orleans slam poetry scene, dominating various competitions.
However, she eventually felt a need to move beyond the confines of competitive poetry.
“I wanted to do this in a noncompetitive way, I want to do it my way,” she explained.
This desire led her to establish Tank and the Bangas a dozen years ago, although their breakthrough beyond New Orleans didn’t happen until winning the NPR Tiny Desk Contest in 2017.
The band’s third album,
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