The word
artist doesn't sit well with Kailasa Aqeel, lead vocalist of the D.C. funk band Black Folks Don't Swim? (yes, it's meant to be a question). For the Duke Ellington School of the Arts grad, lifelong creator, and mother of an energetic 10-year-old daughter, artist feels more like a working title.
"I feel like the word 'artist' has kind of been played out for a while," Aqeel says between long pauses, gathering her thoughts during a Zoom interview in late March. "Obviously, it still holds true, it still holds value. But like everything, I contain multitudes, and [artist] just doesn't describe everything."