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.