Attributions
This unit was written by Bo Dollis Jr. and Ashley Shabankareh.
Bo Dollis, Jr’s entire life has been shaped and spurred by Mardi Gras Indian Culture. He masked for the first time at the age of ten, though his parents, Big Queen Laurita Dollis and the late Bo Dollis, Sr., Big Chief of the Wild Magnolias, wanted him to wait a few more years before he participated fully. Determined to mask, Bo Jr. managed to get his mother’s attention in that regard when he destroyed one of her beaded purses and started sewing on his own. No one could hold him back after that bold and decisive move, and young Bo took his first steps towards becoming a Big Chief. Bo took on the title of Big Chief in 2006, and assumed leadership of The Wild Magnolias in 2012 at the behest of his father. Bo Jr. has masked and performed with the band throughout most of his life, in venues all over New Orleans including Tipitina’s and the House of Blues, as well as at multiple Jazz Fests. He and the band played the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia, as well as The White House in 2011 for President Obama when Bo Dollis, Sr., was awarded a National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship. The Wild Magnolias have been honored to share the stage with various luminaries over the years, including Cyril Neville, Dr. John, Big Chief Monk Boudreaux, Troy “Trombone Shorty” Andrews, Galactic, Rockin’ Dopsie, Marva Wright, Robbie Robinson, Master P, and Widespread Panic. Bo Jr. and the band released A New Kind of Funk in 2013, their first CD of original recordings since 1999.
Ashley Shabankareh (she/they) is a New Orleans musician, music educator, and arts administrator. Ashley is the Director of Operations and Programs for Trombone Shorty Foundation, and they also work as an Adjunct Professor at Loyola University New Orleans and Xavier University. Ashley has worked with numerous arts organizations during her career, including Artist Corps New Orleans, Upbeat Academy Foundation, New Orleans Jazz Orchestra, New Orleans Jazz Museum, and Preservation Hall Foundation. In her spare time, Ashley serves as the Board President for Folk Alliance International, Vice President of the Jazz Education Network, and Board Secretary for Second Line Arts Collective. Ashley is an avid performer and has performed alongside Allen Toussaint, Aretha Franklin, Big Sam’s Funky Nation, Theresa Anderson, and in her own group, Marina Orchestra.
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Copyright
Curriculum - Copyright © 2023 Berklee College of Music. All rights reserved
Audio and Visual - Copyright © 2023 Take Me To The River Education Initiative. All rights reserved
