There's Not One Way to Be Black – A Conversation with Honeychild Coleman

Jack Dappa Blues Heritage Preservation Radio

In this electrifying episode of Jack Dappa Blues, we sit down with the powerhouse that is Honeychild Coleman—a pioneering force in the world of punk, blues, and avant-garde music. A Louisville native and Brooklyn-based artist, Honeychild’s journey has taken her from busking in the New York subway to collaborating with legends like The Slits, Mad Professor, and Greg Tate’s Burnt Sugar Arkestra.As the frontwoman of blues-punk outfit The 1865, Coleman fuses raw energy with historical narratives, crafting sonic landscapes that echo the struggles and triumphs of Black American culture. Her music has graced films, documentaries, and television screens, all while staying true to her ethos of artistic resistance and community empowerment.In this candid conversation, Honeychild delves into the intersection of punk, blues, and Black identity, sharing how her lived experiences and sociocultural activism inform her art. From her early days in the underground NYC music scene to shaping spaces like Sistagrrl Riots, she continues to be a trailblazer for alternative Black voices in music.Join us as we explore the roots of rebellion, the power of storytelling through sound, and the unapologetic spirit of punk blues. This is an episode you won’t want to miss!

Honeychild Coleman (The 1865 / Bachslider / The Phensic)

Brooklyn, NY

Louisville, Kentucky native recording/visual artist, and Sistagrrl Riots founding member Honeychild Coleman has worked with The Slits, Mad Professor, afro-futurist shoegazers Apollo Heights (The Veldt), Badawi (Raz Mesinai), Death Comet Crew (with Rammellzee), and the late Greg Tate’s Burnt Sugar Arkestra.

Honeychild started her musical career during the hot summer of 1993 in the real underground – the New York City Subway system. Busking there, and eventually performing freestyle and improv weekly sets with DJs Olive (we™ /Liminal), Sasha Crnobrnja (Organic Grooves), Lloop (we™), Delmar (Jungle Sky), Fred Ones (Mike Ladd/Sonic Sum) and Badawi (Raz Mesinai) contributed to the unique niche that Coleman created within the New York City electronic scene of the mid-90's.

She is featured in documentaries “Afropunk,” (James Spooner, USA), “Tina Turner:My Life. My Songs“ (Dir. Schyda Vasseghi, GERMANY), the MAKERS storytelling platform for trailblazing women (USA), "Fireflies" and "Getting My Name Up There" (Katarina Cibulka, AUSTRIA), Rock Chicks:I Am Not Female To You (Marita Stocker, GERMANY), and upcoming “Rude Girls” (Brigid Maher, USA). Coleman also made a cameo in Brooklyn film “Crooked” (Wordsound, USA) and has composed music in the Sundance awarded film "Pariah" (Dee Rees, Focus Features, USA) and indie short “P.R.” (Maria Paraskevopoulou, U.K./Greece).

Coleman fronts Blues-Punk outfit The 1865 (Mass Appeal Records) on lead vocals and baritone guitar. The 1865’s music is in the Hulu series “Woke!” (USA, 2021) and composed an original song for Showtime’s “Everything’s Gonna Be All White” (USA, 2022). Coleman’s writing appears in RAZORCAKE ‘zine issue 138 and BLACK PUNK NOW! (Softskull Press,2023).

Affiliations: Black Rock Coalition,Sistagrrl Riots, Underground Producers Alliance, Out Loud Louisville, Willie Mae Rock Camp, Human Impacts Institute

https://www.instagram.com/hccoleman/

https://www.instagram.com/the1865band/

www.honeychildcoleman.com

https://honeychildcoleman.bandcamp.com/

https://shutitdowncomp.bandcamp.com/releases

https://the1865.bandcamp.com/album/dont-tread-on-we