On Friday, May 29, Desdamona and her partner, Carnage the Executioner, performed in the Performing Arts Center for various classes. They opened the mic up to students to allow them to present any of their work and also performed some of their own pieces. They don’t rely on the use of instruments, but rather beat boxing.
“I’ve been beat boxing since age 9,” said Carnage. “I first heard it from Buff Love from Fat Boys. Then I saw them on MTV and I would watch his mouth and try to make my face and mouth the same. I’m basically self taught and I’m still learning.”
Carnage gives private lessons to a large age range of clients.
“My youngest is a 3 year old client,” said Carnage. “The mom wanted me to work with her son because he had delayed speech, so it was sort of a speech therapy to help strengthen syllables and words. On the other end, my oldest client is a 45 year old bass player.”
Carnage has other interests apart from music.
“I have two daughters so I love spending time with them,” said Carnage. “In addition to giving beat boxing lessons, I do social work at a private agency that teaches people that changing the way they think leads to changing their feelings which leads to changing their reactions.”
While Carnage provides the beats and some lyrics, Desdamona provides a majority of the vocals in their partnership. Although they sometimes work together, they don’t always. Desdamona has also worked with or opened for Wyclef Jean, GURU, Bahamadia, Zap Mama, Black Uhuru/Sly & Robbie, Saul Williams, Ursula Rucker and Rhymesayers Artists. She works in a variety of different places, including overseas.
“I’ve performed in many venues in front of many different artists,” said Desdamona. “I like performing overseas. They pay well, they feed you, and you don’t spend much money. The government in France also has a lot of grants for the arts.”
Desdamona has applied for many grants by writing an artist’s statement and has been awarded three. Desdamona and Carnage can be found on iTunes and MySpace Music, both together and individually.
