In a collaboration that will be sure to funk up your Mardi Gras, the almost entirely female Krewe Bohème selected singer Tarriona “Tank” Ball from the Tank and the Bangas to lead as monarch of its February 7 parade in Marigny and Bywater. 

Recently nominated for the 2019 Grammy Awards in the Best New Artist category, Tank and the Bangas’ special combination of slam poetry and rap has been quickly grabbing everyone’s attention. Driving r&b, jazz shuffles and rap all find their home in Ball’s inspiring and introspective lyrics. The genre-bending band also won the National Public Radio’s Tiny Desk Concert competition in 2017, and they are nominated for multiple Best of the Beat Awards this year. In short, Ball will surely bring a special flare to the already grooving Krewe Boheme.

According to Carnival historian Errol Laborde, the Krewe “Is another example of the leadership role that women are taking in carnival. In recent years, women have led most of the new organizations.” Additionally, Krewe Bohème does not have a traditional king or queen. Instead, they hail the intoxicating Green Absinthe Fairy. In celebration of the allegedly hallucinogenic drink favored by artists and creatives, the members parade behind an elegantly constructed carriage shaped as a giant bottle of absinthe. They promise all parade-goers, “A visual and auditory feast of mystery, artistry and fun.” With Ball as the mystical green fairy, the Krewe will surely fulfill their promise. 

The Bohèmes self-describe as “A Person with artistic or literary interests who disregards conventional standards of behavior.” This year, they are ready to show everybody exactly what that means in typical New Orleans’ Mardi Gras fashion.