Singer, rapper, and writer Dessa has made a career of bucking genres and defying expectations—her résumé as a musician includes performances at Lollapalooza and Glastonbury, co-compositions for 100-voice choir, performances with the Minnesota Orchestra, and a top-200 entry on the Billboard charts for her album Parts of Speech. She contributed to the #1 album The Hamilton Mixtape; her track, “Congratulations,” notched over 5 million streams. Dessa's third full-length album Chime (Doomtree Records) was listed by NPR as one of 2018's most anticipated albums. As a writer, she's been published by The New York Times Magazine, broadcast by Minnesota Public Radio, published two literary collections of her own, and is set to release her first hardcover collection, My Own Devices, in the fall of 2018. She's been covered by Pitchfork, Forbes, and The Wall Street Journal amongst others. The LA Times says Dessa “sounds like no one else.” The Utne Reader calls her a “one-woman powerhouse.” On the stage and on the page, her style is defined by a ferocity, wit, tenderness, and candor.

MONAKR

A passing conversation in a studio. Whispers among friends at a show. The notion of musicians working together on a project is often suggested yet seldom realized. Chicago's M O N A K R was born from such a notion in the grey of Winter 2014. It is a collaboration featuring Saam Hagshenas and Jonathan Marks of Hey Champ, two time Grammy-nominated vocalist Matthew Santos, and Dan Brunelle of Gemini Club.

Hagshenas had approached Santos for years about lending his voice to a Hey Champ production, but the timing and music was never right until 2014, when Hagshenas wrote "Diamond" after losing his uncle to cancer. Santos added his vocal flair to the track, and the result led the two to decide this project should live beyond a single song.

Drummer and co-producer Marks was then tapped to lend his talents to the group. Finally they approached Brunelle, who's band Gemini Club had shared remixes and stages with Hey Champ for years. A lineup complete, the band born of whispers came to light.

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