Duo puts soul into country

Prana Supreme, the daughter of Wu-Tang Clan impresario RZA and longtime vocalist Tekitha, is a child of hip-hop royalty whose foray into music was only natural.

But Prana and her mother are carving a path all of their own – making their way into country music as a family act that transcends labels and fuses what they call America’s two great storytelling traditions.

Their group O.N.E The Duo, founded in 2020, offers a soulful, twangy brand of country that also incorporates elements of their backgrounds across genres, including hip-hop and rock.

“Country and hip-hop are really not that different,” Prana, 23, told AFP in an interview alongside Tekitha, 50.

“These stories are stories of the American people. Hip-hop was stories coming out of the projects, out of the hood, out of the voices of the unheard, especially in the black community. It gave way for our stories to be told.”

The same is true of country, she said. “Some of the most important early voices of country music are from black people.”

When Prana was 14, she approached her mother about making music together. The initial response from Tekitha – whose singing career has featured lending vocals to the Wu-Tang Clan, the storied New York collective whose classics include the seminal album Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers) – was a hard “No”.

She didn’t want to put her young daughter through the rigours of the industry but, over time, saw Prana was serious about music, both as an art and a business.

They began by singing a cappella together, and then gravitated towards acoustic instruments, before moving to Nashville and realising their leanings were country music.

The mostly white, male gatekeepers of the genre are notoriously rigid, but O.N.E The Duo -- “observant, noetic, effervescent” -- has insisted on creating a sound that’s authentic to both their musical backgrounds and aspirations.

The duo released their debut album Blood Harmony last year.

Prana said that while hiphop or pop were loved for constant evolution, the country music industry can give the impression that change “is a disrespect” to what it used to be.

“It’s an obstacle – especially being black on top of it all,” she continued, saying that the powers that be often judge on the basis of looks rather than sound, a long-standing issue of racism within the genre.

Prana said she often finds herself explaining how country was in fact rooted in black culture spanning centuries. “Black people have gotten written out of the tapestry of country music.

“Doing country music, it’s like, ‘Oh, you don’t belong’, and it’s both from the white community and the black community,” she said.

Tekitha said while working on their own music, they also are researching black songwriters who never received proper payment and credit after their tunes were recorded by white

artists.

She said they aim to record those songs and give the proceeds back to families cheated out of their relatives’ publishing royalties. “It really touches a deep part in me, of really trying to right this wrong,” she said, adding that the notion of “allowing” black artists into country music spaces is a flawed concept at its core.

“You can’t allow me something that is rightfully mine anyway,” she said.

Both women also take issue with the “expectation of being a black woman in country music... to explain your blackness”.

“White artists aren’t expected to do that,” Prana said. “They don’t have to explain their identity or, like, why their hair is important, or why their skin is beautiful.”

Tekitha nodded in agreement, adding that it was important to “feel like you’re able to create” without pressure to justify yourself.

For Prana, her parents are her biggest supporters, and she says they aren’t shy about offering advice. “My dad is a critic,” she said with a laugh. “Like, for real, a critic,” her mom added.

“It’s hard to argue with that person,” Prana said.

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