Tossie’s full bio

San Francisco native with the incarnations of Mississippi, Tossie Long, is a ritual sound and experience designer, international performer artist, facilitator and director. Nicknamed “Bone Rattler,” Tossie works at the intersections of music, culture and sociopolitical edges spanning from rock and roll vocals, afrofuturist productions to immersive design experiences. As a multi-hyphenate and Grammy Nominated artist, Tossie is a practitioner of ceremonial music from around the world with a focus on diasporic cosmology, Tossie has voyaged to Haiti, Cuba and Benin tracing the migration of Vodou.

In addition to her vocal artistry, Tossie is also the founder of Red Clay Sound Haus a sonic centric production and performance company cofounder and creative director of Bakanal de Afrique, a biannual afro-urban arts and culture festival that culminates into a full length theatre production. An advocate for Black Women’s mental and spiritual health, Tossie cofounded Blood + Bone, a think tank that centers and celebrates radical wellness.

Tossie does not perform simply for the sake of performing, but rather, to challenge herself and to experiment with how far she can push her perceived limits.

Tossie Long’s performances and workshops have graced many premier avenues including Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, Stern Grove camp and Festival, Oakland Symphony, The Stone NYC, The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, Harlem Museum, Oakland Museum of California, UC Berkeley, UCSF, UC Merced, We Sing Conference, State of the Movement, Zoo Labs and Stanford D School to name a few.

A multi-hyphenate and Grammy Nominated artist, Tossie is a practitioner of ceremonial music from around the world, focusing on diasporic cosmology. Tossie has voyaged to Haiti, Cuba, and Benin tracing the migration of Vodou.

Vocal Bones — Everything begins with sound.  Join Tossie for an intimate, personal, immersive offering where we will celebrate our lives and those who came before us by learning songs for the Gede spirit of ayiti, hoodoo spirituals and explore your personal sacred sound through vocal play. Bring a picture or artifact of an ancestor you would like to honor. We will build an altar  “The voice is our bridge to something bigger than ourselves; it is our connection to the prayer we carry.”

The workshop is limited to 10 people. To sign up click here Vocal Bones.

To learn more about Tossie’s work and process list to her recent podcast interview: https://soundcloud.com/from-process-to-progress