SistaStrings is a gospel influenced R&B flavored hip hop duo from Milwaukee, WI. Chauntee plays violin and adds vocals while Monique holds it down on the cello and vocal harmonies. The two have been playing and writing together since they were small children. How? Because they’re sisters. The Ross girls began their string journey at the ages of 4 and 6 years old and began taking lessons at the String Academy of Wisconsin. The youngest two of five children, Chauntee and Monique were allowed to join the family choir and also performed with their older siblings in churches across the midwest. As the siblings matured into their sound and the older ones left Milwaukee to go to college, the family band got smaller and smaller. Monique went off to UW Madison in 2007 and Chauntee moved to Ann Arbor, MI to attend the University of Michigan. Both pursued performance degrees. 2014 was the year Chauntee moved back from Ann Arbor and decided to start working and re-assess exactly how she wanted to continue to make music. Naturally the sisters began gigging together again as they were both back in the same city. Within 6 months of reuniting musically the two decided to give SistaStrings a chance to branch out and test their musical boundaries. They began working with local hip-hop artists and doing string arrangements. They put together their background in gospel, classical, and soul music into their sound and created a truly unique blend.
Collectively the two have performed in some of the more reputable halls in the country. Chauntee (violin) has performed in Carnegie Hall a number of times and the two have studied with and have had masterclasses with some of the greats. They performed with Grammy award winning Malik Yusef in 2016 and in the same year opened for Lupe Fiasco, The Roots (at Summerfest), and Bone Thugs ‘N Harmony.Their approach for arranging is as a team. Throwing ideas back and forth, shaping the phrases and harmonies as they do so until it is complete. As two young Black women in the entertainment industry, Chauntee and Monique have couldn’t help but become allies to the underrepresented. Performing in places like schools, churches, and community centers are some of the most fulfilling performances for the ladies. It is important to them to give back to the very community that encouraged and pushed and allowed them to have a career at young ages. The ladies are advocates for diversity in the arts and promote social justice in all that they do musically.
As well as playing as the entity SistaStrings, Chauntee and Monique form the string section for a number of bands: folk rock band Mike Mangione & The Kin, Singer/songwriter Peter Mulvey, R&B group Soul Serious, Milwaukee Soul Orchestra, and punk/rock/rap group D’Amato. Additionally, they collaborate with a variety of artists over a variety of genres- and that is where their power lies.
