Performing with IshDARR, Peter Mulvey and more, Milwaukee's SistaStrings take the spotlight

What do rapper IshDARR, singer-songwriter Peter Mulvey, electronic producer Strehlow and jam band Foreign Goods all have in common?

Aside from the fact that they all call Milwaukee home, they’ve all turned to SistaStrings to help make their songs and shows soar.

Active in the local music scene for just three years, the classically trained Ross sisters Monique (28, on cello) and Chauntee (26, on violin) have amassed an impressive roster of collaborations with top local artists, from performances with rapper and R&B artist Klassik, to official spots in Mike Mangione and the Kin.

SistaStrings is too good to be supporting players though, emerging with shows of its own in strong numbers this year, and with a debut EP expected this fall.

Early experiences: Chauntee: My mom always wanted to play an instrument, but she grew up really tough on the west side of Chicago and life took a different path. She made sure when we said we had any interest in music she was all about it. There are five of us (Ross kids) that play music. We all took lessons and all bought instruments, and my parents were not rich, but they made it work.

Monique: I started with piano when I was 3 and Chauntee's first instrument was violin when she was 4. As we grew up we asked for more and more instruments. We took lessons at the String Academy ofWisconsin, and had a string quartet with our sisters. 

When SistaStrings formed: Chauntee: In 2014. I was at the University of Michigan for five years and moved back from Ann Arbor to Milwaukee. I was supposed to go to grad school the month before, but I got burnt out by the competitiveness. When I came back home, I started locking myself in my room and jamming out with Snarky Puppy and some old classic jazz albums, to see what else I could pick up. I started playing with Monique again and the Ross girls were hired for church services and weddings, so we thought, "We've got to put a name on it to make it a real thing."

Collaborating with others: Chauntee: In 2015 we met many of our music colleagues now at a Klassik show at (late club) Hotel Foster. It was like, 'Oh my God, there's this whole vibrant scene in Milwaukee we didn't know about.' In high school, we were locked away in practice rooms, trying to get a scholarship. We started playing with Pharaoh Mac and DMT and played with Klassik.

Monique: We've done a lot of things with Peter Mulvey and with Strehlow will be collaborating a lot more in the future. I love the different kinds of shows and different people and different vibes of the audiences. It's amazing. 

Describe your sound: Chauntee: Our style is soulful and kind of romantic. The tone is super lush.

Favorite cover: Monique: We do "Feeling Good" by Nina Simone and "Passacaglia," a classical duet for violin and cello, and we mix the two together. It's a little classical soul fusion, and a very good introduction.

Favorite original song: We wrote "Goodbye" right before FemFest in 2015. Just having come back into the city, finding a space and cultivating an atmosphere to grow is more difficult than I thought. The song is a release for us, as young black women and musicians, about speaking your peace.

Next gig: SistaStrings performs Sept. 1 at Company Brewing, 735 E. Center St., as part of the second annual Strange Fruit, a festival exploring race relations in the city and country. Set time and cover price to be announced.

More on Music

Watch two exclusive performances from SistaStrings at jsonline.com/music. Sound Check appears every first and third Thursday each month online and in the Journal Sentinel.