photo
by Saddi Khali
Dorise
G. Blackmon was born and raised in New Haven,
CT.
The youngest of eight children, Dorise was introduced
to the piano at age 5 by her Aunt Dot (Doris Elizabeth),
whom she's named after. Picking up guitar, bass, and
drums, Dorise played with her brothers and local R&B
bands throughout her youth. Well on her way towards
a promising basketball career, Dorise suffered an injury
that led her to revisit the guitar. After college, she
moved to Los Angeles and studied music at El Camino
College, Dick Grove School of Music and Musicians Institute.
Since then she has played music and taught in public
schools in Washington DC, New York, and New Orleans.
Her
travels include backpacking through Europe, island-hopping
the Caribbean, and a two-month AIDS education project
in South-East Africa through Operation Crossroads Africa.
In
addition to Mother Tongue, Dorise has played with many
groups and artists such as Zion Trinity, Gina Love,
and Karma. She currently lives in New Orleans with her
cat, Hatshepsut.
 photo
by Tony Brown
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