Carolina Chocolate Drops

Carolina Chocolate Drops

Carolina Chocolate Drops are an American old-time string band from Durham, North Carolina. The group forms in 2005 and remains active, with members including Justin Robinson, Dom Flemons, Rhiannon Giddens, Hubby Jenkins, Adam Matta and Leyla McCalla. Their work centres on fiddle and banjo music from the Piedmont region of the Carolinas.

The band includes musicians with different backgrounds: Rhiannon Giddens and Justin Robinson come from Durham, while Dom Flemons is from Arizona. Their music draws on the folk heritage of the foothills of North and South Carolina, and they work to continue traditions associated with both Black and white communities in the region.

They study with Joe Thompson of Mebane, North Carolina, who is described as the last Black traditional string band player. Through that connection, they align themselves with a line of Black musicians that includes Odell and Nate Thompson, Dink Roberts, John Snipes, Libba Cotten and Emp White.

Their 2010 album Genuine Negro Jig wins the Grammy Award for Best Traditional Folk Album at the 53rd Annual Grammy Awards. The album also places at number 9 in fRoots magazine's top 10 albums of 2010.