Sassyfras Style

Family Friendly Music 

Sassyfras Style 

...is fun and fearless, crazy and weird, offset, off kilter, off key....wait scratch that last part. Sassyfras Style is get down so you can get up kind of music!

 

Nominated for Best of The Beat Awards 2016

Featured on The Ellen DeGeneres Show in 2018

Featured Performer at French Quarter Festival in 2017-2022

Featured on MTV's Ridiculousness Show August 26, 2018

Opened for Portugal.The Man 9/14/18

Featured Performer on America's Got Talent July 23, 2019

New Orleans Film Festival Cinematography Winner, Nobody May Come, November 14, 2020

Opened for Marc Rebillet Oct 5, 2021

Opened for Clownvis Presley May 2022

 Toronto Arthouse Film Festival-Best Documentary Feature Film, Nobody May Come, November 2022

Two Sold Out Theaters at One Night Screening of Documentary Feature Nobody May Come- The Broad Theater Jan 2023

 

Keep up with Sassy news!

"I believe that Mrs. Sass is my wife's spirit animal."
- Dwayne Wade
 
"Her current music is part low-fi pop and part performance art. As a performer she’s absolutely fearless."
-Offbeat Magazine (Brett Milano)

"Valerie has captured the eye of a youthful audience. Her trademarked sassiness and the pure joy, quirkiness, energy, and courage she exudes on stage has her playing venues more noted for punk, hip hop, and indie crowds."
-Anti-Gravity Magazine (Kevin Barrios)

"Valerie Sassyfras embodies the perfect blend of musical ability and eccentricity. She has decades of studying and performing music under her belt and has delved into just about every genre while mastering the art of the one woman show."
-Where Y'at (Kimmie Tubre)
 

"Alex Rawls - why don't you ask her instead of writing an article (which, I read to the end), yet leaves your question unanswered? I'm sure she'll talk with you. I've seen her play many times, all fun. There is a face value component to it, an only-in-this-town component to it, an element of punk rock attitude, a good bit of playfulness, subversiveness, some shenanigans, and just plain good ole fun, albeit it wrapped in a curious package. Many people set out to be carbon copies of the tone of the day. Many other artists put their fingers in the air to see which way the musical wind is blowing, and the mediocrity that results is mind-numbing. That's not what is going on here.

Valerie Sassyfras is one-of-a-kind, and proud of it. I think that is to be applauded.

She got a small cult following, and she is adored in this town in a similar way to Mr. Okra or Frank Davis or Arthur Hardy. So what if she's got a wee bit of Ruthie the Duck Lady in her — she is an iconoclast. 

The gigs aren't all about the "look-at-me, I just took a selfie to prove I exist at this place, in this moment, or it just didn't happen, nor could it possibly be important if I wasn't here to show you" kind of crowds. 

She is getting paid, and for the record she is not the only local artist who plays to small crowds or half-interested crowds in this town. 

She keeps getting gigs. She keeps playing parties. 

In one of my favorite Naturally N'Awlins moments, it was early in the pandemic, March 14th, of 2020, to be exact, and in the first instance of LaToya and Avegno showing us they had lost their minds, and outstepped their bounds, they shut down St. Patrick's Day celebrations (fine), then attempted to prevent citizens from gathering in the streets, on the sidewalks, and in private yards outside, across the city. 

Valerie Sassyfras was booked to play a party. I'm standing outside the house, perhaps an hour or so before the gig is set to begin, and up comes a car, a guy pops out and says, "hey bud, help me get all these giant inflatable pickles out of the back seat." 

It was, in that moment, I knew Valerie was going to be the entertainment. 

Sure enough, she showed up, show went on, only to eventually be approached by NOPD — where they wanted to shut it down. The crowd did not get unruly, but you can tell no one was having it, and not a single person saw the point of doing so. We were outside, in the sunshine, FFS.

To her credit, and with her grace, wit, and charm, she coaxed a few more joyful songs from those cops, engaged in good-natured banter with NOPD, and managed, rather than contributed to what could have been a tough situation. 

That's masterful, that's Valerie, and that's just about as New Orleans as it gets."

Scott Mccrossen