Nona Hendryx
As the 2026 Dartmouth Roth Visiting Scholar, the multihyphenate rockstar is collaborating with Dartmouth faculty and breaking new ground in music, Afrofuturism and AI.

Nona Hendryx doesn't follow music's timeline—she rewrites it. A founding member of Labelle, inducted into the R&B Hall of Fame in 1999, she co-created three Gold Albums and the worldwide Platinum phenomenon Lady Marmalade. Her solo catalog spans nine studio albums, a Grammy nomination and collaborations with Prince, Peter Gabriel, George Clinton, Talking Heads and Keith Richards—alongside film work, including the Oscar-nominated Precious and compositions for Alvin Ailey's American Dance Theater.

A self-taught technology pioneer since the 1980s, she has experimented with a plethora of new and old electronic instruments and technology. In 2024, that led to creating and producing The Dream Machine Experience—a world-premiere mixed reality installation at Lincoln Center fusing AR, VR and AI through an Afrofuturist lens, featuring George Clinton, Laurie Anderson, Mickalene Thomas, Skin and Vernon Reid. From Lady Marmalade to the Nonaverse—Nona Hendryx has never stopped asking what music can become.

About the Band
At the helm as Music Director and keyboards is Etienne Stadwijk—a Berklee College of Music graduate and world-class keyboard artist whose remarkable career spans collaborations with Paul Simon, Maxwell, Marcus Miller, Richard Bona and Harry Belafonte. Behind them stands one of the most storied bands ever assembled: Eddie Martinez—whose guitar can be heard on Run-D.M.C.'s Rock Box, Robert Palmer's Simply Irresistible, and Mick Jagger's She's The Boss—alongside Felicia Collins—guitarist for Al Jarreau, touring musician with Cyndi Lauper, and celebrated fixture of The Late Show with David Letterman for its entire run—on second guitar. Carmine Rojas—who laid down iconic bass lines for David Bowie, Rod Stewart, Tina Turner and Carlos Santana—on bass, and Jose Rossy—Puerto Rican percussion virtuoso, former member of Weather Report, and a founding pillar of the original Labelle band—on percussion.