Carolina Chocolate Drops, photo by Julie Roberts

The American folk music tradition runs deep, and is as diverse and eclectic as the country itself. Old-time music, a catch-all term for folk music that pre-dates what we now refer to as bluegrass or country, is part of this fabric. And while this genre is often associated with rural white communities in Appalachia, its true history is more complex. One part of the country that gave rise to its own string band sound was the Piedmont region of the Carolinas, where the music not only thrived during the 19th century, but also included a strong African-American influence.

The Carolina Chocolate Drops is the most well-known among the few remaining African-American acts specializing in this music. They’re headlining on Monday at the Birchmere, after having performed as an opener at that venue, and at events such as the Congressional Blues Festival.

“We’re preservationists only in the way that we play old time string band music, that’s where it ends,” said Dom Flemons, a member of the group, during a recent interview with DCist. “It’s not really that it’s been forgotten, it’s just not had commercial viability. It’s always been there.”