Gabrilla Ballard is New Orleans native, Writer, Interdisciplinary Artist, Therapist, and Mother.
Writer:
Gabrilla Ballard comes from a long line of storytellers, inheriting the tradition of weaving words into meaning, memory, and magic. Her writing journey began in high school, when she crafted a heartfelt piece for her grandmother, published in her school newspaper. That early act of honoring family through story sparked a lifelong commitment to writing as a tool for reflection, connection, and transformation.
She further honed her craft as a member of the renowned NOMMO Literary Society, led by legendary poet and cultural worker Kalamu Ya Salaam, where she deepened her voice and explored the power of poetry as a form of both personal and collective liberation.
Over the years, Gabrilla’s writing has expanded across genres, including poetry, short stories, personal essays, and now speculative fiction. Whether writing about the complexities of relationships, the transformative process of healing, or the nuanced intersections of power and redemption, her work is always grounded in a desire to witness, uplift, and make sense of the world around her.
Her work has appeared in Lion’s Roar, Duende Literary Journal, For Harriet, and The Times-Picayune. She is also one of the 100 poets featured in From A Bend In The River: An Anthology of New Orleans Poets. In addition to her literary work, Gabrilla is the author of The Vibrant Mamafesto and co-editor of the award-winning book Raw Foods on a Budget (Rollins, Ph.D., 2011).
Currently, she is working on new speculative fiction projects, blending her love of storytelling with explorations of memory, identity, and the liminal spaces where the spiritual and political meet.
Visual Art
Gabrilla Ballard’s creative journey with visual art began in elementary school in New Orleans, when she drew her very first image — a sankofa bird, symbolizing the importance of remembering and honoring the past. That small drawing, infused with meaning, alongside the vibrant colors and patterns of her hometown, sparked a lifelong love of color, texture, and storytelling through visual art.
As a teen, Gabrilla studied Visual Art at the New Orleans Center for Creative Arts (NOCCA), where she deepened her artistic practice and explored the relationship between personal expression and cultural legacy. She went on to paint murals in New Orleans health clinics, using art to create welcoming, healing spaces for the community.
Over the years, her work has been exhibited in cafés and community spaces in both New Orleans and Boston. Her visual art has been featured in the Journal for Progressive Human Services and the River Valley Co-op, and has been showcased at ECA Gallery in Easthampton, Massachusetts. In 2023, Gabrilla was selected as an Easthampton City Arts Studio Artist Resident, where she continued developing work inspired by both the natural and mystical worlds.
Gabrilla’s current series of visual works explores the unconscious, the beautiful, and the difficult through color and form. Working primarily in abstract art, she uses her work to invite viewers to step out of their comfort zones, trust their personal interpretations, and embrace the idea that multiple meanings can co-exist and evolve over time.
Music, Poetry & Performance
Gabrilla’s love of music, writing, and performance was nurtured early, growing up surrounded by her parents’ extensive book and record collection and the vibrant rhythms of New Orleans’ legendary music scene. That creative foundation became the bedrock for the poetry, music, and performances she would craft throughout her life.
As a poet, Gabrilla found her voice in New Orleans’ vibrant poetry scene in the late 1990s, where she became the city’s first National Poetry Slam Champion. In the early 2000s, inspired by both her love of music and the compositions of her late maternal grandfather, Gabrilla picked up the guitar and began writing songs, blending her lyrical gifts with music. During her college years, she established herself as a dynamic spoken word artist, further weaving together poetry and music.
In 2001, Gabrilla moved to Oakland, California, where she was embraced by a tight-knit community of artists. She formed her first band, The Bloodlyne, and performed at beloved Bay Area venues including Jahva House, The Black Box Theatre, and The Independent in San Francisco.
Gabrilla has produced and released two independent musical projects:
- Self-titled EP (2003)
- Urban Angel Songs (2009)
Her voice and lyrics have also been featured on the albums of fellow artists, including Casamena’s Hip-Hop Meditations.
After returning to New Orleans in 2007, Gabrilla performed in Swimming Upstream, a theatrical production based on the real-life stories of women who survived Hurricane Katrina, presented as part of V-Day New Orleans. She also performed with artists including Sunni Patterson, Asia Rainey, Cris Williamson, Vicki Randle, Pamela Means, and Alix Olson as part of the EMANCIPATE Performance Series at The Bowery in New York City.
After relocating to Boston, Massachusetts, in 2009, Gabrilla performed at venues including Encuentro 5, Haley House, Boston GreenFest, and East Meets Words, both as a solo artist and in collaboration with other musicians. In 2013, she formed the trio Sistas in Song alongside cellist Sarvenaz Asiedu and percussionist Nisha Purushotham. She even spent a summer busking in Boston’s subway stations, bringing her music directly to the people.
In 2020, in the wake of national protests following the murder of George Floyd, Gabrilla wrote, produced, and released the single “Even In This Storm,” featuring Miles Gannett. The song was both a lament and a call to action, standing in solidarity with movements for justice and change.
Throughout her career, Gabrilla has shared stages with celebrated artists including Les Nubians, Sonia Sanchez, Medusa, Steel Pulse, and Mos Def. Her music is a rich fusion of soul, world rhythms, and hip-hop beats, influenced by icons like Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder, and Abbey Lincoln, as well as contemporaries such as Lauryn Hill, Jamila Woods, and Georgia Anne Muldrow.
Activism & Community Work
Gabrilla’s creative work is deeply intertwined with her commitment to activism, community healing, and social justice. She takes an intersectional and interdisciplinary approach, blending art, mental health advocacy, food and nutrition education, health policy work, and racial justice initiatives into a cohesive vision for community well-being.
Her activism was shaped by her upbringing in New Orleans, where she worked alongside fellow organizers to transform the New Orleans Public School system before Hurricane Katrina. Her mother, a nurse with the New Orleans Health Department for over 30 years, modeled lifelong community care, inspiring Gabrilla’s own approach.
In the late 1990s, Gabrilla created and coordinated Sisterhood Unified Nation, a cross-city high school conference for young women, paired with a youth-produced newsletter of the same name. She has also worked with youth in the Bay Area and Greater Boston Area, always centering youth voice and leadership.
Gabrilla is the founder of Radical Magical Brilliance, a wellness project centering the well-being, joy, and creative genius of Black women through community building, media arts, and health education. From 2009 to 2013, she also founded and ran the Urban Mamasong Project, an initiative supporting the creative, economic, and self-development of mothers of color.
Her academic work reflects these passions. Gabrilla earned her BA from Goddard College, where she focused on the impact of intergenerational trauma and stress on the creative and emotional lives of mothers. She later earned her Master of Social Work (MSW) from Smith College School for Social Work, with her master’s thesis focusing on Black women living well with chronic illness.
Today
Gabrilla lives, works, and creates in Massachusetts, where she raises her two children while continuing to write, paint, teach, and create pathways for healing and self-expression through the arts.