Cleo Reed

A student of Black underground sound and intention, Cleo Reed (née Ella Josephine Julia Moore) is a multi-disciplinary artist whose practice uses participatory art, music composition, instrument-making, bandleading, installation, and fabric arts. Raised in NYC and DC, Reed’s background ranges from classical training at Harlem School of the Arts, to studying sound engineering & design at Berklee College of Music.

Reed’s 2025 LP CUNTRY is a sprawling folk-electronic offering exploring the rage that comes from grappling with the grips of labor — both on the body and in the American workplace. A double LP, Side A pulls influence from the canon of American work songs — blues, soul, folk, and country. Side B, sonically dystopian and electronic forward, references the format with a more rap-centric approach. The dueling sides symbolize the binary, and the opposing forces represented in Reed’s NYC upbringing vs. their family’s southern lineage.

CUNTRY was named a top album of 2025 from Pitchfork, Stereogum, That Good Sh*t, and NPR Music. Reed was included in Dazed magazine’s iconic Dazed 100 list. Reed has performed at the Brooklyn Museum, Lincoln Center, Afropunk, Big Ears Festival, New Orleans Jazz Festival, Le Banlieue Bleues, and more. Reed has supported US, UK & European tour dates with BadBadNotGood, Sudan Archives, Nick Hakim, Armand Hammer, and Annahstasia, amongst others. Reed is a young, visionary artist with a singular voice and an unwavering commitment to honoring those that came before while subverting the status quo.

Cleo Reed – guitar & vocals
Matthew Jamal – cello