Dat Mighty 9 feat. Big Chief Romeo

Among the most riveting sights on Mardi Gras Day in New Orleans is the city’s Mardi Gras Indian gangs enacting ritualistic musical battles in the streets, decked out in impossibly colorful, intricate suits. Things can get tense, and rivalry between different neighborhoods, or wards, is common, with each group fighting for pride and notoriety. Romeo Bougere, Big Chief of the 9th Ward Hunters, is a leader in modern-day iterations of the tradition, bringing the visual splendor and high-energy sound of Mardi Gras Indian culture to audiences all over the world with his newest group, Dat Mighty 9.

“Masking” in New Orleans refers to “Black Masking Indians” or “Mardi Gras Indians” ceremonially stepping into the streets in their hand-sewn, three-dimensional feathered or flat patched, and beaded suits. Though exact origins are hard to pinpoint, since at least the 19th century Black New Orleanians have paid homage to Native Americans who assisted their enslaved ancestors on Mardi Gras—the final day of Carnival. Through a spectacular display of Afrocentric visual, musical, and theatrical arts, they represent their neighborhoods—moving through and confronting one another in city streets with tambourines and cowbells, and performing a shared canon of call-and-response chants that, over generations, has influenced virtually all of the city’s signature music traditions. The Wild Magnolias, a famous Mardi Gras Indian gang, made history in 1970 when Big Chiefs Bo Dollis and Monk Boudreaux added funk musicians on several game-changing records.

Romeo Bougere grew up surrounded by the sounds of the city and has deep roots in New Orleans’s rich music history. Bougere’s family has longstanding ties to the 9th Ward Hunters. He began masking at age four with them, assuming leadership at 17. Steeped in New Orleans funk, hip hop, and R&B, he is also a soulful vocalist and strong percussionist. In 2014, Bougere teamed up with the Big Chief of the 7th Ward Creole Hunters after a year’s long rivalry. The two formed the 79rs Gang and recorded their debut Fire on the Bayou, followed by the Expect the Unexpected, a ground-breaking record incorporating electronic elements and hip hop. Romeo explains, “The norm, for me, wasn’t going to cut it…. The norm is what people expect.” Now leading his own group, Bougere brings his knowledge and skill to a new generation of New Orleans Mardi Gras Indian musicians while taking his sound to new heights—notably including a 2025 remix of the Professor Longhair’s Mardi Gras anthem, “I’m Feeling Good,” breathing new life into the classic track.

Harkening back to the Mardi Gras Indian funk sound and instrumentation established by the Wild Magnolias, Dat Mighty 9 performs live as an eight-piece band, featuring vocals, guitar, bass, drums, masking and layers of percussion, and trombone. Producer, recording engineer, and drummer Eric Heigle expands the sound with sequencers, synthesizers, and drum machines. The end result: propelling a deep New Orleans tradition into thrilling new territory.