In 2013, the Estonian songwriter and producer Maria Minerva (née Juur) toured the U.S. with Chelsea Faith Dolan, aka Cherushii. Both were signed to DIY dance imprint 100% Silk; label co-founder Britt Brown had set them up on a cross-country “blind date” of sorts, knowing that Dolan had a car and suspecting that the two might get along. Sure enough, the experience of spending hours together on the road between San Diego and Chicago, sleeping on air mattresses in strangers’ homes and reveling in each other’s dazzling live performances, night after sparsely attended night, brought them closer together.
But their artistic partnership was barely realized before Cherushii perished in the 2016 Ghost Ship fire, a three-alarm blaze that ripped through an Oakland warehouse and claimed 36 lives. Following her friend’s death, Minerva became a steward of her legacy, taking responsibility for posting on her Facebook page (along with Dolan’s sister and audiovisual artist David Last) and penning a thoughtful tribute that doubled as an introduction to Cherushii’s life and music. bit.ly
But their artistic partnership was barely realized before Cherushii perished in the 2016 Ghost Ship fire, a three-alarm blaze that ripped through an Oakland warehouse and claimed 36 lives. Following her friend’s death, Minerva became a steward of her legacy, taking responsibility for posting on her Facebook page (along with Dolan’s sister and audiovisual artist David Last) and penning a thoughtful tribute that doubled as an introduction to Cherushii’s life and music. bit.ly