Brittney Denise Parks, better known by her stage name Sudan Archives, is an American violinist and singer based in Los Angeles, California. She is signed to Stones Throw Records.
Parks grew up in Cincinnati, Ohio. Her biological father was a preacher; her stepfather was a music producer and encouraged her to pursue music as a career. She began playing violin in the 4th grade after the owner of a local music shop visited her school and demonstrated the instrument. Other than a single year of musical training, she is self-taught, learning through playing by ear in her church's choir. When Parks was 17, she told her mother she didn't like her name; her mother recommended the nickname, "Sudan," A meeting with an ethnomusicologist gave Sudan the idea to add the surname "Archives." She honed her at-home style after moving to Los Angeles at 19 to study music technology...
