Occasionally, if family members agree, the husband will live with the wife's family. Traditionally, young people were not allowed to marry outside their own caste, for to do so meant their children were placed into a lower caste. More recently, the young have freedom to love and marry anyone they like. However, the Black Yi have been more resistant to change and retain much of their strictness concerning marriage outside their own caste. The Yi love music.
Women often sing while working and greet one another in song.
A three-stringed fiddle with a handle about one meter long and a large sound box about a foot in diameter is played at social gatherings. Almost all men play this instrument. A flute is also played. The Torch Festival, the major festival for the Yi, is a harvest celebration and falls on the 24th day of the sixth lunar month. Chinese New Year is also an important holiday for them.