MAYRA ANDRADE (Cape Verde)

A foremost recently-emerging Cape Verdean musician, born in Cuba in 1985, Andrade took the world by storm with her debut album Navega, a collection of songs that are as grounded in the traditional music from her homeland as they are nourished by different musical styles and colours. In 2009 she released a new recording Stória, stória (RCA Victor/Sony Music), where Cape Verdean music is present from beginning to end (morna, coladeira, bandeira …) and a strong connection to Brazilian and Cuban rhythms is felt.

Her excellent voice, spellbinding performance and first-rate accompanying musicians place Andrade into the pantheon of world music.

W www.mayra-andrade.com