Margareth Menezes
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Margareth Menezes
- Genres: Latin
Biography
Margareth Menezes is an awarded Brazilian pop star with international recognition, having toured with David Byrne and recorded several albums released worldwide, which have been lauded by such publications as Billboard and Rolling Stone magazines. She has also toured extensively throughout Europe, Brazil, and the U.S.Since an early age, Menezes was surrounded by popular music, through both her mother's love for it and the rich musical tradition of Bahia. She soon began to sing in every possible situation, and in her teens started to perform in the animated trios elétricos from Bahia's Carnival. In that period, she also wrote her first songs. Singing in nightclubs in Salvador since age 21, she won the Troféu Caymmi (for the Best Female Interpreter of Bahia) in 1985, and she would win it again in the next decade along with the Troféu Imprensa. Putting together an 11-piece band, she toured all around upstate Bahia. Four years later, she recorded her first solo album on Polygram, Margareth Menezes, dedicated to Bahian grooves. The second one, Elegibô, stayed in first place for 11 weeks on the American charts in the world music category. It was also awarded by Billboard magazine, in spite of having sold only 10,000 copies in the U.S. Rolling Stone magazine appointed the album as one of the five best in the world in the same category.
It was then that David Byrne invited her to be part of his Rei Momo tour. She joined him for 50 live performances in Europe and E.U.A. This opened the opportunity for her first solo presentations throughout the U.S., Canada, France, Italy, and Belgium. In 1990, she recorded her Um Canto Pra Subir, which had a bigger pop influence translated in samba-funk and samba-reggae. "Me Abraça e Me Beija" was the big hit in Brazil. The dance-oriented Kindala came in 1991, selling 10,000 copies in France. Two years later, she released Luz Dourada, which sold 2,000 copies in two weeks in Switzerland. In 1995, performed at the Montreux Jazz Festival, four nights at the Heimatkläne Festival (Berlin, 3,000 attendants each concert), and released Gente de Festa with special guests Caetano Veloso and Maria Betânia. A poll in Billboard magazine indicated her as one of 11 foreign artists best-known to American audiences. In 1996, she toured Italy and three years later, performed in several places in Europe, including Spain's Festivales de Navarra. ~ Alvaro Neder, Rovi
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Margareth Menezes
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Margareth Menezes
| Margareth Menezes | |
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| Background information | |
| Born | October 13, 1962 |
| Origin | Salvador, Bahia, Brasil |
| Genres | Axé MPB Samba-Reggae World Music Afrobeat |
| Occupations | Singer, songwriter, dancer, actress |
| Instruments | Vocals |
| Years active | 1987 - Present |
| Labels | Universal Music, EMI Music, Som Livre, Mango, Tratore, Dubas Música, RBM, MZA Music, Island Records, Warner Music Brasil e Polydor Records |
| Associated acts | Maria Bethânia, Gilberto Gil, Caetano Veloso, Ivete Sangalo, Daniela Mercury, Luís Represas, Carlinhos Brown, Alcione, Lenine, Cláudio Zoli |
| Website | MargarethMenezes.com.br |
Margareth Menezes (born October 13, 1962) is a Brazilian singer from Salvador, Bahia.
Her style is considered axé but her music also steers into samba and MPB territory, at times drawing on African rhythms and reggae.
Menezes is best known in Brazil for her song "Me Abraça e Me Beija", a major hit in 1990. She also scored another hit with "Dandalunda", a song which became the unofficial anthem of the 2003 Salvador carnival.
Menezes has achieved superstardom in her native Bahia but only moderate success in wider Brazil. She is famed for her energetic live performances and regularly tours and performs at carnival celebrations.
In 1990, one of Menezes's tracks "Elegibô (Uma Historia De Ifa)" was used in the Mickey Rourke film Wild Orchid. This prompted Island Records in the US to release a compilation album of some of her older material from Brazil on their subsidiary label, Mango. The album, simply titled Elegibô, was an instant hit, reaching # 1 on the Billboard World Music chart at a time when David Byrne was championing Brazilian music in the US. The title track itself became a regular staple at clubs playing so-called world music throughout the US and Europe. The album also received a full release in the UK, Germany and France. A single, "Tenda do Amor", was also released from the album in some European territories. Menezes toured internationally on the back of this album, generating a lot of press in the process. A second US-released follow-up album Kindala, released late 1991, but repackaged in some territories from the Brazilian version of the same name, also achieved some success. This release also gave Menezes a minor hit album in France too.
In 2001, Menezes released the highly acclaimed Afropopbrasileiro (also known as "Maga") showcasing her trademark fusion of afro-Brazilian beats. The album was produced by Carlinhos Brown of Tribalistas fame and was well received in Brazil and internationally.
Menezes also co-wrote and performed on the 2003 Tribalistas hit "Passe Em Casa", from the million-selling Tribalistas album.
Her 2005 single, "Como Tu", a duet with Brazilian superstar Ivete Sangalo was released amidst much hype because Sangalo was achieving platinum album sales at the time. The track reached the lower reaches of the airplay Top 30 in Brazil but failed to emulate the success of recent Sangalo hits. The hit single was lifted from Menezes' 2005 album release Pra Você; the album received lukewarm reviews, possibly owing to a more poppier sound than previous releases. A second single, the reggae-tinged "Miragem na esquina" performed poorly at radio.
In 2006, the album Pra Você received a Grammy nomination for "Best Brazilian Contemporary Pop Album".
More recently, Menezes participated on the track "Beijo Descarado" by Timbalada which achieved some airplay success in Brazil during the 2007 Carnival celebrations.
In 2010, an acoustic version of her 2008 album Naturalmente was released. The album was recorded at Ilha dos Sapos and featured guests like Gilberto Gil, Carlinhos Brown and Portuguese singer Luis Represas.
Menezes remains one of the most dynamic and popular of the contemporary Brazilian artists achieving international recognition.
Discography
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Mentioned in
Gente de Festa
(1996 Album by Margareth Menezes)
MTV Ao Vivo: Ivete Sangalo
(2003 Music Film)
Afro Brazil
(1988 Album by Various Artists)
Afros E Afoxes Da Bahia
(1988 Album by Various Artists)
Kindala
(1991 Album by Margareth Menezes)
» More