Margareth Menezes, the dissonant voice of Bahia
The afropop muse, who grew apart from her axé conterparts and became better known abroad than in Brazil, plays a single show in Rio with Cássia Eller, Daúde and Sandra de Sá
Rodrigo Faour
31/10/2000
Margareth Menezes is finally back in Rio after at least five years. What took her so long? Maybe the fact that the afropop singer has never fit in her counterparts’ clothes – that is, she never played axé music. Discovered by David Byrne in the late 80s, Margareth is one among many Brazilian artists who enjoy greater visibility abroad than inside of Brazil – she’s extensively toured Europe and USA for the last a decade, and the five albums that she made here were better promoted abroad. As a result, she has spent the past five years unsuccessfully trying to put out her ‘new’ CD, which caused Margareth to confine her performances to her native Bahia.
"I keep doing what I’ve always done. I reckon the Brazilian market is pretty weird", she regrets. Complaints aside, Margareth’s quite enthusiastic about her show in Rio: "It is a relaxed performance", says the nearly shy woman who turns into a lion on stage, with contagious voice and charisma.
The set list is appealing. Alone, Margareth sings her own standards like Alegria da Cidade and Faraó, besides covers of Uns (Caetano Veloso), Papagaio do Futuro (Alceu Valença) and the new Moderninha (Margareth Menezes). With Cássia Eller, she sings Vaca Profona (also written by Caetano); with Sandra de Sá, the anthological funk Olhos Coloridos, and with Daúde, the long forgotten Ogunhê. The four of them get together for the final song, Todo Amor Que Houver Nessa Vida (Frejat/Cazuza).
Full schedule
Margareth does not subscribe to the idea that living in Salvador makes things harder: "I don’t know about that. The fact is that I love living here, even because I’m close to my parents. I can spend some time away, but only if I’m working. If not, I really like to stay here. After the show in Rio, I’ll go back to Bahia and then I’ll be performing in Italy", she celebrates.
"I keep doing what I’ve always done. I reckon the Brazilian market is pretty weird", she regrets. Complaints aside, Margareth’s quite enthusiastic about her show in Rio: "It is a relaxed performance", says the nearly shy woman who turns into a lion on stage, with contagious voice and charisma.
The set list is appealing. Alone, Margareth sings her own standards like Alegria da Cidade and Faraó, besides covers of Uns (Caetano Veloso), Papagaio do Futuro (Alceu Valença) and the new Moderninha (Margareth Menezes). With Cássia Eller, she sings Vaca Profona (also written by Caetano); with Sandra de Sá, the anthological funk Olhos Coloridos, and with Daúde, the long forgotten Ogunhê. The four of them get together for the final song, Todo Amor Que Houver Nessa Vida (Frejat/Cazuza).
Full schedule
Margareth does not subscribe to the idea that living in Salvador makes things harder: "I don’t know about that. The fact is that I love living here, even because I’m close to my parents. I can spend some time away, but only if I’m working. If not, I really like to stay here. After the show in Rio, I’ll go back to Bahia and then I’ll be performing in Italy", she celebrates.