Mariza

1973-12-16

Lourenço Marques, Portuguese Mozambique

Biography

Mariza (Portuguese pronunciation: [mɐˈɾizɐ]),[1][2] born Marisa dos Reis Nunes (16 December 1973, Lourenço Marques, Portuguese Mozambique) is a popular fado singer. Mariza was born to a Portuguese father and a mother of partial African heritage.[3] At age three, her family moved to Metropolitan Portugal, and she was raised in Lisbon's historic quarters of Mouraria and Alfama. While very young she began singing in a wide variety of musical styles, including gospel, soul and jazz. Her father strongly encouraged her to adopt fado; he felt that participating in the traditional music would grant her greater acceptance in the Portuguese community. Mariza has sold over 1,000,000 records worldwide.[4] Music career In 1999 fado's most famous and beloved interpreter, Amália Rodrigues died. In the public remembrance and mourning that followed, fado regained much of its previous popularity, and Mariza was asked to perform a broadcast tribute to Rodrigues' memory, which caused her friends to begin urging her to record an album of fado music. She did so, and in 2001 Fado em Mim was released. It sold an astounding 100,000 copies (4,000 copies of a fado disc would have been...