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Sara Tavares was only 16 years old, when she won two of Portugal's most
prestigious TV music contests. Born out of a second generation Cape Verdean
immigrants, Sara grew up between two cultures.
Initially known as a singer and
composer of Gospel, Soul and Funk, she gradually incorporated more of her
African music in her compositions. In 1994, she recorded her first album Sara Tavares & Shout, released in 1996. To present the album she performed all over Portugal, Cape Verde, and France.
Her second album
Mi Ma B?, produced by Lokua Kanza, reached gold in Portugal. The album was a
mix of African rhythms and melodic pop songs.
By the end of 1998, Sara Tavares decided to start working on her new album. To achieve that, she stopped performing, and went through a long period of introspection to search for her real roots and influences.
As a result of such profound search,
Mi Ma B? was born. ?Mi Ma B?, which translated from the criolo (language from Cape Verde) means “Me and You”, is an intimate album, wherein Sara’s voice links all the emotions expressed in its lyrics and melodies.
In this record, Sara Tavares establishes herself not only as a huge musical talent, but also as a composer and co-producer, which assures us of her maturity, her talent and of the long career she has in front of her.
Mi Ma B? was produced by Lokua Kanza, a musician from Congo, living in Paris. He has previously worked with other African artists such as Ray Lema, Manu Dibango, Papa Wemba, Miriam Makeba and Youssou N'dour. Together with Sara’s co-production, the final result is a very special album, with African colours and a touch of soul, that winds up stirring the listener's soul.
Sung in three different languages (Portuguese, Criolo and English), “Mi Ma Bô” really shows the universality of the language of music. The album reached gold status in Portugal.
In 2006, her third album,
Balanc?, came out on World Connection (Europe) and Times Square (North
America).
The 27 year old Sara Tavares has become one of the leading exponents of
Lisbon's world music scene. ?There is a big, big generation of Cape Verdeans
and other Africans here in Lisbon, in
Paris,
in Boston, all over? with a kind of messed-up identity,? says Tavares. ?Our generation feels very lost because
there is no culture specifically for us; that talks about our reality.?
?When I walk around with my friends, it?s a very, very interesting community,?
Tavares explains. ?We speak Portuguese slang, Angolan slang, some words in
Cape Verdean Crioulo, and of course some English. In Crioulo there are already
English and French words. This is because slaves from all over the world had to
communicate and didn?t speak the same languages. We are a metisse culture.?
Multilingual wordplay shows up throughout Tavares? album, and she hops across
cultural references as much as she embraces any. The album title
Balanc??pronounced
bal-on-SEH?has many different meanings. The noun balan?o is used in Portuguese
when music ?swings.? Lusophone Africans use the verb form balanc? in a more
general way. ?When you are eating something really good you say ?this food is
balanc?!?? explains Tavares.
?For me the song, ?Balanc?? is also about balancing yourself,? Tavares
continues, ?between sadness and joy; day and night; salt and sugar. It?s
about balancing emotions. You are always walking a thin line and you have to
keep your balance. You have to dance with that line in order to keep standing.
If you stay too rigid, you will fall.?
?I was in Zimbabwe a few years ago and I saw some really drunk people dancing,?
Tavares chuckles. ?We were watching them, and they were always almost falling
and then they would catch themselves. Just like those people dancing, I also
want to dance with that kind of freedom and balance.?
Through music, Tavares seeks cultural roots, along with the help of veteran
African musicians in Lisbon and back in Cape Verde where she travels every year.
?The whole album is like little lullabies to myself,? says Tavares. ?All
the messages are about self-esteem, loving yourself. About liking what is
different in you. About integrating all the parts of you.?
?Bom Feeling,? whose title combines a Portuguese word with an English word that
?everyone uses,? translates as ?Good Feeling.? While some people look
down on the Portuguese slang associated with African people in Portugal, Tavares
embraces it. Tavares says she is from a ?broken home? and identifies with street
culture.
?Poka Terra? is influenced by Afro-Beat and semba (a style from Angola). The
song?s title is an onomatopoeia for the sound a train makes. Tavares is calling
on people to catch the train of consciousness and to become responsible for
yourself. She sings ?An alligator that sleeps will be turned into an alligator
bag sold in some store.?
On ?Planeta Sukri? (Sugar Planet) Tavares places a reggae style sound system on
top of a traditional Cape Verdean rhythm coladeira (a style made popular by
Cesaria Evora). ?The poem of this song can be seen as a love poem,? says
Tavares. ?I am saying ?Take me to a sugar planet, take me to place where
there is no sadness, no cries. And this place is inside of you and me and
everyone.? I mean it more in a spiritual way than a romantic way. The ballads
are very much like little prayers.?
Tavares talks to the moon on ?Muna Xeia? (Full Moon). The song
title emerged when Tavares made a mistake and accidentally combined the English
word ?moon? with the Portuguese word for the same ?lua.? ?It?s a very
feminine song with me talking to the women,? Tavares explains. ?First the
woman inside of me and then the women in Africa and the women in the world. I
sing, ?Moon go in peace, moon go in faith, walk in peace, walk in faith.??
Two years ago, Tavares spent time in Cape Verde working with a contemporary
dance company. ?You know how contemporary artists do crazy experimental
stuff?? she asks. ?Well, they gave me the strength to experiment. If
those who live in and own the culture, then we in diaspora can also experiment.
As long as someone keeps the tradition. It?s a two-sided knife.?
?I want to be a part of a movement like the African Americans were, like the
African Brazilians were,? Tavares says. ?Instead of doing the music of
their ancestors, they have created this musical identity of their own. And it is
now respected. It is considered whole and authentic and genuine. It will be a
long time before the people from my generation do not have to choose between
being African or European. I think you shouldn?t have to choose. You should just
be there. Celebrate that. Be that!? Official Web Site: www.saratavares.com |
