Frederico7 – Brasileirôu (Lion’s Lair Records, 2026)
On Brasileirôu, Frederico7 treats Brazil as an inner geography. On its 12 songs, the Brazilian-born songwriter brings together warm, timeless soul; contemporary Brazilian jazz; samba; exquisite orchestral arrangements; engaging choruses; and Afro-Brazilian rhythms. The songs range from jubilant and charming to spiritual and emotive.
The record follows 2019’s Exótico Americano, an album that focused on immigration and life between cultures with a sharper sense of displacement. Brasileirôu approaches the same territory from a different emotional position. The central question is no longer where Frederico7 belongs. Instead, the songs suggest that Brazil has become inseparable from the way he perceives the world.
That shift gives the album unusual coherence, especially because much of its material was crafted during almost two decades. Songs written in separate periods now appear beside one another as parts of a larger meditation on ancestry, desire, resilience, grief, renewal, and joy. Although most of the material is performed in Portuguese, Frederico7 inserts Spanish in the chameleonic “Chamego,” a song that also features a tasty, yet brief, progressive rock-style organ solo.
Producer and mixer Beto Martinez, a Latin Grammy winner, brought the diverse influences into a cohesive production. Meanwhile, Pedro Dom’s superb arrangements and orchestration add another dimension, at times almost cinematic. In addition, Luiz Coutinho supplies a formidable rhythmic foundation. The larger cast of musicians from Austin and Brazil provides broader character.
The title captures the idea of Brazilian identity. Frederico7 says the word Brasileirôu came to him during a return trip to Brazil with his wife and creative partner, visual artist Vivienne J. Forte, after years away due to circumstance, finances, and the pandemic. Loosely, the word suggests the act of becoming Brazilianized. Frederico7 gives it a wider meaning: a state of warmth, adaptability, invention and emotional acuity, with resilience at its core.
Frederico7 shared: “Brasileirôu is to carry Brazil inside my chest, wherever life may take me. This album is an act of integration and belonging. It is an embrace of the richness of Brazil that lives in me: full of affection, imagination, resilience, and joy.
Even in the face of difficulties, we keep dancing. Stretching the fiber of samba, finding ourselves in the echo of the berimbau, and dreaming of better futures. With plants, people, animals, places, and worlds full of love.”
The album also reflects the community that surrounds it. More than 200 supporters backed the project through a grassroots campaign, while Frederico7’s years of work within Austin’s Brazilian cultural scene provide a wider context for the music. Through events such as SouthAmericano, Brazil Nights and Tropicália Nights, as well as work in public art and arts education, he has helped create spaces where Brazilian and broader Latin American culture can enter sustained dialogue with Austin.
Forte’s visual artwork extends the record’s symbolic world through images of the pantera, Oxumaré (divine rainbow serpent), cavalo branco (white horse), the “flower kisser” beija-flor (hummingbird), rivers, forests, sun, and moon. Frederico7 describes the full project as a “musical portal,” a phrase that suits the album’s ambitions.
Producer Beto Martinez has called the album Frederico7’s finest work. “I stand proudly behind this album. It’s your best work ever.”
Musicians: Frederico7 on vocals, nylon-string guitar; Pedro Dom on arrangements, orchestrations; Luiz Coutinho on percussion; Alán Uribe on electric bass; Michael Hale on drums; Denise Brazão on vocals; Sonia McLaughlin on vocals; Julie Koidin on flutes; Joshua Thomson on soprano and tenor saxophones; Joseph Woullard on alto and baritone saxophones; Josh Peters on trumpet; Roberto Riggio on violins; Evan Marley on keyboards, melodica on tracks 3 and 6.
Produced and mixed by Beto Martinez.
Album artwork and photography by Vivienne J. Forte
Recorded at Lechehouse Music, Buda, Texas – 2025-2026
Mastered by Sam Patlove at Bud’s Recording, Austin, Texas
Album release concert:
Sunday, August 23, 5:00 p.m.
The Rosette Theater
3908 Avenue B, Austin.
Buy Brasileirôu.
Author: Angel Romero
Angel Romero y Ruiz has dedicated his life to musical exploration. His efforts included the creation of two online portals, worldmusiccentral.org and musicasdelmundo.com. In addition, Angel is the co-founder of the Transglobal World Music Chart, a panel of world music DJs and writers that celebrates global sounds. Furthermore, he delved into the record business, producing world music studio albums and compilations. His works have appeared on Alula Records, Ellipsis Arts, Indígena Records and Music of the World.