Fafá de Belém

Brazilian actress and singer (born 1956)

Fafá de Belém
Fafá in 2022
Background information
Birth name	Maria de Fátima Palha de Figueiredo
Born	(1956-08-09) August 9, 1956 (age 67)
Origin	Belém do Pará, Pará, Brazil
Genres	MPB, pop
Occupation(s)	Singer and actress
Years active	1973–present

Musical artist

Fafá de Belém, born Maria de Fátima Palha de Figueiredo in Belém do Pará on August 9, 1956, is a Brazilian singer considered one of the great female singers of MPB (Musica Popular Brasileira).^[1]^[2] She took her stage name from the city of her birth and in addition to a successful recording career that spans over three decades, it is fair to say that she has been one of the great sex symbols of Brazilian pop music. Her husky mezzo-soprano voice is known for its extensive emotional range, from tender ballads, to sensual love songs, to Portuguese fados all the way to energetic sambas and lambadas.^[3]

Biography

Born in Belém in 1956, she made her public debut in her home town in 1973. In the next year she performed shows with Zé Rodrix in Rio de Janeiro and with Sérgio Ricardo in Belém and Salvador da Bahia. In the same year she hit the charts with "Filho da Bahia", then recorded for the soundtrack of the TV Globo soap opera Gabriela; she also released her first single that year. In 1976 Fafá de Belém recorded her first LP; Tamba Tajá, which was praised by critics. In 1984 she became the muse of the movement in favour of free elections in Brazil, singing "Menestrel das Alagoas" (pt), written by Milton Nascimento and Fernando Brant, before a million people in Rio de Janeiro. In the same period her highly popular interpretation of the Brazilian National Anthem at mass gatherings got her into trouble with the ruling military regime that was soon replaced by a popularly elected president.

In 1993 her album Meu Fado went platinum in Portugal,^[4] one of the countries where she is widely popular. Though not a composer herself she has recorded memorable covers of Brazil's greatest composers, notably her all-Chico Buarque CD Tanto Mar released in 2004. Fafa's 2005 release Novo Millennium, a compilation of hits and some new material, sold 500,000 copies in its first month in stores.^[5]

Her album Humana was considered one of the 25 best Brazilian albums of the first half of 2019 by the São Paulo Association of Art Critics.^[6] In 2015, Do tamanho certo para o meu sorriso marks his 40th career anniversary, having been released after ten years without recording in studio. It is an album that celebrates Pará brega, bringing together classic songs and some unreleased ones, such as the track Asfalto Amarelo (Felipe Cordeiro, Manoel Cordeiro and Zeca Baleiro).^[7]^[8] In 2019, his album Humana was elected one of the 25 best Brazilian albums by the Paulista Association of Art Critics.^[9]

Discography

1976 – Tamba-Tajá
1977 – Água
1978 – Banho de cheiro
1979 – Estrela radiante
1980 – Crença
1982 – Essential
1983 – Fafá de Belém
1985 – Aprendizes da esperança
1986 – Atrevida
1987 – Grandes amores
1988 – Sozinha
1989 – Fafá
1991 – Doces palavras
1992 – Meu fado
1993 – Do fundo do meu coração
1994 – Cantiga pra ninar meu namorado
1995 – Fafá – ao vivo
1996 – Pássaro sonhador
1998 – Coração brasileiro
2000 – Maria de Fátima Palha Figueiredo
2002 – Voz e piano – ao vivo
2002 – O canto das águas
2004 – Tanto mar – Fafá de Belém canta Chico Buarque
2007 – Fafá de Belém – ao vivo (CD e DVD)
2015 – Do Tamanho Certo para o Meu Sorriso
2017 – Do Tamanho Certo para o Meu Sorriso - Ao Vivo
2019 – Humana

References

^ "Fafá de Belém". Dicionário Cravo Albin da Música popular Brasileira. 2023. Archived from the original on April 25, 2023. Retrieved April 25, 2023.
^ "Imagens da cantora Fafá de Belém". Folha de S. Paulo. May 21, 2013. Archived from the original on April 26, 2023. Retrieved April 26, 2023.
^ Tatiana Rocha (2023). "Fafá de Belém". MPBnet. Archived from the original on April 25, 2023. Retrieved April 25, 2023.
^ Fafá de Belém “vermelhou” ao receber medalha do Turismo de Portugal
^ Fafá de Belém: “Me envolvo com tudo. Sou dessas!”
^ Antunes, Pedro (August 16, 2019). "Os 25 melhores discos de 2019 até agora, segundo a APCA [LISTA]". Rolling Stone Brasil (in Portuguese). Grupo Perfil. Retrieved January 2, 2021.
^ Mauro Ferreira (April 5, 2019). "Fafá de Belém se eleva em álbum invernal ao fazer desabar o castelo de cartas e músicas marcadas". G1. Archived from the original on April 27, 2023. Retrieved April 27, 2023.
^ Mauro Ferreira (March 25, 2017). "Fafá lança o segundo DVD da carreira com gravação de belo show de 2015". G1. Archived from the original on April 27, 2023. Retrieved April 27, 2023.
^ Antunes, Pedro (August 16, 2019). "Os 25 melhores discos de 2019 até agora, segundo a APCA [LISTA]". Rolling Stone Brasil. Grupo Perfil. Retrieved January 2, 2021.