Cesaria Evora entered the history of music barefoot and took her place in it as a famous singer and composer. The peak of popularity for Cesaria came at 52 years old. The marvelous timbre of the barefoot prima's strong and emotional voice leaves no one indifferent. Anyone who has heard Cesaria Evora sing her peculiar “saudaji” is immediately imbued with a story that sounds in an unfamiliar language. The melody of the song pours out from the lips of the performer so penetratingly that it does not need to be translated - the soul understands and feels everything without unnecessary prompts.
The story of a barefoot diva
In 1941, at the end of August, on the island of Sao Vicente, in the city of Mindelo, Cesaria Evora was born into a large poor family. The biography of the future pop star is centered around her native island, which she has not left her whole life. The father of the family died early, leaving seven children in the care of his mother.
From the age of 14, Cesaria begins performing on the stages of his native port town. Following the musical fashion of the time, she sings a coladera, African songs and a mora - nostalgic motives about love, sadness, separation, life. The singer's magic timbre fascinatingly acted on the audience.
At the age of 17, the performer of slow and rhythmic Kaboverdian songs had already formed their own composition of musicians. So Cesaria with his group for a long time and performs, moving from club to club, giving concerts and earning it a living. The black-skinned bright girl with a memorable texture touched the strings of the soul of the audience with her marvelous voice. She quickly won the recognition and love of her people, receiving the title of “Queen of the Morn”.
In 1975, after changing the political status of Senegal, Cesaria does not seek to emigrate, but remains in his hometown. Continuing to work in the usual role, the singer several times tried her luck, recording in Lisbon. But she was destined to become famous only in the 80s, after meeting a young Frenchman, José Da Silva, who was amazed and subdued by the performance of Cesaria. Having agreed to his persuasion to go to Paris and record a record, the singer is radically changing her lifestyle.
Black cinderella
After the first album, released in 1988, Cesaria releases a new one almost every year. In 1992, after the recording of the album Miss Perfumado, the 52-year-old performer became a pop star. Speaking barefoot to the accompaniment of a violin, clarinet, piano, accordion and ukulele, she gains very great fame throughout Europe. The world, saturated with boulevard romances and chanson, was carried away by the Portuguese blues according to the version of Cape Verdi - jazz in a peculiar Creole dialect.
Peak of popularity
In 1995, the released Cesaria album was nominated for a Grammy Award and was recognized by many central American publications as "The Best Album of the Year." Musical compositions from this collection for a long time occupied the highest positions of the charts. Cesaria receives recognition throughout Europe, Russia, Ukraine, and especially in France. Her popularity was huge at that time and remains the same now. The songs in her performance, like herself, have gone down in history forever and demonstrated how talent conquers rock. In the music she sings, the whole of Cesaria Evora. “Besame Mucho” in her performance sounds romantic, soulful, deep, with inner charm and beauty inherent only to this black woman.
Strong personality
Personal happiness in love with Cesaria did not work out. It was not possible to create a family with a loving and understanding person who could support her in trouble and joy, but she had three wonderful children left from the search for the second half. She raised them herself. The sadness, longing and loneliness of this woman are subtly felt in her songs. She devotes all love to children, music, her people, her homeland.
Having become famous, Cesaria no longer urgently needs a livelihood. The fame of a pop star brought good income, which she does not particularly spend on herself. Having bought a father’s house and several inexpensive cars, she gives almost all the millions she has earned to the development of health and education systems in her country. Understanding how her compatriots live, she helps them, always remembers where she comes from, and remains true to her principles.
Contribution of the singer to the musical culture
The way of life of the people of the Cape Verde archipelago left an imprint on the work of Cesaria Evora. Most of the Caboverdian people to this day live below the poverty line, as she herself once was. This explains her constant performance on the stage barefoot. This is a tribute to the people and their poverty, it is part of their culture. So lived, without changing her principles and views, Cesaria Evora. Her biography demonstrates how she always sought to carry to the masses a special Portuguese word - “saudaji”. Performing songs in large and famous concert venues in a strange Creole dialect, she was able to tell the whole world the story of her people, show her personal spiritual beauty with a mixture of lyrics and patriotism.