About to turn 88, Elza Soares is, first and foremost, a survivor.
Owner of a unique, hoarse voice, and using the scat singing technique, created by Louis Armstrong, Elza began singing at the age of 13. With clothing much larger than her size, borrowed from her mother, she appeared on the show hosted by the great Ari Barroso, who, upon seeing her, asked: “What planet did you come from, sweetheart?” To which Elza immediately replied, “From the Planet Hunger!”
Elza never quit singing or being bold: She married the famous Brazilian football player, Mané Garrincha, amidst scandal, since after all, he left his wife to stay with her. She then became a widow, lost three children and kept reinventing herself, like a real phoenix. In 1999, she was voted the Singer of the Millennium by the BBC. Her name is also featured on the list of the 100 greatest voices of Brazilian music, by the Rolling Stone magazine. In music, she has presented a more and more avant-garde work. Her latest work, “Deus É Mulher” (“God Is Woman”), from 2018, is an optimistic ode to women, their joys, and torments.
