Best Of Mariza

Loucura
Chuva
É ou nao é
Maria Lisboa
Menino Do Bairro Negro
Há Palavras Que Nos Beijam
O tempo nao pára
Rosa Branca
Primavera
Barco Negro
Meu Fado Meu
Medo
Promete, Jura (Fado Sérgio)
Feira De Castro
Há Uma Música Do Povo
Recusa
Cavaleiro Monge
Oiça Lá O Senhor Vinho
O Gente Da Minha Terra
Smile
Pequenas Verdades
Meu Fado Meu
Hay Una Música Del Pueblo feat. José Mercé

Fado, the national song of Portugal, was looking for a new female singer, the combination of talent, voice, interpretation and showmanship that would allow it to continue enchanting audiences the world over. And then, from the unexpected back streets and narrow alleys of Lisbon's old Moorish neighbourhood of Mouraria where Fado held firm and proud, that voice arrived. An enveloping, confident voice that also had something else, something new, something unusual: warm, swinging tones from the Mozambique where Mariza had been born before moving to Mouraria with her family.

One listen was all it took, and then her unusual stage presence, magnetic, carried by that wondrous voice, conquered audiences. First in Portugal, where she swept the public and critics to their feet; then worldwide, as Mariza managed to do what no other Fado singer had since the legendary Amália – become the worldwide face of Fado, become a critics' darling and an audience favourite, transcending her native country to become a singer for all the world, of all the world.

Europe, Asia, United States... Mariza's powerful, clear voice rang out throughout the world, remaining firmly connected to the Fado she learned and became a part of in her Lisbon, but also able to transport it elsewhere, make it a new song for new audiences, for new times. Because these are new times as well, and Mariza's Fado refuses to stand still.

Her debut album, 2001's “Fado em Mim”, was a mere calling card for her remarkable performing skills, the starting point of a journey that took her out around the world. With the producers she selected for each of her follow-up albums, that journey became more and more wide-ranging: Carlos Maria Trindade of Madredeus in “Fado Curvo”; Caetano Veloso and Ryuichi Sakamoto collaborator Jaques Morelenbaum in “Transparente”; Spanish Flamenco guitarist Javier Limón in “Terra”. Then Mariza returned to her origins with “Fado Tradicional”, an album entirely composed of classic, traditional, rigorous Fado recordings. Like a traveller who carries her roots all over the world then returns to her homeland to recharge her energies and passions and reconnect with her innermost, deepest soul.

Through her journeys, Mariza accumulated honours and friendships. Over one million albums sold around the world and more than 30 Platinum awards in the 35 countries where her records were released. Performances with Carlos do Carmo, Miguel Poveda, Concha Buika, Lenny Kravitz, her presence in Spanish filmmaker Carlos Saura's homage to Fado, “Fados”.

Three Best European World Music Artist Awards from BBC Radio; the Best World Music Album award from the German press; the Portuguese Golden Globe for best singer; two nominations for Latin Grammy. Mariza has been awarded the Order of Henry the Navigator by former Portuguese President Jorge Sampaio and the Vermeil Medal from the French Academy of Arts, Sciences and Letters. She has performed with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, with the Lisbon Sinfonietta, with the Chinese Philharmonic, and has spent countless months touring the world, singing in instantly recognisable venues such as London's Royal Festival Hall, Queen Elizabeth Hall or Union Chapel; Frankfurt's Alte Oper; the Carnegie Hall and the Hollywood Bowl; Los Angeles' Walt Disney Concert Hall; Paris' Salle Pleyel and Théâtre de la Ville; Madrid's Teatro Albéniz or Barcelona's Palau de la Musica... But she feels comfortable as well in festivals such as WOMAD or Rock in Rio.

Through a career that is still under 15 years, Mariza has become the public face, the true ambassador of a country through the music that best translates her soul, as well as a Good Will Ambassador for UNICEF. Five studio albums and three live recordings document the growth of her performing talent. And now is the time to look back, see the road taken so far, realise how much is left to walk. 17 songs taken from her studio albums, two newly-recorded tracks (“É ou não é?” and “O Tempo Não Pára”) and four bonus tracks (among which her very first English-language recording, a cover of Charles Chaplin's “Smile”), are proof of what Mariza has become: one of the instantly recognisable, one-name divas, not of world music but simply of music. Amália, Piaf, Elis, Judy, Aretha – and now Mariza. Welcome to her “Best Of”, in the certainty that the best is yet to come.