Criolo Honours LGBTQ Community with Latest Song ‘Etérea’
11 March, 2019The sound of Criolo appears to be in constant transformation. Starting off with the ‘gangsta rap’ of 2006’s Ainda Há Tempo (when he was still known as Criolo Doido, “crazy Criolo”, that was followed by excursions into MPB and afrobeat on Nó Na Orelha and Convoque Seu Buda before all-out samba on 2017’s Espiral de Ilusão. The variations of style are diverse but Criolo always maintains his critical, ideological and political position on all his work. When re-recording and re-releasing Ainda Há Tempo in 2016, he even changed the lyrics of “Vasilhame”, which contained a transphobic verse.
Now, he arrives with a new song, “Etérea”, to honour the Brazilian LGBTQIA+ community. “This population, despite being at the top of rankings for [victims of] violence and death on the planet, continues to celebrate its existence and culture through resistance groups and collectives against oppression,” he explains.
Again, Criolo offers a musical experiment, immersing himself this time in electronic music. The production is by his usual producer, Daniel Ganjaman, in an unpublished partnership with DKVPZ (Soulection). The song is accompanied by a music video which aims to represent the LGBTQIA+ community, with 8 different performers each giving their own personal interpretation to the music, bringing the essence of diverse groups and elements of the queer culture, and its universe, into action. They are: Ákira Avalanx (Coletivo House of Avalanx), D’Avilla (Popporn e Festa Dando), Fefa (Animalia), Flip (Coletivo Amem), Juju ZL e Kiara (Batekoo), Transälien (Marsha Trans e Coletividade Namíbia) and Zaila (House of Zion).
Brazil is the country that statistically murders the most gays, lesbians, bisexuals and transsexuals in the world. Data from the Gay Group of Bahia revealed that in 2018, 420 deaths occurred, one every 20 hours.
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