Ildo Lobo (November 25, 1953 – October 20, 2004) was a
Cape Verde
Cape Verde or Cabo Verde, officially the Republic of Cabo Verde, is an island country and archipelagic state of West Africa in the central Atlantic Ocean, consisting of ten volcanic islands with a combined land area of about . These islands ...
an singer. His versatile and melodic voice, commanding stage presence and trademark
beret
A beret ( , ; ; ; ) is a soft, round, flat-crowned cap made of hand-knitted wool, crocheted cotton, wool felt, or acrylic fibre.
Mass production of berets began in the 19th century in Southern France and the north of History of Spain (1808 ...
s made him one of the most recognizable performers in Cape Verde."Ildo Lobo, Cape Verde's Greatest Male Singer Passed Away" at ''World Music Central'' Always well known throughout the Cape Verde Islands, Lobo rose to international fame with his first solo work, "''Nôs Morna''", following it with another album "''Intellectual''".
Biography
Lobo was born on the island of Sal in the town of Pedra de Lume, where he worked alongside his family in the local salt mines during his youth. When the Cape Verdian salt industry died down, Lobo was forced to find other means of work. Luckily for Lobo, music was his first love. His voice would put him in constant demand at local bars and music festivals.
Lobo's musical talent would eventually place the island of Sal permanently on the Cape Verdian musical map to rival the islands of Santiago, São Vicente, and São Nicolau as bona fide origins of Cape Verdian talent.
Lobo consummately mastered most styles of Cape Verdian music, but he was best known on stage for his effortless, soul-stirring ''mornas''. He could also arouse the crowd with his hard-hitting coladeras. Lobo, as an adult, moved to
Praia
Praia (, Portuguese for "beach") is the capital and largest city of Cape Verde.Liceu Domingos Ramos and later began his career as vocalist of the band Os Tubarões ("The Sharks"). After his stellar multi-album career with Os Tubarões, Lobo launched his solo career with his acclaimed album ''Nôs Morna'' launched in 1996, the album was produced by Mário Lúcio of the Simentera band, it was recorded at Lusafrica in
Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
. Ildo Lobo along with Fantcha performed in Paris at a concert on 27 March 1998. His second album was ''Intellectual'' released in 2001 and featured the greatest singer Cesária Évora.
Like many Cape Verdian musicians of his day, Lobo maintained a full-time job as an airport customs officer despite having a busy traveling concert and studio recording schedule. His last work, ''Incondicional'', was released in October 2004, a few days after his death in Praia at age 50."Cape Verde mourns Creole singer Ildo Lobo" at afrol News Most sources state that he died of a
heart attack
A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when Ischemia, blood flow decreases or stops in one of the coronary arteries of the heart, causing infarction (tissue death) to the heart muscle. The most common symptom ...
, but some Cape Verdian sources claim that he died of
diabetes
Diabetes mellitus, commonly known as diabetes, is a group of common endocrine diseases characterized by sustained high blood sugar levels. Diabetes is due to either the pancreas not producing enough of the hormone insulin, or the cells of th ...
related complications. Lobo's popularity was such that all public employees in the city of Praia were given the afternoon off to mourn. In his island birthplace, Sal, all government offices were closed and flags were flown at half-staff for three days.
His last album was produced by the keyboardist Fernando "Nando" Andrade.
According to worldmusiccentral.com, "Lobo was one of those men whose political message was inseparably linked to the musical expression and poetry of mornas" and the site named Lobo "Cape Verde's Greatest Male Singer." Lobo's death in 2004 sparked mourning throughout the world music scene and throughout the vastly diasporized Cape Verdian population of over 1 million, who, despite living in far away communities in
Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
;
Amsterdam
Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...
;
Lisbon
Lisbon ( ; ) is the capital and largest city of Portugal, with an estimated population of 567,131, as of 2023, within its administrative limits and 3,028,000 within the Lisbon Metropolitan Area, metropolis, as of 2025. Lisbon is mainlan ...
; and the American states of
Massachusetts
Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...
,
Rhode Island
Rhode Island ( ) is a state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Connecticut to its west; Massachusetts to its north and east; and the Atlantic Ocean to its south via Rhode Island Sound and Block Is ...
, and
Florida
Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...
, still maintain close language, cultural and familial bonds to their beloved islands.
Legacy
A cultural palace is named after in the Cape Verdean capital city of
Praia
Praia (, Portuguese for "beach") is the capital and largest city of Cape Verde.Plateau of Praia located at Avenida Amílcar Cabral west of Albuquerque Square.
Discography
With Os Tubarões
Albums
*''Pepe Lopi'' (1976)
*''Tchon di Morgado'' (1976)
*''Djonsinho Cabral'' (1978)
*''Tabanca'' (1980)
*''Tema para dois'' (1982)
*''Os Tubarões'' (1990)
*''Os Tubarões ao vivo'' (1993)
*''Porton d' nôs ilha'' (1994)
Singles
*"Apocalypse"
*"Biografia d' um criol", in the album ''Djonsinho Cabral'' (1978), originally by Manuel de Novas
*"Tabanca", in the album ''Tabanca'' (1980)
*"Nha berçu", in the album ''Nôs morna'' (1996), originally by Betú
*"Paródia familiar", in the album ''Incondicional'' (2004), originally by Alcides Spencer Brito
Recordings and tracks by other artists
*One of the sample used in a track in the album '' Preto no Branco'' (2009) by the rapper Boss AC
References
Further reading
* Yara dos Santos ''Ildo Lobo, a voz crioula'' (''Ildo Lobo, The Creole Voice''), 2006, Sete Caminhos