Elida Almeida (born 1993) is 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.

Biography

Elida Sofia Cabral Almeida was born in

Pedra Badejo Pedra Badejo is a cityCabo Verde, Statistical Yearbook 201 ...

in the east of Santiago Island. She spent her childhood years with some difficulty, in the mountains of Santiago. At 17, she sang at church, she listened to the radio, she said on that she grew up on a place without electricity or necessities. She worked on radio commentaries, especially with DJs and presenters. She started writing her album ''Nta Konsiqui''Adrien Barbier, ''Elida Almeida, nouvelle pépite du Cap Vert '', Le Monde, 24 December 2015 She later presented at local concerts and sang at bars in Cape Verde where she started her career. The producer José da Silva, a resident of France with Cape Verdean origins, who had previously worked with

Cesária Évora Cesária Évora GCIH (; 27 August 194117 December 2011) was a Cape Verdean singer known for singing morna, a genre of music from Cape Verde, in her native Cape Verdean Creole. Her songs were often devoted to themes of love, homesickness, nos ...

, was interested in her career. Almeida’s style is different from most famous Cape Verdean morna-

coladeira The ''coladeira'' ( ; , ) is a music genre from Cape Verde. It is characterized by a variable tempo, a 2-beat bar, and (in its most traditional form) a harmonic structure based in a cycle of fifths. The lyrics structure is organized in strophes ...

singers. She is more influenced by

funaná The ''funaná'' is a music and dance genre from Cape Verde. ''Funaná'' is an accordion-based music. The rhythm is usually provided by the '' ferrinho'' much like the use of washboards in zydeco, the saw in Caribbean ripsaw music, the scrape ...

batuque Batuque may refer to: * Batuque (Brazil), various Afro-Brazilian practices, including music, dance, combat game and religion * Batuque (Cape Verde), a Cape Verdean music and dance genre * Batuque (manga), a Japanese manga series * Batuque (religio ...

, rhythms created by deserted slaves decades ago, but has a different similarity for the expression. Two years later, she made her first album ''Ora doci, Ora margos.'' In December 2014 she performed in Portugal and France; officially debuting later during 2015 in France at Festival Musiques Métisses in

Angoulême Angoulême (; Poitevin-Saintongeais: ''Engoulaeme''; ) is a small city in the southwestern French Departments of France, department of Charente, of which it is the Prefectures of France, prefecture. Located on a plateau overlooking a meander of ...

. She then went on to take the stage in Paris and the United States in the same month. In November 2015, she was designated a laureate at the RFi awards, made by a jury chaired by the Malian singer

Oumou Sangaré Oumou Sangaré (; born 25 February 1968) is a Malian Wassoulou singer of Fulani ( Fula) descent. She is often referred to as "The Songbird of Wassoulou". Wassoulou is a historical region south of the Niger River, where the music descends from ...

. She produced mainly on the African continent even at the start of the Festival des musiques urbaines d'Anoumabo (FEMUA - Anoumabo Urban Music Festival) in Abidjan. Elida Almeida was present at the 2016

Cabo Verde Music Awards The Cape Verde Music Awards (abbreviation: CVMA) is an annual music award ceremony that takes place every year. The award ceremony takes place in the capital city of Praia, Cape Verde. It is also broadcast on TCV. History The origins of the cr ...

(CVMA) together with Hélio Batalha. A month later, she went to the 10th edition of JazzKif, the

Kinshasa Kinshasa (; ; ), formerly named Léopoldville from 1881–1966 (), is the Capital city, capital and Cities of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, largest city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Kinshasa is one of the world's fastest-grow ...

Jazz Festival.

Discography

Albums

* ''Ora doci, Ora Margos'' (December 2014 - released by Harmonia in Cabo-Verde) * ''Ora doci, Ora Margos'' (May 2015 - released by Lusafrica in the rest of the world) * ''Kebrada'' (October 2017 - released by Lusafrica)

Singles

* "Txika" (July 2016 - Lusafrica) * "Di Mi Ku Di Bo" (January 2017 - Lusafrica) * "É Zonban" feat. Djodje (July 2017 - Lusafrica)

Duets

* "Nhu Santiagu" with Lura in her album ''Herança'' (2015)

Collaborations with other artists

She collaborates with Nelly Cruz, a bass guitarist, Diego Gomes with keys, Magik Santiago with the drums and Hernani Almeida, a guitarist. They produced her first album ''Ora doci, ora morgas''Rosny Ladouceur, ''Les complices d’Elida Almeida'' (''Compilations by Elida Almeida''), Le National, 21 June 2016