Musician, composer and activist Gabriel O Pensador will perform on July 13 in Figueira da Foz, in the district of Coimbra, at the second edition of BR Fest, a festival dedicated to Brazilian music and culture, the organization announced today.
According to MOT – Memories of Tomorrow, the producers of the festival at Praia do Relógio, the Brazilian rapper closes the line-up, joining names such as MC Livinho, Kevinho, Turma do Pagode, Ara Ketu, Maninho and Fafá de Belém.
Quoted in a press release sent to the Lusa news agency, Tiago Castelo Branco, executive director of MOT, said he wanted BR Fest to be “the home of Brazilian music and culture next summer”.
“A place where various styles of music for people of all ages and backgrounds will take place, from funk to pagode and from pop to samba, what counts is that the people dance. What’s more, this year we’ll be reinforcing the cultural component of the event and we want it to be a real immersion, where our visitors will be able to find their Brazil, with coconut water, acarajé or pastel and caldo de cana,” said the event’s director.
BR Fest takes place the weekend after the RFM SOMNII electronic music festival, which also takes place at Praia do Relógio in Figueira da Foz.
With a career spanning 32 years, which began in 1992 with the debut song “Tô Feliz (Matei o Presidente)” – in which the rapper ‘assassinated’ Fernando Collor de Melo, the 32nd president of Brazil – Gabriel O Pensador is one of the biggest names in rap sung in Portuguese, having influenced numerous national artists to change their original English expression into Portuguese.
At the age of 50, on the 4th, the Brazilian musician has released eight original albums (the last of which, “Antídoto Pra Todo Tipo de Veneno”, was released in September 2023, his first in more than 10 years) and more than 40 singles, with collaborations with various artists such as Lulu Santos, Barão Vermelho, Titãs, Legião Urbana or Adriana Calcanhoto.
His best-known songs include hits such as “2345meia78”, “Festa da Música”, “Cachimbo da Paz”, “Lôraburra”, “Até quando?”, “Retrato de Um Playboy”, “Tás a Ver?” or “Racismo É Burrice”.
In “Surfista Solitário” (Lonely Surfer), from 2013, a collaboration with Jorge Bem Jor, Gabriel O Pensador talks about a sport of which he is a regular practitioner. In the song by the Portuguese D.A.M.A. (Não Faço Questão, 2015), he gives his voice and presence to a video filmed cycling through the city of Porto.
The BR Fest line-up includes Gabriel O Pensador, Ara Ketu, MC Livinho and Banda H1 on the first day, July 13. On the second day, Kevinho, Maninho, Turma do Pagode and Fafá de Belém, the Brazilian singer celebrating almost 50 years of music, take to the stage.
General passes and VIP passes for the event are available from 75 euros at brfest.pt, Ticketline and the Blueticket network, as well as the usual venues, with daily tickets starting at 40 euros.
The MOT executive director also said that at the end of the first edition, in 2023, the production company had no doubt that BR Fest was a winning project and that it would continue.
“This event was planned by listening to the opinions of the community and those who were with us in 2023, involving some Brazilian personalities and designing something that would exalt the cultural spirit of our sister country. More than just a music festival, BR Fest aims to be an ovation for a culture that is increasingly taking root in our country,” said Tiago Castelo Branco.
