Afropop Worldwide

For this week’s episode of Afropop Worlwide, producers Marlon Bishop and Julia Furlan spent a week racing around São Paulo and interviewing super-cool musician folk from across the genre spectrum, drinking sugary coffee, and generally falling in love with the music scene in South America’s biggest city. Make sure to check out the show, and below, behold a little photo-essay on the Sampa rock and roll life to help you get into the mood.   1. Badass rocker chick Juliana R luxuriates with her Stratocaster at her home in Vila Madalena, the neighborhood that hosts much of the city’s cutting edge music and art.

 

2. The Casa do Mancha- a DIY music venue described by one frequent guest as “the Williamburg consulate in São Paulo.” The tiny concert room is the kind of place where an underground artist like Lulina will have her lyrics sang back at her by every single person in the room.

3. First-generation hip-hop head (and current father) Rodrigo Brandao was the original host of the Brazilian version of Yo! MTV Raps, and knows just about everything about the genre’s history in São Paulo. 4. A hip-hop group performs at the Feira Preta, a cultural fair celebrating black culture in São Paulo. Hip-hop is one of the most popular sounds in the city, celebrating black consciousness in a culture that shies away from discussions about race. 5. Young music fans at the Feira Preta.

6. The youngest member of Materia Rima, a hip-hop group that makes educational raps for kids. “Education is fundamental, without education there’s no food in the fridge,” says MC Joel, the boy’s father.

7. Magdalena, the living definition of a “character,” drove down from Rio for the Feira Preta. “Melanin is my vitamin,” she says. 8. The blazing lights of São Paulo’s 20 million residents ensures the sky never goes dark. Hi-rises stretch on until forever. 9. Tiago Nascimento stacks live concert DVDs at a São Paulo record store. 10. A sun-speckled Bárbara Eugênia hangs out in her yard. Bárbara makes groovy, vintage pop reminiscent of Gal Costa. 11. Pata, lead singer of the indie rock band Holger, gets physical with his feline.