Fantcha

“Fantcha pulls out all stops in her long-awaited return. The Cape Verdean songstress called upon a cast of All-Star musicians to help craft her pensive and passionate, tender and funky album Amor, Mar e Musica, whose styles are as varied as the cultures in her archipelago nation.” -John Oseid, Conde Nast Traveler.

“Fantcha, a talented…Cape Verdean beauty based in New York City, is a musical ambassador from the African archipelago nation of Cape Verde.” ~Afropop Worldwide.

Cape Verde, the cluster of islands off the coast of West Africa's Senegal, is best known for its poetic, bluesy music epitomized by the morna, full of yearning or sodade. But, mornas are not the only form of music there, equally popular is the infectious, danceable coladeira. The heart of this music lies in Mindelo, the fabled cultural capital of this Island nation.

Fantcha was born in Mindelo and grew up singing in a musically rich household while, her brothers played guitar and cavaquinho. At the age of ten, she came to the attention of Ti Goi, one of Cape Verde’s most famous composers who recognized her talent and encouraged her to continue singing. He believed in her talent so completely that he went onto introduce her to Cesaria Evora. Cesaria was so taken with the young singer that she became her mentor and, took her touring frequently so that she could open for her.

A charismatic performer, Fantcha, developed her own, unique musical style with African, Cuban and Portugese inflections. Her rich, sensuous voice is memorable when she sings the soulful mornas, evoking the ache of longing and loss. She is equally compelling with her renditions of coladeiras, those danceable tunes, that time after time has audiences on their feet dancing.

Fantcha moved from Cape Verde and now makes her home in New York. Her music has continued to evolve through several albums including, Lusafrica’s Criolinha and Viva Mindelo and the compilation album Putamayo Presents Cape Verde where she performs alongside famed Cape Verdean vocalists such as Bana and Cesaria Evora. She has toured throughout Cape Verde, Europe and the US and has performed at the Hollywood Bowl, Chicago World Music Festival, New York’s Summerstage and Joe’s Pub among others.