Calú Bana
Carlos Eduardo Lopes
Praia, 1964
Singer, composer
Calú Bana, who received this nickname because his voice resembles Bana’s, the famous singer from Mindelo, first gain prominence in the Todo o Mundo Canta contest. He won the first edition in 1982 and the 1989 edition and came in second place in 1987.
In 1990, he emigrated to the United States, and the following year he joined Ice Band as a vocalist, with whom he recorded the album Mulata. In 1994, he joined Os Pecos, singing three songs on their CD Cabo Verde di nós. In 1996, he participated in the album Sentença by Gau Salgado, a former fellow member of Os Pecos.
In 1997, his first solo album, Pescador, was released, followed by Calor d’um amor, Rainha di nha tronu, and Amor fabricado. Beginning in 2006, with Nha terra nha kretchéu, which features his father, Eduardo Jon Xalino, Calu Bana turned toward an acoustic style, unlike his earlier albums, which emphasized dance music and kolazouk. With arrangements by César Lima and Armenian conductor Gregory Ayriyan, the album features mornas accompanied by a Russian orchestra, with whom Ayriyan went to work while Calú Bana’s album was still in progress. In 2018,Calu Bana released the album Portador Di Nós Alma, consisting entirely of compositions by Manuel d’ Novas.
Although his stage name is attributed to the similarity between his voice and Bana’s, at times his voice also recalls another famous Cabo Verdean singer, Ildo Lobo. This can be heard in several moments of the tribute to the artist that Calú Bana performed as part of the Kintal Kultural project (link below).
Discography
- Pescador, CD, Manny Rodrigues Productions, Dorchester, 1997.
- Calor d’um amor, CD, Manny Rodrigues Productions, Dorchester, 1999.
- Rainha di nha tronu, CD, Calu Bana’s Productions, Pawtucket, 2001.
- Amor fabricado, CD, Calu Bana’s Productions, Pawtucket, 2003.
- Nha terra nha kretchéu, CD, Calu Bana’s Productions, Pawtucket, 2006.
- Portador Di Nós Alma, CD, Calu Bana’s Productions, Pawtucket, 2018.
- Participation in the compilation Afrodance Vol. 1, 2004; as well as the albums DJ Djelas, 2001, and Blast, 2004.
