It’s a crisp Friday night in November, and I’ve just arrived at Camden’s iconic Jazz Cafe. I’ll admit, it’s not exactly giving Champions League just yet, but while I’m waiting for the show to start, I’m treated to enough samba classics to conjure up images of some of the competition’s greatest Brazilian magicians from years gone by. Which is fortunate, given who I’m here to see.
No, it’s not a post-career lifestyle change from Seleção icon Rivaldo – though that would certainly be high up on the to-do list – but an hour or so in the company of one of Brazil’s most exciting young artists. Combining the rich flavours of bossa nova, samba and jazz with her own softly soulful timbre, Mari Froes is a rising voice in Brazil’s contemporary música popular brasileira, or MPB, scene. But there’s just one issue.
“I’m not a football fan, particularly,” she confesses with a grin after her show, having invited me backstage for an interview in the middle of her European tour, which will take her to over 30 cities across 14 countries. Nothing wrong with that, of course, though it does lend irony to how she found herself going viral on social media.
You may not think you’ve heard her music, but if you’ve watched a video of any Brazilian footballer in the last 18 months, I guarantee you’ll recognise Froes’ playful and energetic rendition of Figa De Guiné. Listen to it yourself and you’ll understand why it became the soundtrack to what felt like every single highlight reel featuring the likes of Ronaldinho and Neymar for a total of more than 72 million views and counting.
“That was surreal to me. I honestly didn’t imagine that would happen at all, especially with that song, because Figa De Guiné is an old song from almost 60 years ago,” Froes explains. Old though it may be, it is impossible not to dance to, even if that’s a self-conscious two-step in a packed Jazz Cafe crowd.
It’s a crisp Friday night in November, and I’ve just arrived at Camden’s iconic Jazz Cafe. I’ll admit, it’s not exactly giving Champions League just yet, but while I’m waiting for the show to start, I’m treated to enough samba classics to conjure up images of some of the competition’s greatest Brazilian magicians from years gone by. Which is fortunate, given who I’m here to see.
No, it’s not a post-career lifestyle change from Seleção icon Rivaldo – though that would certainly be high up on the to-do list – but an hour or so in the company of one of Brazil’s most exciting young artists. Combining the rich flavours of bossa nova, samba and jazz with her own softly soulful timbre, Mari Froes is a rising voice in Brazil’s contemporary música popular brasileira, or MPB, scene. But there’s just one issue.
“I’m not a football fan, particularly,” she confesses with a grin after her show, having invited me backstage for an interview in the middle of her European tour, which will take her to over 30 cities across 14 countries. Nothing wrong with that, of course, though it does lend irony to how she found herself going viral on social media.
You may not think you’ve heard her music, but if you’ve watched a video of any Brazilian footballer in the last 18 months, I guarantee you’ll recognise Froes’ playful and energetic rendition of Figa De Guiné. Listen to it yourself and you’ll understand why it became the soundtrack to what felt like every single highlight reel featuring the likes of Ronaldinho and Neymar for a total of more than 72 million views and counting.
“That was surreal to me. I honestly didn’t imagine that would happen at all, especially with that song, because Figa De Guiné is an old song from almost 60 years ago,” Froes explains. Old though it may be, it is impossible not to dance to, even if that’s a self-conscious two-step in a packed Jazz Cafe crowd.
“I was really, really happy with the response to the song. I saw the edits going round – I was so amazed with how the internet just made it all happen. I think maybe it’s because of Brazil’s fame in football and the song has this very specific Brazilian vibe. It just suits the football videos. I don’t know what happened. I just know that I loved it.”
For someone who doesn’t really follow football, Froes can’t seem to avoid it. As we soon learn, she was asked specifically to perform by one of her fans, former Barcelona forward Memphis Depay, at his lavish 31st birthday party at a palace in São Paulo.
“Very fun,” she says of the experience. “That was my first time really connecting with football on a more personal level. I met a lot of people and everyone was dancing. It was very nice, a very beautiful palace as well in São Paulo. It was cool.”
It should come as no surprise then that the football gods would continue in their attempts to lure her towards the light with another twist of fate. Also on the bill that night was someone she describes as “a huge inspiration to me”, legendary Brazilian artist Jorge Ben Jor, the mastermind behind Mas Que Nada – another anthem inextricable from football thanks to Ronaldinho, Sérgio Mendes and Nike’s memorable Joga Bonito campaign.
In fact, just like those icons of Brazilian football who have had their careers cast against her music, Froes has the uncanny ability to transport us from a dark autumnal evening in north London to her own patch of sunny Brazil. “Samba music and football – they just go very well together, I guess. I bring the samba and the football is up to the people.”
If that’s not Joga Bonito, then I don’t know what is.
It’s a crisp Friday night in November, and I’ve just arrived at Camden’s iconic Jazz Cafe. I’ll admit, it’s not exactly giving Champions League just yet, but while I’m waiting for the show to start, I’m treated to enough samba classics to conjure up images of some of the competition’s greatest Brazilian magicians from years gone by. Which is fortunate, given who I’m here to see.
No, it’s not a post-career lifestyle change from Seleção icon Rivaldo – though that would certainly be high up on the to-do list – but an hour or so in the company of one of Brazil’s most exciting young artists. Combining the rich flavours of bossa nova, samba and jazz with her own softly soulful timbre, Mari Froes is a rising voice in Brazil’s contemporary música popular brasileira, or MPB, scene. But there’s just one issue.
“I’m not a football fan, particularly,” she confesses with a grin after her show, having invited me backstage for an interview in the middle of her European tour, which will take her to over 30 cities across 14 countries. Nothing wrong with that, of course, though it does lend irony to how she found herself going viral on social media.
You may not think you’ve heard her music, but if you’ve watched a video of any Brazilian footballer in the last 18 months, I guarantee you’ll recognise Froes’ playful and energetic rendition of Figa De Guiné. Listen to it yourself and you’ll understand why it became the soundtrack to what felt like every single highlight reel featuring the likes of Ronaldinho and Neymar for a total of more than 72 million views and counting.
“That was surreal to me. I honestly didn’t imagine that would happen at all, especially with that song, because Figa De Guiné is an old song from almost 60 years ago,” Froes explains. Old though it may be, it is impossible not to dance to, even if that’s a self-conscious two-step in a packed Jazz Cafe crowd.
It’s a crisp Friday night in November, and I’ve just arrived at Camden’s iconic Jazz Cafe. I’ll admit, it’s not exactly giving Champions League just yet, but while I’m waiting for the show to start, I’m treated to enough samba classics to conjure up images of some of the competition’s greatest Brazilian magicians from years gone by. Which is fortunate, given who I’m here to see.
No, it’s not a post-career lifestyle change from Seleção icon Rivaldo – though that would certainly be high up on the to-do list – but an hour or so in the company of one of Brazil’s most exciting young artists. Combining the rich flavours of bossa nova, samba and jazz with her own softly soulful timbre, Mari Froes is a rising voice in Brazil’s contemporary música popular brasileira, or MPB, scene. But there’s just one issue.
“I’m not a football fan, particularly,” she confesses with a grin after her show, having invited me backstage for an interview in the middle of her European tour, which will take her to over 30 cities across 14 countries. Nothing wrong with that, of course, though it does lend irony to how she found herself going viral on social media.
You may not think you’ve heard her music, but if you’ve watched a video of any Brazilian footballer in the last 18 months, I guarantee you’ll recognise Froes’ playful and energetic rendition of Figa De Guiné. Listen to it yourself and you’ll understand why it became the soundtrack to what felt like every single highlight reel featuring the likes of Ronaldinho and Neymar for a total of more than 72 million views and counting.
“That was surreal to me. I honestly didn’t imagine that would happen at all, especially with that song, because Figa De Guiné is an old song from almost 60 years ago,” Froes explains. Old though it may be, it is impossible not to dance to, even if that’s a self-conscious two-step in a packed Jazz Cafe crowd.
It’s a crisp Friday night in November, and I’ve just arrived at Camden’s iconic Jazz Cafe. I’ll admit, it’s not exactly giving Champions League just yet, but while I’m waiting for the show to start, I’m treated to enough samba classics to conjure up images of some of the competition’s greatest Brazilian magicians from years gone by. Which is fortunate, given who I’m here to see.
No, it’s not a post-career lifestyle change from Seleção icon Rivaldo – though that would certainly be high up on the to-do list – but an hour or so in the company of one of Brazil’s most exciting young artists. Combining the rich flavours of bossa nova, samba and jazz with her own softly soulful timbre, Mari Froes is a rising voice in Brazil’s contemporary música popular brasileira, or MPB, scene. But there’s just one issue.
“I’m not a football fan, particularly,” she confesses with a grin after her show, having invited me backstage for an interview in the middle of her European tour, which will take her to over 30 cities across 14 countries. Nothing wrong with that, of course, though it does lend irony to how she found herself going viral on social media.
You may not think you’ve heard her music, but if you’ve watched a video of any Brazilian footballer in the last 18 months, I guarantee you’ll recognise Froes’ playful and energetic rendition of Figa De Guiné. Listen to it yourself and you’ll understand why it became the soundtrack to what felt like every single highlight reel featuring the likes of Ronaldinho and Neymar for a total of more than 72 million views and counting.
“That was surreal to me. I honestly didn’t imagine that would happen at all, especially with that song, because Figa De Guiné is an old song from almost 60 years ago,” Froes explains. Old though it may be, it is impossible not to dance to, even if that’s a self-conscious two-step in a packed Jazz Cafe crowd.
“I was really, really happy with the response to the song. I saw the edits going round – I was so amazed with how the internet just made it all happen. I think maybe it’s because of Brazil’s fame in football and the song has this very specific Brazilian vibe. It just suits the football videos. I don’t know what happened. I just know that I loved it.”
For someone who doesn’t really follow football, Froes can’t seem to avoid it. As we soon learn, she was asked specifically to perform by one of her fans, former Barcelona forward Memphis Depay, at his lavish 31st birthday party at a palace in São Paulo.
“Very fun,” she says of the experience. “That was my first time really connecting with football on a more personal level. I met a lot of people and everyone was dancing. It was very nice, a very beautiful palace as well in São Paulo. It was cool.”
It should come as no surprise then that the football gods would continue in their attempts to lure her towards the light with another twist of fate. Also on the bill that night was someone she describes as “a huge inspiration to me”, legendary Brazilian artist Jorge Ben Jor, the mastermind behind Mas Que Nada – another anthem inextricable from football thanks to Ronaldinho, Sérgio Mendes and Nike’s memorable Joga Bonito campaign.
In fact, just like those icons of Brazilian football who have had their careers cast against her music, Froes has the uncanny ability to transport us from a dark autumnal evening in north London to her own patch of sunny Brazil. “Samba music and football – they just go very well together, I guess. I bring the samba and the football is up to the people.”
If that’s not Joga Bonito, then I don’t know what is.
It’s a crisp Friday night in November, and I’ve just arrived at Camden’s iconic Jazz Cafe. I’ll admit, it’s not exactly giving Champions League just yet, but while I’m waiting for the show to start, I’m treated to enough samba classics to conjure up images of some of the competition’s greatest Brazilian magicians from years gone by. Which is fortunate, given who I’m here to see.
No, it’s not a post-career lifestyle change from Seleção icon Rivaldo – though that would certainly be high up on the to-do list – but an hour or so in the company of one of Brazil’s most exciting young artists. Combining the rich flavours of bossa nova, samba and jazz with her own softly soulful timbre, Mari Froes is a rising voice in Brazil’s contemporary música popular brasileira, or MPB, scene. But there’s just one issue.
“I’m not a football fan, particularly,” she confesses with a grin after her show, having invited me backstage for an interview in the middle of her European tour, which will take her to over 30 cities across 14 countries. Nothing wrong with that, of course, though it does lend irony to how she found herself going viral on social media.
You may not think you’ve heard her music, but if you’ve watched a video of any Brazilian footballer in the last 18 months, I guarantee you’ll recognise Froes’ playful and energetic rendition of Figa De Guiné. Listen to it yourself and you’ll understand why it became the soundtrack to what felt like every single highlight reel featuring the likes of Ronaldinho and Neymar for a total of more than 72 million views and counting.
“That was surreal to me. I honestly didn’t imagine that would happen at all, especially with that song, because Figa De Guiné is an old song from almost 60 years ago,” Froes explains. Old though it may be, it is impossible not to dance to, even if that’s a self-conscious two-step in a packed Jazz Cafe crowd.
