Isa Iolanda is one of the new names of the Cape Verdian music, with a recent journey influenced by the Green Cape voices, as is visible in her first album, "Kriola enkantu" but also by American music, which will part of her new musical project.
In this alignment of your last album, "Kriola Enkantu" What led you to write this repertoire?
Isa Iolanda: What prompted me to write was the desire to honor the archipelago and including the island of Santa Luzia is uninhabited, plus the diaspora, because each song has a Green Cape tradition. We are a young country with 39 years of independence and wanted to honor all that has been achieve, because we have no natural resources but have immense in human terms. Another objective was also to exalt our culture I considered to be our pertussis.
The choice of the songs did not happen by chance, you choosed a range of composers of the islands.
II: Yes, for example, on the island of Maio we called to participate in Tibau Tavares, representing the island of Fogo I talked to a good friend of mine, we were colleagues until the school in St. Nicholas, Paulinho Vieira. I tried to make each island had this representation of a composer or musician in order to get that authenticity.
And why this record work now at this point in your career?
II: I believe that in addition to being artists, we like to be on stage, share our music, our experience, our energy and our musical spirit, there is also the need of the passport duty, you've something concrete to show people, to be able to hear your music, enjoy, draw conclusions and to learn. Give more knowledge about your work as a musician, or artist, all this is fundamental when recording an album.
This work which adds in relation to your previous projects? Have you notice an evolution in vocal terms or not?
II: I notice that yes, I can say I did two special appearences in two albums of the Embassy in France and in this new album, "Kriola enkantu" clearly we can see the process of evolution and vocal maturity, now that I'm studying vocal improvement in New York. I can now have a clearer perception of what is sing by instinct and what is to do it with technique, awareness of what you can get out of your voice and expand this potential.
And as it is in this global world, the music you do and of your country to they know it?
II: I think where I am in New York, there is everything to be explored in terms of showing the culture of Green Cape and to the Lusophone because people are eager to know, there is a minimum.
Only know Césaria Évora.
II: Yes and not the actual music of Green Cape, where it is located and its history. It is a job that can be done thoroughly to increasingly raise awareness of the 10 islands in the middle of the ocean.
What you intend with this course of vocal improvement? What is the next level?
II: I'm having this course as a project in the short, medium and long term, it is in phases. Now I'm in the training, in technical terms, of how to project my voice, how to work it, like being on stage, in order to then apply in my next record work I'm already preparing in the US. I want to show a higher melting and receive new musical flavors, also plan to show my musicality, but being open to the global world, even to defend my culture that is Cape Verdean, I consider myself a citizen of the world and believe that making art is this be open to receive and share.
I mean that there will be songs in English, or even merger with Green Cape?
II: Yes I want to bring hip hop, a Cape Verdean version which is a bit cheeky (laughs). I want to show that it is possible to bring everything with music, art has to be open and has a living soul.
