Céu "Novels” Urban Jungle/ONErpm)
Add Date: 4/22/2024
Release Date: 4/26/2024
FCC: Clean
Focus Tracks: Gerando na Alta, Rajou, Cremosa, High Na Cachu, Rescreve
Formats: NACC World, Latin, Top 200, Non-Commercial AAA
RIYL: Adrian Younge, Marcos Vale
Recorded in the USA, the album features musical production by the artist, Pupillo, and Adrian Younge.
Céu discovered herself as a songwriter during a season in the Lower East Side of New York. In the early 2000s, influenced by the performances of black and Puerto Rican MCs on the neighborhood's streets, the budding interpreter was seized by an extreme freedom to express herself through her own music. This boldness is evident in her debut album, "Céu" (2005), a record nominated for both the Grammy Awards and the Latin Grammy Awards, featured on various charts worldwide and on Billboard, becoming one of the best-selling Brazilian albums in the history of the United States. This audacity continues to guide her unique transnational journey, acclaimed with renowned awards and, no less importantly, recognition from audiences who deeply resonate with her.
In 2023, Céu returned to the USA, this time to the West Coast, where she conceived "Novela" (Urban Jungle/ONErpm), her sixth album of unreleased songs in her career, set to be released on digital platforms on April 26th. Recorded at Linear Labs Studio in Los Angeles, the production is signed by the São Paulo-born artist, the musician and producer from Pernambuco, Pupillo – former drummer of Nação Zumbi, co-responsible for "Tropix" (2016) and "APKÁ!" (2019), both by Céu, winners of three Latin Grammy Awards, and a producer for Gal Costa and Erasmo Carlos - and by the American multi-instrumentalist and arranger Adrian Younge, owner of Linear Labs, known for albums such as "Something About April" (2011), and for projects with Snoop Dogg, Kendrick Lamar, The Delfonics, and Wu Tang Clan, as well as co-directing the multimedia initiative Jazz Is Dead.
As is customary in Adrian's work, the album was captured live, without the technological gadgets of today. Recorded on tape, in a dynamic moment that demands total presence. An old-fashioned approach that harkens back to the beginnings of character-forming record recordings. Interestingly, a futuristic experience that, according to Céu, requires a lot of emotional intelligence and no artificiality. "Nothing vintage," she assures.
In "Gerando na alta," it's the turn of anaiis, a Franco-Senegalese singer and songwriter, based in London, England, to exchange impressions about sisterhood.
In "Novela," ancient technologies, healing, creaminess, bolero, polished stars, echoes of soul music, things of the earth, rap, and whispers to guides emerge. Throughout the record, there is a reaffirmation of the author's fearlessness, committed to her time, in the complexity and beauty of creative work. Always keeping the diversity of Brazilian music on the horizon. Stay tuned for exciting scenes from the next chapters.