Aurea (singer)
| Aurea | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Aurea Sousa |
| Born |
7 September 1987 (age 29) Santiago do Cacém, Portugal |
| Origin | Santiago do Cacém, Portugal |
| Genres | Soul, blues, pop, reggae |
| Occupation(s) | Singer |
| Instruments | Vocal |
| Years active | 2008–present |
| Labels | Blim Records / Sony Music |
| Website | www.blimrecords.com/... |
Aurea Sousa (born 7 September 1987) is a Portuguese soul singer from Santiago do Cacém, Alentejo. She debuted in 2008 with her single "Okay Alright", which was included on the soundtrack of the Portuguese serie "Morangos com Açúcar". In the end of 2008, she performed the song live at the Morangos Live Festival, among with two other cover duets. This concert was released on DVD in 2009. Aurea released her debut album, "Aurea", in September 2010. The album entered at number 21# at the Portuguese Albums Chart, but quickly reached number 1#.[1] It features the hit single "Busy for Me", which was released as the album's lead single.
In December 2010, Aurea made a special Live TV broadcast to promote some of her songs, including "Busy for Me". It was transmitted by RTP2 and SIC Notícias. Her single "Busy for Me", released in August 2010, became her first number one single, it topped the Portuguese iTunes chart and is credited with firmly establishing the singer's career and is now considered her signature song. Critical reviewers of "Busy for Me" noted similarities between the song and releases by Aretha Franklin, Dusty Springfield and The Supremes, as well as contemporaries such as British singer Amy Winehouse or Duffy. During the following year (2011), Aurea made a concert tour along the country to promote her album. She sold out all the major national venues, and the tour was a huge success. Her debut album remained 44 weeks on the top Portuguese charts, and still counting.
Life and career
1990s-2009: Early life and career beginnings
Aurea was born in Santiago do Cacém, Alentejo, and grew up in the Algarve, the southernmost region of Portugal. Since she was a child, she realized she wanted to be a singer or an actress and she participated in lots of plays at school. Aurea went to Évora's university, where she studied performing arts.[2] In mids 2008, Aurea met Rui Ribeiro at the university for the first time, who heard her singing. Rui Ribeiro helped her to release her first single in 2008 through Blim Records, "Okay Alright". The song was included on the soundtrack of the Portuguese soap opera "Morangos com Açúcar". In the summer of 2008, she performed the song live at the Morangomania Festival, a show created by the production team of "Morangos com Açúcar".[3] In early 2009, Rui Ribeiro composed a song for Aurea and asked if she would like to sing it. They recorded a demo for it and Ribeiro sent it to Blim Records, her future record label. They enjoyed her voice and decided to "go far with it!", by recording an album and she is one of the greatest female Portuguese artist ever.
She also lived in Silves in her youth.
2009-present: Career breakthrough and Aurea
In summer 2010, Aurea said to "Expressões Lusitanas" during an interview: "I think singing in English is better than singing in Portuguese (...) because Soul music was "born" through English words". She also said she feels influenced by Soul artists such as Aretha Franklin, Joss Stone, James Morrison and Amy Winehouse. Aurea released a single in August 2010, entitled "Busy for Me", a eyed-blue soul ballad influenced by artists such as Aretha Franklin and Amy Winehouse. The song received positive reviews from music critics. Aurea performed her songs on her TV Special broadcast among many other shows on Portuguese television. A music video for the single, which was directed by Ricardo Reis, was released on August 6, 2010. "Aurea" was released in September 2010. Rui Ribeiro was responsible for the composition of nine of the original songs from the album, as well as all the original lyrics. It is a pop/soul recording but with many influences of many different musical styles. As Aurea, this work is musically eclectic. The album was produced by Ricardo Ferreira and Rui Ribeiro.[2] The album entered at number 21# at the Portuguese Albums Chart, but quickly came to reach number 1#.[1] "Busy for Me" was chosen as the album's lead single.
Awards
| Award | Year | Cat |
|---|---|---|
| Female Personality of the Year, by Lux Magazine (Portugal) | 2010 | Won |
| Golden Globe (Portugal) - Best Individual Performer | 2011 | Won |
| Golden Globe (Portugal) - Best Song: Busy (for me) | 2011 | Nominated |
| Golden Globe (Portugal) - Revelation of the year | 2011 | Nominated |
| MTV Europe Music Awards 2011 - Best Portuguese Act | 2011 | Won |
| MTV Europe Music Award for Best European Act | 2011 | Nominated |
| MTV Europe Music Awards 2012 - Best Portuguese Act | 2012 | Won |
| MTV Europe Music Award for Best European Act | 2012 | Nominated |
Discography
- Aurea (2010)
- Ao Vivo no Coliseu dos Recreios (2011)
- Soul Notes (2012)
- Restart (2016)
- Singles
- "Okay Alright" (2008)
- "Busy for Me" (2010)
- "No No No No (i Don`t Want Fall In Love With You Baby)" (2011)
- "The Only Thing That I Wanted " (2011)
- "Scratch My Back" (2012)
- "Nothing Left to Say" (2013)
- "I Didn't Mean It" (2016)
Studio albums
| Year | Title | Chart positions | Certifications (sales thresholds) |
|---|---|---|---|
| POR | |||
| 2010 | Aurea
|
1 |
|
| 2012 | Soul Notes
|
5 |
|
| 2016 | Restart
|
1 |
Singles
| Year | Song | Peak chart positions | Album | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| POR | HUN | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2008 | "Okay Alright" | 11 | – | Aurea | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2010 | "Busy for Me" | 1 | 30 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2011 | "No No No No (I Don`t Want Fall in Love With You Baby)" | 12 | – | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "The Only Thing That I Wanted " | 12 | – | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Dream a Little Dream of Me" | 23 | – | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2012 | "Scratch My Back" | 14 | – | Soul Notes | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2013 | "Nothing Left to Say" | 33 | – | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2016 | "I Didn't Mean It" | 54 | – | Restart | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "—" denotes the single failed to chart or not released | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
References
- 1 2 "Aurea [PT] - Aurea". PortugueseCharts.com. Retrieved 2011-02-07.
- 1 2 AEIOU - Investimentos Multimédia, S.A. "Aurea: Biografia - BLITZ". Blitz.aeiou.pt. Retrieved 2011-02-07.
- ↑ "Qmusika - Qmusika.com - Musica lusiada. Musica portuguesa. Artistas, albuns, noticias, radios, tv, podcast,passatempos " QAutores " QAutor " Aurea". Qmusika.com. 2008-12-30. Retrieved 2011-02-07.