Born on the 27th August 1941 in the port town of Mindelo, Cape Verde, on the island of São Vicente. Long known as the queen of the morna, a soulful genre (related to the Portuguese fado) sung in Creole-Portuguese, she mixed her sentimental folk tunes filled with longing and sadness with the acoustic sounds of guitar, cavaquinho, violin, accordion, and clarinet. Évora's Cape Verdean blues often spoke of the country's history of isolation and slave trade, as well as emigration; almost two-thirds of the million Cape Verdeans alive live abroad.
Évora's voice, a finely-tuned, melancholy instrument with a touch of hoarseness, highlighted her emotional phrasing by accenting a word or phrase. Even audiences who do not understand her language could be held spell-bound by the emotions evident in her performances.
In 2004 she won the Grammy Award for Best Contemporary World Music Album.
A heavy smoker for decades, Évora was diagnosed with heart problems in 2005. She suffered strokes in 2008 and in September 2011, when she announced she was retiring. She died at the age of seventy in São Vicente, Cape Verde on the 17th December 2011 from respiratory failure and hypertension. A Spanish newspaper reported that forty-eight hours before her death she was still receiving people in her home in Mindelo, popular for always having its doors open.
Moda Bô
Cesária Évora Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
(Lura:)
Na nha infância
Um sonhá ser moda bô
Um sonhá cantá num palco
C'um luz divina, moda bô
Um tava f'cá na frente dum spelho
Ta improvizá c'um microfone
Pa'm cantá moda bô
É moda bô
Moda bô q'm crê cantá
É ma bô q'm crê prendê
Pa'm cantá moda bô
(Cesária:)
Na nha vivência
Já'm conchê gente, já'm conchê mundo
Ta realizá sonho dum vida
Cantá Cabo Verde, cantá nha terra
Ess nha vivência
Um crê partilhá ma tude nha gente
Partilhá ma mundo intêr
Stória dum povo, stória dum vida
Graça d'cantá
É um missão qu'bô tem q'cumprí
Bô ca escolhê, Deus é q'dóbe el
Dignificá ess nome!
(Lura:)
Bô é divina
Anjo da guarda, sante de bô nome
Bô vivência é lição
É orgulho dum nação
Graça d'cantá
É um missão q'm tem cumpríde
Um ca escolhê, Deus é que da'm el
Um crê dignificá ess nome!
The song "Moda Bô" by Cesária Évora and Lura reflects on their childhood dreams of becoming successful singers and their fulfilled aspirations of singing for their country, Cabo Verde. The song starts with Lura reminiscing about her childhood and how she dreamed of singing on stage with divine lights, while Cesária Évora sings about her lived experiences and how she has met people from all over the world while singing and realizing her dreams of singing for Cabo Verde. Then, Lura praises Cesária Évora for being an inspiration and a guardian angel, and how her life and experiences are a lesson and a source of pride for their nation.
The song conveys a sense of appreciation for the opportunity and the blessing of being able to fulfill their dreams and a commitment to sing for their people and honor their heritage. The repeated phrase "moda bô" means "your style" and is a reference to the Cape Verdean music style, which is a fusion of African, Brazilian, and European influences.
The song "Moda Bô" has an interesting origin, as it was first recorded by Cabo Verdean singer Zeca di Nha Reinalda in 1989 and was popularized in the 1990s by Cesária Évora, who included the song in her album "Miss Perfumado." The song has become a classic example of the Cape Verdean music genre, and it is frequently performed by many Cape Verdean singers.
Line by Line Meaning
Na nha infância
During my childhood
Um sonhá ser moda bô
I dreamed of being a great singer
Um sonhá cantá num palco
I dreamed of singing on a big stage
C'um luz divina, moda bô
With divine light, like a true star
Na adolescência
During my teenage years
Um tava f'cá na frente dum spelho
I used to stand in front of a mirror
Ta improvizá c'um microfone
Imagining a microphone in my hand
Pa'm cantá moda bô
So I could sing like a star
É moda bô
It's a good style of music
Moda bô q'm crê cantá
The one that wants to sing it
É ma bô q'm crê prendê
It's the one that wants to learn it
Pa'm cantá moda bô
To sing it like a star
Na nha vivência
In my experience of life
Já'm conchê gente, já'm conchê mundo
I have met many people, seen much of the world
Ta realizá sonho dum vida
I am fulfilling my life's dream
Cantá Cabo Verde, cantá nha terra
To sing for Cape Verde, to sing for my homeland
Ess nha vivência
This is my life's experience
Um crê partilhá ma tude nha gente
I want to share it with all my people
Partilhá ma mundo intêr
To share it with the whole world
Stória dum povo, stória dum vida
The story of a people, the story of a life
Graça d'cantá
The gift of singing
É um missão qu'bô tem q'cumprí
It's a mission that you must fulfill
Bô ca escolhê, Deus é q'dóbe el
You don't choose it, God gives it to you
Dignificá ess nome!
To dignify that name!
Bô é divina
You are divine
Anjo da guarda, sante de bô nome
Guardian angel, holy name
Bô vivência é lição
Your life is a lesson
É orgulho dum nação
It's the pride of a nation
Um crê dignificá ess nome!
I want to dignify that name!
Writer(s): edevaldo figueiredo
Contributed by Maya R. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@DehanvV
Na nha infância
Um sonhá ser moda bô
Um sonhá cantá num palco
C'um luz divina, moda bô
Na adolescência
Um tava f'cá na frente dum spelho
Ta improvizá c'um microfone
Pa'm cantá moda bô
É moda bô
Moda bô q'm crê cantá
É ma bô q'm crê prendê
Pa'm cantá moda bô
Na nha vivência
Já'm conchê gente, já'm conchê mundo
Ta realizá sonho dum vida
Cantá Cabo Verde, cantá nha terra
Ess nha vivência
Um crê partilhá ma tude nha gente
Partilhá ma mundo intêr
Stória dum povo, stória dum vida
Graça d'cantá
É um missão qu'bô tem q'cumprí
Bô ca escolhê, Deus é q'dóbe el
Dignificá ess nome!
Bô é divina
Anjo da guarda, sante de bô nome
Bô vivência é lição
É orgulho dum nação
Graça d'cantá
É um missão q'm tem cumpríde
Um ca escolhê, Deus é que da'm el
Um crê dignificá ess nome!
@reginakato7374
Cesária deserves this beautiful song❤thank you Lura❤
@jefferymcgowan6880
Love Cape Verde music. Started listening over 15 years ago. Now I need to travel just fell in love w the music.
@17914125
Cesaria Evora sempre viva nos nossos corações!
@reginakato7374
A voz de Cesária é incomparável!
@Omouja
Que língua legal!!! Adorei a musica e a combinação samba+bossa nova, pelo menos eu acho que é, abraços à cabo verde do Brasil😊♥️🇧🇷
@zarlifestyle697
Beautiful....... listening from South Africa.. Johannesburg..RIP Cesaria Evora..,we will celebrate you by listening to you.....
@kamilcopur6513
I couldn't understand anything but WHAT A PERFECT MELODY IS THAT!!!!! Wadda fucking beautiful voice is that like herself...
@tulaysinmaz9664
Excellent song & video thanks💯💯💯❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️👏👏👏👏👏👍
@sean.butterworth
What’s not to like about this music? Just amazing!
@damianfernandez5535
Fue uno de los mejores homenajes en vida a Cesaria . esta cancion que predice su legado.