Mercury Rising

Like the rugged (and recently romanticized) favelas that sit on the edges of shiny, fancy gated communities in Brazil, Daniela Mercury’s music is an intense collision of cultural forces: lowbrow, highbrow, no-brow; Bahian axé mixes of samba, reggae, rock, and Caribbean percussion; MPB (música popular brasileira — that is, sparkly...

By Gabriela Garcia

September 29, 2011

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Like the rugged (and recently romanticized) favelas that sit on the edges of shiny, fancy gated communities in Brazil, Daniela Mercury’s music is an intense collision of cultural forces: lowbrow, highbrow, no-brow; Bahian axé mixes of samba, reggae, rock, and Caribbean percussion; MPB (música popular brasileira — that is, sparkly pop); and smatterings of experimental electronica, rap, funk, lounge, bossa nova, merengue, salsa, and house. Mercury’s ability to throw eclectic elements into a rhythmic blender and come out with something like the aural equivalent of spinning through a Bahian carnival on a fresh spring day has earned her a Latin Grammy and more number one hits than any artist in Brazilian history. Catch the megastar during a rare one-night performance this Saturday at 8 at the Arsht Center’s Ziff Ballet Opera House.
Sat., Oct. 8, 8 p.m., 2011

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