Young Brazilian Musicians Try to Go Global

RAY SUAREZ:

Next, the final report in our series about Brazil's rising export industries and its domestic challenges. Tonight, NewsHour special correspondent Simon Marks looks at the music scene.

SIMON MARKS, NewsHour Special Correspondent:

Her name is Teresa Cristina. She used to be a manicurist in a shantytown on the outskirts of Rio. She is all but unknown in the United States, but here in Brazil she is one the country's most popular and successful new stars, singing samba, the music rooted in the heritage of Brazil's African slaves.

She not only performs samba; she also researches the art form, uncovering long-forgotten music and songs. She signed her first recording contract about 10 years ago after playing sell-out shows in some of Rio's most popular nightclubs.

Internationally, she's played India, France and Germany, but like many young Brazilian stars, not yet the USA.

TERESA CRISTINA, Singer (through translator):

For a Brazilian artist to sing in Portuguese in the U.S., the difficulty is that it's an artist singing in a language that no one wants to hear.

SIMON MARKS:

And it isn't just language that serves as a barrier keeping Teresa Cristina away from U.S. audiences. It's also her refusal to make the compromises that she says will be inevitable if she accepts the invitations that she's received to make her first tour of the USA.

TERESA CRISTINA (through translator):

It's very expensive to engage a band like mine with so many musicians. It's very expensive to travel. Most of the time, they invite us and offer us a very low payment because they don't have a commercial sponsor, and they want me to tour with only two or three musicians and showcase Brazilian music.

But that's very difficult. My band is like a family, and touring without all of them forces me to compromise my music.