Born in Natal (Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil), Juliana Linhares is a singer, songwriter, and actress, known for her work as the voice of long-established bands like Pietá (since 2012) and Iara Ira.
In 2021, she ventured into a solo career with the album Nordeste Ficção, which features artistic direction by Marcus Preto and musical production by Elísio Freitas. This album is imagined as a theater script, an autofiction romance, and a cinematic docudrama. Over the course of 11 tracks, the work of this artist from Rio Grande do Norte presents irresistible beauty and joy, reminiscent of the delightful classic LPs by Amelinha, Elba Ramalho, Cátia de França, Terezinha de Jesus, and other artists of the northeastern generation released at the turn of the 1970s to the 1980s. It also highlights the melodic and poetic grandeur of composers such as Alceu Valença, Ednardo, Fagner, Belchior, and Zé Ramalho, and engages with their successors from the 1990s: Chico César, Zeca Baleiro, Rita Ribeiro, Lenine, among others.
Live, Nordeste Ficção creates the impact of an album that was already born a classic of Brazilian music and that transcends time. In her first album under her own name, Juliana Linhares demystifies the Brazilian northeast, redefines stereotypes, and leverages her voice, as sweet as it is powerful, alongside her abrasive poetry. Her performances are intense and her voice, amplified by the dramatic narratives she sings, provides a surprising vocal and musical depth in the narrative of each concert.
With an unreleased song by Tom Zé sung alongside Letrux (exclusively produced by Pedro Carneiro/Vovô Bebê), as well as various collaborations by Juliana with Chico César, Zeca Baleiro, Khrystal, Moyseis Marques, Posada, Mestrinho, Jéssica Caitano, and others, including a reinterpretation of the northeastern anthem “Tareco e Mariola” by Petrúcio Amorim, the album— influenced by the book A Invenção do Nordeste e Outras Artes by Durval Muniz de Albuquerque Jr.—also opens space for questioning the meanings of being northeastern today. Born in Natal, Juliana moved to Rio de Janeiro in 2010. This move gave her a privileged position from which to observe the clichés with which Brazil and the world view the Northeast. The reaction to these stereotypes—and also their understanding—served as material for the creation of her songs. And if the Northeast is an invention, as Belchior sang, art continues to be the means to deconstruct narratives and create other possible Nordestes.
Regarding her more intense solo songwriting process in recent years, Juliana says that after so much time working in music as a performer, she began to feel a strong need to write songs and to experiment with her role as a composer. “The fact that I was surrounded by highly acclaimed composers delayed my courage, but during the quarantine imposed by the pandemic, I understood the importance of trying. It was an immense loneliness, and I really needed myself. I started strumming a guitar, saving recordings, and betting on my improvisations,” she says.
With the success of the album, the opening track of Nordeste Ficção, “Bombinha,” was featured in the soundtrack of the soap opera Mar do Sertão, on Rede Globo, which also included Juliana Linhares as an actress in one of the episodes. The song was also re-recorded on Daniela Mercury’s latest album, released for the 2022 carnival.
Frequently requested to be present on the major stages of the Brazilian artistic scene, Juliana Linhares also engages in cross-generational collaborations with musicians of her generation, such as Almério or Josyara, in the newly released and highly appreciated version of the classic “Não tem Lua,” immortalized by the band Asa de Águia.