Today we are pleased to welcome Brazil’s London-based CAMZ, the fast rising artist delivering the sound of Brazil to London and beyond. This Summer, CAMZ unveiled her debut release with a bang on the iconic NYC label, Nervous Records. Out now, ‘Saudade’ cements CAMZ status as one to watch in the scene and following its release, we invited CAMZ for a chat to find out more as she prepares to perform at Nicole Moudaber presents In The Mood at London’s E1, enjoy!
Hello CAMZ! A pleasure to have you with us today? How are things with you and whereabouts are you chatting to us from right now?
Hi there! Likewise, thanks for having me. Everything is brilliant, currently sitting in my living room, and it’s a beautiful sunny morning in London!
We’re pleased to be speaking with you following your debut release, arriving on the iconic NYC imprint, Nervous Records. Congrats on finding such a great home for your first release! What can you tell us about ‘Saudade’ and how does it feel to see it released on the imprint?
Obrigada! 😉 ‘Saudade’ is a project very close to my heart. The original lyrics from Mestre Barrao made me cry when I heard it for the first time, and I knew I had to do something with it. I tried reaching out to him a few times, until I finally got him to agree to give me rights to use it. Living abroad for so many years, ‘SAUDADE’ is something I feel on a daily basis, and I love the fact this word is untranslatable to any other language. If you don’t know what it means, listen to my track!
Nervous is hands down one of the best electronic music labels out there, and the home to ALL my heroes, including Frankie Knuckles, Masters At Work, Armand Van Helden, and the voguing Godfather Willie Ninja. To be seated beside these names is an honour, and a dream come true!
The release also features a brilliant ‘Afro Latin’ remix from Mijangos, what were your first thoughts when you heard his take on the track?
WOW, he gave the track a completely different spin and I loved it straight away. I’ve been a fan of Mijangos for a long time, and I always play his tracks on my radio show!
Following the release of Saudade, we saw that you’re set to perform at Nicole Moudaber’s ‘In The Mood’ party at London’s E1. This is no doubt going to be a special night. How does it feel to be earning recognition from artists like Nicole Moudaber?
It feels a bit unreal sometimes. Nicole has supported me throughout my career and opened a lot of doors for me. Now, I need to make sure I smash it! Really excited to play alongside her, Sama Abdulahadi, Layton Giordani, Ida Engberg, and my homeboy Vinicius Honorio.
We’d love to hear a bit about how you first began your path in music? What was it that initially inspired you to get started?
I’ve been in love with music since I was born. My favourite passtime as a kid was to play my keyboard, or my recorder, and sit by the radio waiting for my favourite songs to come up. I also kept a notebook where I made notes of new releases, music video directors, and new bands I watched on MTV (which was on 24/7). As I grew older I started burning CDs and selling them for friends, and seed music for music groups I managed, including Hed Kandi’s catalog which I still have. I’ve been going to music festivals since I was a teenager, and when I moved to London I started working with Jamie Jones. The rest is history…
Based in London, you recently launched your own event, É Samba, that brings the Brazilian sound and feel to the English capital. We’d love to hear some more about the event?
The event was born after conversions I had with my business partner Phill De Janeiro, about the amount of events in London using Brazilian themes and names like Samba, Carnival, etc, which are doing absolutely nothing for our culture. I think they call it ‘Cultural Appropriation’ these days! We decided to join forces and curate an event that would reintroduce the Brazilian culture, music, soul, and rhythms to Londoners. Not only did we curate an all Brazilian DJ line up, but we included a Samba Fusion all female band (Samba Sisters Collective), and a traditional samba dancer Amanda Siqueira. The sun was shining, caipirinhas were rolling and we had the best time. We are looking forward to the second edition, which is probably happening in Q1 2023.
Keeping on the theme of delivering the Brazilian sound to London, you’ve also held a residency on Point Blank radio for over a year now, what can you tell us about your CAMZ’ Sunshine Beatz show?
I think music can change up our moods, and Brazilian and Latin music have the power to lift people’s spirits. On my monthly show I carefully select tunes that will bring my country’s sunshine to people’s hearts, and the genres range from bossa nova to minimal, with everything in between.
Thank you for chatting with us today CAMZ! To round off, is there anything else upcoming you’d like to share with us? And also, where’s the best place to keep up to date with you?
Thank you again for having me! If you’re in London, catch me at InTheMood E1 London on Oct 8th, and closing out the Baby Box at Ministry Of Sound on Nov 25th. The best way to keep up with me is following me on Instagram @camz_music. Beijos, tchau!
