Pérola is one of the biggest names in Angolan music. With a 20-year career, full of successes, she discovered her passion for singing as a child, when she performed for her neighbors.

The daughter of a doctor and a lawyer (also a musician), the artist was always encouraged to follow her dream in the arts. She even graduated in Law in South Africa, a time when she recorded her first album 'Os Meus Sentimentos'.

Mother of three children - Valentine, Kenzo and Zuriane - fruits of her marriage with businessman Sérgio Neto, in 2022 she released the album 'Sincera', after a break she took in her career to dedicate herself to motherhood.

We talked to the singer who has a scheduled performance in Portugal in November.

You have a concert scheduled for November 15 at the Coliseu dos Recreios, in Lisbon. What can we expect from this show?

Those who have been following my work know that I have a 20-year career. During these years I visited Portugal at specific times, for example, in 2015, and at the time I realized that there was an audience here who wanted to hear my music and be part of 'my party'.

I always had this dream of being at the Coliseu dos Recreios as a headliner and doing a concert of my own. It's a celebration of my 20 years with my oldest songs.

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I really like the Portuguese audience because they are very attentive

Does the Portuguese audience stand out in any way?

I really like the Portuguese audience because they are very attentive. Regardless of whether they know the artist or not, they are there to have fun and want to get to know them.

You have completed 20 years of your career, however you started singing as a child for your neighbors.

Yes [laughs]. It was when I was very young...

How did you discover your taste for music?

My father was a musician and my family has always been very connected to music and dance. From a very young age I liked to participate in dance and singing competitions and even in church I always showed my artistic side.

I myself felt this need to share this taste with people. It is something that has always been with me and that I have been developing in a more professional way.

Music has always been present in your life, even when you had to go to Luanda because of the civil war.

That's right.

It was a difficult time for many Angolan families, people were scattered. I remember seeing my uncles and aunts arriving, always with the hope that they were alive  Those must have been difficult times...

Very much. Especially because we saw the elders, particularly my mother, going through that difficult process in the best possible way so that the children would not feel it so much.

We left everything in Huambo [Pérola's hometown] and went to Luanda. I remember seeing my mother worried about us, giving us the best and comforting us in the best possible way so that the change would not be so painful.

It was a difficult time for many Angolan families, people were scattered. I remember seeing my uncles and aunts arriving, always with the hope that they were alive.

Those were very sad and heavy moments, but they shaped the person I am today. In Luanda we started from scratch. We had nowhere to live and we stayed at a relatives' house. We had no clothes, no shoes and they were giving them to us slowly. Today, obviously, we value things much more.

In the meantime, you went to study in South Africa.

First I went to Namibia. My mother is a doctor, she was placed there to work, so my siblings and I went with her. I studied there from 8th to 12th grade and, in that school, besides studying, I also participated in music competitions.

In 2002 - until 2007 - I went to South Africa, where I graduated in Law.

Music was never a plan B, but it was not seen in Angola as a solid profession. My mother instilled in me that I had to have a degree, in case things didn't go well in music Why Law?

Music was never a plan B, but it was not seen in Angola as a solid profession. My mother instilled in me - and rightly so - that I had to have a degree, in case things didn't go well in music. Initially I wanted to do Medicine, but I couldn't get in. My father was a musician, but also a lawyer, so I decided to follow his path.

Did you ever practice?

No, I never got to be in a court or an office, but Law is very comprehensive. In music there are copyrights, related rights, contracts...

From there to music, how did you make the leap?

It was in South Africa that I recorded my first album. I studied during the week, on weekends I went to Angola and sang a little. At the time of the course I did everything at the same time and in 2004 I released my first album and then I graduated in 2007. When I finished the course I continued with my music side and I'm here until today.

What did you have in mind when you released the album? That it was going to be a success or did you