Brazilian Popular Music Icon Gal Costa Dies at 77

On Wednesday, Brazilian singer-songwriter Gal Costa died at the age of 77. The causes of her death have not yet been reported.

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Recently, she underwent surgery to remove a nodule in her nose, which made her suspend a tour of Europe in these months.

Gal Costa was one of the greatest exponents of the tropicalist movement, to which historical artists such as Caetano Veloso, Gilberto Gil, and Maria Bethania also belong. Her voice is part of a generation that established the pillars of Brazilian Popular Music (MPB).

Born in 1945 in Salvador in the state of Bahia, she developed her career for over 50 years, winning the 2011 Latin Grammy for a work that encompassed bossa nova, samba, and rock.

Lula da Silva's tweet reads, "Gal Costa was one of the world's greatest singers. She was one of our leading artists in bringing Brazilian names and sounds to the entire planet. Her talent, technique, and daring enriched and renewed our culture. They also formed and marked the lives of millions of Brazilians."

Besides standing out in the cultural sphere, Costa was known for the progressive political positions that she exhibited in public without fear of its possible consequences.

“We have to be alert and strong. We have no time to fear death,” said a woman whose bravery was censored during the military dictatorship, a dark period in which Gal Costa kept the light of hope with presentations loaded with the sounds of the people's strength.

Gal Costa fought against the military dictatorship from 1964 to 1985, opposed the coup d'etat against Dilma Rousseff in 2016, resisted Jair Bolsonaro during his term, and elected Lula da Silva in 2022, as recalled by Andre Vieira, teleSUR correspondent in Brazil.