The 5th album of the cuban singer/songwriter to be released on September 2nd 2016 When we hear the phrase “Viva la Revoluci?n!” our thoughts turn to Che Guevara and Cuba, to socialism, the economic embargo, and the political tug o’ war. But we also think of hand-rolled cigars, local rum, and bars in which Cubans dance salsa, rumba, and mambo. And of an exuberant and joyous attitude to life, one that gives no hint of the problems great and small that face the people who live there. Addys Mercedes was born into this difficult world in 1973. She grew up in a small village not far from Guant?namo, sharing a house thatched with palm fronds (but without electricity) with her siblings, her mother, and her grandmother. They had a fruit and vegetable garden, and a few animals in a shed. This was where her desire to become a singer, dancer, and actress was born. If she had seen Fidel Castro on State television, and listened to his speeches, she might have given up the idea, because it would have seemed completely utopian to a girl living in impoverished circumstances. But the family had no television set. When we look back on her career, we see that the phrase “Viva la Revoluci?n!” applies to her too, because her achievements have been truly revolutionary. She is a musician who composes and writes her own texts, which is unique in Cuba. In Cuban bands, it’s the bandleader who puts the repertoire together, a repertoire of songs to thrill whichever audience it’s playing to. In Cuba, a show has to be spectacular. A ballad needs plenty of pathos, and dance music has to be endlessly intoxicating. The band leader and every member of the band has to undergo regular assessment by a State commission. Following this assessment, the musicians’ rating determines how much they will earn each month, and the type of engagement offered to them. Addys, too, was examined in this way, and found to be “worthy” of singing with a professional band. Her new album “Extra?a” (Unfamiliar), containing 13 songs that strikingly reveal her temperament, her special charisma and her love of music, is now due to be released on September 2nd 2016. She combines traditional Cuban music with a modern Cuba that is also open to pop music, swing and blues. Lia’s violin playing revives the forgotten tradition of Cuban Charanga. In “Vive La Vida”, she sings a powerful hymn to life. In “Extra?a”, she describes how life here is different from life in Cuba. Memories of the poverty of her childhood are to be heard in “Do?a Rosa”: “For my first concert, my Mother brought me a dress belonging to a lady who had died; it had been given to her as a present. We had no money for new clothes. I think about how I can go on living Do?a Rosa’s life.“ Addys takes things as they come, waiting for a situation to arise before making any decision. She doesn’t like planning far ahead. Her family is the most important thing to her, both professionally and in private life. Her audiences are fascinated by her stories and the way she tells them. She is now telling them in the most prestigious concert halls, like the Alte Oper in Frankfurt, the Philharmonie in Essen, or the Theater am Aegi in Hanover. She has made a career for herself that is truly revolutionary for a woman musician from Cuba.
