A Brazilian singer with a penchant for boleros who did not achieve her greatest fame until she was in her fifties, Nana Caymmi was born Dinahir Tostes Aymmi on April 29, 1941 in Rio de Janeiro. Her parents were both established singers, and Caymmi made her recording debut on her father Dorival Caymmi’s 1961 release Acalanto. Five years later she made a name for herself by winning the International Song Festival in 1966 with her rendition of “Saveiros”, a song co-written by her father. Unmoved by, Tropicalia and protest songs, the two popular musical trends at the time, Caymmi retreated from the music scene performing in small venues throughout South America. She began a solo recording career with 1979’s Nana Caymmi, and although she recorded throughout the ‘80s, she enjoyed her first great success with 1993’s Bolero, her first album to be certified gold. This began a streak of successful albums including 1998’s Resposta ao tempo, which included the single “Não se esqueça mim”, as well as Brazilian industry awards for Best Female Singer in both 1995 and 1998. She was the subject of the 2010 documentary film Rio Sonata, an in the 2010’s she was twice nominated at the Latin Grammys for Best MPB Album, first in 2014 for Caymmi, which she recorded with her brothers, and again in 2019 for Nana Caymmi Canta Tito Madi.
