Fernanda Abreu

At the age of 19 in 1981, Fernanda Abreu performed in an amateur group alongside Leo Jaime known as Nota Vermelha while also engaging in contemporary dance through Coringa and Fonte. That same year marked her entry into Blitz, a group pivotal to the Brazilian rock scene of the 1980s. During this era, she contributed to recordings by Plebe Rude on their 1985 release O Concreto Já Rachou and by Ricardo Barreto, an ex-member of Blitz, on Prisioneiros do Ar from 1986. Following the group's breakup in 1986, Abreu methodically built her individual path by composing songs, staging performances, and collaborating on recordings with Fausto Fawcett, Laufer, and Serginho Mekler. By 1989, after penning several original pieces, she encountered Herbert Vianna of Paralamas do Sucesso. With his encouragement, she assembled a funk and disco ensemble featuring Fábio Fonseca, previously from Nota Vermelha, along with Fernando Vidal handling guitar, Aurélio Dias on bass, and Bodão on drums. Produced by Herbert Vianna and Fábio Fonseca, her debut solo effort SLA Radical Dance Disco Club arrived in 1990 and featured the successful track "A Noite" credited to Abreu, Luís Stein, and Laufer. Her follow-up, SLA2/Be Sample in 1992, stood among the first Brazilian pop albums to make widespread use of sampling techniques and gained traction via "Rio 40 Graus" written by Abreu, Fausto Fawcett, and Laufer. Thereafter recognized as the premier female figure in Brazilian disco, Abreu emerged as the leading woman in funk through her work with Da Lata, which included the tracks "Veneno da Lata" co-written with Will Mowat, "Garota Sangue Bom" alongside Fawcett, and "Brasil É o País do Suíngue" involving Abreu, Fawcett, Laufer, and Hermano Vianna.