Since 1997 Rita Ribeiro has been hailed as a fresh discovery on the Brazilian music scene, having shaped her path through uncommon candor while immersing herself in the traditions of her native Maranhão and reviving long-neglected cultural treasures. Her pair of albums earned strong approval and opened doors to an international presence, notably when she appeared at the Montreux Festival alongside Milton Nascimento, Nei Matogrosso, Zeca Baleiro, and Chico César.
A reggae devotee since the age of eight, she wove Afro-Brazilian elements drawn from umbanda, bumba-meu-boi, and tambor de crioula into her work. In 1986 she entered the ensemble Fuzarca, which revived overlooked aspects of Maranhão’s heritage, and there she encountered the songs of Antônio Vieira, the then-77-year-old creator of more than three hundred compositions who remained virtually unknown. Her debut performance came in 1989 under the direction of fellow Maranhão native Zeca Baleiro, with whom she also played local bars. That same year she married and relocated to São Paulo, taking jobs as a receptionist and shop manager yet persisting with club singing. For three years she trained vocally under Ná Ozzetti and Madalena Bernardes. Directly across the street lived Chico César, another Maranhão native who shared an apartment with Zeca Baleiro.
In 1997 she issued her first album, Rita Ribeiro (Velas), produced by Zeca Baleiro and featuring the Antônio Vieira songs “Cocada” and “Tem Quem Queira.” A Fuji Television special filmed that year introduced her to Japanese audiences, reinforcing her status as a revelation. Two years afterward she released Pérolas aos povos (MZA), again including a Vieira piece, “Banho Cheiroso,” together with material by other little-known Maranhão songwriters. At Montreux that year she shared the bill with Milton Nascimento, Nei Matogrosso, Zeca Baleiro, and Chico César.
