Yusa

Yusa grew up dividing her passions between music and the ocean in Buena Vista, the district now known as Playa. Her father, a sailor, sparked an early interest that led her to take up guitar as a child before pursuing lessons on piano and bass. While studying at the Amadeo Roldan Conservatory alongside peers including Roberto Carcasses, she regularly played in the hallways. She soon became a member of the improvisational jazz quintet Quasi-Jazz, whose performances frequently took place at Havana’s well-known club El Zorro y el Cuervo. Citing American artists such as Miles Davis and Stevie Wonder along with British vocalists like Peter Gabriel and Sting, she spent much of the 1990s appearing in the city’s bars and nightclubs. Work on her debut album began in 2001, with recording sessions held at a spacious house on Vedado Once and at the Amadeo Roldan Theatre; the resulting self-titled project appeared in 2002 on Tumi Records. The music blends jazz, rock, and modern Brazilian styles.