June 22, 2019 – GUAI is a sensational singer emerging on the Brazilian music scene. Her debut album, Dama de Paus (Queen of Clubs), originally released in 2017, is superb. We're not alone in that assessment. Music legends Roberto Menescal, Carlos Lyra, Ivan Lins, and Nelson Faria have all praised it.

Lins said, “No doubt it is a super album. GUAI is an outstanding singer.” Faria said, “When I listened to your album, I fell for it... It's a masterful production with great sound, and it swings like crazy. When you start listening you can't stop.” Menescal said, “I haven't heard anything similar to this in Brazilian Popular Music. A work rich and full of detail. I listen to it repeatedly. It's among the top three albums in my car. Impeccable.”

GUAI is our new Discovery Artist, a musician deserving worldwide recognition.

GUAI's birth name is Karoline Guaitolini. She told JazzWax's Marc Myers, “I used it as my professional name until I noticed that people had difficulty pronouncing it, so I began using just GUAI—yes, in all caps. It's short for my last name. A close friend always called me Guai and still does. I thought, why not?”

She grew up in a household full of music in Salvador da Bahia. The record collection of her pianist father and vocalist mother included Brazilian artists such as Elis Regina, Elza Soares, Djavan, Gal Costa, and Wagner Tiso, as well as Edith Piaf, Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald, and Sarah Vaughan. Her parents had a traveling dance party band, Banda Arabesque, and GUAI began performing with them when she was just four years old.

She went on to perform at social events—weddings, anniversaries, graduations—as well as in theaters, hotels, and nightclubs. In 2009, she created, produced, and directed the show “Eu, Ella and Elis” with a sextet, featuring American jazz along with samba and bossa nova and honoring the divas Ella Fitzgerald and Ellis Regina. Her first music video, featuring the Noel Rosa classic “Último Desejo,” was a finalist for the 2011 Brazilian Music Awards. She was also a finalist in 2012, interpreting João Bosco's “Coisa Feita.”

After she moved to Rio de Janeiro in 2013, her career got an important boost from Cristina Cordeiro, the widow of renowned trumpet player Márcio Montarroyos. GUAI told the story to Nelson Faria in an interview on his YouTube channel, Um Café Lá em Casa:

She saw me singing at Beco das Garrafas and said, “You need a decent band, for heaven's sake!”
“But I don't know anybody.”
“No, wait. We'll fix it.”

Then she called [Latin GRAMMY® award-winning producer and bass player] Nema [Antunes]. He showed up and said, “OK, let's do it. I liked it.”
“Let's do it then,” I said.
“I'll ask [guitarist] João Castilho.”
I had to sit down, “What? But he won't come to play with me.”
“No, he'll come. I'll call [drummer] Erivelton Silva.”

I had just met Erivelton the previous night and was impressed. What a brilliant drummer!
Anyway, things started happening for me.

Her new shows included the Rio de Janeiro project and single “Senhorita,” produced by Nema Antunes and featuring his arrangements of Brazilian and jazz classics with João Castilho, Erivelton Silva, and pianist Marco Brito. In 2017, GUAI was nominated for the Caymmi Music Award for best female vocalist.

Nema Antunes has continued working as GUAI's producer, and he played bass on Dama de Paus. The disc has fabulous arrangements, an all-star line-up of musicians, a string section, and guest appearances by André Ramiro and As Ganhadeiras de Itapuã. Now GUAI is working on a greatly anticipated second album.

Here's a sample track from Dama de Paus. This is “Alquimia,” written by Paulo Djorge and featuring Leonardo Amuedo on guitar. The album's title track is found here, in our New Releases section. Dama de Paus is distributed by Tratore (www.tratore.com.br) and is available on all digital platforms, including Amazon Music and Apple Music.

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Website: www.guai.com.br
YouTube interview: Um Café Lá em Casa