Elizeth Cardoso

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Elizeth Moreira Cardoso, also known as Elisete Cardoso, was a famous Brazilian singer and actress. She was born in Rio de Janeiro on July 16, 1920, and died there on May 7, 1990, at age 69. Her dad played guitar and her mom sang, and Elizeth started working young in jobs like a store clerk and hairdresser.

She was discovered at her 16th birthday party by the musician Jacob do Bandolim. He took her to Rádio Guanabara, where she sang on a program on August 18, 1936. The next week she was hired to perform weekly, and she later hosted her own radio show in the 1960s. To earn more money, she began singing in clubs and theaters in 1939, which helped her rise in popularity.

In 1950 she recorded songs such as Braços vazios and Mensageiro da saudade, with support from Ataulfo Alves, though the initial album didn’t do well. Her next recordings, including Canção de amor and the samba Complexo, were better received. The hit Canção de amor led to her appearance on Rio de Janeiro’s first TV program on TV Tupi in 1951, and it helped launch her movie career, with roles in Coração materno and É fogo na roupa.

In 1958 Vinicius de Moraes invited her to sing songs written with Tom Jobim, and the Canção do Amor Demais album became the first bossa nova record, released on Festa. Although she wasn’t mainly a bossa nova singer, she sang the original version of the famous track Manhã de Carnaval from the Orfeu Negro soundtrack.

Throughout her life, Elizeth continued to sing and act, releasing more than 40 albums in Brazil, Portugal, and other countries. She was known for her strong samba roots and earned nicknames like A Noiva do Samba-Canção, Lady do Samba, A Magnifica, and A Divina. She died of cancer in 1990, and in 2021 Google honored her with a Doodle on what would have been her 101st birthday.