Cristina Branco is part of a younger generation of Portuguese singers that has rediscovered and transformed traditional fado songs. But her new album Ulisses veers away from that tradition and explores new stylistic and linguistic territory.
The album includes a cover version of Joni Mitchell's "A Case of You," sung in English, a version of a French poem and lyrics in Brazilian Portuguese.
For a popular singer, Branco is surprisingly private. Even after years of singing in public, she still has trouble taking the stage. And although she writes her own songs, she doesn't want to share them with the public.
Branco talks to Melissa Block about her career, her music and how such a private person became a performer.
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