São Paulo – Moroccan singer Mamoun Amri, known in Brazil as Mamo Marroquino, never imagined that his songs could be successful in the country of Carnival. In 2007, when he received an invitation to sing in Brazil, the idea was to spend a month and then return to Morocco, but the appreciation of his music shown by Brazilian people made the singer change his plans and establish roots in Brazil.
"I was very surprised when I came here. I never thought that I was going to find such a large Arab community," said the singer, who has been in Brazil for three years and speaks Portuguese. "When I thought of Brazil, I thought of football, Carnival and the Amazon," he added.
According to Amri, the nickname Mamo Marroquino arose in Brazil. "It was the Brazilians who started calling me this and so it remained," he said. The music sung by Amri is of Lebanese, Syrian, Egyptian, Saudi and Moroccan origin. "The Brazilians love it," he said.
Mamo Marroquino’s band includes Brazilian, Sryian, Lebanese and Egyptian musicians, who play keyboard, drums and derbake, an Arab percussion instrument. "It is an Arab band, not just Moroccan, as we have the same culture, we are a family," said Amri, who also has dancers in the group, who dance folkloric dances and the famous belly dance.
The audience in his shows includes from kids to elders. According to him, apart from Arab families, many Brazilian ones go to his shows. Every Wednesday, Mamo Marroquino’s band plays at Bantu show hall, in São Paulo. Apart from playing there, the musician also plays throughout Brazil at wedding parties and birthdays.
Amri’s popularity has already arrived in Brazilian cinema, with participation in film “É Proibido Fumar”, by Anna Muylaert, with actors Glória Pires and Paulo Miklos. The singer also participated in several TV programs on channels like Record, Gazeta and Rede TV. "Apart from music, I like to talk about my country, to disclose our culture," he said.
According to the musician, while he is growing professionally in Brazil, Amri does not plan to return to Morocco. "I also dream of singing and playing in Syria and Egypt, which are countries I like very much," he said.
Trajectory
Born in 1979, in the city of Berkane, in the northeast of Morocco, Amri started his career at 10 years of age, when he sang religious music at children’s parties. At the age of 14, he became a member of the Fine Arts conservatory of Morocco, where he learnt how to play other music of Arab origin.
Up to the end of 2006, Amri sang at weddings in Tunisia, Algeria and Morocco and played with a group from several tourist cities in his country, like Marrakech and Casablanca. It was at one of these shows that the singer met a Brazilian producer who invited him to come to Brazil. "I fell in love with Brazilian hospitality. I want to continue here for the time being," he said.
Contact
Tel. (+55 11) 8470-8050
Email: contato@mamomarroquino.com.br
Site: www.mamomarroquino.com.br
*Translated by Mark Ament
