LINA_ invites Rodrigo Cuevas on her new single O Que Temo E O Que Desejo – What I Fear& What I Desire

Two of the most expressive vocalists of the Iberian Peninsula: Spain's Rodrigo Cuevas and Portugal’s LINA_ come together on the new single ‘O Que Temo E O Que Desejo’ – What I Fear & What I Desire. This is the second single ahead of LINA_’s new album, "Fado Camões", to be released worldwide on 19 January 2024 on the German label Galileo Music.

"I'm very happy to be singing with LINA_ who is an artist I really admire," says Rodrigo Cuevas at a recent concert in Portugal. "It's been a great privilege to get to know Portuguese folklore and song in this way and I'm very grateful to have had this opportunity," adds someone who has played a key role in affirming new Spanish music around the world.

The same is true for LINA_ as regards Portuguese music. Having released two albums as Carolina, it was three years ago that LINA_ took to the world stage alongside Spanish musician and producer Raül Refree (known for his work with Rosalía and Sílvia Péres Cruz), in an adventurous album that took the language of fado further, celebrating Amália. Rodrigo Cuevas, on the other hand, is part of a new generation of artists who have been sifting through tradition to find new arguments for the future with a contemporary pop language that owes something to the popular risqué Spanish theatre song style called cuplé. As in the case of LINA_, his meeting with producer LINA_ O Que Temo E O Que Desejo feat. Rodrigo Cuevas Raül Refree was essential in affirming a new vision, with different folkloric idioms coexisting with contemporary elements in his music, style and art, as you can see by listening to his latest album "Manual de Romería" (2023).

All of this culminates in the new single "O Que Temo E O Que Desejo", a warm song with fado overtones, but also offers something more with the Portuguese guitar meandering between claps and a slow but insinuating electronic rhythm. On "O Que Temo E O Que Desejo", LINA_'s voice is assisted by Rodrigo's, reviving the Iberian spirit, bringing Portuguese and Galician-Portuguese together without any stigmas and in harmony.

"O Que Temo E O Que Desejo" is the second single, after "Desamor", which precedes the album "Fado Camões". The new single foreshadows what is to come, with LINA_ not losing sight of the boldness of the recent past, without reneging on a traditional line. After her success and numerous concerts and awards (such as the World Music Chart's Disc of the Year 2020 or the Carlos do Carmo Award 2021, among countless other European prizes), LINA_ now returns with a highly personal album. "Fado Camões" opens a new chapter for LINA_ with the production of British musician, producer and composer Justin Adams, known for his work with Robert Plant, Rachid Taha, Tinariwen and Souad Massi, or collaborations with Brian Eno and Sinead O'Connor. In almost every project Justin Adams has been involved with, there's this idea of combining tradition with modernity, so it's no surprise that he's teamed up with LINA_.

The forthcoming album places the poetry of Portugal’s revered Luís de Camões in new settings, with the precious collaboration of Pedro Viana's Portuguese guitar, the piano, keys and arrangements of John Baggott, an English musician who has played with Massive Attack, Portishead or Robert Plant, and Ianina Khmelik who performs piano and synthesisers on two of the album’s songs. These musicians will be touring with Lina from January 2024, and John Baggott will be a guest at special events.

Another important collaboration is that of Portuguese fado singer Amélia Muge, who not only wrote the music and lyrics for one of the songs, but also helped adapt the lyrics. But for now, there's "O Que Temo E O Que Desejo", where Lina - with the help of Rodrigo Cuevas - gives us a song that talks about desire, death and life, because it's all connected. "O Que Temo E O Que Desejo" releases through Galileo Music on the 24th November, 2023.