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The Guardian - US
The Guardian - US
World
Constance Malleret in Rio de Janeiro

Brazil: all-female sambistas tackle sexism of male-dominated genre

The all-female Samba Que Elas Querem group.
The all-female Samba Que Elas Querem group. Photograph: Priscilla Haefeli

It was a typical Friday night at the Beco do Rato, a samba club tucked down a dark alleyway in Rio de Janeiro’s nocturnal Lapa district. A group of musicians beat their tantãs, tambourines and agogô bells to an audience of sweaty samba lovers who sang along.

Yet something about this scene was different: the band’s nine musicians were all women, and the crowd was also overwhelmingly female.

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