Glenda López Exposito (born September 3, 1988), better known by her stage name Glenda, is a Cuban-born singer, songwriter and

flute The flute is a family of classical music instrument in the woodwind group. Like all woodwinds, flutes are aerophones, meaning they make sound by vibrating a column of air. However, unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is a reedless ...

player. She was born in

Havana Havana (; Spanish: ''La Habana'' ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of the La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center.

, Cuba into a musical family. Her mother, Bellita (born 1957), is a well-known

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...

pianist and singer. Glenda's mother shares her interest in music and Glenda cites her mother as a powerful influence who encouraged her musical expansion. She started attend musical lessons (piano, singing) at the age of 5. Later, she studied at music school of Alejandro García Caturla and from 2003 on Conservatory Amadeo Roldán, both in Havana. She also performed with Orquesta de Flauta, led by influential flute player José Luis Cortéz and in Sinfónica de la Habana as a first flute player.

Musical beginnings and personal life

As teenager, Glenda performed not only in her native country, but also abroad, for example on jazz festival Jazz de Puerto Plata in

Dominican Republic The Dominican Republic ( ; es, República Dominicana, ) is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean region. It occupies the eastern five-eighths of the island, which it shares wit ...

or Jazz on the Green Festival in Trinidad a Tobago in 2008 She became a permanent member of band Bellity y Jazztumbata after she graduated on Conservatory Amadeo Roldán in 2007. In June 2011, she got married with Slovak producer Jozef Poláček and started to live also in

Slovakia Slovakia (; sk, Slovensko ), officially the Slovak Republic ( sk, Slovenská republika, links=no ), is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the s ...

. In November 2011, her son Joshua was born. From 2012 to 2013 she was performing in original musical Just Dance in

Bratislava Bratislava (, also ; ; german: Preßburg/Pressburg ; hu, Pozsony) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Slovakia. Officially, the population of the city is about 475,000; however, it is estimated to be more than 660,000 — approxim ...

and appeared on few local festivals, including Cherchez La Femme, Uprising reggae festival or BA City Beats, where

Katy B Kathleen Anne Brien (born 8 May 1989), better known as Katy B, is an English singer and songwriter. She released her debut studio album, ''On a Mission (Katy B album), On a Mission'', in 2011, which spawned two top five hits, "Katy on a Mission ...

Wyclef Jean Nel Ust Wyclef Jean (; born October 17, 1969) is a Haitian rapper, musician, and actor. At the age of nine, Jean immigrated to the United States with his family. He first achieved fame as a member of the New Jersey hip hop group the Fugees, a ...

Aloe Blacc Egbert Nathaniel Dawkins III (born January 7, 1979), known professionally by his stage name Aloe Blacc (), is an American singer, songwriter and rapper. He is best known for his singles "I Need a Dollar", " The Man", which topped the charts in th ...

Rudimental Rudimental are a British drum and bass band, signed to Asylum Records, Atlantic Records and Black Butter Records. The band consists of Piers Aggett, Kesi Dryden and Leon "Locksmith" Rolle. They were nominated for a Mercury Prize in 2013, and ...

, Hadouken!,

Danko Jones Danko Jones is a Canadian hard rock trio from Toronto. The band consists of Danko Jones (vocals/guitar), John 'JC' Calabrese (bass), and Rich Knox (drums).Peter Lipa Peter Lipa (born May 30, 1943) is a Slovaks, Slovak singer, composer, and promoter of jazz. He has been called the Honorific nicknames in popular music, Father of Slovak Jazz. Lipa is regarded as the most significant figure in the Slovak jazz s ...

several times. She also cooperated with many others local jazz musicians, for example

Martin Valihora Martin Valihora (born 4 May 1976) is a Slovak drummer and percussionist. Valihora studied piano between 1986 and 1987, but then switched to drums, having received private lessons from a Slovak drummer Oldo Petráš. He then studied drums and pe ...

, Michal Bugala, Juraj Griglák or Eugen Vizváry. She also contributed on Bellita's album "Lagrimas Negras", which was released in 2013 as promo only record. Glenda's musical inspirations include

Esperanza Spalding Esperanza Emily Spalding (born October 18, 1984) is an American bassist, singer, songwriter, and composer. Her accolades include five Grammy Awards, a Boston Music Award, and a Soul Train Music Award. A native of Portland, Oregon, Spalding be ...

Jamie Cullum Jamie Cullum (born 20 August 1979) is an English jazz-pop singer, songwriter and radio presenter. Although primarily a vocalist and pianist, he also accompanies himself on other instruments, including guitar and drums. He has recorded nine stu ...

, and

Laura Mvula Laura Mvula ( Douglas; born 23 April 1986) is a British singer. A native of Birmingham, England, Mvula has gained experience as a young member or leader of a cappella, jazz/neo-soul and gospel groups and choirs. She was classically trained. In ...

Performing with Jamie Cullum and The Dead Daisies

One of her most memorable moments came in June 2014, when she appeared as guest on

's solo show in AEGON arena NTC in Bratislava. A few months later she performed on Bratislava jazz days, the oldest jazz festival in Slovakia, with her mother Bellita. According to report from daily newspaper,

Pravda ''Pravda'' ( rus, Правда, p=ˈpravdə, a=Ru-правда.ogg, "Truth") is a Russian broadsheet newspaper, and was the official newspaper of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, when it was one of the most influential papers in the co ...

, their performance was one of the best at the 40th edition of festival. Another memorable moment for her came in February 2015, when she appeared on stage with former members of

Guns N' Roses Guns N' Roses is an American hard rock band from Los Angeles, California, formed in 1985. When they signed to Geffen Records in 1986, the band comprised vocalist Axl Rose, lead guitarist Slash, rhythm guitarist Izzy Stradlin, bassist Duff McKa ...

and

Whitesnake Whitesnake are an English hard rock band formed in London in 1978. The group was originally put together as the backing band for singer David Coverdale, who had recently left Deep Purple. Though the band quickly developed into their own entit ...

, which has formed supergroup

The Dead Daisies The Dead Daisies are an Australian-American rock supergroup and collective formed in 2012 in Sydney, Australia by David Lowy. Musicians that have joined Lowy for the project have included Richard Fortus (Guns N' Roses), Jon Stevens (INXS, Nois ...

. Guitarist

Richard Fortus Richard Fortus (born November 17, 1966) is an American guitarist. He has been a member of the hard rock band Guns N' Roses, with whom he has recorded one studio album, since 2001. Fortus has also collaborated extensively with The Psychedelic Fur ...

, bassist

Marco Mendoza Marco Mendoza is an American rock musician who has worked in diverse genres. He became a professional rock musician in 1989 and debuted on Black Sabbath drummer Bill Ward's solo album '' Along the Way''. He has performed on a number of nota ...

, keyboardist

Dizzy Reed Darren Arthur Reed (born June 18, 1963), better known by his stage name Dizzy Reed, is an American musician and occasional actor. He is best known as the keyboardist for the hard rock band Guns N' Roses, with whom he has played, toured, and recor ...

, guitarist

David Lowy David Hillel Lowy (born 31 December 1954) is an Australian businessman, aviator and musician. He is the eldest son of Westfield Corporation co-founder Frank Lowy and Principal of Lowy Family Group (LFG), the Family Office and private investmen ...

, and drummer

Brian Tichy Brian Tichy (born August 18, 1968) is an American musician, best known as having been the drummer for Whitesnake, Billy Idol, Foreigner (band), Foreigner, Sass Jordan, and Ozzy Osbourne. He was the drummer of Whitesnake from 2010 to 2013. His s ...

performed on February 28 together with

Darryl Jones Darryl Jones (born December 11, 1961) is an American bass guitarist. He has been recording and touring with the Rolling Stones since 1993. He has also played in bands with Miles Davis and Sting, among others. Career Darryl Jones was born on ...

John Corabi John Corabi (born April 26, 1959) is an American hard rock singer and guitarist. He was the frontman of The Scream during 1989 and the frontman of Mötley Crüe between 1992 and 1996 during original frontman Vince Neil's hiatus from the band. ...

and

Bernard Fowler Bernard Fowler (born January 2, 1960) is an American musician. He is known for a long association with The Rolling Stones, providing backing vocals since 1989 and on their studio recordings and live tours. Fowler has been a featured guest vocal ...

at the Salon Rosado de la Tropical in Havana. Glenda was their special guest and performed two songs with them including

The Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its cov ...

's "Sympathy for the Devil."

Cooperation with Danton Supple and Alan Roy Scott

Glenda is now being produced by

Danton Supple Danton Supple is a British record producer and mixer, best known for his work with Coldplay. Early career (1985–1994) Danton Supple was introduced to the world of recording studios in the 1980s, at his girlfriend's uncle Paddy Kingsland's BBC ...

and co-writing/collaborating with former Motown Music veteran Alan Roy Scott. They prepared Glenda's debut LP in Havana at Abdala Studios, where

Buena Vista Social Club Buena Vista Social Club is an ensemble of Cuban musicians established in 1996. The project was organized by World Circuit executive Nick Gold, produced by American guitarist Ry Cooder and directed by Juan de Marcos González. They named the g ...

recorded their albums. Glenda's first single from the resulting album, "In Search Of," was released in November 2014.

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Glenda Living people 1988 births