Eduardo Mendonça (born August 21, 1960 in Salvador,

Bahia Bahia () is one of the 26 Federative units of Brazil, states of Brazil, located in the Northeast Region, Brazil, Northeast Region of the country. It is the fourth-largest Brazilian state by population (after São Paulo (state), São Paulo, Mina ...

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

) is a guitarist, percussionist, singer, composer, and director of "Show Brazil!". He traces his heritage to a royal African family called "Mama Beka", meaning "Prophet of the Royal Court". He settled in

Seattle, Washington Seattle ( ) is the List of municipalities in Washington, most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the List of Unit ...

in 1994 and was a member of the percussion ensemble Bakra Bata, before forming his own band and production company, Show Brazil. His group performs and offers workshops at festivals all over the

Pacific Northwest The Pacific Northwest (PNW; ) is a geographic region in Western North America bounded by its coastal waters of the Pacific Ocean to the west and, loosely, by the Rocky Mountains to the east. Though no official boundary exists, the most common ...

, including

Bumbershoot Bumbershoot is an annual international music and arts festival held in Seattle, Washington (state), Washington. One of North America's largest such festivals, it takes place every Labor Day (United States), Labor Day weekend (leading up to and ...

, the Northwest Folklife Festival, the Seattle International Children's Festival, and many others. Eduardo Mendonça was on hand to provide a musical welcome to

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II (born Karol Józef Wojtyła; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 16 October 1978 until Death and funeral of Pope John Paul II, his death in 2005. In his you ...

when the pontiff visited Brazil in 1980. He also played for

Nelson Mandela Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela ( , ; born Rolihlahla Mandela; 18 July 1918 – 5 December 2013) was a South African Internal resistance to apartheid, anti-apartheid activist and politician who served as the first president of South Africa f ...

's visit to Seattle in 1999. Mendonça was featured in

Paul Simon Paul Frederic Simon (born October 13, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter known for his solo work and his collaborations with Art Garfunkel. He and Garfunkel, whom he met in elementary school in 1953, came to prominence in the 1960s as Sim ...

's 1991 documentary " Born at the Right Time". In 2007 he was named Outstanding Brazilian Male Singer Based in the United States.

References

1960 births Living people 20th-century Brazilian male singers 20th-century Brazilian singers Brazilian percussionists Brazilian guitarists Brazilian composers Musicians from Salvador, Bahia Musicians from Seattle Guitarists from Washington (state) American male guitarists 20th-century American guitarists 20th-century American male musicians Brazilian emigrants to the United States {{Brazil-musician-stub