Badi Assad to Release New Album, Tour

Brazilian songstress Badi Assad will release her first solo album in seven years with her eDGe/Grammophon debut on Sept. 13, entitled Verde. Unlike her previous solo effort, 1998’s Chameleon, Verde was recorded entirely in Brazil, which Assad said greatly influenced the sound of the album, giving it “a lot of different colors and moods.”

“The album is kind of a reflection of my own personality not only musically but of my whole life,” Assad said.

Another striking difference from Chameleon is the nature of the songs themselves: Verde contains mostly songs written by other composers, while Chameleon was primarily composed of songs Assad wrote.

“I really enjoy being able to sing other people’s songs. While I’m singing them, they belong to me,” she said. Of special note on Verde are two English-language covers that will be familiar to many listeners: U2’s “One” and Bjork’s “Bachelorette.”

But aside from her pop covers, Verde features a strong jazz presence, primarily through bossa nova. “I am from a country that has bossa nova and I am influenced by that because I think there is nobody who is not. My whole life I heard it,” Assad explained.

In support of her new album, Assad will begin a U.S. tour in August and continue through October. Tour dates are as follows:

Aug. 3 Sonoma County Fair, Sonoma, Calif.
Sept. 22 Chicago Cultural Center, Chicago, Ill.

Sept. 23 First Christian Church, Bloomington, Ind.

Sept. 25 Great American Music Hall, San Francisco, Calif.

Oct. 1 Montreal, Canada

Oct. 2 Toronto, Canada

Oct. 5 Boston, Mass.

Oct. 6 Emory University, Atlanta, Ga.

Oct. 7 University of Maryland, College Park, Md.

Oct. 9 Joe’s Pub, New York, N.Y.

Originally Published July 25, 2005