From her bedroom to the stage, Rita Cortezão found in music a way to deal with the suffocating aspects of life as a young woman in Lisbon. The search for her own identity, love and heartbreak, time—that abstract concept, which proves merciless in its passage and repetition—are the torments and blessings that echo through the young woman’s songs.

Rita’s songs are filled with analog sounds that are as much homemade as they are professional studio recordings, where the touch of Benjamim—who recruited her for “his” Discos Submarinos—can be heard serving the sentimental grandeur of these compositions. In November, the 25-year-old singer-songwriter will present her first album at ZDB, which will be released on October 24 by Discos Submarinos: tudo, um pouco. A set of 10 songs written and composed by the artist, produced in collaboration with Benjamim.

“dia após outro”, “lisbolha” and “o tempo que fica” are the advance tracks from a debut album where the written word takes center stage in the songs, in an attempt by the artist not only to create a safe place for herself where she can be as sincere as possible, but also to find unlikely ways to describe universal experiences and give new meaning to certain clichés.

There is only one thing left for us to do: listen carefully, lean on our closest friend, and cry a little.
MR

A Sul is an artist who explores the boundaries between her great passions: music and sound design. After her debut with the EP “Já Agora” (2022), she is preparing to release her first full-length album, “QUER QUER QUER”, scheduled for release in early 2026 by Cuca Monga. In 2023, she was awarded the FNAC New Talent prize and, in 2024, she collaborated with Moullinex and YuliaNiko, a Berlin-based electronic music producer, on the track Sand, consolidating her name on the emerging music scene. Composer and producer of her own songs, A Sul seeks to transform sound into image, giving her music a strong visual and cinematic character. The result is an immersive experience, both live and on record, where each of the eleven tracks that will make up the new album—including the already revealed “Gin” and “Tela”—unfold into evocative narratives, balancing vulnerability with a lighthearted and humorous side.