Bossa nova is a relaxed style of samba developed in the late 1950s and early 1960s in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It is mainly characterized by a calm syncopated rhythm with chords and fingerstyle mimicking the beat of a samba groove, as if it was a simplification and stylization on the guitar of the rhythm produced by a samba school band. Another defining characteristic of the style is the use of unconventional chords in some cases with complex progressions and "ambiguous" harmonies. A common misconception is that these complex chords and harmonies were derived from jazz, but samba guitar players have been using similar arrangement structures since the early 1920s, indicating a case of parallel evolution of styles rather than a simple transference from jazz to bossa nova. Nevertheless, bossa nova was influenced by jazz, both in the harmonies used and also by the instrumentation of songs, and today many bossa nova songs are considered jazz standards. The popularity of bossa nova has helped to renew samba and contributed to the modernization of Brazilian music in general.
Carola Maria Häggkvist, commonly known simply as Carola, is a Swedish pop singer and songwriter. She has been among Sweden's most popular performers since the early 1980s and has released albums ranging from pop and disco to hymns and folk music. Her debut album, Främling (1983), sold around one million copies and remains the biggest-selling album in Swedish music history. During her career, she has recorded many top-selling albums and singles and is referred to as Sweden's most prominent female singer. Some of her biggest hits are "Främling", "Tommy tycker om mig", "Fångad av en stormvind", "All the Reasons to Live", "I Believe in Love", "Genom allt", and "Evighet". Besides Swedish, she has also released records in Dutch, German, English, Norwegian and Japanese.
Alcazar is a Swedish nu-disco group formed in Stockholm. The group is one of Sweden's most successful music acts, both nationally and internationally, achieving a series of hits since their debut single in 1999. Globally, Alcazar sold over 12 million records between 2001 and 2004. The group gained international recognition in 2000 with their song "Crying at the Discoteque," which charted in the USA, Brazil, Australia, Japan, and most European countries.
Luiz Floriano Bonfá was a Brazilian guitarist and composer. He was best known for the music he composed for the film Black Orpheus.
Isabel Buarque de Hollanda Gilberto de Oliveira, known as Bebel Gilberto, is an American-born Brazilian popular singer often associated with bossa nova. She is the daughter of João Gilberto and singer Miúcha. Her uncle is singer/composer Chico Buarque.
Maria Magdalena Filipsson, known by her stage name Lena Philipsson, is a Swedish singer, songwriter and media personality. She represented Sweden in the 2004 Eurovision Song Contest, finishing fifth. As of 2024, Philipsson is the female lead vocalist of the Swedish duo Roxette.
Jon Erik Andreas Johnson is a Swedish pop/rock singer-songwriter and musician.
Luciana Souza is a Brazilian jazz singer and composer who also works in bossa nova, pop, classical and chamber music. She won a Grammy Award in 2007, and has been nominated for seven others, most recently in 2024. Souza is considered to be one of jazz's leading singers and interpreters. The New York Times called her voice "smooth-surfaced, coolly sensuous and dartingly agile."
Shirley Natasja Clamp is a British-Swedish pop singer. She has achieved four Top 10 singles in Sweden including a Number 1 with "Med hjärtat fyllt av ljus" in 2009, and three Top 10 albums. She has competed seven times in Melodifestivalen between 2003 and 2022, reaching the final twice where she finished second in 2004 and fourth in 2005.
Marianne Elisabeth Grönvall, known by her stage name Nanne, is a Swedish singer-songwriter.
Jill Anna Maria Johnson is a Swedish country and pop singer, songwriter and TV-host. She performed in the Melodifestivalen 1998 contest, winning with the song "Kärleken är", and represented Sweden at the Eurovision Song Contest 1998 with that song, which finished 10th with 53 points. In 2003 she entered Melodifestivalen for the second time with "Crazy in Love", which finished fourth in the final. She also hosted the final of Melodifestivalen 2005. Johnson is today one of the most successful artists in Sweden, with several Gold and Platinum records and since 2014 has hosted her own Swedish TV-show from Nashville, Jills veranda.
Sweden was represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 2005 with the song "Las Vegas", written by Tim Larsson, Tobias Lundgren, Johan Fransson, and Niklas Edberger, and performed by Martin Stenmarck. The Swedish participating broadcaster, Sveriges Television (SVT), selected its entry through Melodifestivalen 2005.
"Manhã de Carnaval", often referred to as "Black Orpheus", is a song by Brazilian composer Luiz Bonfá and lyricist Antônio Maria.
Sanna Viktoria Nielsen is a Swedish singer, television presenter and musical theatre performer. On her seventh attempt, she won Melodifestivalen in 2014 with the song "Undo" and so represented Sweden in the Eurovision Song Contest 2014 in Copenhagen, Denmark, finishing in 3rd place overall. Sanna was one of the Eurovision Song Contest 2015 commentators for Sweden and hosted Melodifestivalen 2015 along with comedian Robin Paulsson. She was announced as the new presenter for the sing-along show Allsång på Skansen for the summer of 2016. She hosted Eurovision The Party at the Tele2 Arena for the Eurovision Song Contest 2016.
Sweden was represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 2009 with "La voix", written by Fredrik Kempe and Malena Ernman, and performed by Ernman herself. The Swedish participating broadcaster, Sveriges Television (SVT), selected its entry through Melodifestivalen 2009.
Astrud Gilberto was a Brazilian samba and bossa nova singer and songwriter. She gained international attention in the mid-1960s following her recording of the song "The Girl from Ipanema".
Sofia Rebecca Hildegard Berntson, known professionally as Sofia is a Swedish singer who often sings in Greek. She has released three CD singles since 2007 and has taken part in the Swedish song selection process for the Eurovision Song Contest, Melodifestivalen, twice, in 2007 and more recently in 2009.
Kjell Jennstig is a Swedish musician and composer/songwriter. As a musician he is mostly known as guitarist in Swedish motorcycle group, Kenneth & the Knutters. As a composer/songwriter, he has written for a number of Swedish performers, including Carina Jaarnek, Caracola, Grönwalls, Blender and Caroline Wennergren.
Jenny Maria Öhlund, better known as Jenny Silver, is a Swedish singer.
"A Different Kind of Love" is a song written by Joacim Dubbelman, Martin Landh and Sam McCarthy, and performed by Caroline Wennergren at Melodifestivalen 2005. Participating in the fourth semifinal in Växjö, the song made it directly to the finals, where it ended up 5th.
