Sao Luis, capital of culture and reggae

The city of São Luís was recently declared Brazilian Capital of Culture for 2009 by the International Bureau of Capitals of Culture (IBOCC). It was selected by a jury composed of representatives from the Brazilian Culture and Tourism Ministries, from previous cultural capitals and from the bureau itself.

The Maranhão state capital was competing against Areia (Paraíba), Mariana (Minas Gerais), Montenegro (Rio Grande do Sul) and Senador Pompeu (Ceará). Previously, the IBOCC had awarded the honour of Brazilian Capital of Culture to Olinda (Pernambuco) in 2006, São João del Rei (Minas Gerais) in 2007 and Caxias do Sul (Rio Grande do Sul) in 2008.

São Luís is among the select list of places in Brazil to have been declared a World Heritage Site. It was awarded this title in 1997 thanks to the excellently preserved European architecture in its historic centre. As well as its architecture, the traditional culture expressed in the Bumba-Meu-Boi festival and in the dance and music of the Tambor-de-Crioula make the city a unique destination. As does a more modern element that helps give São Luís its current flavour: reggae.

The city’s love of reggae dates back to the seventies, when people used to listen to Caribbean radio stations on shortwave radios. Sailors arriving on ships from the region helped spread the music, and locals were also influenced by their neighbours from Pará state, where reggae and other Caribbean sounds were already popular.

Maranhão was one of the first regions in Brazil to be colonised. The roots of the local people extend back to the indigenous population, the French (who founded the city in the 16th century, naming it in homage to King Louis XII), Portuguese colonisers (who regained control the following century), and Africans, brought over by the Portuguese as slaves. São Luís is one of the most important Afro-Brazilian cities in Brazil, together with Salvador and Rio de Janeiro. This also appears to be another factor in the introduction and spread of reggae, with its African and Jamaican roots and its social messages.

While initial interest in reggae was restricted to certain groups and classes, it has gradually gained exposure in the local media and is constantly winning over new fans. Reggae spread throughout the world and reached its peak in the mid 1970s, and has since been combined with local elements to produce a new type of reggae with a Brazilian accent. The best example of this is the way people here move to the music. While elsewhere in the world people dance to it alone, in Maranhão this mixture has meant people dance to reggae in couples. The moves are similar to forró, a musical style from the region which was also popular when reggae first arrived.

Reggae is still very popular and is now the soundtrack to the whole city, having long since stopped being just music from the outskirts. All of the local radio stations have reggae on their playlists. And so whether in the furthest districts, on the streets of the historical centre, within the walls of the colonial mansions decorated with Portuguese tiles or down by the sea, almost every day there’s a party to the sound of this contagious music.

Take a look at the World Heritage Sites in Brazil online at Braziltour.com/heritage.