Karlon Krioulo has released a new album. "Griga" upgrades Passaporti and is packed with talented guests: Bdjoy, Carlão, Neuro MC, Sonny Rap, Helio Batalha, Dino D’Santiago, AC Firmino, Toni Rex, Sagaz, Mista Badia, Primero G, Maria Tavares, Charlie Beats, Prod Therapia, Ildo Lobo, Orlando Pantera, DJ X-Acto, Ary@Blasted Mechanism (bassline in the song “Sol na Céu”, and audio mixing and mastering of the album) make up the list of artists. Silvio Rosado is the creator behind Griga’s cover.
 

Increasingly more connected to his Cape Verdean roots, the rapper formerly known as just Karlon now goes by the name Karlon Krioulo. Similarly to Passaporti , the recipe for this new album draws heavily from the sounds of Cape Verde. Its name was inspired by the woman who used to take care of Karlon when his mother was at work, in Miraflores. “I lost touch with her and never saw her again. Later I heard that she had died. She was a very wise lady.” 

Let’s start by the title of your new project: what does Griga mean and in what way does it represent what you want to convey with the album?

Griga is the name of the nanny that used to take care of me in Pedreira dos Húngaros (Miraflores) when my mother was at work. Griga’s work was picking up and selling cardboard, a common occupation among the younger crowd too. She always called me “little rascal”. I really liked her energy and friendly vibes, and she used to make me this coffee from the island of Fogo that I would gladly still drink today. When the neighbourhood ended and we were rehoused in the “Vertical Ghettos”, in 1998 — an expression used by a friend of mine called Orpheu — I lost touch with her and never saw her again. Later I found out she had died. She was a very wise lady. So I wanted to pay homage to her.
 

What about the beats, who did you work with and what sounds did you want to explore?

The album was entirely produced by me, except for three songs. Two were produced by Charlie Beats — “Foi Sodadi” features other musicians — and the third by Prod Therapia, a

song called “11º Ilha”, with Primero G. The other eight tracks were produced by me. The sounds flowed naturally from the samples that I used. The sample was at the helm and the

rest was gradually built around it.

CD, Tracklist