Rita Maria de Azevedo Mafra Guerra, known only as Rita Guerra is a Portuguese singer.
It was in the Azores, where she lived for four years, that she started singing and playing the piano at the same time. She developed a special liking for singers like Elton John and Kim Carnes.
In 1989 she was invited to perform four songs at the 1st anniversary party of Rádio GEST station where she was an employee.
This was followed by the invitation to start performing daily at Casino do Estoril, the stage on which she walked for the first time in an Adamo show.
Pormenores Sem A Mínima Importância, her debut album, in an edition of Polygram, had the participation of Rui Veloso and members of Táxi.
She is meanwhile collaborating on LX90’s debut album.
In 1992 she participates in the RTP da Canção Festival with “Meu Amor Inventado Em Mim” which takes 2nd place.
She is also one of the guest names on the album “Camões, as Descobrimentos… e Nós” by José Cid e Amigos.
In 1993, RTP asked Pedro Osório to design a different show for the RTP Song Festival.
Pedro Osório’s idea was to bring together three different voices, so he invited Lena d’Água, Helena Vieira and Rita Guerra to interpret classics from previous decades.
The show “As Canções do Século” is presented at the Estoril Casino and throughout the country. It was released on disc in 1994.
That year she also collaborated in the show “007-Ordem Para Jogar” at Casino do Estoril.
In 1995, her second album, Independence Days, was released, which was a dream that Rita Guerra had for some time to record an album with the original repertoire in English.
With Paulo de Carvalho, Maria João and Carlos do Carmo she collaborates in the show “Quatro Caminhos”, by Pedro Osório, presented in 1996.
She participates in the collection In Love, released on Valentine’s Day, with the song “Brincando Com O Fogo”, which joins her voice to that of Beto, a singer she met when they recorded an advertising jingle.
They record a new duet for the compilation In Love II. The duo put together a show with the two duets, with original themes from each one and even some versions.
She later collaborated with the project Ovelha Negra by Paulo Pedro Gonçalves (ex-LX90).
The first single featured the voice of Rita Guerra in a very special fado.
“As Canções do Século” remained on the road throughout the country until 1998, when it was presented at Expo’98.
He records with Herman José the theme “The Christmas Song” for the Christmas album of the well-known comedian.
The show “POPera”, by Pedro Osório, premiered in 1999, where some of the most famous opera arias were seen in the light of modern music, was attended by Rita Guerra, Helena Viera and Beto.
In July 2000 he participated, with Janita Salomé, in the show “Tempo” at Casino Estoril.
NDrecords edited the soundtrack for this show with music by Pedro Osório.
The album Desencontros, a joint album by Rita Guerra and Beto, was released at the end of 2000.
Da Gama is a work of ethnic music, written by Maestro Pedro Osório. Paulo de Carvalho is another guest name in this work.
He participates in the song “Portugal a Cantar”, composed and produced by the Delfins, which was the official song of the Portuguese Football Federation at the 2002 World Cup.
On the “Portugal a Cantar” tour, an initiative of Coca Cola and União Lisboa, he joined names like Miguel Angelo, Anabela and Olavo Bilac for the interpretation of classics of Portuguese music.
The show “Egoista”, by Casino Estoril, with music by Pedro Osório, premiered in December 2002.
The other singers in this show are Dora and Gonçalo Salgueiro.
In 2003, she was invited by RTP to represent Portugal in the Eurovision Song Contest.[5]
The theme “Deixa-me Sonhar”, by Paulo Martins, is chosen.
The album Rita, released in 2005, becomes a great success reaching the double platinum mark.
On March 27, 2006, the first major concert of his career took place at the Coliseu dos Recreios, in Lisbon.
She was invited by Ronan Keating to record the song “All Over Again” for the national edition of his album Bring You Home.
In 2007, the album Sentimento was released.
In 2008, the CD and DVD “O Melhor de Rita Guerra – Acústico ao Vivo” was published.
On April 16, 2009, the singer won the “Top Choice Award” (TCA), in the “Top International Female Singer 2009” category, based on the vote of the Portuguese community residing abroad.
In 2010, the album Luar is published. The following year she released the album Retrato, and sang with Michael Bolton at Altice Arena (formerly Pavilhão Atlântico) and Coliseu do Porto, performing “Over the Rainbow” and “Make You Feel My Love”.
In 2012 she participated in the albums of Mastiksoul, with the theme “I Can Feel Your Love”, and Mickael Carreira, with “Volto a Ti”.
On May 4, 2013, she performed for the first time at the Centro Cultural de Belém, in front of an audience full of fans and admirers who gave her a standing ovation.
She had guests like HMB and Cais Sodré Funk Connection, who made this concert unforgettable.
In 2020 she released a new song, the first single from her next record, “Tudo Vai Passar”. She is co-author of the theme, along with Stego, Tyoz, Hugo Casaca and Rui Carvalho.
