Angolan musician Waldemar Bastos died at dawn on Monday in Lisbon, victim of cancer, at the age of 66, said a source from the communication office of the Angolan Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Environment.
Born in the province of M’Banza Kongo, the singer, who won the New Artist of the Year award at the World Music Awards in 1999, had been undergoing cancer treatment for a year, said the Angolan authorities.
In 2018, the musician was awarded the National Prize for Culture and Arts, the most important distinction of the Angolan State in this area.
Performing with a so characteristic sound that he defined as “afro-luso-atlantic”, Waldemar Bastos was also the only non-fado singer to perform at the transfer ceremony of the body of Amália Rodrigues, of whom he was a friend, to the National Pantheon, in Lisbon.
