Anitta Calls Her First Grammy Nomination the ‘Foundation’ to Introduce Her Culture

Brazilian powerhouse Anitta is among the nominees for best new artist at the 2023 Grammys, and before she walks down the red carpet in February, Billboard invited her into the studio to talk about her first Grammy nod and much more.

Speaking with Billboard News, Anitta reveals that when she found out she was nominated, she was already in full Grammy mode, as she was hosting the Latin Grammys in Las Vegas. She also shared that the best new artist nomination is something of an irony, given that she began her career in Brazil 12 years ago.

“But here in America,” she says, “I’m just starting right now … It’s so different, it’s so hard for me to get to this other level of jumping into another market and working there that for me it is a new artist, because for me it is a new career from zero.”

She also notes that the last time a Brazilian act was nominated for best new artist was in 1964, when Astrud Gilberto earned a nod on the heels of the hit “Girl From Ipanema,” a song Anitta pays homage to on “Girl From Rio” from her 2022 LP Versions Of Me.

She continues that while it’s been challenging to get non-Brazilian audiences to get used to her native language — Portuguese — global markets are warming up to it via her work, and that’s she’s working on a funk album that will fully showcase the sounds and style of her homeland.

“For me,” she says, “I understand that this whole moment was like the construction of the foundation for me to actually introduce my culture.”

Watch the interview above, and stay tuned for part two of the conversation in the coming weeks.