Seu Jorge

Seu Jorge can exhale a ballad until it comes out of his lungs like leftover smoke. But while his latest disc, Cru, leaves plenty of space for crooning, it’s also chic, edgy and—like its title says—raw. “I grew up in Belford Roxo, Baixada Fluminense, one of the most poor and violent areas of Rio de Janeiro,” says Jorge via e-mail and a translator. He was homeless for part of his childhood, until he found shelter through friends at the University of Rio de Janeiro. “They had a small theater where I started to sleep [in return for] cleaning. ... I always had a musical vein and used to play between the classes and presentations, [and] acting came as something natural, really.”

Americans know Jorge from the films City of God and The Life Aquatic (in the latter, he’s the guy singing Bowie in Portuguese). But this fall, Jorge is supporting Cru with club dates around the States. Even if non-Portuguese speakers don’t catch the lyrics about Brazilian slums or the perils of breast implants, they’ll hear the coarse edge in Jorge’s singing. But will it be too downbeat for his home audience? “The Brazilian public is more happy, expects more vibration,” says Jorge. “But I am sure they will like it.”