2024 is about to close, but before it officially does, here is the deserved spotlight on the Brazilian artist of the year: a trans Black Brazilian woman—Liniker. Can you feel the power behind that statement? Brazil is the country with the largest number of trans people killed and has high levels of violence against this community. Brazil is also the largest country with a Black population outside the African continent. It is the most racist country, rooted in its colonial past, and the last country in Latin America to abolish slavery, with a lack of reparation policies and social integration—the consequences are still felt by those pushed to the margins. Despite this, Brazil is multi-ethnic and diverse in terms of culture.
An apple doesn’t fall far from the tree. Liniker came from a musical family. She grew up watching her mother and uncles participate in samba rock circles. Though she showed vocal talent from an early age, it wasn’t until her teenage years, when she was involved in theatre, that she truly sang her colours. Always connected with art in various forms, this eclectic approach is reflected in her influences: Clube do Balanço, Cartola, Elza Soares, Etta James, Nina Simone, Caetano Veloso, Gilberto Gil, Gal Costa, Tulipa Ruiz, and Tássia Reis.
Liniker is about to complete a decade-long career in 2025. She started with the R&B, blues, and soul band 'Liniker e os Caramelows'—though they describe themselves as 'funzy'—highlighting the deep influence of Black music in Latin America. They went viral right away, which led to their debut album becoming a sensation for foreign audiences, with media coverage and critical acclaim abroad. Therefore, she holds an international career in the United States, Colombia, Angola and 16 European countries - besides Brazil as a whole. Liniker gained prominence due to her powerful vocal abilities and romantic lyrics. She possesses a versatile deep timbre and effortlessly transitions to high notes with frequent falsettos.In 2021, she began her solo career with her debut album Indigo Borboleta Anil, with none other than the octogenarian Milton Nascimento by her side, along with a few contemporaries. In 2022, she became the first trans woman to win a Latin Grammy. This year, she collected the most awards and received a standing ovation at the Prêmio Multishow for her second album Caju, a few weeks ago. A noteworthy mention is the 100 million streams across all platforms, with 6 million of those in the first 24 hours! A small observation on the album cover has clear reference to Priscilla, Queen of the Desert (Stephan Elliott, 1994).
In interviews, Liniker revealed that, growing up, she had a desire to wear her mother’s clothes, but this was repressed by other relatives. However, in 2014, she began investing in an androgynous visual identity, deconstructing the traditional codes associated with masculinity. As an artist, her look began to blend turbans, skirts, lipstick, and a moustache in musical performances that incorporate theatrical elements alongside her voice—sometimes husky and deep, sometimes clear and high-pitched—shaping a uniquely Brazilian Black music style infused with pop elements.Liniker blends a variety of genres in her music, from samba rock to R&B, blues, and soul. This eclectic style reflects Brazil's rich musical heritage but also challenges the boundaries of traditional genres. Her sound both honors Brazil's musical past (influenced by artists like Cartola and Elza Soares) while introducing contemporary elements such as pop, soul, and experimental sounds. This fusion can be seen as a way of asserting a modern, diverse Brazilian identity that resists confinement within traditional expectations.
Liniker’s music and public persona defy the historical erasure of Black Brazilian culture, which has often been relegated to stereotypes. By embracing her Blackness and creating music that highlights her experience, Liniker gives voice to a segment of the Brazilian population often marginalized or misrepresented in mainstream media. Her success reclaims space for Black artists in the Brazilian music scene, showing that Black Brazilian music is not only rooted in the past (e.g., samba, bossa nova) but can evolve into new, innovative forms.
As a trans woman, Liniker actively defies the rigid gender roles that are deeply ingrained in Brazilian culture. Her androgynous fashion and musical performances that incorporate theatrical elements challenge traditional expectations of masculinity and femininity. In a society with strong gender norms and often rigidly binary views of gender, Liniker's presence as a non-conforming figure challenges these norms both in terms of aesthetics and identity.
In a country where queer identity has often been marginalized or treated with disdain, Liniker brings visibility to queer experiences through her work. She does not fit neatly into the stereotypical images of queerness in Brazilian media, which are often shaped by cisgender gay men or more conventional representations of femininity. By presenting a trans woman who defies both racial and gendered expectations, Liniker broadens the scope of what it means to be queer in Brazil, creating space for a more diverse, inclusive representation.
Liniker’s artistry serves as a platform for broader discussions around social issues, particularly around race, gender, and sexuality. Her prominence in the music industry allows her to shine a light on the struggles faced by Black trans people in Brazil. Through her art, she raises awareness about systemic issues like violence against trans women and the lack of social integration for Black Brazilians, all while showing that Black and queer identities can not only exist but thrive in the mainstream cultural landscape.
Worth noting, 2024 was the year The New York Times declared Pabllo Vittar the heir to RuPaul of RuPaul's Drag Race. However, Liniker redirects the power to the pre-colonial African roots that remain erased under the colonizer’s gaze yet are a lingering wound for the colonies.
Colonialism forced rigid Western gender hegemony onto African societies, where conformity became a form of survival and resilience. However, many African cultures did not see gender as a binary; they were advanced in terms of gender fluidity, diversity (as well as sexuality), and non-conformity. They did not correlate anatomy to gender identity. In no African country prior to colonization was there persecution of LGBT individuals because of their sexuality, nor any anti-LGBT laws. Similarly, in Latin America since colonialism, Indigenous sexual practices and gender expressions were persecuted and erased, as Western powers imposed their religion and beliefs, accompanied by the violence of this process.A little footnote: Transgender people are individuals whose gender identity differs from the sex they were assigned at birth. Many people wrongly assume that gender identity is intertwined with sexual orientation. There are two types of transitions: social and physical. A social transition involves a change in name and pronouns, while a physical transition includes hormone therapy and surgeries. It's important to mention the issues surrounding accessibility, as these processes can be expensive. Drag acts challenge expectations, social constructs, gender norms, and identities—though cross-dressing has been practiced throughout much of recorded history, in many societies, and for various reasons. Non-binary is an umbrella term that describes people whose gender identity doesn't fit into the male or female binary. The term androgynous is an adjective used to describe someone who is 'neither specifically feminine nor masculine' and has 'characteristics or nature of both male and female.'
Is Liniker a beacon for a generation of Black Brazilians? A sort of Marsha P. Johnson who uses her success to foster broader discussions regarding the LGBT+ Black community? A future beyond the police bullets that constantly target them, the violence statistics, or the media that does not do enough to cover this musical phenomenon? After all, behind all of this, there are humans—and a Brazilian Black trans Midas queen.
