“This is a new musical version of me, and also a new visual version,” Urias shares. “One I had never allowed myself to explore before and now it’s all wide open to the world.” The renowned Brazilian singer, who has previously collaborated with the likes of Honey Dijon, Brooke Candy, Cakes Da Killa and Pabllo Vittar, is getting ready for the release of her soon-come third album. And with it, her audience will be treated to a greater connection to her story as she reflects on finding a fuller understanding of her ancestry and her spirituality. Urias is ready to celebrate her Afro-Brazilian culture in communion with elements of Candomblé, paving the way for a liberated future. “I think the biggest news about this release is that everything feels fresh: the music, the style, the visuals, the message: it’s all new,” she adds. While the project is still very much under wraps, Urias’ musical producer Rodrigo Gorky shares: “Every track was created with love and care, so expect a lot of heart, unique sounds an a very special album.”

Nataal, invited by the artist, exclusively launches the album’s visual teaser ‘CARRANCA’ — named after a type of sculpture that is seen locally to represent protection, a kind of amulet that wards off negativity. “It has a symbolic meaning from when it was used on sailing ships, which connects with the album, since I talk a lot about the sea, about coming and going, and a deep sense of belonging to the ocean. So, the carranca ties all of that together,” Urias explains. Creative director Ode was responsible for developing the film's narrative and further explains this core reference, saying: “The physiognomy of a carranca has animal and human characteristics, like the gods of the pre-dynastic era of Ancient Egypt, in which it was believed that gods could take human form, animal form, or a form that mixed both aspects.”

Right at the beginning, we see Marcinha Corinto — a legendary Brazilian transvestite — who brings Iemanjá, an orisha associated with motherhood in the country, to life. Iemanjá possesses the gift of bringing calm to turbulent waters and human emotions. This symbol of unconditional love connects seas and continents. Next, Urias appears as the transgressive figure of Iansã, sometimes depicted as a buffalo, sometimes as a butterfly. Thus, representing the artist's metamorphosis, the deity transitions between two characteristics: the strength of the woman who becomes a beast when enraged, and the lightness of the butterfly that transforms when in need of renewal.

“The main message is the search for freedom, but a search for freedom through revenge. The way I find that freedom throughout the album is really important, but there’s also this bitterness of revenge, because it’s about understanding that freedom was never given to me and never will be, so I have to take it for myself,” explains Urias of her new influences. “This is a very Brazilian album, one that pays tribute to our music in the way we actually make it. There’s a certain freedom in talking about what I’m living through, what I’ve lived, and sharing my own perceptions. I think that’s what ties all my albums.”

Mythological influences are present throughout the film, which allows for encounters with different Afro-diasporic cosmologies. “The creation of a hybrid god of bird and man, Horus and Oxalá, clapping his hands with a sacred powder of purification called Efum, is done to mark a spell, introduce good news,” Ode contextualises. “Symbolised by a man with a falcon's head, the Egyptian god Horus was responsible for ensuring the birth of each new day. He is seen as the god of the sky, the rising Sun and mediator of the worlds, representing light, royalty and power. On the other hand, the orisha Oxalá is also symbolised by a bird, in this case Elyelé Funfun, a white dove, present in various Candomblé ceremonies to establish communication between Olódùmarè (God) and men to guarantee them peace, serenity, harmony and balance.”

Thus, as a central link in the narrative, ‘CARRANCA’ is illustrated by a sculpture acquired on the banks of the São Francisco River, and along its borders from southeast to northeast Brazil, it is considered a mystical and powerful being. It is the one who guides journeys safely; and it is the one who brings Urias, as the Egyptian goddess Nut yet expressed through the attitude of an R&B diva, as she returns the sun to us. “Nut is considered the mother of the celestial bodies and is associated with the protection of the dead and the rebirth of the Sun,” Ode says. In doing so, we too are offered beautiful guidance, making this visual teaser an act of collective love.

Urias concludes: “Love to me is about feeling you belong. It’s ancestral, it’s understanding that you’re going to carry something forward, and who you choose to do that with. Love is a movement, a survival practice.”