How did you get into dancing?

I started dancing because I was a shy person and wanted to be part of a place where there were a lot of people. So I could get involved in youth circles, I decided to go to a dance school.

What projects are you currently working on?

I am involved in two projects: I am part of a team created by Mukanos Produções called Dream Team – a project created uniquely to spread Kizomba / Semba around the world but from the bases, to share techniques and tricks. The other project that I have in hand is to promote and bring awareness to the  Tukina Group. We are having some difficulties but we want to start creating charity shows to get donations for people in need. We also aim to get some members of the group to work in Europe in order to be closer to those who like and also work with Kizomba / Semba abroad.

What’s been the most memorable moment of your journey as a dancer so far?

I don’t know if many would find this a memorable moment, because it was even difficult for me to accept it. Not until I thought about it better and I realised that it wasn’t easy and it was actually something unique. The memorable moment is “Placing 2nd in the annual National Kizomba/Semba Contest….. three times with two of them in consecutive years”. I don’t know what it’s like to win, but I do know how to be amongst the best dancers.

What advice would you give to up & coming dancers looking at you for inspiration?

First I want to say Thank You to all the people who see in me a source of inspiration, you are the ones who make me want to keep working hard.
The advices are simple:

As we all started at the foundations, the first advice is to have a very solid base and learn it well.

Second advice, investing on variety of people with whom we dance. It can’t always be the same one, because we will not evolve dancing with only one person, other people will force you to create and reinvent yourself – because they are different, you will have to dance differently.

Third advice is invest, a lot, in listening to many songs and to get to know them. The dance is a rhythm, and this rhythm is the music. If you dance to the music and follow the changes, the ups, the downs, the stops of the music, you will make a beautiful dance to watch.

The tricks are the complement of the show in dance, but the most important are the variety of positions during the dance and the walk (passadas) – “to write on the floor” (escrever no chão) as we say in kizomba jargon.

The last but not least important thing, is to enjoy what you do.

What can we expect from you for the rest of 2019?

I’ve never been much of a planner, my life develops on a daily basis. Last year I was blessed to be able to travel to Europe to do what I like to do and hope I will be able to do more of that this year.

To never stop working is the most important thing. I have some updates on my style that I will reveal soon and I will welcome any kind of constructive feedback, suggestions, compliments or criticism.

I’m not stopping, Brother!