Sérgio Mendes

Following a string of largely instrumental bossa albums, Mendes signed with music giant Herb Alpert’s A&M Records label, adding vocalists singing in English and Portuguese and mixing Brazilian songs with ultra-hip arrangements of contemporary pop tunes. His 1966 debut for A&M, Herb Alpert Presents Sérgio Mendes & Brasil ’66, cracked the top 10 on the Billboard pop charts and included a bona fide hit single with its effervescent take on Jorge Ben’s “Mas Que Nada.” Over the following five decades, the endlessly prolific Mendes recorded 40 albums and has remained a timelessly vital artist, collaborating with a who’s-who of pop music, world music, and jazz, including Stevie Wonder, Dave Grusin, Dori Caymmi, Gerry Mulligan, will.i.am, Erykah Badu, John Legend, and Justin Timberlake. In 2012, Mendes received an Academy Award nomination for Best Original Song in recognition of his contribution to the soundtrack of the animated film Rio.