Rio De Janeiro troubadour, guitarist and songwriter Leo Middea has been writing since he can remember. His love for Brazil, the music, flavours, energy and its contrasts are rendered through his songs, his lyrics a homage to Brazilian people and culture, and a musician’s life, on the road.
His latest, Sulamérica, is a gorgeous Afro-Brazilian touched pop song partly inspired by Brazilian street markets and is the result of Leo’s return to the studio, having performed over 100 shows in 2024. It also heralds the first song from a new path and album due for release on Agogo Records in spring 2026.
Leo Middea’s trajectory took a dramatic twist in 2015, when he was just 20 years old, leaving behind his family and his guitar for India where he would spend some much-needed time taking stock and meditating on a silent retreat, following the loss of his father. His debut album Dois had released the previous year but music was the last thing on his mind during this revolutionary recharge.
Fast forward to 10 years and Leo prepares for his 6th album, and follows a whirlwind year of touring, from his base in Barcelona, Spain. In 2024 he was a finalist and runner up in the Portuguese Song Festival, Portugal’s’ national TV talent show – a first for a Brazilian. Non-stop touring in Europe in 2025 also included a stop off at the prestigious Montreux Jazz Festival, a milestone in Leo’s career to date.
Now, the singer-songwriter embarks on a new chapter. After years in Europe, writing about his day to day experiences Leo realized he missed sharing something connected to Brazil and South America and so Sulaméricais is a tribute to his roots: drums, rhythm, carnival, kisses — everything that inspires and pulses through South America. The inspiration for Sulamérica, came in the German countryside, in the dressing room of a show. Through the window, the Chiemsee lake and German architecture stood in sharp contrast to Brazilian landscapes.
Rooted in the pioneering works of the classics of Caetano Veloso, Rita Lee, Gal Costa, Gilberto Gil, and Jorge Ben Jor yet with a special connection to contemporaries like Luedji Luna and Rogê, Leo, with this new song and album in the works, takes another step forward on his mission “to present Brazilian music to as many people and places as possible”
