The 2024 Carnival in Salvador was a monumental year for blocos afro. A bloco afro is a Carnival organization consisting of percussionists, dancers, singers, musicians, neighborhood residents and fans who celebrate an Afrocentric theme during Carnival and organize events and community services throughout the year in Salvador, Brazil. This paper examines the city of Salvador’s manipulation of blocos afro and Black Bahian culture and music for purposes of promoting the city as an Afro-diasporic capital of the Americas. All the while, these very Black communities continue to suffer from severe racial inequities, police violence, and lack of basic education and health care needs. Christin Smith (2016) noted this paradox in describing the exoticism of Salvador as an “Afro-Paradise,” and the city government’s role in promoting this reputation.

However, ethnomusicologist Larry Crook (1993) first noted this dilemma among blocos afro in questioning whether the commercial globalization of blocos afro in the 1990s—especially after Olodum’s collaboration with Paul Simon—eclipsed the initial intentions of Afro-Brazilian consciousness and Black resistance. Many developments have occurred since then. The city is giving more credit to the Black communities that created Carnival and especially blocos afro—finally beginning to truly support them compared to famous white artists. Yet, there remains much more work to be done. Through original audiovisual footage and analysis of media coverage on Salvador’s 2024 Carnival focusing especially on the first bloco Afro Ilê Aiyê, this paper analyzes the progress and shortcomings of Black resistance vs. Afro-Brazilian exoticism among blocos afro in Salvador.

International institutions based in the African diasporas and on the African continent have shown growing interest in Brazilian Carnival cultural institutions, especially those from Bahia and operating in the city of Salvador, with the intention of establishing exchanges and cooperation agreements in the cultural sector and creative economy. Relations between countries in Africa and Brazil have gone through several phases of estrangement and rapprochement, with the most recent phase of closer relations beginning in the late 1950s with the creation of institutions such as the Center for Afro-Oriental Studies (CEAO) linked to the Federal University of Bahia.

In recent years, private, governmental and civil society associations have approached Afro groups such as Olodum and Ilê Aiyê with the intention of getting to know and sharing what Africa has to offer in terms of sounds and other cultural aspects in Salvador, Brazil. This movement resulted in visits by members of governments and prominent figures from civil society bodies from various African countries and diasporic spaces, fostering the contribution of resources and the growth of the hearing and visual perception that Salvador is the place that best safeguards the heritage of African sounds, musicalities and visual aesthetics. This paper reflects on this new moment in relations involving countries on the African continent, members of the African diaspora and Brazil, permeated by cultural and sonic interests, the preservation of ancestral heritage, pan-Africanisms and Afro-diasporic thinking. Also, this work seeks to contribute with the geopolitical thinking in ethnomusicological studies, sometimes overlooked in disciplinary debates.

This paper examines how Blocos Afro percussion ensembles disseminate the anti-racist discourse in regions outside Salvador in some cases, and in other cases focus on financial gain, festivities, and cultural misappropriation that do not align with the original foundations of these associations. This research builds upon previous research on Blocos Afro (Guerreiro 2001; Sodré 2014) to make a critical contribution to ethnomusicology discourses between Brazil and the United States on Afro-Brazilian music. Blocos Afro, which represent a significant part of Afro-Bahian culture, play a fundamental role in the construction of Black identity in Brazil—helping to raise self-esteem, promote educational activities, and organize activism in anti-racist politics.

This legacy was started in the city of Salvador, Bahia, by Ilê Aiyê in 1974—celebrating 50 years in 2024. The music of the Blocos Afro has its origins in the music of Candomblé, an Afro-Brazilian religion that resisted more than 400 years of Portuguese slavery, leaving a legacy that is part of Brazil's intangible heritage, or the bank of Afro-Brazilian culture. Through oral transmission (Guerreiro 2001) and education, African ancestors left a rich cultural heritage, including musical instruments, rhythms, songs, dances, rituals, and aesthetics. Blocos Afro incorporate these influences into their educational, political, and social activities. This movement has promoted the music of Blocos Afro, attracting international attention and encouraging the emergence of associations and schools in other parts of Brazil and the world, which follow—or try to follow—the same operational model used by Blocos Afro in Salvador (Sodré 2014).

The abstract explores the intersection of racial inequality, leadership representation, and diasporic experiences of Black Brazilians, focusing on the unique journey of renowned singer Margareth Menezes and the emergence of Kilomba, a collective for Black Brazilian women in the United States. Menezes' historic nomination as Brazil's first black woman for Minister of Culture underscores pervasive racial disparities, where white women earn significantly more and black women remain vastly underrepresented in leadership roles. Against this backdrop, the abstract shifts attention to the experiences of Black Brazilian immigrants in the U.S., many hailing from Bahia, the birthplace of Menezes. It highlights Kilomba as a symbolic space of solidarity, echoing the spirit of Quilombos, historical communities of Black resistance and liberation in Brazil (Nascimento 1985).

With the largest Brazilian population outside Brazil, the United States hosts a diverse immigrant community, yet experiences of Black Brazilians are often sidelined by non-Black Brazilians, reflecting enduring anti-Black sentiments. Kilomba seeks to amplify the voices of Black Brazilian women and girls, fostering connections with global Black women's movements and reclaiming narratives of resilience and cultural heritage. Through the lens of Menezes' groundbreaking achievements and the formation of Kilomba, the abstract illuminates the enduring struggle against racial injustice, both in Brazil and abroad, underscoring the imperative for inclusive spaces and intersectional solidarity in the fight for racial equity and justice.