Samba is the joy expressed through the pain of living. Carnival is the expresion of joy that has come out uf hundreds of years of oppression, from slavery to prohibition, to the glorious rebellion against all of this and the JOY of expressing our culture and our faith! Songs dedicated to joy in carnival, to the icons that inspired carnivals, to the firm affirmation of Brazilian msuic’s African roots, to the communities and favelas that created the genre, to the protest songs that supported the movement of Carnaval and highlighted its importance. We feature drum rhythms and songs dedicated to the orixás, the backbone of this culture, and hear their echos through modern samba. And of course, some of the most iconic samba enredos that have led the legendary parades down the famous Avenida. Featuring a live recording on a bateria from the sambodrome itself, exclusive on this show. From the roots of recorded samba to the most modern incarnations of it, this is a voyage through the genre, a genre that breathes and heaves with joy. These tracks question inequality and reclaim the roots at the centre of this glorious genre - ending on an acoustic version of my samba school’s anthem that asks the questions : O Lord, O Lord, Has Slavery Truly Ended? —This is Carnaval, where Joy is Resistance.