The hit song “Envolver” by Anitta reached the No. 1 position on the Spotify global chart on March 25. The 29-year-old singer, songwriter, and businesswoman is the first Brazilian to ever accomplish this, and the first Latina to ever top Spotify’s daily global charts with a solo song.
Anitta has been popular among Brazilians for years, but she’s just now gaining popularity internationally. You might know her from the “Envolver” TikTok challenge — the video in which Anitta explains the challenge has more than 25 million views.If not, she may have caught your attention with her other famous hit songs, like “Faking Love (feat. Saweetie)” or “Girl From Rio.” But if you’re still not familiar with Anitta, don’t worry! Here’s everything you need to know about her beyond her viral success on TikTok.
Anitta is her own boss.
Larissa de Macedo Machado, also known by her stage name Anitta, had a very established 10-year career in Brazil when she decided to be known internationally, as well. To do so, she started releasing songs in Spanish and English, as well as her native language, Portuguese. Anitta’s also a very talented dancer and businesswoman. For most of her career, she was the one managing her own decisions, arranging her own meetings and choosing her strategy to succeed in Brazil and in other countries. Many of her songs that became hits in the United States were collaborations with other artists, like “Faking Love” with Saweetie, “Vai Malandra” with Mc Zaac and Maejor, featuring Tropkillaz and DJ Yuri Martins, and “Downtown” with J Balvin.
“Envolver” was also initially supposed to feature another artist. On an Instagram live stream, Anitta explained that her team didn’t believe she’d be able to top the charts by herself, but she disagreed. She spoke with her friend, Colombian singer J Balvin, and he advised her to release the song on her own, reminding her that, after all, she’s her own boss. So that’s exactly what she did.
She’s opening doors for the Latinx community.
When “Envolver” reached No. 1 on Spotify’s global charts, Anitta said on Instagram that she’s thankful to be the first Brazilian woman to have ever accomplished this, and the first Latina to reach No. 1 with a solo song, but she won’t be the last. “I opened a door with great difficulty and I hope that many more pass through it. I’ll keep it open for as long as I can,” she said.
Earlier this year, during an appearance on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon, Anitta mentioned that, before she became well known internationally, many believed it’d be impossible for a Latina to have an established career in the United States. “But whenever I hear the word ‘impossible,’ I want to go for it,” she told Fallon.
This “Girl From Rio” is fluent in three languages.
Born in Rio de Janeiro with Portuguese as her native language, Anitta knew that she had to learn other languages to succeed in other countries. She’s now trilingual, according to Billboard, and both fluently speaks and writes songs in English and Spanish.
She’s all about sex positivity.
Anitta identifies as bisexual, and she’s very open about her sexuality. She’s all about encouraging her fans to feel empowered in their own skin and in their desires, as well. In a May 2021 interview with Allure, she said that being sexual on stage and on her music videos allows her to practice her sexual freedom.
“When I’m onstage shaking my ass or showing my body, I’m not thinking about [being sexual]. I’m thinking about freedom. Because all I want is for people to be free to be whoever they want to be without judgment. And the way my brain works is like, if I push the limits, if sometimes I go one step too far, that’s how I break down the wall,” she said.
Who is Anitta dating?
Anitta was married to Thiago Magalhãe, a Brazilian businessman, for a year, from 2017 to 2018. She’s very open about her affairs and, in an interview with TV Fama, in 2019, she revealed that she has a casual relationship with one of her dancers, Ohana Lefundes.
Anitta was also rumored to be dating Puerto Rican rapper Lunay, whom she collaborated with on the song “Todo o nada.” The singer confirmed that she had a crush on the rapper in 2021, according to People, saying she used to be “crazy” about him. They were seen kissing while rehearsing for their performance at Premios Juventud in 2021, but both have said that they’re only good friends now.
In 2021, Anitta was rumored to be dating Dixie D’Amelio’s ex boyfriend, Griffin Johnson, after he posted a TikTok of them dancing to “Get Into It (Yuh)” by Doja Cat. Earlier this year, she mentioned on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon that one of her “men” is an NFL player, and it’s rumored that she was talking about Tyler Boyd, who plays for the Cincinnati Bengals. However, in February, Anitta posted a TikTok stating that she can’t find a boyfriend, so it looks like she’s currently not in a serious relationship.
She supported other artists at Lollapalooza Brazil.
On March 26, during the music festival Lollapalooza in São Paulo, Brazil, lawyers representing Brazil’s far-right president, Jair Bolsonaro, made a petition to the supreme electoral court to ban artists at Lollapalooza from expressing their political opinions. The petition called for a fine of R$50,000 (around $10,000) for artists who spoke out. Anitta said on Instagram that people are entitled to express their political views. “Prohibiting artists from expressing their insatisfactions with our current government is censorship,” she said. She concluded, “Please keep expressing yourselves, I’ll pay your fee.”
Lollapalooza wasn’t her first time expressing her political views — she’s been invested in politics and in what’s happening in her country for a long time, also encouraging her fans to vote and to ask for improvements in Brazil’s government.
Anitta’s performing at Coachella this year.
Anitta not only sings in three different languages, but she’s also very familiar with different genres of music. She started singing Funk Carioca, a Brazilian genre, and she’s also interested in Latin pop and pop, according to NBC News. Do you want to see her diverse range of sounds? She’ll be at Coachella this year on April 16 and 23, and she’s already rehearsing the “Envolver” dance to master it on stage.
Whether you can also master the “Envolver” dance challenge or not, Anitta probably has a song for you.