Dona Ivone Lara

Ivone Lara, or Dona Ivone Lara as she is respectfully known in Brazil, is one of the prominent ladies of samba, having been the first woman to ever fight gender prejudice in the samba schools. She was the first woman to parade at the ala dos compositores, a masculine ala, becoming then the ala's madrinha. Counting more than 300 compositions written throughout more than 50 years of her career, she is unanimously revered by Dorival Caymmi, Martinho da Vila, Zeca Pagodinho, Gilberto Gil, Hermínio Belo de Carvalho, Beth Carvalho, Fundo de Quintal, and many others. Her songs have b...