Brazilian singer Elza Soares attends the parade at the Marqués de Sapucai Sambadrome in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in the early hours of February 25, 2020. (Photo by MAURO PIMENTEL/AFP via Getty Images)
(CNN) --
Brazilian pop singer Elza Soares died Thursday at her home in Rio de Janeiro of natural causes at age 91, according to a statement from her family and staff.
“The beloved and eternal Elza has rested, but she will forever be in the history of music and in our hearts and in those of thousands of fans around the world.
Fulfilling the wish of Elza Soares, he sang until the end," the statement read.
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A national icon who rose to fame after growing up poor, Soares had a strong voice and won several international awards throughout his career, including the 2016 Latin Grammy for Best Brazilian Music Album of the Year.
That same year he also sang at the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro.
In 1999, the BBC chose her as the best singer of the millennium, in tribute to a career that began in the 1960s and spanned genres such as Brazilian Popular Music (MPB), samba and bossa nova.
Soares spoke openly about inequality and racism against blacks in Brazil.
Her latest albums, such as God is a Women (2018) and Hungry Planet (2019), addressed overtly political themes.
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Elza is survived by eight children, one of them with the late Brazilian soccer player Garrincha.
She died on the same day, January 20, as he did in 1983.