Cape Verde is known internationally for morna, a form of folk music usually sung in the Cape Verdean Creole, accompanied by clarinet, violin, guitar and cavaquinho. Funaná, Coladeira, Batuque and Cabo love are other musical forms.
Cape Verde is an island archipelago that was uninhabited until the Portuguese arrived in 1462. The sailors brought with them African slaves, and the islands' population became mixed with elements of both races. Climate conditions made the islands inhospitable, and the Portuguese governments mostly ignored the inhabitants and the frequent droughts and famines that wracked the islands periodically. As a result, there are now more Cape Verdeans abroad than at home, and sizable communities exist in New England, Portugal, Wales, Senegal, Italy, France and the Netherlands.
In 2011, it would be one of the most recent countries to have its own music award, the Cabo Verde Music Awards was established and awards the greatest songs of the year by Cape Vedean artists (and those of abroad). At the continental level, singers or artists from Cape Verde and Capeverdeans abroad are included on another award, the MTV Africa Music Awards at the continental level awarded each year by the music network MTV. From 2001-2011, Cape Verdeans and Capeverdeans abroad were awarded the KORA Awards, two singers were ever awarded including Cesária Évora and Suzanna Lubrano.