Susana Baca

Susana Baca
Susan Baca in Santa Cruz, 17 April 2010
Culture Minister of Peru
In office 28 July 2011 – 11 December 2011
President	Ollanta Humala
Preceded by	Juan Ossio Acuña
Succeeded by	Luis Peirano
Personal details
Born	(1944-05-24) May 24, 1944 (age 72) Chorrillos, Lima Province, Peru

Susana Esther Baca de la Colina (Spanish pronunciation: [suˈsana ˈβaka]; born 24 May 1944 in Chorrillos, Lima Province, Peru) is a prominent Peruvian singer-songwriter, school teacher, folklorist, ethnomusicologist and two-times Latin Grammy Award winner. She has been a key figure in the revival of Afro-Peruvian music.

In July 2011, she was named Peru's Minister of Culture in the Ollanta Humala government, becoming the second Afro-Peruvian cabinet minister in the history of independent Peru.

In November 2011 she was elected to the Organization of American States (OAS) as the President of the Commission of Culture for the period 2011–13.

Baca grew up in a coastal fishing village Chorrillos, a district of the Lima Province of Peru, and part of greater Lima. Her music is a mixture of traditional and contemporary. Her backing band features indigenous Peruvian instruments such as the cajón ("wooden box", whose origins lie in an upturned fruit crate), udu (clay pot), and quijada (jawbone of a burro) cheko a dried gourd, as well as acoustic guitar and electric upright baby bass. Although many of her songs are based on traditional forms such as the landó or vals, she also incorporates elements of Cuban and Brazilian music. Her debut CD for Luaka Bop, produced by Greg Landau, brought her to the attention of World Music audiences worldwide.