Izaline Calister

Izaline Calister (Curaçao, 1969), Edison Award winner in 2009, has built an impressive track record in the past 12 years. With her charming style, she has gathered a loyal group of fans worldwide. Sometimes modest, then exciting again, Izaline possesses the exceptional gift that makes all the difference for a soloist, as she sings in her mother tongue, Papiamentu, with feeling and grace. She has the ability to remain true to her roots and successfully reach out and conquer audiences around the world singing in an unfamiliar language, while seamlessly melding the pulsating rhythms of Afro-Antilles music with jazz. The songs "Wow’i Kariño," "Kanta Hélele," "Sa Sa Na Awasa," and the more recent "Bendisiona" were number 1 hits in the Caribbean. Her studio albums "Sono di un Muhé," "Mariposa," "Krioyo," "Kanta Hélele," and "Speransa" are released worldwide. Izaline's music is a fusion between the traditional music of her birth island, Curaçao, and jazz with Afro-Caribbean influences. With her great band and specially composed sets, she can grasp her audience at every festival. Izaline performs throughout Europe, Indonesia, India, Thailand, Korea, the U.S.A., and South America, and she has played at many national and international festivals such as the Cape Town Jazz Festival, Rome Jazz Festival, Cervantino Festival Mexico, Sofia, and the North Sea Jazz Festival. The BBC made and broadcasted a mini-documentary about Izaline in 2006. In 2007, Izaline sang for the Queen during the Liberation Festival, accompanied by the Metropole Orchestra. In 2010, Izaline was asked by the United Nations to perform a song at their head office in New York during the memory of slavery, in association with the world-famous guitarist and producer Nile Rodgers. Izaline has worked together with diverse musicians and artists. In 2011, she toured through the Dutch theatres with "Nomads," in cooperation with the Brazilian Lilian Vieira and the Moluccan Julya L’Oko. In 2012, Izaline was a much sought-after soloist. Among others, she played with the Dutch Music Company in their music theatre play "Tambu"; she worked with the Haydn Youth Orchestra; Konrad Koselleck Big Band, Peter Beets, and many others. In between, Izaline worked on a new album, her 7th studio album, produced, written, and composed by herself and accompanied by her great musicians. The album is entitled "Kandela" and was released on October 26 in the Benelux, distributed by Coast to Coast.

In 2016, Izaline released "Rayo di Lus," which means "Rays of Light," her 8th solo album. Filled with catchy melodies and uplifting messages, she cemented her status as the musical Queen of Curaçao.