For Celia Lawson, it is always about the music

Currently living next door to Goa’s music legend Remo Fernandes in Siolim is another illustrious singer who has decided to return to her Goan roots.
Singing of lost love in the ballad Antes do Adeus (Before goodbye), Celia Maria Fernandes Lawson was Portugal’s 1997 entry to the renowned Eurovision contest, that once produced musical legends like Abba and Celine Dion.

While her performance at the contest failed to make it to the top, her rendition of the song composed by Thilo Krassman and Rosa Lobato de Faria was considered to be one of the most deserving of the contest’s top spot.Twenty-two at the time of the major competition, Lawson didn’t let the results dampen her spirits as she was only just warming up.
Her Lisbon-based parents Walter (of Anglo-Indian ancestry) and Theresa Fernandes Lawson, who traces her roots to the village of Verem, are singers in a league of their own. “While my parents have not had any professional training, they are really good singers. My brother Paul George is a part-time musician too,” Lawson says of her talented family.
“They sing Konkani dulpods and mandos which most of us living in Goa would not know of,” shares Cipriano Barreto, Lawson’s host and family friend in Goa.
For Celia Lawson, it was always about the music. Quite literally wearing her music on her arm with a treble clef tattoo, she has tried several genres from RnB, soul to alternative before finding her niche in jazz. Enjoying her stint in her school band, she asked her parents for private music training. After her performance at Eurovision, she opted for a BA in commercial music at Westminster, where she honed her passion.
Singing in English, Portuguese and Spanish, Lawson has lived and performed in the USA, Brazil and England, among other countries. She became a television sensation in Portugal, with appearances on national television channels like RTP.
Speaking of her famous neighbour, Lawson is all praise. “I’ve jammed with Remo. It was great fun,” she shares.
Invited by her family friend Cipriano (Fernandes Barreto), she has teamed up with Goan jazz musician Colin D’Cruz and joins the band ‘The Bassman’ to enthrall her audience.
“I’m proud of my Goan ancestry and want to return to it. I’ve visited Goa twice before this, shares Lawson, who is awaiting her parents’ visit before she settles down in the state. “I love the weather. It’s better than waking up to a cold England. Also, I love the spicy sorpotel, xacuti and prawn balchao. It reminds me of my mum’s cooking in Portugal. I plan on starting a voice training school here.”
“If you want to sing forever in your life, you need to sing jazz,” says the songstress, quoting a fellow-jazz singer.