Gloria Groove

Daniel Garcia Felicione Napoleão was born on January 18, 1995, in São Paulo, to a family of artists.[4][3] Daniel grew up in the Vila Formosa neighborhood, where he accompanied his mother, Gina Garcia, during her shows.[4][3] Daniel's mother was a backing vocal for pagode group Raça Negra, while his aunt was also a singer and his maternal grandparents were circus performers.[3][5] Inspired by his mother, Daniel recalls singing since he was 4.[4] When he was 6, he starred on advertisements for Elma Chips (Brazilian countepart to Lay's).[3] He then auditioned in the program Domingo Legal, when he was 7, to become part of the band Turma do Balão Mágico (known as "Galera do Balão" at the time);[6] he was a member of the musical act between 7 and 9 years.[3] After performing in Programa Raul Gil as part of a children's gospel group, the ten-year old Daniel competed at the talent show host by the program.[3][6] He only competed for two weeks because he was selected to star in the Rede Record telenovela Bicho do Mato (2006–2007).[6] Daniel started his career as a voice actor in this period; one of the major roles was to dub Rico Suave in Hannah Montana.[7][lower-alpha 1]

Daniel grew up feeling he was different and was bullied in school.[3] He also attended the Protestant church Reborn in Christ[6] through his childhood until his teenage years and in the church he learned about soul music and black music.[3][5] He gradually stopped to frequent the church as he started to work in theatre at 14 and came out as gay.[6] During this time, he played the role of Margaret Mead in an independent stage performance of Hair.[9][lower-alpha 2] Inspired by the play's themes, he decided to create a drag queen persona.[3] The theatre made him appreciate the possibility of mixing music, performance, dance, makeup and costume.[4] Watching RuPaul's Drag Race, he concluded he could do his performances not only in the theatre but also on clubs and shows.[4] At 17–18,[lower-alpha 3] he adopted the stage name "Gloria Groove", chosen after how hymns are called in Brazilian Protestant churches and the musical term of the same name associated with black music.[3]

Groove worked as "coach" in "Bishow", a segment in the Rede Globo program Amor e Sexo in which contestants competed as drag queens.[3][11] Although the filming lasted until November 2015,[11] the show was only broadcast between January and February 2016.[12][13]

Gloria Groove started a career as a singer by releasing the single "Dona" in January 2016 through the label SB Music.[14][15] It was followed by the song's music video directed by João Monteiro in March;[14] it was a hit, being watched 1,7 million times in a year.[3][16] In August, Groove released the single, "Império",[17] whose music video was released in October and was also directed by Monteiro.[5] In November, Groove was featured in Aretuza Lovi's single "Catuaba",[18] which was a moderate success in Brazilian Carnival.[4] First announced as an extended play to be released in March 2016,[14] Groove released the eight-track album O Proceder in February 2017.[11] To promote the album, Groove announced the release of single vesions for "Gloriosa" and "Muleke Brasileiro".[19] The former's music video was released in June,[20] and it was released along with "Dona" and "Império" in a mash-up version by ONErpm in November.[21] The latter's music video, directed by Rafael Kent,[22] was released in November,[10] while its single version was published by SB Music in December.[23] Groove was also among the singers chosen to perform "Filhos do Arco-Íris", a single released in June 2017 whose profit was destined to amfAR, The Foundation for AIDS Research.[24]

Since November 2017, Groove is producing a second album.[7] In December 2017, Groove released the first single for the upcoming album, "Bumbum de Ouro",[11][25] one of the singer's most successful songs[16] and a hit during Carnival.[26] It gained more popularity when the music video directed by Os Primos was released in February 2018;[10][25] it reached the top of Spotify Brazil's viral chart and the video was watched over 5 million times on YouTube in three weeks.[27] In January 2018, Groove was featured on Aretuza Lovi's single "Joga Bunda" along with Pabllo Vittar;[4][25] its music video directed by Felipe Sassi[28] got more than 10 million views on YouTube in a month.[27] In May 2018, Groove released "Arrasta", produced by Os Catioros and featuring axé singer Léo Santana.[26][29] As a fan, Groove was the one who decided to invite Santana and hoped the partnership would help to reach a wider public.[26] The music video for "Arrasta" was directed by Sassi and was released in June.[30] In the same month, Groove was featured in a remix version of "Show das Poderosas", released by Anitta as part of a Warner Music campaign for the LGBT Pride Month.[31]

Groove's next single, "Apaga a Luz", was released in September 2018 and its music video directed by Sassi was made available in October.[32] A romantic R&B song, it was turned into a commentary on abusive relationships by Sassi.[33] In November, the singer was featured in Lexa's single and music video "Provocar".[34][35] In January, Groove released the single "Coisa Boa", produced by Pablo Bispo, Sergio Santos and Ruxell.[36] Inspired by Brazilian political context with the election of Jair Bolsonaro,[37] a music video was filmed in a defunct prison after a suggestion by director Sassi.[38] The video was influenced by Lady Gaga's "Telephone" and Orange Is the New Black[38] and was watched by over a million and a half viewers in two days.[36]