Whatever happened to famed Zouk singer Lea Galva?

By Ardine IsmaSpecial to CSMS MagazineIt has been some time since no one has seen Lea Galva, the legendary Zouk singer from the Caribbean famous for her breathtaking charm and for singing Zouk classics such as her last hit Je voudrais le garder, which was from her last album Je t’aime. A Creole chabine, Galva’s voice can be compared to that of Zouk sensations like Sonia Dersion, Orlane, and Leila Chicot. Her popularity has spawn from the French Caribbean to the Francophone countries of Africa.             Galva’s last public performance was in 2005 in Fort-de-France, Martinique, at the Chant de Sirens concert, a yearly concert dedicated to Zouk female singers. In the concert, she performed with most talented female Zouk singers such as Jocelyne Labille, Tina, Christiane Valejo, and many more. She gave an impressive performance that night, according to many observers. Her performance, in a blur, ushered a new frenzy around the singer. She was clearly regaining her star status by keeping people wondering about a new album. Since then, however, there was no word on a new album or single. She simply slipped out of sight.            Lea Galva, in her hibernation, joins a long list of promising artists who, at the peek of their fame, have decided to turn back on the audience that participated actively in crafting their fame. Here in the United States, the names are countless; that’s the nature of the corporate showbiz. But in the Caribbean, where Art and Literature are cherished and valued and where every piece of Art is a masterpiece, it is hard to imagine such a thing.            Because we have received several requests from our readers to contact the artist, CSMS Magazine attempted several times to reach Ronald Rubinel, her former producer, without success. The way people could possibly get any new information about Lea is by either contacting her record company Hicbus Records or by trying to reach her producer, Ronald Rubinel, who is notorious for producing Zouk hits for artists like Edith Lefel, Tanya St. Val, Orlane, and Leila Chicot.Maybe through these sources, the public might finally be able to unveil the truth about where Lea is and what she has been up to during the last two years. Some of her fans are dying to know about her well-being, or possibly find out about any new album in the works.Note:  Anyone who might have any information about Lea Galva’s latest works feels free to contact CSMS Magazine at publisher@csmsmagazine.org . We hope our readers from Martinique, Gouadeloupe, French Guiana or Haiti might be able to help.Also see Jocelyne Labylle: A remarkable Zouk artist