Biography

Olga was born in Andapa, in the north-east of Madagascar, a unique country in the world, rich in extraordinary and endemic biodiversity, inhabited by a people with multiple origins. Unfortunately, Madagascar today is grappling with serious socio-economic and environmental problems, including one of the highest deforestation rates in the world, which is putting a strain on nature and the country’s population, already afflicted by tragic poverty. Olga has also had the good fortune to live among the rainforests, in close contact with the beauty and fragility of the local fauna and flora, and to express through her music the strong connection with her land and culture. With her voice she denounces the threat to these natural treasures, which are under threat due to deforestation and habitat loss. Through her music, Olga issues a heartfelt cry of alarm for the environment and the preservation of some of the world’s richest and most vulnerable ecosystems.

Another recurring theme in his compositions is the traditional culture of Madagascar, in particular the veneration of ancestors, or razana. Through her music, based on traditional rhythms, including the salegy, basesa and tsapiky, Olga celebrates the animist spirituality of her people, deeply rooted in ancient rituals and beliefs that are still present today. Her music and rhythms not only tell stories of daily life, but also a dutiful respect for the spiritual traditions that have guided Malagasy culture for centuries. Finally, his music is a tool for global awareness: although she sings mainly in Malagasy, she has also chosen to express herself in other languages, such as Italian and French. Her three albums – “Bois de rose”, “Ma nature” and “Le monde entier” – have been supported by important environmental associations and institutions concerned with Madagascar’s biodiversity and conservation.

With her music, Olga wants to make it clear that the protection of Madagascar isn’t a local issue, but a global cause that concerns us all at a time of serious crisis caused by climate change and resources’ senseless exploitation. Safeguarding Red Island’s crucial for the environment and the planet’s protection. In short, Olga’s music is a powerful tool of social and political denunciation, support for culture and commitment to the environment, aiming to raise awareness about the challenges Madagascar is facing and the need to act for a better future.

Motivation Prize

The 2025 Music Prize is awarded to Marie Olga Sohantenaina, aka Olga of Madagascar, for her voice, her thoughts expressed in song, her commitment to defending and protecting linguistic, cultural and biological biodiversity. For keeping attention on these issues and promoting change. A saying and a doing that is increasingly necessary in this contemporary world, in which disinterest and abuse, selfishness and conformism triumph to the detriment of natural and cultural ecosystems. His gentle and profound singing becomes activism, social and political denunciation, support for Malagasy culture and commitment to the environment. An action that becomes more and more urgent for an ecological issue. A caring for a common cause and home, oikos, which Olga transfers into the concept of “One Health”, for the natural environment and for human populations.

Olga grew up in Madagascar, where she assimilated sounds of nature and animist ceremonies’ traditional rhythms that put her in touch with her ancestors. Olga knows Mother Nature and human condition, that existential dimension that can be empathetic and friendly, but also despotic, tyrannical, evil. Her singing is a message, her words are never empty. The song in her mother tongue, which speaks about the earth, about discrimination, about biodiversity’s preservation in all its forms, and a song that speaks to our contemporary world. May Olga’s work be as therapeutic as a trumpet, a rite of possession and healing of her beloved land, aware that only through example can a better tomorrow be built.