Astrud Gilberto, singer of the globally popular “The Girl From Ipanema,” passed away in Philadelphia recently at 83, but it is her home of the last several decades that remains a mystery, writes Dan DeLuca for The Philadelphia Inquirer.

Gilberto, who popularized Brazilian bossa nova worldwide with her 1963 hit, had a long history with Philadelphia. It was speculated about in the Philly music scene for decades whether or not the singer, who was intensely private about her personal life, stayed in Philadelphia after she divorced her second husband, Nicholas LaSorsa, in the early 1980s.

The stories put Gilberto as living alone in one of the Society Hill Towers high rises. Others, however, claimed she lived in Narberth. It was never determined which one, if either, of these options were true.

The British newspaper The Independent, reported that after she split from her husband, Gilberto “remained in Philadelphia living in privacy. In retirement, she grew interested in philosophy, painting, and campaigning against cruelty to animals.”

The statement by Gilberto’s granddaughter on her grandmother’s passing, however, appears to confirm that she did live in Philadelphia.

Sofia Gilberto, posted on Instagram in Portuguese, “Life is beautiful, as the song says, but I bring sad news that my grandmother became a star today and is next to my grandfather João Gilberto.”

She added that her grandmother was in Philadelphia when she passed away.

Read more about Astrud Gilberto in The Philadelphia Inquirer.

____________________

Check out more Astrud Gilberto.