Lua Blanco

Lua Maria Blanco was born in Sao Paulo on 5 March 1987. Her father, Billy Blanco Junior, was a musician, and her mother, Maria Claudia Blanco, a musician and English teacher. Her paternal grandfather was Billy Blanco, the composer and bossa nova pioneer, and the family traced its paternal line to Galicia in Spain. She grew up with five siblings, Pedro Sol, Ana Terra, Estrela, Daniel and Marisol.

Because of her parents' music and social projects the family moved often, including two years in Peru, and the children were taught at home by their mother in English and Portuguese. From early childhood Lua performed with her parents and siblings, recording a children's album, O Trem do Arco-Iris, that was never released, and a family Christmas album, Familia Blanco: E Natal, in 2004. In 2005 and 2006 the family group played bossa nova and Beatles songs in restaurants, shopping centres and small venues in Rio de Janeiro.

In 2006 she began studying English and Portuguese translation at the Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro (PUC-Rio). There she co-founded the pop-rock band Lagrima Flor, named after one of her grandfather's best known songs, as lead singer and co-songwriter.

Blanco began acting in 2008, playing Isolde in the stage show Romeu e Isolda and the surfer Bia in the Globo telenovela Tres Irmas. In 2009 she was chosen from thousands of hopefuls to play Mariana in the first Brazilian production of the musical Spring Awakening (O Despertar da Primavera) by Charles Moeller and Claudio Botelho. She played the goth rocker Joe in Malhacao, joined the young presenters of TV Globinho and appeared in As Aventuras do Didi. In 2011 she made her feature film debut in Teus Olhos Meus, directed by Caio Soh.

Her breakthrough came with Rebelde, RecordTV's Brazilian adaptation of the Mexican youth telenovela, in which she played the rebellious Roberta Messi. The series premiered on 21 March 2011 and ended on 12 October 2012 after 410 episodes. Its six leads, Blanco, Arthur Aguiar, Chay Suede, Mel Fronckowiak, Micael Borges and Sophia Abrahao, formed the real band Rebeldes. Their debut album Rebeldes (2011) went platinum, its live album and DVD earned gold and platinum certifications, and a second studio album, Meu Jeito, Seu Jeito, followed in December 2012. The band played about 90 shows across Brazil to more than 1.2 million people, ending in Belo Horizonte on 4 May 2013.

After Rebelde she starred in the comedy play Stand Up and the musical As Coisas Que Fizemos e Nao Fizemos by Matheus Souza, played Silvinha in the RecordTV period telenovela Pecado Mortal (2013), and Bia in Se Eu Fosse Voce: O Musical (2014). She played one of the four leads in the film Turbulencia, released in 2016. Her crowdfunded debut solo album, Mao no Sonho, was released in 2016, followed by a solo tour, and she published an autobiographical e-book. She played Anita in Gloria Perez's Globo telenovela A Forca do Querer (2017), competed in Globo's singing contest Popstar, played Renata in the film Socorro, Virei uma Garota! (2019) and Maria Paula in the comedy series Homens?. She later fronted the band Lua Blanco e a Orbita.

Blanco lived for many years in Rio de Janeiro. According to Portuguese Wikipedia, she was in a relationship with the screenwriter Leandro Soares from 2016 and the couple lived together. She remained close to her siblings, several of whom also worked in music and performed with her. Throughout her career she lent her name to charitable campaigns, including anti-bullying, blood donation and child protection campaigns and fundraising for children's cancer care.

Lua Blanco died on Sunday 18 October 2026, aged 39. Her death was announced on social media by her siblings Daniel Blanco, Ana Terra Blanco and Estrela Blanco on behalf of the Blanco family. They said she had been fighting cancer during the last months of her life, had been surrounded by the love of the family and friends who had been with her all her life, and had died in peace, full of love and faith. The family asked for respect and silence during their grief. The place of death and funeral arrangements had not been made public at the time of the first reports.

Her death was reported by CNN Brasil, O Globo, Quem, Metropoles and other outlets. Former Rebelde castmate Sophia Abrahao, the actors Miguel Romulo and Rodrigo Pandolfo and other colleagues posted messages of sympathy to the family.

For many Brazilians who grew up in the early 2010s, Lua Blanco was Roberta, the rebel of Rebelde, and one of the voices of the band Rebeldes. The band was one of the biggest teen pop phenomena of its time in Brazil, with gold and platinum records and tours seen by more than a million people. Blanco won every category for which she was nominated at the Capricho Awards, was nominated for the Shorty Awards and was voted 71st in SBT's 2012 poll of the greatest Brazilians. Carrying on her grandfather Billy Blanco's musical line, she worked across television, theatre, film and music for almost two decades.