June 29: Portuguese singer Ana Free - AKA Ana Gomes Ferreira - is 24-years-old today.

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Did you know?

Ana earned a degree with First Class Honours in economics at the University of Kent in 2008. Ana developed a particular fondness for subjects like international trade and game theory and went on to write a dissertation titled What is the Impact of Technology on the Structure of the Major Record Labels (between 1995 and 2005.) 
Ana is fluent in both English and Portuguese, and also speaks Spanish, French and Greek.

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Ana Gomes Ferreira - Ana Free - grew up in Cascais, Portugal, 30 kilometers west of Lisbon. She is currently recording and living in the United Kingdom.

At a young age she was passionate about writing poetry and stories, and began writing and composing at the age of 10. she has been able to play the guitar for over 15 years, and has amassed over 300 original compositions. Free has said her early musical influences came from the records her father used to play to her as a child.

Ana made her first live TV performance in the summer of 2007 on TVI in Portugal, where she sang "Crazy,” a song she composed herself. Ana has achieved chart success with her first single, which was released on 23 May 2008, "In My Place.” The popularity of her song made it feature in various Portuguese series including Morangos com Açúcar and Podia Acabar o Mundo.

In November 2008, Free was invited to record the Portuguese theme tune Voa Até Ao Teu Coração" for the release of the Disney movie Tinker Bell for which she also recorded the music video.

In the autumn of 2009, Free recorded her five-track acoustic/pop EP Radian in London which appeared in FNAC stores in Portugal the following year. In February and March 2010 she debuted the record in Miami and New York City. She was also featured prominently on a billboard in Times Square. The album has an acoustic/pop theme and is a selection of five of Ana's most popular original-content YouTube videos.

In August 2011 Ana won the Music Crowns pop category with her track 'In My Place' as judged by Samantha Mumba, Liam Bailey, Ahmir, Su-Elise Nash and ultimately the UK and Ireland general public. In late 2011, Ana teamed up with MTV EMA nominee DJ Diego Miranda and together they recorded the hit single "Girlfriend" which went on to hold the number 1 spot on the national charts for over 8 weeks. The videoclip has over 1.5 million views.

According to an interview with Billboard Magazine,  Ana is scheduled to release her debut album late in 2012. In May 2012, Ana showcased her album at the first officially YouTube endorsed festival in Singapore. Ana debuted the first single "Electrical Storm" off her  debut album on The MTV Show. In June 2012, Ana performed for the first time at the prestigious Rock In Rio festival in Lisbon.

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For more about Ana, visit her Facebook page at:

http://www.facebook.com/anafree

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