Suba (musician)

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For the Kenyan ethnic group, see Suba (Kenya).

Suba a.k.a Rex Illusivi (born June 23, 1961 in Novi Sad, Serbia, FPR Yugoslavia — died November 2, 1999 in São Paulo, Brasil) was a Serbian-born musician and composer who was set to become one of Brazil's most prominent producers when he died in November 1999.

Born Mitar Subotić, he obtained a university degree in his hometown Novi Sad, Vojvodina, Serbia, before continuing the electronic music studies in Belgrade. He studied music theory, piano and accordion playing, and composition. He was a pioneer of electronic music in all of the ex-Yu countries, since he mixed and produced a number of celebrated albums of Yugoslav New Wave musicians and bands (Ekatarina Velika, Haustor, Bolero, Marina Perazić...) in the course of the '80s.

In 1986, his fusion of electronica and Yugoslav folk lullabies, In The Mooncage was awarded the International Fund for Promotion of Culture from UNESCO, which included a three-month scholarship to research Afro-Brazilian rhythms in Brazil. Falling in love with the country and its music, he emigrated to São Paulo in the '90s, where his fruitful production began and ended. During that time he produced Milan Mladenović's last project Angel's Breath (1994), and recorded his famous album São Paulo Confessions.

On November 2, 1999, he was working on the postproduction of the album of his newfound diva, Bebel Gilberto, when his studio caught fire. Overcome by smoke, he died trying to rescue the newly recorded material with her.

Suba died just a few days after the release of his now-legendary album São Paulo Confessions, and shortly before the completion of Bebel Gilberto's acclaimed Tanto Tempo, the biggest selling Brazilian album outside Brazil.

Suba's label Ziriguiboom alongside his closest musical associates (vocalists Cibelle, Taciana, Katia B and percussionist João Parahyba) prepared a tribute album.