Zoila Augusta Emperatriz Chavarri del Castillo (born Zoila Emperatriz Chavarri Castillo; known as Yma Sumac (or Imma Sumack), was a Peruvian-born vocalist, composer, producer, actress and model. "Ima sumaq" means "how beautiful" in Quechua. She has also been called Queen of Exotica and is considered a pioneer of world music. She won a Guinness World Record for the Greatest Range of Musical Value in 1956. Her debut album, Voice of the Xtabay (1950), peaked at number one in the Billboard 200, and its single, "Virgin of the Sun God (Taita Inty)", reached number one on the UK Singles Chart. It sold a million copies worldwide, becoming an international success in the 1950s. Albums like Legend of the Sun Virgin (1952), Fuego del Ande (1959) and Mambo! (1955), were other successes.
In 1951, Sumac became the first Latin American female singer to debut on Broadway. In "Chuncho (The Forest Creatures)" (1953), she developed her own technical singing, named "double voice" or "triple coloratura". At the same time, she performed in the Carnegie Hall and Lewisohn Stadium. In 1960 she became the first Latin American woman to get a phonograph record star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Afterwards she toured around the Soviet Union, selling more than 20 million tickets. According to Variety in 1974, Sumac had more than 3000 concerts "covering the entire globe", breaking any previous records by a performer. V listed her as one of the 9 international fashion icons of all times in 2010. She has sold over 40 million records, which makes her the best-selling Peruvian singer in history.
