[7] Parallelly in work, both of her parents had musical interests: he was a 7-string guitar player and participated in parades with the Bloco dos Africanos, and she was an excellent singer and lended her soprano voice to traditional ranchos carnavalescos in Rio de Janeiro, such as Flor do Abacate and Ameno Resedá – in which João also performed.

Her work in this area was so important that in 2016, the professor of the School of Social Work at the Universidade do Estado do Rio de Janeiro (UERJ), Graziela Scheffer, published the academic article “Serviço Social e Dona Ivone Lara: o lado negro e laico da nossa história professional”.

Using her contacts, she achieved sponsorship for instruments and the creation of a music workshop, which went on to support parties and socialization events among patients, their family members, and the hospital workers.

Among the interpreters of her songs are such singers and artists as Clara Nunes, Roberto Ribeiro, Maria Bethânia, Gal Costa, Caetano Veloso, Gilberto Gil, Paula Toller, Paulinho da Viola, Beth Carvalho, Mariene de Castro, Roberta Sá, Marisa Monte, and Dorina.

One of her most well-known compositions, in partnership with Délcio Carvalho, was “Sonho Meu” (My Dream), which found success in the voices of Maria Bethânia and Gal Costa in 1978.

[7] Dona Ivone also worked as an actress, participating in films, and was Tia Nastácia in specials of the program Sítio do Pica-Pau Amarelo.

In 2008, she performed the song "Mas Quem Disse Que Eu Te Esqueço" (But Who Said I Am Forgetting You) at the project Samba Social Clube.

In 2012, she was honored by Império Serrano, at the access group, with the plot Dona Ivone Lara: O enredo do meu samba.

Singers such as Maria Bethânia, Elba Ramalho, Criolo, Zeca Pagodinho, Martinho da Vila, Arlindo Cruz, Adriana Calcanhotto, Zélia Duncan, and Reinaldo, O Príncipe do Pagode, did versions of her songs while she herself recorded with Diogo Nogueira an unpublished song, composed by her grandson, André.