Her father strongly encouraged her to adopt fado; he felt that participating in the traditional music would grant her greater acceptance in the Portuguese community.

Mariza sang the Portuguese national anthem at the 2002 FIFA World Cup of football, at the game which pitted the home team (South Korea) against Portugal.

Her interpretations of fado standards brought her rapid international recognition, leading to her being the recipient, in March 2003, of BBC Radio 3's award for Best European Artist in World Music.

She performed at Live 8; she sang at the Eden Project in Cornwall, after which she has been invited to concerts and events worldwide to promote Portuguese culture, from Australia to Finland, the United States and Argentina.

Mariza, who lives in the upmarket Alcântara dockside area of Lisbon, has received awards from Denmark, Australia, Canada, Germany, UK, Guinea-Bissau and Equatorial Guinea.

"[5] Mariza performed alongside Ana Moura as the opening act of the Grand Final of the Eurovision Song Contest 2018 held in Lisbon, Portugal, singing "Barco Negro".

[6] Mariza was married to António Ferreira,[7] father of the singer's first and only child, Martim, born on 6 July 2011 two months ahead of schedule, and later diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.