Caetano Veloso

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Caetano Veloso is a Brazilian singer-songwriter, musician and political activist. Born on August 7, 1942, in Santo Amaro da Purificação, Bahia, he helped start the Tropicália movement in the 1960s, which mixed Brazilian pop with rock, theatre and poetry.

Growing up in Bahia, Veloso loved literature and cinema and was influenced by bossa nova, especially João Gilberto. He moved to Salvador and later to Rio de Janeiro, where he won a lyrics contest and began his recording career. In 1967 he gained wider fame after performing at the Brazil Popular Music Festival, and in 1968 he and fellow Tropicálists released the landmark Tropicália album. The movement challenged Brazil’s military dictatorship and led to Veloso’s arrest and exile in 1969, followed by a stay in London for a few years.

Veloso returned to Brazil in 1972 and continued making music, gaining international popularity in the 1980s and 1990s. He has won numerous awards, including 19 Brazilian Music Awards, 9 Latin Grammys and 2 Grammy Awards. In 2012 he was named Latin Recording Academy Person of the Year. He has also written books, including Tropical Truth: A Story of Music and Revolution in Brazil (2002).

His work spans many styles, from Brazilian folk and samba to rock and international influences. His 2004 album A Foreign Sound showcased English-language material, and his 2006 album Cê won two Latin Grammys. Veloso performed at the 2016 Rio Olympics opening ceremony and at the 2018 Eurovision Song Contest final in Lisbon. In 2023, Rolling Stone ranked him among the 200 Greatest Singers of All Time.

Personal life: Veloso married Andrea Gadelha (Dedé) in 1967; they had Moreno (born 1972) and Julia (who died as a premature baby in 1979). He later married Paula Lavigne in 1986; they had two sons, Zeca and Tom. The couple separated in 2004 but reunited in 2016. Veloso is an atheist and has often celebrated Bahia’s cultural influence in his music. He remains a major figure in Brazilian and international music.