Roberto Carlos

Brazilian singer-songwriter Roberto Carlos earned the designation King of Latin Music through global record sales surpassing 120 million units. Partnering throughout his career with Erasmo Carlos as both musical collaborator and lyricist, the pair authored more than three dozen singles that entered the Top Ten. Remaining active and commercially viable well into the twenty-first century, Carlos spearheaded a transformation of Brazilian popular music in the 1960s by merging British-influenced pop and rock with the second wave of samba. His breakthrough aligned precisely with the international youth-culture surge initiated by the Beatles. Within Brazil he led the Jovem Guarda movement and fronted the television program whose title became synonymous with an entire musical idiom, reshaping the phonographic industry and introducing aggressive merchandising—films, apparel lines, and ancillary products—that exerted lasting influence on the gestures, language, and social habits of an entire generation. His bright, Beatles-derived sound and the cheerfully slang-filled, deceptively innocent yet sexually charged lyrics he wrote with Erasmo Carlos stood in deliberate contrast to the somber imagery and protest themes of MPB during the repressive “years of lead” under military rule.

By the late 1960s, following advice from his management, Carlos shifted toward romantic balladry and swiftly became Brazil’s dominant exponent of that style. Among the enduring compositions he created with Erasmo Carlos in this vein are “Detalhes,” “Sua Estupidez,” “Jesus Cristo,” and “Debaixo dos Caracóis dos Seus Cabelos.” These and subsequent releases garnered every major accolade available to a Brazilian artist, including a Grammy and repeated number-one placements on Billboard’s Latin charts, while also establishing a durable international audience. Although the sentimental formula proved commercially durable, it led many younger listeners and some adults in the 1980s and 1990s to dismiss him as overly saccharine. A mid-1990s revival of Jovem Guarda material, spearheaded by younger rock acts, reaffirmed his foundational status; by the turn of the century he retained, unchallenged, the title of King.

Born into a lower-middle-class household, Carlos lost a leg at age six and thereafter relied on a prosthesis. At nine he made his radio debut in his hometown. In 1955 he relocated first to Niterói and then to the Lins de Vasconcelos district of Rio de Janeiro, where exposure to Bill Haley, Elvis Presley, and Little Richard ignited his interest in rock and roll. There he also encountered Carlos Imperial, a fellow native of Cachoeiro de Itapemirim whose later role as television and radio producer proved instrumental to Carlos’s early opportunities. Two years afterward he appeared on TV Tupi performing “Tutti Frutti.” Around the same time he met Erasmo Esteves (later Erasmo Carlos) while preparing to open a Bill Haley concert at Maracanazinho. In 1958 he joined the Matoso gang—an informal circle that included Tim Maia, Jorge Ben, and Erasmo Esteves—whose gatherings took place on Rua Matoso in the Tijuca neighborhood. With Erasmo, Tim Maia, Edson Trindade, Arlênio Lívio, and José Roberto “China,” Carlos formed the Snacks, subsequently renamed the Sputniks; the group performed at dances and on television programs, among them Carlos Imperial’s Clube do Rock on TV Continental. Incompatibility between Carlos and Tim Maia soon dissolved the ensemble.

After appearing as extras in the films Agüenta o Rojão and Minha Sogra é da Polícia—where they also backed Cauby Peixoto on one number—Carlos and Erasmo played in Erasmo’s quartet the Snakes until Imperial recruited Carlos to replace Carlos Lyra in Os Terríveis, a band that performed Elvis Presley covers on Imperial-produced television shows and live engagements. Carlos soon left to pursue a bossa-nova career. Deeply influenced by João Gilberto, he repeatedly attempted to sit in at the Plaza nightclub and the Beco das Garrafas venues, yet without success. Vestiges of that brief, unrealized phase survive on his debut single, which contained Imperial’s “João e Maria” and “Fora do Tom.” A second single issued in August 1960, again bossa-oriented, paired “Brotinho Sem Juízo” with “Canção do Amor Nenhum,” both by Imperial. During this period Carlos regularly performed on Imperial’s youth-oriented programs Os Brotos Comandam (TV Continental and Rádio Guanabara) and Festa de Brotos (TV Tupi).

In 1961, the same year he recorded his first LP, Louco por Você—a bolero-and-ballad collection that sold 3,500 copies—CBS urged him to adopt a youth-oriented repertoire. He began writing songs with Erasmo Carlos, who became his principal collaborator. Their initial hit was Carlos’s Portuguese adaptation of Bobby Darin’s “Splish Splash,” backed by the original composition “Parei na Contramão.” Released in 1963 as his fifth 78-rpm disc and supported by Renato e Seus Blue Caps, the record moved 7,500 units—an impressive figure at the time and a harbinger of changing tastes. The 1964 LP É Proibido Fumar, recorded with the Youngsters, yielded the title track (by Carlos and Erasmo) and Erasmo’s adaptation of “Road Hog,” retitled “O Calhambeque.” It sold nearly 12,000 copies in eighteen months, still trailing bolero singer Carlos Alberto yet signaling nationwide momentum. CBS arranged for a Spanish-language version, Es Prohibido Fumar, issued in Argentina at year’s end; plans to distribute it domestically were abandoned after the military government deemed Spanish-language material politically suspect.

In 1965 audience balloting on Antônio Aguillar’s Reino da Juventude program named Carlos King for the first time—an honor later ratified on Chacrinha’s program and retained for life. Roberto Carlos Canta Para a Juventude outsold all previous releases, surpassing Carlos Alberto’s Amor Perdido; it peaked at number five on the IBOPE chart before dropping, yet the follow-up album reached number one by year’s end. The double single containing “História de um Homem Mau” sold more than 20,000 copies and reached number four, while “Não Quero Ver Você Triste” moved 50,000 units. On 5 September he inaugurated the landmark program Jovem Guarda as principal host, joined by Vanderléa and Erasmo Carlos; the show defined Brazil’s first youth-targeted musical movement and triggered unprecedented commercial and behavioral shifts. Thereafter Carlos’s popularity soared. A double single featuring “A Garota do Baile” reached number two behind the Beatles’ “Help!” in November, but the album Jovem Guarda, released the same month, displaced “Help!” from the top position within a week and sold nearly 200,000 copies in its first year. “Quero Que Vá Tudo Pro Inferno” dominated Brazilian charts through the first half of 1966. After appearances in Argentina, Uruguay, and Paraguay—where the Spanish “O Calhambeque” remained popular—Carlos toured Europe in April, performing in Portugal, where both “Calhambeque” and “Quero Que Vá Tudo Pro Inferno” topped Lisbon charts.

Upon returning, he embarked on an itinerary encompassing South, Central, and North America (Los Angeles, Miami, New York) before continuing to London, Paris, Berlin, and Lisbon. The December 1966 album Roberto Carlos entered the chart at number one in its second week, remained there until April 1967, and sold 300,000 copies within twelve months. In 1967 he starred in the feature Roberto Carlos em Ritmo de Aventura, whose soundtrack duplicated that sales figure and held number one from 17 December until 8 June 1968; the film itself set new box-office records. He placed fifth at the III Festival de Música Popular Brasileira with “Maria, Carnaval e Cinzas” (by Luís Carlos Paraná), which topped the singles chart in November; participated in the MIDEM festival in Cannes; and received the Chico Viola trophy for “Quero Que Vá Tudo Pro Inferno,” “Esqueça,” and the Jovem Guarda LP. June brought further concerts across Europe, Africa, Asia, and the United States, including an appearance at the Venice Song Festival.

Carlos exited Jovem Guarda in 1968; the program folded shortly afterward. The departure reflected a deliberate transition from teen idol to romantic balladeer. That year he won the San Remo Festival with “Canzone Per Te” (Sergio Endrigo) and headlined the film O Diamante Cor-de-Rosa, another commercial success. He launched his own television series, Roberto Carlos à Noite, on TV Record on 15 March. Throughout the 1970s his romantic output retained creative vitality; notable successes written with Erasmo include “Sua Estupidez,” “As Flores do Jardim de Nossa Casa,” “Jesus Cristo,” “Amada Amante,” “Detalhes,” “Debaixo dos Caracóis dos Seus Cabelos,” “A Montanha,” “A Proposta,” “Além do Horizonte,” “Olha,” “Amante à Moda Antiga,” and “A Ilha,” alongside “Como Vai Você?” (Antônio Marcos/Mário Marcos) and two Caetano Veloso compositions, “Como Dois e Dois” and “Muito Romântico.” Regular performances in the United States, Europe, and Latin America solidified his international standing. His first annual season at Canecão in 1970 initiated a long-running series of sold-out engagements. By the early 1970s he had become Brazil’s top-selling artist, a position he held for successive years. After 1976 every album exceeded one million copies domestically. The 1977 release Roberto Carlos, featuring “Falando Sério,” moved 2.2 million units; its 1978 successor, containing “Café da Manhã,” “Força Estranha,” and “Lady Laura,” sold 1.5 million, while the accompanying tour drew 250,000 spectators over six months.

In the 1980s Carlos began recording in English and French, having already issued Spanish, Italian, and Portuguese albums. CBS awarded him the Globo de Cristal for surpassing five million units sold outside Brazil. Domestic sales continued to set benchmarks: “Caminhoneiro” (1984) received 3,000 radio spins in a single day, a mark surpassed the following year by “Verde e Amarelo” with 3,500 plays. A 1986 concert at Radio City Music Hall and a 1988 Grammy for Best Latin American Pop Singer further elevated his profile; in 1989 the album Sonrie reached number one on Billboard’s Latin chart. The 1990s brought additional milestones: in 1994 Carlos became the first Latin American artist to outsell the Beatles, having by then surpassed 70 million units worldwide. Mid-decade tributes from younger rock acts—Cássia Eller, Chico Science & Nação Zumbi, Barão Vermelho, and Skank—on the album Rei revived interest in his Jovem Guarda catalog among generations previously familiar only with his romantic material.

The 1998 diagnosis of cancer in his second wife, Maria Rita (who succumbed in 1999), prompted a period of withdrawal. He resumed recording and performing in 2000. In 2001 he briefly terminated his longstanding contract with Sony (formerly CBS) for commercial reasons tied to her death, yet the relationship was reinstated, yielding further successes: Leyendas Solamente los Mejores (2004), Duetos (2006), Música de Tom Jobim with Caetano Veloso (2008), Esse Cara Sou Eu (2012), a second Duetos volume (2014), and numerous compilations and singles. A Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2015 Billboard Latin Music Awards preceded the release of Primera Fila, a live audio-video package recorded at London’s Abbey Road Studios. The self-titled 2017 EP charted digitally, and the Spanish-language Amor Sin Límites appeared in 2018. Produced by Afo Verde, the album contained four new tracks plus six previously Portuguese-only songs rendered in Spanish; its lead single, “Chegaste,” was a duet with Jennifer Lopez.