Francisco Buarque de Hollanda (born 19 June 1944), popularly known simply as Chico Buarque (), is a Brazilian singer-songwriter, guitarist, composer, playwright, writer, and poet. He is best known for his music, which often includes social, economic, and cultural reflections on Brazil. The firstborn son of

Sérgio Buarque de Hollanda Sergius is a male given name of Ancient Roman origin after the name of the Latin ''gens'' Sergia or Sergii of regal and republican ages. It is a common Christian name, in honour of Saint Sergius, or in Kyivan Rus', of Sergius of the Holy Caves ...

, Buarque lived at several locations throughout his childhood, though mostly in

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro, or simply Rio, is the capital of the Rio de Janeiro (state), state of Rio de Janeiro. It is the List of cities in Brazil by population, second-most-populous city in Brazil (after São Paulo) and the Largest cities in the America ...

São Paulo São Paulo (; ; Portuguese for 'Paul the Apostle, Saint Paul') is the capital of the São Paulo (state), state of São Paulo, as well as the List of cities in Brazil by population, most populous city in Brazil, the List of largest cities in the ...

, and

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

. He wrote and studied literature as a child and found music through the bossa nova compositions of

Tom Jobim Tom or TOM may refer to: * Tom (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the name. Arts and entertainment Film and television * ''Tom'' (1973 film), or ''The Bad Bunch'', a blaxploitation film * ''Tom'' (2002 film) ...

and

João Gilberto João Gilberto (born João Gilberto do Prado Pereira de Oliveira – ; 10 June 1931 – 6 July 2019) was a Brazilian guitarist, singer, and composer who was a pioneer of the musical genre of bossa nova in the late 1950s. Around the world, he w ...

. He performed as a singer and guitarist in the 1960s as well as writing a play that was deemed dangerous by the Brazilian military dictatorship of the time. Buarque, along with several Tropicalist and MPB musicians, was threatened by the

Brazilian military government The military dictatorship in Brazil (), occasionally referred to as the Fifth Brazilian Republic, was established on 1 April 1964, after a coup d'état by the Brazilian Armed Forces, with support from the United States government, against presid ...

and eventually left Brazil for Italy in 1969. However, he came back to Brazil in 1970, and continued to record, perform, and write, though much of his material was suppressed by government censors. He released several more albums in the 1980s and published three novels in the 1990s and 2000s. In 2019, Buarque was awarded the

Camões Prize The Camões Prize (, ), named after Luís de Camões, is the most prestigious prize for literature in the Portuguese language. The prize was established in 1989 and is supported by the governments of Brazil and Portugal. It is awarded annually to ...

, the most important prize for literature in the Portuguese language. However, awarding of the prize was delayed by four years due to actions by

Jair Bolsonaro Jair Messias Bolsonaro (; born 21 March 1955) is a Brazilian politician and former military officer who served as the 38th president of Brazil from 2019 to 2023. He previously served as a member of Brazil's Chamber of Deputies (Brazil), Chamb ...

, but Buarque received it in April 2023. He has also won eleven

Brazilian Music Awards The Brazilian Music Awards () (PMB) or BTG Pactual Brazilian Music Awards () is a Brazilian music award created in 1987 by Zé Maurício Machline. It is considered the biggest and most important music award in Brazil. Its goal is to value the div ...

, the most important prize for

Brazilian music The music of Brazil encompasses various regional musical styles influenced by European, American, African and Amerindian forms. Brazilian music developed some unique and original styles such as forró, repente, coco de roda, axé, sertanejo ...

Early life and career

Buarque was born in

on 19 June 1944. He came from an intellectually privileged family background—his father

Sérgio Buarque de Holanda Sérgio Buarque de Holanda (July 11, 1902 – April 24, 1982) was a Brazilian historian, writer, journalist and sociologist. His greatest achievement was Raízes do Brasil ( English ''Roots of Brazil''), a landmark of Brazilian sociology, in ...

was a well-known historian, sociologist and journalist and his mother Maria Amélia Cesário Alvim was a painter and pianist. He is also brother of the singers

Miúcha Heloísa Maria Buarque de Hollanda (30 November 1937 – 27 December 2018), known professionally as Miúcha, was a Brazilian singer and composer. She belonged to a musical family. Her siblings included singer and composer Chico Buarque and two ...

Cristina Buarque Maria Christina Buarque de Holanda (December 23, 1950 – April 20, 2025) was a Brazilian singer and composer. She was the daughter of historian Sérgio Buarque de Holanda and sister of Chico Buarque, Miúcha and Ana de Hollanda. Buarque died of ...

and politician

Ana de Hollanda Anna Maria Alvim Buarque de Hollanda (born 12 August 1948) was the Minister of Culture of Brazil from 2011 to 2012. She worked as a singer before, and is the sister of Chico Buarque, Cristina Buarque, and Miúcha, and daughter of sociologist ...

. As a child, he was impressed by the musical style of bossa nova, specifically the work of

and

. He was also interested in writing, composing his first short story at 18 years old and studying European literature, also at a young age. One of his most consuming interests, however, was playing football, beginning at age four, and he still played regularly in his 60s. During his childhood, he lived in Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo and Rome. Before becoming a musician, Buarque decided at one point to study architecture at the

University of São Paulo The Universidade de São Paulo (, USP) is a public research university in the Brazilian state of São Paulo, and the largest public university in Brazil. The university was founded on 25 January 1934, regrouping already existing schools in ...

, but this choice did not lead to a career in that field; Buarque often skipped classes. He made his public debut as musician and composer in 1964, rapidly building his reputation at music festivals and television variety shows when bossa nova came to light and

Nara Leão Nara Lofego Leão (; January 19, 1942 – June 7, 1989) was a Brazilian bossa nova and MPB (popular Brazilian music) singer and occasional actress. Leão was married twice, to Ruy Guerra and subsequently Carlos Diegues, both film directors. ...

recorded three of his songs. His eponymous debut album exemplified his future work, with catchy

samba Samba () is a broad term for many of the rhythms that compose the better known Brazilian music genres that originated in the Afro-Brazilians, Afro Brazilian communities of Bahia in the late 19th century and early 20th century, It is a name or ...

s characterized by inventive

wordplay Word play or wordplay (also: play-on-words) is a literary technique and a form of wit in which words used become the main subject of the work, primarily for the purpose of intended effect or amusement. Examples of word play include puns, phone ...

and an undercurrent of nostalgic tragedy. Buarque had his first hit with " A Banda" in 1966, written about a marching band, and soon released several more singles. Although playing bossa nova, during his career, samba and

Música popular brasileira (, ''Brazilian Popular Music'') or MPB is a trend in post-bossa nova urban popular music in Brazil that revisits typical Brazilian styles such as samba, samba-canção and Baião (music), baião and other Brazilian regional music, combining them ...

would also be widely explored. Despite that, Buarque was criticized by two of the leading musicians at the time,

Caetano Veloso Caetano Emanuel Viana Teles Veloso (; born 7 August 1942) is a Brazilian composer, singer, guitarist, writer, and political activist. Veloso first became known for his participation in the Brazilian musical movement Tropicália, which encompas ...

and

Gilberto Gil Gilberto Passos Gil Moreira (; born 26 June 1942), is a Brazilian singer-songwriter and politician, known for both his musical innovation and political activism. From 2003 to 2008, he served as Brazil's Ministry of Culture (Brazil), Minister of ...

as they believed his musical style was overly conservative. However, an existentially themed play that Buarque wrote and composed in 1968, ''Roda Viva'' ("Live Circle"), was frowned upon by the military government and Buarque served a short prison sentence because of it. He left Brazil for Italy for 18 months in 1970, returning to write his first novel in 1972, which was not targeted by censors.

At this time his thinly veiled protest single "Apesar de Você" ("In spite of You" – in reference to the military dictatorship) was also produced. "Apesar de Você" was overlooked by the military censors, becoming an important anthem in the democratic movement. After selling over 100,000 copies, the single was eventually censored and removed from the market. At one point in 1974, the censors banned any song authored by Chico Buarque. Then, he created a pseudonym, naming himself "Julinho de Adelaide", complete with life history and interviews to newspapers. "Julinho de Adelaide" authored songs such as "Jorge Maravilha" ("Wonder Jorge") and "Acorda Amor" ("Wake Up Love" as in a lover) before he was outed in a ''

Jornal do Brasil ''Jornal do Brasil'', widely known as ''JB'', is a daily newspaper published by Editora JB in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The paper was founded in 1891 and is the third oldest extant Brazilian paper, after the ''Diário de Pernambuco'' and ''O Esta ...

'' news story. Buarque also wrote a play named ''Calabar'', about the Dutch invasion of Brazil in the seventeenth century, drawing parallels with the military regime. Despite the censorship, songs such as "Samba de Orly" (1970), "Acorda amor" (1974, as "Julinho da Adelaide") manifested Buarque's continuing opposition to the military regime. During the 1970s and 1980s, he collaborated with filmmakers, playwrights, and musicians in further protest works against the dictatorship. Buarque approached the 1983 Concert for Peace in Nicaragua as a valid forum to vocalize his strong political views. Throughout the decade, he crafted many of his songs as vehicles to describe the re-democratization of Brazil. The Concert for Peace in Nicaragua was one in a concert series known as the "Central American Peace Concerts." These concerts featured various

Latin American Latin Americans (; ) are the citizenship, citizens of Latin American countries (or people with cultural, ancestral or national origins in Latin America). Latin American countries and their Latin American diaspora, diasporas are Metroethnicity, ...

artists. The political turmoil that plagued this era were expressed in many of Buarque's songs. He later wrote ''Budapeste'', a novel that achieved critical national acclaim and won the

Prêmio Jabuti The Prêmio Jabuti (the "Tortoise Prize") is the most traditional literary award in Brazil, given by the . It was conceived by Edgard Cavalheiro in 1959 when he presided over the CBL, with the interest of rewarding authors, editors, illustrators, ...

, a Brazilian literary award comparable to the

Booker Prize The Booker Prize, formerly the Booker Prize for Fiction (1969–2001) and the Man Booker Prize (2002–2019), is a prestigious literary award conferred each year for the best single work of sustained fiction written in the English language, wh ...

. His 2017 album '' Caravanas'' was named the 3rd best Brazilian album of that year by the Brazilian edition of ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...

''.

"Cálice"

Following the Brazilian military coup of 1964, Buarque avoided

censorship Censorship is the suppression of speech, public communication, or other information. This may be done on the basis that such material is considered objectionable, harmful, sensitive, or "inconvenient". Censorship can be conducted by governmen ...

by using cryptic analogies and wordplay. For example, in the song "Cálice" ("Chalice"), a duet written in 1973 with

and released with

Milton Nascimento Milton Silva Campos do Nascimento (; born October 26, 1942), also known as Bituca, is a Brazilian singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. Nascimento has recorded 32 studio albums and has won five Grammy Awards, including Best World Music ...

in 1978, he takes advantage of the

homophony In music, homophony (;, Greek: ὁμόφωνος, ''homóphōnos'', from ὁμός, ''homós'', "same" and φωνή, ''phōnē'', "sound, tone") is a texture in which a primary part is supported by one or more additional strands that provide ...

between the

Portuguese Portuguese may refer to: * anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal ** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods ** Portuguese language, a Romance language *** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language ** Portu ...

imperative ''cale-se'' ("shut up") and ''cálice'' ("chalice") to protest government censorship, disguised as the Gospel narrative of Jesus' Gethsemane prayer to God to relieve him of the cup of suffering. The line "''Quero cheirar fumaça de óleo diesel''" ("I want to sniff diesel fumes") is a reference to the death of political prisoner Stuart Angel, who reportedly had his mouth glued to a jeep's

exhaust pipe An exhaust system is used to guide reaction exhaust gases away from a controlled combustion inside an engine or stove. The entire system conveys burnt gases from the engine and includes one or more exhaust pipes. Depending on the overall syste ...

during a torture session. Buarque was close to Stuart's mother, Zuzu Angel. This song is the subject of the final chapter of the book ''First Chico Buarque'' by Charles A. Perrone (London: Bloomsbury, 2022) in the Brazil 33 1/3 series.

Awards and recognitions

*2010

São Paulo Prize for Literature The São Paulo Prize for Literature () is a Brazilian literary prize for novels written in the Portuguese language and published in Brazil. It was established in 2008 by the Secretary of Culture for the State of São Paulo. Though not as old as o ...

— Shortlisted in the Best Book of the Year category for '' Leite Derramado'' *2013

Casa de las Américas prize The Casa de las Américas Prize (''Premio Literario Casa de las Américas'') is a literary award given by the Cuban Casa de las Américas. Established in 1959, it is one of Latin America’s oldest and most prestigious literary prizes. The award ...

for Spilt Milk (Leche derramada, Leite derramado), winner of narrative fiction. *2019

Discography

*1966: '' Chico Buarque de Hollanda'' (Vol. 1) *1966: ''Morte e Vida Severina'' *1967: ''Chico Buarque de Hollanda'' (Vol. 2) *1968: ''Chico Buarque de Hollanda'' (Vol. 3) *1969: ''Umas e outras – compacto'' *1969: ''Chico Buarque na Itália'' *1970: ''Apesar de você'' *1970: ''Per un pugno di samba'' *1970: ''Chico Buarque de Hollanda'' (Vol. 4) *1971: ''

Construção ''Construção'' () is the eighth studio album by Brazilian singer-songwriter Chico Buarque, released in December 1971. It was composed in periods between Buarque's exile in Italy and his return to Brazil. Lyrically, the album is loaded with criti ...

'' *1972: ''Quando o carnaval chegar'' *1972: '' Caetano e Chico - juntos e ao vivo'' *1973: ''Chico canta'', mildly edited by the censors of the

both in lyrics and title, it was originally called "Chico Canta Calabar". *1974: ''Sinal fechado'' *1975: ''Chico Buarque & Maria Bethânia ao vivo'' *1976: ''Meus caros amigos'' *1977: ''Cio da Terra compacto'' *1977: ''Os saltimbancos'' *1977: ''Gota d'água'' *1978: ''

Chico Buarque Francisco Buarque de Hollanda (born 19 June 1944), popularly known simply as Chico Buarque (), is a Brazilian singer-songwriter, guitarist, composer, playwright, writer, and poet. He is best known for his music, which often includes social, econom ...

'' *1979: '' Ópera do Malandro'' *1980: ''Vida'' *1980: ''Show 1º de Maio compacto'' *1981: ''Almanaque'' *1981: ''Saltimbancos trapalhões'' *1982: ''Chico Buarque en espanhol'' *1983: ''Para viver um grande amor'' *1983: ''O grande circo místico'' *1984: ''Chico Buarque (Vermelho)'' *1985: ''O Corsário do rei'' *1985: '' Ópera do Malandro'' *1985: ''Malandro'' *1986: ''Melhores momentos de Chico & Caetano'' *1987: ''Francisco'' *1988: ''Dança da meia-lua'' *1989: ''Chico Buarque'' *1990: ''Chico Buarque ao vivo Paris le Zenith'' *1992: ''Convite Para Ouvir'' *1993: ''Para Todos'' *1995: ''Uma palavra'' *1997: ''Terra'' *1998: ''As cidades'' *1998: ''Chico Buarque da Mangueira'' *1999: ''Chico ao vivo'' *2001: ''Chico e as cidades'' (DVD) *2001: ''Cambaio'' *2002: ''Chico Buarque – Duetos'' *2003: ''Chico ou o país da delicadeza perdida'' (DVD) *2005: ''Meu Caro Amigo'' (DVD) *2005: ''A Flor da Pele'' (DVD) *2005: ''Vai passar'' (DVD) *2005: ''Anos Dourados'' (DVD) *2005: ''Estação Derradeira'' (DVD) *2005: ''Bastidores'' (DVD) *2006: ''O Futebol'' (DVD) *2006: ''Romance'' (DVD) *2006: ''Uma Palavra'' (DVD) *2006: ''Carioca'' (CD + DVD with the documentary ''Desconstrução'') *2007: ''Carioca Ao Vivo'' *2011: ''

'' *2012: ''Na Carreira'' (DVD) *2017: '' Caravanas'' *2018: "Caravanas - Ao vivo"

Other works

Books

* 1966: '' A Banda'' (Songbook) * 1974: ''Fazenda Modelo'' * 1979: ''

Chapeuzinho Amarelo ''Chapeuzinho Amarelo'' is a children's book written by musician Chico Buarque in 1970, and later becoming known for having been illustrated by cartoonist and writer Ziraldo in 1979. The book was originally dedicated to Buarque's daughters and by ...

'' * 1981: ''A Bordo do Rui Barbosa'' * 1991: ''Estorvo'' * 1995: ''Benjamin'' * 2003: '' Budapeste'' * 2009: '' Leite Derramado'' * 2014: ''O Irmão Alemão'' * 2019: ''Essa Gente'' * 2021: ''Anos de Chumbo''

Plays

* 1967/8: ''Roda Viva'' * 1973: ''Calabar'' (coauthored with

Ruy Guerra Ruy Alexandre Guerra Coelho Pereira (born August 22, 1931) is a Portuguese-Brazilian film director and screenwriter. Guerra was born a Portuguese citizen in Lourenço Marques (today Maputo) in Mozambique, when it was still a Portuguese colony. ...

) * 1975: ''Gota d'água'' * 1978: '' Ópera do Malandro'' (based on John Gay's ''

Beggar's Opera ''The Beggar's Opera'' is a ballad opera in three acts written in 1728 by John Gay with music arranged by Johann Christoph Pepusch. It is one of the watershed plays in Augustan drama and is the only example of the once thriving genre of sati ...

'' and Bertolt Brecht's ''

Threepenny Opera Threepenny Opera or Three Penny Opera may refer to: * ''The Threepenny Opera'', a 1928 German "play with music" by Bertolt Brecht and Kurt Weill * ''The Threepenny Opera'' (film), a 1931 film adaptation * ''Three Penny Opera'', a 1963 German film ...

'') * 1983: ''O Grande Circo Místico''

Film

* 1972: ''Quando o carnaval chegar'' (coauthor) * 1983: ''Para viver um grande amor'' (coauthor) * 1985: '' Ópera do Malandro'' * 2009: ''Budapeste'' (based on his book)

In popular culture

The cover art of the Buarque's 1966 album '' Chico Buarque de Hollanda'' became a viral

internet meme An Internet meme, or meme (, Help:Pronunciation respelling key, ''MEEM''), is a cultural item (such as an idea, behavior, or style) that spreads across the Internet, primarily through Social media, social media platforms. Internet memes manif ...

with "happy" Chico and "sad" Chico.

Notes

References

External links

* * * * * * *
annotated Chico Buarque discography
on Slipcue.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Buarque, Chico 1944 births Living people Latin Grammy Award winners Brazilian bossa nova singers Brazilian bossa nova guitarists Samba musicians Música Popular Brasileira singers Brazilian male guitarists 21st-century Brazilian male singers 21st-century Brazilian singer-songwriters Brazilian male poets Brazilian socialists Singers from Rio de Janeiro (city) Wrasse Records artists 20th-century Brazilian novelists Brazilian male novelists Brazilian expatriates in Italy Spanish-language singers of Brazil Latin music composers Latin music songwriters 20th-century Brazilian composers 21st-century Brazilian composers 20th-century Brazilian guitarists 21st-century Brazilian guitarists 20th-century Brazilian male singers 20th-century Brazilian singers Brazilian male jazz musicians 21st-century Brazilian novelists 20th-century Brazilian male writers 21st-century Brazilian male writers 20th-century Brazilian poets 21st-century Brazilian poets Brazilian male singer-songwriters Camões Prize winners