The Most Famous

SINGERS from Brazil

This page contains a list of the greatest Brazilian Singers. The pantheon dataset contains 4,381 Singers, 32 of which were born in Brazil. This makes Brazil the birth place of the 24th most number of Singers behind Ireland, and Croatia.

Top 10

The following people are considered by Pantheon to be the top 10 most legendary Brazilian Singers of all time. This list of famous Brazilian Singers is sorted by HPI (Historical Popularity Index), a metric that aggregates information on a biography’s online popularity. Visit the rankings page to view the entire list of Brazilian Singers.

1. Astrud Gilberto (1940 - 2023)

With an HPI of 63.24, Astrud Gilberto is the most famous Brazilian Singer. Her biography has been translated into 48 different languages on wikipedia.

Astrud Gilberto (Portuguese: [asˈtɾud ʒiwˈbɛʁtu]; born Astrud Evangelina Weinert; March 29, 1940 – June 5, 2023) was a Brazilian samba and bossa nova singer and songwriter. She gained international attention in the mid-1960s following her recording of the song "The Girl from Ipanema".

2. Roberto Carlos (b. 1941)

With an HPI of 63.09, Roberto Carlos is the 2nd most famous Brazilian Singer. His biography has been translated into 31 different languages.

Roberto Carlos Braga (Brazilian Portuguese pronunciation: [ʁoˈbɛʁtu ˈkaʁlus]; born April 19, 1941) is a Brazilian singer-songwriter, also known as "King of Latin Music" or simply "the King". Most of his songs were written in partnership with his friend, singer and songwriter Erasmo Carlos (no relation). Roberto Carlos has sold over 70 million albums around the world. He is considered one of the most influential artists in Brazil, being cited as a source of inspiration by many artists and bands. His net worth is estimated at US$160 million.

3. Elis Regina (1945 - 1982)

With an HPI of 59.02, Elis Regina is the 3rd most famous Brazilian Singer. Her biography has been translated into 36 different languages.

Elis Regina Carvalho Costa (March 17, 1945 – January 19, 1982), known professionally as Elis Regina (Brazilian Portuguese: [eˈliz ʁeˈʒinɐ]), was a Brazilian singer of Bossa nova, MPB and jazz music. She is also the mother of the singers Maria Rita and Pedro Mariano. She became nationally renowned in 1965 after singing "Arrastão" (composed by Edu Lobo and Vinícius de Moraes) in the first edition of TV Excelsior festival song contest and soon joined O Fino da Bossa, a television program on TV Record. She was noted for her vocalization as well as for her interpretation and performances in shows. Her recordings include "Como Nossos Pais" (Belchior), "Upa Neguinho" (E. Lobo and Gianfrancesco Guarnieri), "Madalena" (Ivan Lins), "Casa no Campo" (Zé Rodrix and Tavito), "Águas de março" (Tom Jobim), "Atrás da Porta" (Chico Buarque and Francis Hime), "O Bêbado e a Equilibrista" (Aldir Blanc and João Bosco), "Conversando no Bar" (Milton Nascimento). Her death, at the age of 36, shocked Brazil.

4. Loalwa Braz (1953 - 2017)

With an HPI of 58.21, Loalwa Braz is the 4th most famous Brazilian Singer. Her biography has been translated into 23 different languages.

Loalwa Braz Vieira (3 June 1953 – 19 January 2017) was a Brazilian singer, best known for providing the lead vocals for the French-Brazilian recording act Kaoma for their 1989 cover of the hit "Llorando se fue" (by Ulysses Hermosa, lead singer of the popular Bolivian folk group Los Kjarkas), later renamed as "Lambada". She was fluent in four languages, and recorded songs in her native Portuguese, as well as in Spanish, French and English.

5. Gal Costa (1945 - 2022)

With an HPI of 57.64, Gal Costa is the 5th most famous Brazilian Singer. Her biography has been translated into 33 different languages.

Gal Maria da Graça Costa Penna Burgos (born Maria da Graça Costa Penna Burgos; 26 September 1945 – 9 November 2022), known professionally as Gal Costa ([ɡaw ˈkɔs ta] ), was a Brazilian singer of popular music. She was one of the main figures of the tropicalia music scene in Brazil in the late 1960s and appeared on the acclaimed compilation Tropicália: ou Panis et Circencis (1968). She was described by The New York Times as "one of Brazil's greatest singers."

6. Maria Bethânia (b. 1946)

With an HPI of 56.13, Maria Bethânia is the 6th most famous Brazilian Singer. Her biography has been translated into 31 different languages.

Maria Bethânia Viana Teles Veloso (Portuguese pronunciation: [maˈɾiɐ beˈtɐ̃niɐ]; born 18 June 1946) is a Brazilian singer and songwriter. Born in Santo Amaro, Bahia, she started her career in Rio de Janeiro in 1964 with the show "Opinião" ("Opinion"), she is "The Queen of Brazilian Music". Due to its popularity, with performances all over the country, and the popularity of her 1965 single "Carcará", the artist became a star in Brazil. Bethânia is the sister of the singer-songwriter Caetano Veloso and of the writer-songwriter Mabel Velloso, as well as being aunt of the singers Belô Velloso and Jota Velloso. The singer has released 50 studio albums in 47 years of career, and is among the 10 best-selling music artists in Brazil, having sold more than 26 million records. Bethânia was ranked in 2012, by Rolling Stone Brasil magazine, as the fifth-biggest voice in Brazilian music.

7. Elza Soares (1930 - 2022)

With an HPI of 54.48, Elza Soares is the 7th most famous Brazilian Singer. Her biography has been translated into 20 different languages.

Elza da Conceição Soares (née Gomes; 23 June 1930 – 20 January 2022), known professionally as Elza Soares (Brazilian Portuguese: [ˈɛwzɐ ˈswaɾis]), was a Brazilian samba singer. In 1999, she was named Singer of the Millennium along with Tina Turner by BBC Radio. Elza was deemed dangerous by the Military dictatorship in Brazil (1964–1985), and in 1970 her house in the Jardim Botânico neighborhood, in Rio de Janeiro, was machine-gunned by regime agents. Inside were her partner Garrincha and their children. The living room, where the young children were, was destroyed by the blasts. She and Garrincha had to flee to Italy, where they were received by Chico Buarque de Hollanda also in exile.

8. Jorge Ben (b. 1942)

With an HPI of 54.05, Jorge Ben is the 8th most famous Brazilian Singer. His biography has been translated into 23 different languages.

Jorge Duílio Lima Menezes (born March 22, 1939) is a Brazilian popular musician, performing under the stage name Jorge Ben Jor since the 1980s, though commonly known by his former stage name Jorge Ben (Portuguese: [ˈʒɔʁʒi ˈbẽŋ̍]). Performing in a samba style that also explored soul, funk, rock and bossa nova sounds, Ben has recorded such well-known songs as "Chove Chuva", "Mas, que Nada!", "Ive Brussel" and "Balança Pema". His music has been covered by artists such as Caetano Veloso, Sérgio Mendes, Miriam Makeba, Soulfly and Marisa Monte. Ben's broad-minded and original approach to samba led him through participation in some of Brazilian popular music's most important musical movements, such as bossa nova, Jovem Guarda, and Tropicália, with the latter period defined by his albums Jorge Ben (1969) and Fôrça Bruta (1970). He has been called "the father of samba rock", by Billboard magazine. According to American music critic Robert Christgau, Ben and his contemporary Gilberto Gil were "always ready to go further out on a beat than the other samba/bossa geniuses".

9. Naná Vasconcelos (1944 - 2016)

With an HPI of 51.83, Naná Vasconcelos is the 9th most famous Brazilian Singer. His biography has been translated into 20 different languages.

Juvenal de Holanda Vasconcelos, known as Naná Vasconcelos (2 August 1944 – 9 March 2016), was a Brazilian percussionist, vocalist and berimbau player, notable for his work as a solo artist on over two dozen albums, and as a backing musician with Pat Metheny, Don Cherry, Jan Garbarek, Egberto Gismonti, Gato Barbieri, and Milton Nascimento.

10. Luiz Gonzaga (1912 - 1989)

With an HPI of 51.08, Luiz Gonzaga is the 10th most famous Brazilian Singer. Her biography has been translated into 20 different languages.

Luiz Gonzaga do Nascimento (standard orthography 'Luís'; Portuguese pronunciation: [luˈiz ɡõˈzaɡɐ]; December 13, 1912 – August 2, 1989) was a Brazilian singer, songwriter, musician and poet and one of the most influential figures of Brazilian popular music in the twentieth century. He has been credited with having presented the rich universe of Northeastern musical genres to all of Brazil, having popularized the musical genre baião and has been called a "revolutionary" by Antônio Carlos Jobim. According to Caetano Veloso, he was the first significant cultural event with mass appeal in Brazil. Luiz Gonzaga received the Shell prize for Brazilian Popular Music in 1984 and was only the fourth artist to receive this prize after Pixinguinha, Antônio Carlos Jobim and Dorival Caymmi. The Luiz Gonzaga Dam was named in his honor. Gonzaga's son, Luiz Gonzaga do Nascimento Jr, known as Gonzaguinha (1945–1991), was also a noted Brazilian singer and composer.

People

Pantheon has 36 people classified as Brazilian singers born between 1901 and 2007. Of these 36, 21 (58.33%) of them are still alive today. The most famous living Brazilian singers include Roberto Carlos, Maria Bethânia, and Jorge Ben. The most famous deceased Brazilian singers include Astrud Gilberto, Elis Regina, and Loalwa Braz. As of April 2024, 4 new Brazilian singers have been added to Pantheon including Adoniran Barbosa, Clara Nunes, and Clementina de Jesus.