1941

Born in Itapemirim (Espírito Santo, SE), Roberto Carlos started his music career at the age of 9 singing on the local radio station, where he did impersonations of singer Bob Nelson. At the age of 12, he moved with his family to Niteroí, in the State of Rio de Janeiro, and made friends with other youngsters who were also keen on music, particularly American rock'n'roll. In 1957, RC and his friends, including soul singer Tim Maia, founded the group "Os Sputniks". In the following year, RC joined the group "The Snakes", among whose members was RC's lifetime buddy, Erasmo Carlos. The Snakes performed on the TV show Clube do Rock.. In the late 50's, RC recorded a few singles and in 1961, he released the LP "Louco por Você". From then on, encouraged by record company CBS, Roberto Carlos dedicated his career to making music for the Brazilian youth. With Erasmo Carlos, Roberto Carlos wrote versions of American songs and wrote new material, such as "Splish Splash", "O Calhambeque", "É Proibido Fumar", etc., generating the first rock movement in Brazil. In 1965, Roberto Carlos, Erasmo Carlos and Wanderléa were hired to host a TV show named Jovem Guarda (New-School), which would eventually name the movement itself. The show achieved high viewing rates.

Roberto Carlos is regarded as one of the first Brazilian pop idols. Inspired by the Beatles, Roberto Carlos also starred in films. His first feature film "Roberto Carlos em Ritmo de Aventura", was released in 1967, followed by "Roberto Carlos e o Diamante Cor-de-rosa" and "Roberto Carlos a 300km por Hora".

In the 1970's, as the Jovem Guarda movement faded, RC changed his style and focused on his career as a singer and romantic songwriter. From then on, his target-public shifted from youngsters to adults.

His romantic hits include "Detalhes", "Emoções", "Café da Manhã", "Força Estranha", "Guerra dos Meninos", "Fera Ferida", "Caminhoneiro" and "Verde e Amarelo". RC has recently turned to religion-related songs like "Nossa Senhora".

Roberto Carlos has been a prolific songwriter and since 1961, managing to release one new record per year (around Christmas time), but in 1999, he failed to release his annual album due to his wife's illness and after. RC's records have sold millions of copies and broken all record sales (in 1994, RC sold 70 million copies). He has toured extensively in hundreds of towns in Brazil and abroad. His fan club is one of the largest in the world. Dozens of artists have recorded his songs and RC has released albums in Spanish and English in several countries.

Nowadays, RC performs non-stop and produces a TV special every Christmas.