Alexandre Barreto

Alexandre Barreto first appeared in the early 1980s with the band Bicho de Pé. He put out his debut solo album Semente do Sol in 1987, but it was the 1996 record Pra Um Peito Vazio that really connected with people. The title track from that album became something of a standard, a ballad that seemed to find its way into the Brazilian airwaves and stay there.

He came up in Salvador, Bahia, and you can hear some of that coastal atmosphere in his writing, along with the melodic sense of older Brazilian songwriters.

Barreto's work sometimes drew criticism for its political edges, and Semente do Sol was reportedly kept off the radio for a time. He kept recording through the 2000s, with albums like O Vento e o Véu and Sobre o Tempo, but that 1996 song remains what most people know.