Venda Velha

Venda Velha formed in Belo Horizonte in the late 1990s with Samuel Rosa on vocals, Pedro Bernardes on guitar, Renato Rocha on bass, and Eduardo Martino on drums. Their self-titled debut album came out in 1997, and its track 'Classe Média' quickly became an anthem for Brazil's middle class, capturing a specific kind of everyday anxiety and aspiration that resonated widely.

That song's straightforward lyrics about middle-class life drew both fans and critics. Some felt the band was pandering or being too sentimental, but they kept writing about these ordinary experiences anyway. They followed up with albums like 'Quando o Sol Bater na Janela do Seu Quarto' in 1999 and 'Na Medida do Impossível' in 2003.

The band denied it, but the incident stuck to their reputation. They kept releasing music, putting out 'Raio de Sol' that same year and 'A Lição do Bicho' in 2014.