Early years Chorão formed the band What's Up, shortly after his move from
São Paulo to
Santos, in 1987. After a lineup change in 1990, twelve-year-old bassist
Champignon joined the band, followed by
Marcão,
Renato Pelado, and
Thiago Castanho. In 1992, Chorão revamped What's Up with a new name. He chose Charlie Brown Jr., explaining that
Charlie Brown came from when he crashed his car into a coconut stand with a drawing of
Charles M. Schulz's comic strip
Peanuts on it. The "Jr." alluded to the fact that he considered himself and the band "the children of
rock". What's Up and Charlie Brown Jr. developed a heavy style influenced by
crossover thrash and
hardcore punk, with lyrics in
English. Some of Chorão's greatest inspirations were
Blink-182,
Sublime,
Bad Brains,
NOFX,
Suicidal Tendencies,
Biohazard,
Faith No More, and
311. The band initially struggled because most members had to rent or borrow their instruments, often forcing the band to cancel performances. Champignon, who was underage, needed a permit signed by his parents to perform at shows. In 1995, they recorded their first demo tape, the self-titled
Charlie Brown Jr. To finance the recording, Champignon pawned one of his
bass guitars, and Chorão pawned a
television set. The underground scene of Santos responded positively to the demo, motivating Champignon to show it to his friend, record producer
Tadeu Patolla. Patolla was impressed but advised Chorão to sing in
Portuguese and experiment with other genres, such as
hip hop,
reggae, and
ska, taking
Red Hot Chili Peppers and
Rage Against the Machine as inspiration. Subsequently, Patolla introduced the group to fellow producer
Rick Bonadio, and they helped the band secure a contract with
Virgin Records. Virgin released the band's debut album,
Transpiração Contínua Prolongada, in 1997. In early 1999, the band released a promotional
extended play entitled
Aquele Luxo! as a teaser for a forthcoming album.
Preço Curto... Prazo Longo came out on 6 March 1999, and was the band's longest album, with 25 tracks. Chorão later said it was recorded out of necessity because the band did not have much of an original repertoire for their live shows. The album's first single, "
Zóio de Lula", was released on 1 April 1999. It was the band's first song to reach first place on Brazilian radio. The band made a music video for the single, featuring a then-19-year-old
Luize Altenhofen.
2000s Nadando com os Tubarões, Charlie Brown Jr.'s third album, was released in November 2000. It included guest appearances by the rap group RZO (fronted by
Sabotage at the time) and up-and-coming singer
Negra Li, who co-wrote the album's biggest hit, "Não É Sério".
Nadando com os Tubarões was nominated for a
Latin Grammy Award for Best Portuguese Language Rock or Alternative Album in
2001. Shortly after the album's release, guitarist
Thiago Castanho left Charlie Brown Jr., citing his dissatisfaction with their extensive touring schedule. The band's fourth album,
Abalando a Sua Fábrica, came out on 1 November 2001, under their new label
EMI. It was their first recording as a quartet and the band shifted away from their
rap rock-inflected
sonority, toward a "rawer" style influenced by
punk and
garage rock. The band achieved this sound by recording all instrumental parts simultaneously as if they were recording live. In 2002, Charlie Brown Jr. released their first
DVD,
Charlie Brown Jr. ao Vivo, recorded live at a concert at the DirecTV Music Hall in São Paulo. Later, this show was broadcast by
direct broadcast satellite service provider
DirecTV. That year, the band toured internationally, with a leg in
Portugal. After a Portuguese newspaper critic called them "bocas ordinárias", a Portuguese expression for a "foul-mouthed" person, Chorão decided to use this as the name of their next album.
Bocas Ordinárias was considered one of the band's best albums by fans and critics alike, earning a nomination for the Latin Grammy Award in
2003. Chorão dedicated the album to singer
Cássia Eller, a friend who died the year prior. In 2003, Charlie Brown Jr. filmed an episode of
Acústico MTV, the Brazilian equivalent of
MTV Unplugged. Their critically acclaimed performance featured guest appearances by
Marcelo D2,
Marcelo Nova, RZO, and
Negra Li. Their sixth studio album,
Tamo Aí na Atividade, came out in December 2004 and won the Latin
Grammy Award in
2005. However, its recording sessions were plagued by creative differences and clashes between Chorão and his bandmates. By early 2005, Champignon, Marcão, and Renato Pelado left the group. Chorão announced that Charlie Brown Jr. was on hiatus for an indeterminate time, leading many to speculate that the band was splitting up. Charlie Brown Jr. returned from their hiatus with a new lineup: bassist
Heitor Gomes, drummer/beatboxer
Pinguim Ruas, and original founding member Thiago Castanho on guitar. Their album,
Imunidade Musical, featured a guest appearance by rapper
Rappin' Hood. It was nominated for a Latin Grammy Award in
2006. Around the same time, the band released a DVD,
Skate Vibration, recorded at the inauguration of Chorão's Skate Park. The band released
Ritmo, Ritual e Responsa in 2007
. MV Bill,
João Gordo,
Paranormal Attack, and
Forfun were guest musicians on the album.
Ritmo, Ritual e Responsa was nominated for a Latin Grammy Award in
2008. It was the first part of the soundtrack of the film
O Magnata, which was written and co-produced by Chorão. The film also included cameos by Chorão and the other Charlie Brown Jr. members. However,
O Magnata was a moderate box office success, receiving mixed to negative reviews. The band released a performance DVD to promote the release of
Ritmo, Ritual e Responsa ao Vivo in 2008. However, Pinguim was not in the band by the time the DVD was released; his contract had expired and both parties were uninterested in renewing it. He was replaced by
Bruno Graveto.
2010s Camisa 10 Joga Bola Até na Chuva was Charlie Brown Jr.'s ninth album and won the Latin Grammy Award in
2010. It was their final release with Heitor Gomes, who left in 2011 to join
CPM 22. "
Só os Loucos Sabem", a single from this album, became one of the band's highest-charting hits. Chorão originally wrote "O Dom, a Inteligência e a Voz", another track on the album, for
Cássia Eller in 2001, but she died before recording the song. In 2010, the band composed the opening theme for the
variety show Legendários, hosted by
Marcos Mion on
RecordTV. In 2011 Chorão announced that Marcão and Champignon were returning to the band. Their first recording under this new lineup,
Música Popular Caiçara, was released in CD, DVD, and
Blu-ray formats. It was recorded in 2011 during performances in
Curitiba and Santos.
Liminha was its producer and
KondZilla was the director. The CD version was released as two volumes: the first concomitantly with the DVD and Blu-ray, and the second four years later, in 2016. By 2011, Chorão's
drug abuse issues began to take their toll on his life and health, causing his divorce from his long-time companion, Graziela "Grazon" Gonçalves. He wrote the song "Céu Azul", included in the band's 2012 release
Música Popular Caiçara, for Gonçalves following their divorce. In 2012, the band began work on a new studio album,
La Familia 013. Its first single, "Meu Novo Mundo", premiered in February 2013. On 6 March, Chorão died in his apartment following a
cocaine overdose. As a result, the album was left unfinished. After a hiatus, the band resumed work on the unfinished instrumental parts. The band unveiled the album's cover art on 7 July 2013.
La Familia 013 was released on 8 October 2013. In 2014, it received the band's fifth Latin Grammy Award nomination. == After Charlie Brown Jr. ==