Skowa was born in
São Paulo, on December 13, 1955; his stage name is an allusion to the
Portuguese-language word for "
brush", "escova", referencing his iconic
afro hairstyle. As a teenager he learned how to play the classical guitar, and began to play professionally in 1975, when he would join the rock bands
Sossega Leão and
Premê (at the time known as "Premeditando o Breque"). In the early 1980s he collaborated with
Itamar Assumpção and the
new wave band
Gang 90 e as Absurdettes. In 1984 he hosted two radio programs for the
USP FM,
Caribe 38 and
Rapazes da Banda, the latter one being a talk show. In 1987 he founded the influential
soul band
Skowa e a Máfia, which released two albums before disbanding in 1991 and reuniting in 2006. Skowa also took part in the 1989 tribute album to
Arnaldo Baptista Sanguinho Novo... Arnaldo Baptista Revisitado, in which he covered the song "É Fácil". As of 2003 Skowa was part of the
samba rock trio
Trio Mocotó, replacing founding member Fritz Escovão. He died following a cardiac arrest on June 13, 2024, at the age of 68. ==References==