Biography
Brazilian composer and arranger Arthur Verocai was born in Rio de Janeiro in 1945. Embracing contemporary sounds emerging from both sides of the equator, he honed a sweeping orchestral psych-funk style.
Collaborating with artists such as Paulinho Tapajós, Elis Regina and Maria Creuza and arranging scores and sessions for Gal Costa, Marcos Valle, Quarteto em Cy and others. He also worked with Brazilian legends Tim Maia and Jorge Ben.
After producing a pair of LPs for singer Célia, and also Ivan Lins’ 1971 effort “Agora” , he signed to the Continental label to record a self-titled solo LP, a stunningly innovative effort that effectively bridges the divide between the Tropicalia of the late ’60s and the deep-groove funk of the decade to follow. Released in 1972, a period marked by the Brazilian military government’s opposition to creative expression, the album slipped into obscurity and Verocai turned to creating advertising music. The album remained relatively unknown for three decades but made a significant resurgence in the mid-2000’s due to hip-hop acts sampling various songs from the album and was subsequently re-released to substantial acclaim.
Verocai re-emerged in 2016 with a critically acclaimed new album “No Voo do Urubu” featuring artists such as Seu Jorge, Vinicius Cantuaria, Danilo Caymmi and others.
In 2021 he collaborated on new albums for Badbadnotgood, Hiatus Kaiyote, Judi Jackson and Marisa Monte and in 2022 he created the arrangement of Tyler, the Creator’s score for designer Virgil Abloh’s posthumous Louis Vuitton show at Paris Fashion Week.