Ney de Souza Pereira (born 1 August 1941), known professionally as Ney Matogrosso (), is a Brazilian singer who is distinguished for his uncommon
countertenor
A countertenor (also contra tenor) is a type of classical male singing voice whose vocal range is equivalent to that of the female contralto or mezzo-soprano voice types, generally extending from around G3 to D5 or E5, although a sopranist (a s ...
voice. He was ranked by ''
Rolling Stone
''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...
'' as the third greatest Latin American singer of all time.
Biography
Matogrosso enlisted in the
Brazilian Air Force
"Wings that protect the country"
, colours =
, colours_label =
, march = Hino dos Aviadores
, mascot =
, anniversaries = 22 May (anniver ...
at the age of 17, being later transferred to
Brasília
Brasília (; ) is the federal capital of Brazil and seat of government of the Federal District. The city is located at the top of the Brazilian highlands in the country's Central-West region. It was founded by President Juscelino Kubitsche ...
. Within a few years, Matogrosso started singing in a vocal quartet, performing at college festivals throughout Brazil. With the hope of becoming a stage actor, Ney moved to
Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a b ...
in 1966, where he lived as a hippie and made ends meet by selling arts and crafts. In 1971, he moved to
São Paulo
São Paulo (, ; Portuguese for 'Saint Paul') is the most populous city in Brazil, and is the capital of the state of São Paulo, the most populous and wealthiest Brazilian state, located in the country's Southeast Region. Listed by the GaWC a ...
, adopting the artistic name Ney Matogrosso, and joined the
glam rock
Glam rock is a style of rock music that developed in the United Kingdom in the early 1970s and was performed by musicians who wore outrageous costumes, makeup, and hairstyles, particularly platform shoes and glitter. Glam artists drew on diver ...
group
Secos & Molhados, which in less than 18 months became a phenomenon, selling 1 million records. Endowed with a unique
counter-tenor
A countertenor (also contra tenor) is a type of classical male singing voice whose vocal range is equivalent to that of the female contralto or mezzo-soprano voice types, generally extending from around G3 to D5 or E5, although a sopranist (a sp ...
voice and a striking stage presence, Ney's career soared. Matogrosso was the singer and interpreter in the group Secos e Molhados. One of the most interesting moments in their music was "the video-clip Flores Astrais (1974), where Matogrosso plays the role of a hypersensual character on a space-like stage. Matogrosso turned his male physiognomy and his androgynous performance into a landmark of counterculture during the most intensively repressive years of military."
After the group Secos e Molhados split up, Ney pursued a successful solo career in Brazil and abroad, obtaining several Gold and Platinum records.
Famous for his outlandish costumes, make-up, daring movements and singular high-pitched voice, Ney has always been regarded as a controversial character.
According to the Brown University Center for Digital Scholarship, "Beyond Carnival: Male Homosexuality in Twentieth Century Brazil": "By late 1960s and early 1970s, international countercultural ideas held significant sway over Brazil's urban middle-class youth. Among the counterculture's many challenges to societal norms was the destabilization of sexual codes and gender norms. As traditional insistence of premarital virginity and normative heterosexuality became regarded as antiquated and repressive, Brazil's biggest stars projected unabashed sexuality and were rumored to have homosexual affairs. Singers such as
Caetano Veloso
Caetano Emanuel Viana Teles Veloso (; born 7 August 1942) is a Brazilian composer, singer, guitarist, writer, and political activist. Veloso first became known for his participation in the Brazilian musical movement Tropicalismo, which encomp ...
and Ney Matogrosso presented themselves as androgynous, gender-bending performers and raised important questions in society about gender roles and identities. Indeed, the overwhelming popularity of such performers reflected a growing societal acceptance of deviance from traditional Brazilian constructions gender and sexuality." Further down the page, the study states "Ney Matogrosso, on the other hand, was far less subtle in his subversion of traditional notions of gender and sexuality. Ney often sang entire songs in falsetto, used dramatic makeup and exotic costumes, and danced in a style that was as traditionally feminine as it was traditionally masculine. In 1978, Ney clarified his homosexuality in a magazine interview, and, in the face of widespread homophobia, he remained one of Brazil's most famous celebrities"
In the 1970s he released a series of essential albums, both for his career and Brazilian popular music. They are: "Pecado"(Sin), "Bandido", "Feitiço"(Spell) and "Seu Tipo"(Your type). In that period, Ney toured round United States, Argentina, Uruguay, Europe and Israel, performing hits like "América do Sul" (Paulo Machado), "Bandolero" (
Lucinha) and "Não Existe Pecado ao Sul do Equador" (
Chico Buarque
Francisco Buarque de Hollanda (born 19 June 1944), popularly known simply as Chico Buarque, is a Brazilian singer-songwriter, guitarist, composer, playwright, writer, and poet. He is best known for his music, which often includes social, economic, ...
/
Rui Guerra). In the 1980s, Ney recorded "Por Debaixo dos Panos" (
Ceceu), "Tanto Amar" (Chico Buarque), "Ando Meio Desligado" (
Mutantes
Os Mutantes (meaning '' the mutants''; ) are an influential Brazilian Rock music, rock band that were linked with the Tropicalismo, Tropicália movement, a dissident musical movement during the Brazilian dictatorship of the late 1960s. The band ...
), "Sangue Latino" (João Ricardo/ Paulo Mendonça) and "Vereda Tropical" (
Gonzalo Curiel).
Ney Matogrosso opened the show on the very first day of the first
Rock in Rio
''Rock in Rio'' is a recurring music festival originating in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It later branched into other locations such as Lisbon, Madrid and Las Vegas.
Nine incarnations of the festival have been held in Rio de Janeiro, in 1985, 1991, ...
Concert on 11 January 1985. He sang his hit song "América do Sul". This was very significant to the hundreds of thousands of attendees in that this concert series was a celebration of the downfall of the brutal dictatorship that had been in place since 1964. He symbolically held the jawbone of an ass during his iconic performance."Ney Matogrosso opened the evening with a general call: "God save the South America!". With his Indian-art deco look, wearing a G-string, a fancy headdress and a jawbone on his hand, Ney was the neanderthal man to a new era, at ease in such a huge stage"
In 1986, Matogrosso performed for the first time without wearing fancy costumes, adopting a low-key image. Since then, he has focused on his work as a singer, recording from the traditional repertoire of
MPB (Música popular brasileira – the so-called Brazilian pop music genre). Recordings in this genre first appeared on the album "O Pescador de Pérolas" (1986), which featured "O Mundo É um Moinho" (
Cartola
Angenor de Oliveira, known as Cartola (Portuguese for top hat), (; October 11, 1908 – November 30, 1980) was a Brazilian singer, composer and poet considered to be a major figure in the development of samba.
Cartola composed, alone or with p ...
), "Dora" (
Dorival Caymmi
Dorival Caymmi (; April 30, 1914 – August 16, 2008) was a Brazilian singer, songwriter, actor, and painter active for more than 70 years, beginning in 1933. He contributed to the birth of Brazil's bossa nova movement, and several of his samba ...
), "Da Cor do Pecado" (
Bororó) and "Aquarela do Brasil" (
Ary Barroso
Ary de Resende Barroso (1903–1964), better known as Ary Barroso, was a Brazilian composer, pianist, soccer commentator, and talent-show host on radio and TV. He was one of Brazil's most successful songwriters in the first half of the 20th centur ...
).
Ney toured with guitarist
Raphael Rabello
Rafael Baptista Rabello (October 31, 1962 – April 27, 1995) was a virtuoso Brazilian guitarist and composer. During the 1980s and 1990s, he was considered one of the best acoustic guitar players in the world and played with many famous artists, ...
, with whom he recorded the album "À Flor da Pele" in 1990. Then, he made two albums as a tribute to Brazilian performers/songwriters, like
Ângela Maria
Angela Maria (13 May 1929 – 29 September 2018), the stage name of Abelim Maria da Cunha, was a Brazilian singer and actress. She was elected "Queen of the Radio" in 1954 and was considered the most popular singer of that decade in Brazil.
Dis ...
("Estava Escrito", 1994) and
Chico Buarque
Francisco Buarque de Hollanda (born 19 June 1944), popularly known simply as Chico Buarque, is a Brazilian singer-songwriter, guitarist, composer, playwright, writer, and poet. He is best known for his music, which often includes social, economic, ...
("Um Brasileiro", 1996).
Ney Matogrosso was asked to perform at the
Montreux Jazz Festival
The Montreux Jazz Festival (formerly Festival de Jazz Montreux and Festival International de Jazz Montreux) is a music festival in Switzerland, held annually in early July in Montreux on the Lake Geneva shoreline. It is the second-largest annual ...
in
1983 and 1994. The band and set list for his 1983 performance at the Casino was as follows: Ney Matogrosso, 9 July 1983, Casino Montreux
Ney Matogrosso (voc), Ray Don (tp), Sergio Bore (perc), Pisca (g), Nono (tp), Jose Francisco De Lima (tb), Lino (s, fl), Otavio Bangla (s), Magrao (fl), Jacare (kbds), Paulinho Esteves (kbds), Pedrao (b), Sergio Della Monica (dr), Dom Chacal (perc)
1 Metamorfose Ambulante
2 Noticias Do Brasil
3 Uai Uai
4 Primeiro De Abril
5 Nao Faz Sentido
6 Deixar Voce
7 Tanto Amar
8 Instrumental
9 Andar Com Fe
10 Rosa De Hiroshima
11 Napoleao
12 Jonhy Pirou
13 Alegria Carnaval
14 Homen Con H
15 Folia No Matagal
Ney was featured on the cover of Rolling Stone Magazine Brazil in December 2013.
When interviewed for Sounds and Colors Magazine in 2014, he said "I think deep down people admire the ones that have the courage to speak the truth. I never hid, what you see is what you get. On the other hand: in the first interviews I gave, they used to ask me about sex and I used to talk clearly about sex. Than I would read the article and it was written: 'About love…' I used to think: 'But I didn't speak about love, I spoke about sex!' They didn't have the courage because of the censorship back then." The only bad experience he had, Matogrosso says, was at the beginning of his career. "With Secos & Molhados, once, one crowd cursed me. I struck a gorgeous pose, they carried on cursing me and I told them to fuck themselves. Then the other half of the crowd, who wasn't cursing, applauded me. At that moment I realised I couldn't be afraid. If I showed that I was scared, they would eat me alive", he says. "But in my private life, never. On the contrary: I walk alone in the streets and never hear a thing. They hug me, they tell me beautiful things. I only get good things."
At the 2014 at the Latin Grammy Awards the Latin Recording Academy honored him with the Lifetime Achievement Award. The Academy stated that "Ranked by Rolling Stone magazine as one of the three greatest Brazilian singers of all time, Ney Matogrosso has recorded nearly 50 albums over a career that spans more than four decades. Influenced by the glam-rock movement of the '70s, Matogrosso became a member of the group Secos & Molhados. With his uncommon countertenor voice, energetic stage performances and eccentric costumes, he and the group became an overnight sensation. However, the union was short-lived and Matogrosso embarked on a solo career, garnering extraordinary success with hit singles such as "Homem Com H" and "Bandido Corazón." Leaving his androgynous glam-rock persona behind, in 1986, Matogrosso began working with emerging composers Cazuza and Victor Ramil and revisited the traditional roots of Música Popular Brasileira. Forever regarded as challenging preconceptions and prejudices through his satiric and ironic performances, he has evolved into a very serious and well respected artist through his interpretations of classic standards. Matogrosso continues to tour and perform throughout Brazil and Europe."
He wrote his memoirs in a book entitled "Vira-Lata de Raca" which was published in 2018.
In 2018, The Brazilian Embassy's Casa do Brasil cultural center presented "Ney Matogrosso – A Primordial Revolutionary," an exhibition of paintings by Greek artist Alkistis Michaelidou inspired by the Brazilian singer. The singer is an icon of contemporary Brazilian culture, and the exhibit has been shown in Athens, Greece and elsewhere.
In 2019, at the age of 77, Ney Matogrosso began a concert tour entitled "Bloco Na Rua" (Block on the Street).
Setlist FM
/ref>
He kept the band from his "Atento De Sinais" tour. He continues to tour and record, his voice strong and form excellent.
Discography
Albums
* ''Água do Céu-Pássaro'', also known as ''Homem de Neanderthal'' (1975)
* ''Bandido'' (1976)
* ''Pecado'' (1977)
* ''Feitiço'' (1978)
* ''Seu Tipo'' (1979)
* ''Sujeito Estranho'' (1980)
* ''Ney Matogrosso'' (1981)
* ''Mato Grosso'' (1982)
* ''...Pois É'' (1983)
* ''Destino de Aventureiro'' (1984)
* ''Bugre'' (1986)
* ''Pescador de Pérolas'' (1987)
* ''Quem Não Vive Tem Medo da Morte (1988)
* ''Ney Matogrosso Ao Vivo'' (1989)
* ''À Flor da Pele'' (1990) – with Raphael Rabello
Rafael Baptista Rabello (October 31, 1962 – April 27, 1995) was a virtuoso Brazilian guitarist and composer. During the 1980s and 1990s, he was considered one of the best acoustic guitar players in the world and played with many famous artists, ...
* ''As Aparências Enganam'' (1993) – with Aquarela Carioca
* ''Estava Escrito'' (1994)
* ''Um Brasileiro'' (1996)
* ''O Cair da Tarde'' (1997)
* ''Olhos de Farol'' (1999)
* ''Vivo'' (2000)
* ''Batuque'' (2001)
* ''Ney Matogrosso Interpreta Cartola'' (2002)
* ''Ney Matogrosso Interpreta Cartola Ao Vivo'' (2003)
* ''Vagabundo'' (2004) – with Pedro Luís e a Parede
Pedro Luís e a Parede (lit. "Pedro Luis and the Wall") are a Brazilian musical group that mixes rock, samba, rap and funk. the group is composed by Pedro Luís (lead vocals and acoustic guitar), Mário Moura (bass guitar), Sidon Silva, C.A. Ferr ...
* ''Canto em Qualquer Canto '' (2005)
* ''Vagabundo ao vivo'' (2005) – with Pedro Luís e a Parede
Pedro Luís e a Parede (lit. "Pedro Luis and the Wall") are a Brazilian musical group that mixes rock, samba, rap and funk. the group is composed by Pedro Luís (lead vocals and acoustic guitar), Mário Moura (bass guitar), Sidon Silva, C.A. Ferr ...
* ''Inclassificáveis'' (2008)
* ''Beijo Bandido'' (2009)
* ''Beijo Bandido Ao Vivo'' (2011)
* ''Atento aos Sinais '' (2013)
Extras
* ''A Floresta do Amazonas – Villa-Lobos'' (1988)
* ''Brazil Night – Ao Vivo em Montreux'', Caetano Veloso
Caetano Emanuel Viana Teles Veloso (; born 7 August 1942) is a Brazilian composer, singer, guitarist, writer, and political activist. Veloso first became known for his participation in the Brazilian musical movement Tropicalismo, which encomp ...
, João Bosco
João Bosco de Freitas Mucci, known professionally as João Bosco () is a Brazilian singer-songwriter and guitarist. In the 1970s he established his reputation in ''música popular Brasileira'' (Portuguese: "Brazilian pop music") with lyricist ...
, Ney Matogrosso (1983) – Recording of performance at Montreux Jazz Festival
The Montreux Jazz Festival (formerly Festival de Jazz Montreux and Festival International de Jazz Montreux) is a music festival in Switzerland, held annually in early July in Montreux on the Lake Geneva shoreline. It is the second-largest annual ...
Compilations
* ''Vinte e Cinco'' (1996)
* ''Juntos'' – Ney Matogrosso e Secos & Molhados
Appearances
* '' Secos e Molhados'' (1973)
* ''Secos e Molhados'' (1974)
* ''Gravado ao Vivo no Maracanãzinho'' (1980)
Notes
References
External links
Lyrical Brazil
Discogs
* ttps://soundsandcolours.com/articles/brazil/the-courage-to-speak-the-truth-an-interview-with-ney-matogrosso-23024/ "The Courage to Speak the Truth", Article dated February 25, 2014
{{DEFAULTSORT:Matogrosso, Ney
1941 births
Living people
20th-century Brazilian male singers
20th-century Brazilian singers
LGBT singers from Brazil
Countertenors
People from Mato Grosso do Sul
Latin Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award winners
21st-century Brazilian male singers
21st-century Brazilian singers
LGBT people in Latin music
21st-century LGBT people
20th-century LGBT people
Bisexual men
Bisexual musicians