Luiz Gonzaga

Who was Luiz Gonzaga?

Luiz Gonzaga do Nascimento, Sr., "The King of Baião" or "Gonzagão" was a Brazilian singer, songwriter, musician and poet and one of most influential figures of Brazilian popular music in the twentieth century. He has been credited for having presented the rich universe of Northeastern musical genres to all of Brazil, having created the musical genre Baião and has been called a "revolutionary" by Antônio Carlos Jobim. According to Caetano Veloso, he was the first significant cultural event with mass appeal in Brazil. Luiz Gonzaga received the Shell prize for Brazilian Popular Music in 1984 and was only the fourth artist to receive this prize after Pixinguinha, Antônio Carlos Jobim and Dorival Caymmi.

Gonzaga's son, Luiz Gonzaga do Nascimento Jr, known as Gonzaguinha, was also a noted Brazilian singer and composer. He was also a famous Brazilian freemason that composed Acacia Amarela. The Luiz Gonzaga Dam was named in his honor.