Nei Braz Lopes is a singer, composer, lawyer, writer and historian, working primarily with the Brazilian genre of samba

Samba

Samba is a Brazilian dance and musical genre originating in Bahia and with its roots in Brazil and Africa via the West African slave trade and African religious traditions. It is recognized around the world as a symbol of Brazil and the Brazilian Carnival...

 and African-Brazilian studies.

Biography

Born in Irajá

Irajá

Irajá is a neighborhood of middle class and lower middle of the suburb of Rio de Janeiro. The neighborhood is cut in Brazil Avenue. Today it is a neighborhood of medium size, with a little more than 100,000 inhabitants.-History:...

 in Rio de Janeiro (a traditional samba neighborhood which also brought us Zeca Pagodinho

Zeca Pagodinho

Zeca Pagodinho is a Brazilian singer/songwriter working in the genres of samba and pagode.-Biography:...

, among others), Nei Lopes graduated as an attorney at law from the University of Brazil, but at the start of the 70's abandoned his recently begun legal career to dedicate himself to music and literature. A professional composer since 1972, Nei Lopes became prominent especially through his partnership with Wilson Moreira

Wilson Moreira

Wilson Moreira is a Brazilian sambista, singer/songwriter, especially known for his exquisite and intricate melody lines.-Biography:Wilson Moreira was born in the neighborhood of Realengo, in Rio de Janeiro...

 and by their work, recorded by almost all interpreters of traditional samba. In the 80's, Nei, already acclaimed, was one of the supporters of the Pagode

Pagode

Pagode is a Brazilian style of music which originated in Salvador, Bahia , and quickly went down to Rio de Janeiro region, as a subgenre of Samba. Pagode originally meant a celebration with lots of food, music, dance and party...

 movement, which took samba back to the airwaves after an eclipse period.

In the 90's, Nei started partnerships with people identified with the MPB

Música Popular Brasileira

Música Popular Brasileira or MPB designates a trend in post-Bossa Nova urban popular music. It is not a discrete genre but rather a constellation that combines original songwriting and updated versions of traditional Brazilian urban music styles like samba and samba-canção with contemporary...

 label, such as composer Guinga

Guinga

Guinga is a Brazilian guitarist and composer born in Madureira, a working-class suburb of Rio de Janeiro...

 and Zé Renato

Zé Renato

Zé Renato is a Brazilian singer, songwriter, and guitarist....

. He also has a song with Chico Buarque

Chico Buarque

Francisco Buarque de Hollanda , popularly known as Chico Buarque , is a singer, guitarist, composer, dramatist, writer and poet...

.

Nei is the author of a vast book opus concerning Afro-Brazilian thematics, and samba

Samba

Samba is a Brazilian dance and musical genre originating in Bahia and with its roots in Brazil and Africa via the West African slave trade and African religious traditions. It is recognized around the world as a symbol of Brazil and the Brazilian Carnival...

thematics in particular. He has been working, since 1995, in the "Brazilian Encyclopedia of the African Diaspora", his most ambitious work.

Discography

With Wilson Moreira:

• 1980 - A Arte Negra de Wilson Moreira & Nei Lopes - EMI
• 1985 - O Partido Muito Alto de Wilson Moreira & Nei Lopes - EMI

(These were later released as a single CD)


Individually:

• 1983 - Negro Mesmo - Lira-Continental
• 1996 - Canto Banto - Saci
• 1999 - Sincopando o Breque - CPC-Umes
• 2000 - De Letra & Música - Velas
• 2005 - Partido ao Cubo - Fina Flor

Literature

• 1981 - O Samba na Realidade
• 1988 - Bantos, Malês e Identidade Negra
• 1992 - O Negro no Rio de Janeiro e sua Tradição Musical
• 1999 - 171 - Lapa-Irajá - Casos e Enredos do Samba - Folha Seca
• 2000 - Zé Keti, O Samba sem Senhor
• 2000 - Logunedé, Santo Menino que Velho Respeita
• 2005 - Partido Alto: Samba de Bamba - Pallas
• 2009 - Chutando o balde

• 1996 - Dicionário Banto do Brasil (Brazilian Banto Dictionary)