Leo Santana (singer)

2001–13: Parangolé

Santana began his career under the artistic name Leo Silva, and went on to play percussion for Som Bahia. His first instrument while with the group was an old cavaquinho given to him by his mother, and afterwards began to play the pandeiro in a samba band in his community called Simplicidade Maior. However, due to him wanting to follow a career as a vocalist, he decided to leave the band. He afterwards joined the band Zairê, which later came to be called Garotos de Programa.^[6] Soon afterwards, Santana was invited to join the band Pegadha de Guettho, with which he was a member of for a year. He went on to join with his friends Apert Play, all of them without great success.^[7] However, with this last band, his friend Jean Nanico, a member of Parangolé, which had recently fired their main vocalist Bambam, decided to show a demo CD to the bands producer, and Santana was invited to become part of the group.^[8]

Now going as Leo Santana, the singer suffered prejudice, as with the constant change in band vocalists, they did not believe that he would remain with the band for that long.^[9] However, after his arrival, the band changed their style and their shows would go on to have a diversified lineup with the structure of the last generation. They had their first success at the time with their song "Sou Favela". In 2009, Leo wrote together with lNenel, the founder of Parangolé, the song "Rebolation", their contribution to 2010's Carnaval celebrations.^[10][11] The song became a summer hit, and with it the group went on to have international success, beating records at the charts inAngola and Portugal.^[12] With this feat, Leo and the band earned a Guinness Book record for having the most played song in the world in 2010.^[13] Along with being a commercial success, it was also a critical success, receiving the Troféu Dodô e Osmar in the Best Song category.^[14] In December 2013, after five years as the band's vocalist, Santana announced that, in March 2014, he would leave the band, as he felt that his name recognition was strong enough to start a solo career.^[15][16][17]

2014–present: Solo career

After Carnaval, he started on his solo career with a launch show for his tour, titled #LSTour2014, on 28 March with a crowd of 60,000 people in Cajazeiras.^[18][19] In April, he released his first solo song released titled "Fenômeno".^[20] The song, which has influences from Angolan swing, was composed by himself and Rodriguinho, and which includes a guest appearance from Angolan singer Anselmo Ralph.^[21] On 11 April, he released his first promotional solo CD, Uma Nova História, with many tracks going on to major success in the following years.^[22] On 9 December 2015, he released his first DVD, titled #Deboche, which included singles such as: "Abana", "Se Eu Te Trair a Culpa É Sua", and "Deboche".^[23] This would be followed up by his second studio album, Super Ensaio, on 27 January 2016, with the participation of singers such as Wesley Safadão and Saulo Fernandes.^[24] On 25 November, he would release his first DVD, #Bailedasantinha, which included performances by Marília Mendonça and included singles such as "Santinha", "Vidro Fumê", and "Um Tal de Toma".^[25][26]

On 25 May 2018, Santana released his first EP, Inovando, which included as participants Maiara & Maraisa and had "10 Beijos de Ruas" and "Uma Lá, Duas Cá" as singles.^[27][28][29] This would be followed by the 8 November 2018 release of his album No Seu Paredão.^[30] On 30 November 2018, he would release his second DVD, Ao Vivo em Goiânia, with unreleased songs and some of his prior successes.^[31][32] In May, he released the single "Pretinho Tipo A", with the participation of Thiaguinho.^[33] 8 June 2019 saw the release of the EP O De Sempre No Mesmo Padrão, which had the lone single "Olha Como Está a Minha Mesa".^[34][35] In November, he launched the first part of his DVD Levada do Gigante, including the single "Contatinho", in a partnership with Anitta.^[36][37]

Controversies

In April 2020, Santana was criticized on social media, accused of making donations to gain visibility. This occurred after a fundraising livestream that he hosted during the course of the COVID-19 pandemic, which donated ten basic packages to every 10,000 people that watched the show. In response to the criticisms, Santana said that it was wrongly interpreted and that he would make the donations regardless of the amount of people. He also said that "no human being has an obligation to help anyone".^[46]

Studio albums

• Uma Nova História (2014)
• Super Ensaio (2016)

Live albums

• #Deboche (2015)
• #Bailedasantinha (2016)
• No Seu Paredão (2018)
• Ao Vivo em Goiânia (2018)
• Levada do Gigante (2019)