A telenovela e as músicas de Caetano Veloso e de Chico Buarque

Brazilian soap operas as they are today emerged in the late 1960s and early 1970s, in an attempt to adapt the Latin American soap opera model to the specific reality of Brazil. In this process, the “Globo standard” for soap operas was coined. With huge ratings and covering the entire extension of a continent-sized country that is Brazil, all regions, all social classes the Brazilian soap opera helps to build a national identity that is based on social inclusion through consumption. Currently, musicians who appear on the soundtracks of soap operas have their work immensely projected due to this reach. In the beginning of the Brazilian soap opera, however, the opposite happened: renowned artists, such as Caetano Veloso and Chico Buarque, were invited to participate in the soundtrack of Véu de Noiva (1969) to boost the then-incipient Brazilian soap opera. They only participated as composers, however, their names gave prestige to the soap opera. The rise of the soap opera took place during the leaden years of the military dictatorship, which applied censorship to soap operas. The voices of Caetano Veloso and Chico Buarque will only be heard in the soundtracks of the late 1970s, in the context of the Amnesty Law. Since then, both have appeared recurrently on soundtracks, with great emphasis on Caetano, whose work has been featured in soap operas for 46 years and has perpetuating him as a popular artist. Currently, commercial pressures and media changes put pressure on Brazilian soap operas, however, their pattern seems to remain as it was in the beginning.