Introduction: Revisiting culture and power in Brazil

In the late 1970s and early 80s, as the grip of the Brazilian military dictatorship loosened slightly and civil society transitioned into a more favorable position, artists were at the forefront of defining a new society. Musical artists Rita Lee and Roberto de Carvalho asked foreigners to rethink their homeland paradise in the first quote, taken from their 1982 recording. On the other hand, fellow musical artists Aldir Blanc and Maurício Tapajós saw the essence of the country as a “quarrel”, an existential conflict over the debt due to Brazil’s indigenous roots and insistent presence. Two contrasting perspectives expressed through music with one underlying commonality. Brazil is a product of the encounter, one enmeshed in complex and violent hierarchies.