Leandro Roque de Oliveira (born August 17, 1985), better known by his stage nameEmicida, is a Brazilian rapper, singer, songwriter and MC.[1]
The rapper is known for his impromptu rhymes, that made him one of the most respected MCs in Brazil. Regarded as one of the biggest revelations of underground hip hop in his country, Emicida accumulates thousands of hits on every battle in his YouTube page and about 900 thousand views on his MySpace page.[2]
Leandro was born into a poor family. He composed rhymes and passed them to his friend to record and sell. His father died when Leandro was still a child, as told in the song "Ooorra ..." He is married to the presenter and podcaster of Um Milkshake Chamado Wanda - Marina Santa Helena.
The name Emicida is a portmanteau of the words Emcee and homicide. Because of his frequent victories in the battles of improvisation, his friends began to say that Leandro was a "killer", who kills his opponents through rhymes. Later, the rapper turned it into an acronym for『Enquanto Minha Imaginação Compuser Insanidades, Domino a Arte』(rough translation, As long as my imagination composes insanities, I dominate the art).[3]
Live performances are accompanied by the DJ instrumental in Nyack. The Emicida career began in the early 1990, where his parents organized black dances in the outskirts of São Paulo, and he began to use the equipment and write his first rhymes.[4]
Emicida is known for songs such as "Rua Augusta" and "Zica, Vai Lá". He composed tracks for the soundtrack of Rockstar Games' Max Payne 3.[5]
His style is influenced by many Brazilian rappers as well as US names including Mos Def, Wu-Tang Clan and The Fugees [6]
His album AmarElo was considered one of the 25 best Brazilian albums of the second half of 2019 by the São Paulo Association of Art Critics.[7]
His song "Levanta e Anda", featuring Rael, was featured in the FIFA 15 soundtrack, while "Bonjour", featuring Féfé was on the soundtrack of NBA 2K16.
The album AmarElo won a 2020 Latin Grammy Award for Best Portuguese Language Rock or Alternative Album.
