Matheus Brasileiro Aguiar, (born 11 October 1993), better known by his stage name Matuê is a Brazilian rapper, singer, composer and guitarist. He is best known for his singles "Anos Luz", released in 2017, his 2020 album "Máquina do Tempo", and the 2023 hit "Conexões de Máfia", a collaboration with Rich the Kid. He is considered one of the biggest names in the Brazilian trap scene.[1][2]
Biography
Matuê was born in Fortaleza, the capital of Ceará state. At 8 years old, his family moved to the United States, in particular to Oakland, California. He lived there until he was 11, returning to Brazil in 2004. As a result of him living in the United States, he is fluent in English.[3][4][5] Studying in public schools, he began to have contact with and take interest in the world of rap, but began to fall on hard times during his adolescence after the death of his grandmother, who had always supported him.[6] He began to work at a clothing shop in a mall. After a while, taking advantage of his fluency in English, he became an English tutor. He began to save money from his English tutoring and invest it into his musical career.[5]
"It was a very big privilege. It opened many doors for me and gave me the possibility to take initiative in my musical path. The other point is that I saw the importance of rap there in the USA and I saw that I could do this here."
Together with Clara Mendes and Lucas Degas, Matuê founded the recording and production studio 30PRAUM in 2014.[7]
On 27 September 2021 Matuê revealed that he became a father during the COVID-19 pandemic without giving much detail.[8]
Musical career
Further information on the 2016 music production company founded by Matuê: 30PRAUM
Matuê began his musical career in 2015, releasing his first reggae mixtape, titled Reggae, produced by 30PRAUM. However, the mixtape was not successful and he decided to move into the trap genre.[9] In 2016, he became known nationally for his first trap recording, "RBN", with a music video with what was considered a unique aesthetic and much musical originality. His vocal harmony came to be his defining characteristic.[10] He has cited Anitta as an influence.[11]
Since then, he has been the creative director of 30PRAUM and has innovated with each new release, introducing new sounds and productions. His work always presents a variety of flows and harmonies, making each song different without losing their originality and quality. Matuê has 7.9 million monthly listeners on Spotify, with his album Máquina do Tempo having more than 110 million views on YouTube in a week. His main hit of 2019, "Kenny G", has more than 245 million views.[12][13]
On 10 September 2020, Matuê launched his first album, Máquina do Tempo, with six tracks for a total album time of 19:32.[14] He impressed many with his works on the titular song "Máquina do Tempo",[15] which was the most anticipated by fans. A bonus track, "A+", was included with the album. The launch of Máquina do Tempo broke streaming records on Spotify Brasil, totaling 4.6 million replays on the platform in the first 24 hours, and became the first rap album with five songs with more than 100 million plays.[16][17][18]
