Member Spotlight

AFM Local 47 member Paulinho Da Costa made history in May as the first Brazilian-born entertainer to earn a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. The achievement is in recognition for a life spent recording on some of the most recognizable and best-selling albums and soundtracks of all time.  His mastery of over 200 percussion instruments and infectious rhythms can be heard on hundreds of works spanning five decades.

“I was very, very humble and very thankful to be able to receive it,” Paulinho says of his star. “And I am very thankful to my country, Brazil. I never forget my roots.”

Paulinho’s talent and humility have made him a go-to percussionist for many of the biggest names in the music industry. He has recorded on a bewildering number of landmark albums such as Michael Jackson’s Thriller, Madonna’s True Blue, and Celine Dion’s Let’s Talk About Love. His playing can be found on the songs “We Are the World” (USA for Africa), “That’s What Friends Are For” (Dionne Warwick & Friends), and “I Will Survive” (Gloria Gaynor).

These recordings are just a small sample of Paulinho’s music. His work has appeared on more than 2,500 albums and 6,000 songs. He has collaborated with a virtually endless number of musicians and producers, including Quincy Jones, Earth Wind & Fire, Madonna, Miles Davis, Dizzy Gillespie, Lionel Richie, Kenny Loggins, Whitney Houston, Diana Ross, Belinda Carlisle, and the Red Hot Chili Peppers.

In addition, he has done extensive work for film including Dirty Dancing, Footloose, and Saturday Night Fever.

And this year he was featured in the Netflix Brazil documentary, The Groove Under the Groove: The Sounds of Paulinho Da Costa.

Born in Rio de Janeiro in 1948, Paulinho grew up surrounded by the pulse of Brazil’s iconic, percussion-heavy music known for its rhythmically intricate, high-energy music.

“I started playing at like five six years old,” Paulinho remembers. “I was playing on the tables of my house and the walls. Everything comes from within me. I had no formal training. I just practiced myself and then learned a lot from listening. Brazilian music has so many different rhythms that a person can learn, including the samba of course.”

Paulinho soon began playing in samba parades, rising to local prominence for his talent. When he became a teenager, he began touring with various samba groups and orchestras all over including Europe and the Middle East.

With his success in Brazil and touring, Paulinho found the opportunity to grow his career further by moving to the US.

“When I started getting well-known in Brazil, a lot of international people would come and see me perform,” Paulinho says. “One of the most successful musicians from Brazil, Sergio Mendes, invited me to work on his projects in the US.

I have to say that music community and audiences in the United States were very accepting of me and received me with open arms. Not a lot of people are as lucky as I am.”

Paulinho built his music reputation in LA through hard work and respect for the music regardless of the style. His talent for playing a wide range of styles from R&B to Latin to pop to jazz quickly led him to become one of the most sought-after percussionists in LA. Paulinho soon found himself working greats like Quincy Jones, Earth Wind & Fire, Donna Summer, Dizzy Gillespie, and Michael Jackson.

AFM Local 47, which Paulinho joined shortly after arriving in LA, was by his side.

“As a working musician, I value the protection that comes with belonging to a union,” Paulinho says of his AFM membership. “I always think that joining the union was one of the best things that I did for my career. For example, much of the paperwork and details on the business side are handled by the union while I get to focus on my music. I will always defend the union because of the support that it provides. The union contracts gave me protection for the future, which for me is now.”

For someone like Paulinho who worked on many sessions and whose name appears on thousands of recordings, the value of a union contract is immense.

“I have always trusted the union,” he says. “The union was there providing the information that I needed if there was any confusion by the record companies or anyone else as credits were concerned. It made my life and career much easier.

From samba drumming as a teenager in Rio de Janeiro to one of the most recorded percussionists ever in the US, Paulinho’s music career continues to be the journey of a lifetime. Heralded as “one of the most talented percussionists of our time” by Downbeat magazine, Paulinho has inspired countless musicians in Brazil, the US, and the world and deserves all the accolades that he has received for his contributions and the impact that he has made on music.