[5] Roberto Carlos Braga was born in Cachoeiro de Itapemirim, at the southern part of the Brazilian state of Espírito Santo.

At age six, during the feast of St Peter, the patron saint of Cachoeiro do Itapemirim, Roberto Carlos was hit by a steam locomotive and had to have his right leg amputated just below his knee.

At 9 years old, he performed for the first time at a children's show broadcast by Rádio Cachoeiro (he sang a bolero called "Mal Amor").

Years later, he recalled the occasion for the book Roberto Carlos Up Close, by Paulo Cesar de Araujo: "I was very nervous, yet very happy to be able to sing on the radio.

Influenced by his idol Elvis Presley and the 1950s rock revolution, he rose to stardom as the main figure of the 1950s and 1960s musical movement known as Jovem Guarda (or Young Guard), which was a rip off from another TV Show.

When his first single and first LP (Louco por você, 1961) were commercial failures, Roberto Carlos was in danger of being fired from CBS in favor of Sérgio Murilo [pt], the first successful rock singer in Brazil.

Nevertheless, Murilo was fired instead for clashing with musical director Evandro Ribeiro over repertoire and payment, opening up space for Roberto Carlos.

Jovem Guarda Roberto Carlos insisted on investing time in young music, rock, and in 1962 released Splish Splash.

The following year the singer was back on the charts with the album É Proibido Fumar, in which, besides the title track, the highlight was the song "O Calhambeque".

[7] Also in 1965, the albums Roberto Carlos Canta Para A Juventude – with hits "A Estoria do Homem Mau (Old Man Moses)," "Os Sete Cabeludos", "Eu Sou Fã Do Monoquini" and "Eu Não Quero Ver Você Triste" partnerships with Erasmo Carlos –and Jovem Guarda with the hits "Quero Que Vá Tudo Pro Inferno", "Lobo Mau", "O Feio" (Getúlio Cortes) and "Não É Papo Pra Mim" were released.

The production was to present a pot-pourri of Erasmo's most famous compositions, including "Parei na Contramão" and "Quero Que Vá Tudo Pro Inferno".

and "Namoradinha de Um Amigo Meu" were released on the LP "Roberto Carlos" that year (the album still had the hits "Eu Te Darei O Céu", "Esqueça", "Negro Gato" (Getúlio Cortes) and "Nossa Canção" (Luiz Ayrão).

Roberto wrote his own hits like "Como É Grande Meu Amor Por Você", "Corro Demais", "Quando" and "De vale tudo isso?

[12] The 1970 decade was marked by the end of the Jovem Guarda and the bolstering the prestige of Roberto Carlos as a romantic artist in Brazil and abroad (USA, Europe and Latin America).

Later that year, he launched his annual album, which brought such hits as "Ana", "Veste A Roupa Meu Bem" and "Jesus Cristo", a song which also marked his approach to religion.

The following year, Roberto Carlos a 300 km Por Hora, the last movie starring the singer, was released also a great national success.

The 1972 album resonated with "A Montanha", "Como Vai Você", and "Quando As Crianças Saírem de Férias" in addition to being the first LP to reach the milestone of one million copies sold, and in 1973, with "Rotina" and "Proposta".

In addition to albums that sold more than 1 million copies a year, Roberto Carlos's shows were also popular; in 1978, the singer toured the country for six months, always with packed houses.

[15] After his first decade of success, Roberto Carlos moved towards a more serious, adult-oriented approach to singing, whilst consistently continuing to score hits in his country and throughout Latin America, as well as in Portugal, Spain and Italy.

He went on to win the Globo de Cristal trophy[citation needed], awarded by CBS to Brazilian artists who sell more than five million copies outside Brazil.

In 1985 he participated in the campaign to help children in Latin America, in the song Cantarê, cantarás, he performed with Julio Iglesias, Gloria Estefan, Jose Feliciano, Plácido Domingo, Cheech Marin and Menudo, among others.

His yearly record, that almost was not released, had only four new songs, including "O Baile da Fazenda", a partnership with Erasmo Carlos and was attended special Dominguinhos.

In 2001, he broke his contract with Sony (formerly CBS), the recording company through which he had released a vast majority of his albums, due to reasons connected to his wife's death.

[citation needed] However, in a 2008 interview, Roberto Carlos stated that he had no intention of retiring from the music industry anytime soon and released an album later that year.

In addition to special appearances by singers Gilberto Gil, Zeca Pagodinho, and journalists Nelson Motta and Leda Nagle and established actors and actresses, the show's repertoire included the entirety of "É Preciso Saber Viver", a song whose verse "se o bem e o mal existem" (If there are good and evil) the singer had long refused to sing long before, due to OCD (Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder).

In April, the show "They sing Roberto – DIVAS", at the Municipal Theater of São Paulo, was attended by the great singers of national music, such Adriana Calcanhotto, Alcione, Ana Carolina, Claudia Leitte, Daniela Mercury, Fafa de Belém, Fernanda Abreu, Ivete Sangalo, Luiza Possi, Marina Lima, Mart'nália, Nana Caymmi, Paula Toller, Rosemary [pt], Sandy, Wanderlea and Zizi Possi.

Through the 2010s, Roberto Carlos continued his yearly cruise ship concert project, "Emoções em Alto Mar" (Emotions in the High Seas).

[23] Roberto Carlos's 50th career anniversary was also celebrated with a major exhibition in the Lucas Nogueira Garcez Pavilion, located in Ibirapuera Park, São Paulo.

[24] The young poet and composer Gabriel Ataide Lima, says in its influences that Roberto Carlos was one of the largest, and thanks to his music, he realized that "poetry has to be sweet, pure, direct, and lively.