Artists Worth Checking Out: Caro Pierotto

Cover image courtesy of grandvision.org

Born in the southern end of Brazil to an Italian family that was in the shoemaking business. For the unitiated, it requires very intense work–from using sewing machines, cutting machines, skiving machines, lasting machines, and finishing machines (not to mention various types of glue to make the soles firm.)

She grew up immersed in the family business, with her father owning a manufacturer of all things shoe soles. Get this, even the whole town was involved. Similar to those who spend most, if not all their working hours in working their craft does not lead to much in terms of having a social life.

Eventually, she grew tired of the business and decided to break out on her own. In a 2018 interview with Voyage LA, she thought that there were bigger things in life that would be awaiting her, even though she was happily married and carried a steady paycheck.

“I basically did not know who I was without that mask I had been putting on for so long. All I know I couldn’t keep going on with that reality.

So I gathered the courage to quit my job, I sold everything I had and left that stage. I wasn’t going to play that role anymore. I needed a fresh start. I needed a clean slate. So I moved to LA, which was where I had gone to school, and I took the chance to write my own story.”

That led to a 4 credit course on being a member of a local choir. She was good at it, but needed more. Learning about music theory and getting along with other similar minded people brought her to realize a newer chapter in her life, a longing to stick it out when times are rough.

Even when that university cut the funds for the choir was crushing. The stress was unbearable, so she decided to leave her friends and family and moved to Los Angeles hoping to make it on her own.

She then mentions in the same interview how difficult that path was to achieving her true dreams in becoming a full-time singer:

“After a couple of weeks of hiatus, I started to miss the choir. I missed having that time for myself. It was then that I realized that, whenever I was singing, I didn’t feel like anything was missing, I felt whole. And then I thought, maybe that’s what I’m supposed to be doing. I was only used to sing in the choir, I had never sung publicly by myself. But again, this was a moment of reinventing myself, so it really didn’t matter what I had done or had not done before. What mattered was what I was gonna do, from then on, so I went for it.”

Whatever Caro decided to do, that difficult time has shaped her to be more confident and believing in herself that great things can happen if you put in the time and the effort, no matter what job or pursuit you are trying to achieve.

And how did she latch on to finding some albums beyond the classics? It wasn’t with eBay or Amazon.

Not even one of the great online sites with Connect Brazil.

Of all places, it was Craigslist was her first true discovery.

She then hooked up with Antonio Cruz and a few other similar minded people. He worked for a bank, so it wasn’t much of an issue regarding financing. All Caro had to do was come up with songs, for fun. Once they recruited a drummer and a bassist, gigs at House of Blues, The Mint, the upstairs room at The Roxy followed.

It all led to her first album in 2013 under the band named Marbella, titled Volta ao Mundo. Cruz then departed a few years to finish his Master’s degree and then she met Grecco Buratto, another Latin Grammy nominated producer, that encouraged her to start writing by herself. She is embracing doing live music, but her main emphasis is adding Brazilian rhythms to cover songs along with originals that became her signature talent.

She produced her first album in 2020 during the pandemic Em Portugues.

Her latest album for this month’s review Sambalismo (briefly translated to sambalism) that was released on May 26, 2023 is a refreshing listen. Similar to many albums I have profiled in this blog before, it provides excellent background listening at a party, if you are shopping at a farmer’s market in the warmer weather months, or feel like taking off your shoes/heels after a hard day at work.

All of her songs are in Portuguese, and there are plenty of fun songs to sink your teeth into. I like Track 2 “Mal Acostumado”, and especially Track 4 “Nesse Jogo.”

In an interview with Scott Adams of connectbrazil.com, there are some unique stories behind the songs:

“The common thread of the album are the rhythms derived from the Samba root.”

“‘Mal Acostumado’ came as a little song I’d sing to my beloved dog, Max,” she explained. He passed away in 2020 after 13 years of a long, great life. I don’t have kids, so Max was well-loved. That is where “mal acostumado” – spoiled – comes from! I used to sing just the first part of the song to him all the time! When it came time to choose the songs for Sambalismo, we thought it would be a great idea to include his song as an homage. Then we dressed it in the Samba beat. That’s a great way to remember Max.”

What a nice tribute who really got into the music for her four-legged friend.

Sadly, her dad died in 2021 due to COVID. But she has gained a deeper appreciation, because he led the effort to bring her to the United States, similar to many other countless artists before and certainly after her.

Another song that is poignant in nature, similar to what I was going through in 2010 with Patricia Talem penning a song on her album “Olhos” to my late grandmother is a nice tribute to her father:

“‘Sei La’ is a realization of how good it is to be able to remember all the moments we had together. And of how once one is gone, the love we felt for each other remains. All the judgments just disappear. So, ‘Sei La’ is a celebration of that too.”

Another one of life’s lessons is that we need to treasure those that are closest to us, and appreciate the little things in life.

Because we all know precious and fragile life can be.

Mike Greenberg of ESPN Radio in 2010 mentioned in a 4 CD set with fellow Radio Hall of Famer Mike Golic, Sr. on “Rules and Sports And Life” that life has a series of commas.

Think of it as links on a chain. Every major life moment, you add a comma–like when you graduate, get that promotion at your job, get married, have kids, achieve something noteworthy in your community, etc.

But the period is what we hope not to do until we get beyond retirement age. That is the hope of many of us, myself included.

Without digging too deep into my past.

Sports Editor senior year in high school, three year Sports Editor for campus newspaper in college, 18 months as assistant producer for local radio station covering about 2 dozen high school football and men’s basketball games, self-employed tutor, phone representative specializing in labor law books and monthly newsletters, working for myself, doing blogs in Brazilian jazz and men’s basketball, meeting lots of great friends online, hoping to find a woman that I can call my own…

…To Be Continued next month with another cool blog.

Thanks again for reading, as we are 125 days before the first NFL football game takes place on Brazilian soil with an NFC matchup featuring two traditional powers with Green Bay as the visitors taking on the Philadelphia Eagles–who are giving up a home game at Lincoln Financial Field and their crazy fanbase to play the first football game on the South American continent. The simple reason why, this is all because of the NFL hoping to become a true global power (but I am sure a lot of futbol/soccer fans will say otherwise.)

See you in May.