José Carlos Capinam (born 19 December 1941 in Esplanada, Bahia, Brazil), better known as Capinam or Capinan, is a Brazilian lyricist and poet.[1] He was active in Brazil's tropicália movement in the 1960s, and he wrote lyrics for various tropicália musicians.[1]
At 19, Capinam moved to Salvador, Bahia and attended the Federal University of Bahia where he studied law.[1] At university, he was a member of the União Nacional dos Estudantes (National Student Union), and he befriended musicians Gilberto Gil (who was studying business) and Caetano Veloso (who was studying philosophy).[1] The 1964 military coup d'état forced him to leave Salvador, and he relocated to São Paulo.[1] In São Paulo he worked on poems for his first book, Inquisitórial.[1] Eventually he returned to Salvador, this time to study medicine.[1]
In 2000, he composed the opera Rei Brasil 500 Anos with Fernando Cerqueira and Paul Gold, to celebrate the 500th anniversary of Brazil's discovery.[1]
He has co-written songs with Gilberto Gil, Caetano Veloso, and others: