Chachi Carvalho

Published by caboverde on 10/05/202610/05/2026

Charles Alberto Carvalho

Pawtucket, Rhode Island, USA, 1977

Singer, composer, producer

The son on Cabo Verdean immigrants to the United States and nephew of Jack Santos, drummer of the group Tropical Power, Chachi Carvalho grew up surrounded by music in his family. At the age of 14 anos he starts composing, focusing on hip-hop. At 19 he made his first recording in a radio station’s studio.

Chachi blends rap with the sounds of his family heritage – morna, koladera, and funaná – and has recorded with several artists who, like him, have experienced life in the Cabo Verdean diaspora, including Lisa Lopez, Nelson Freitas, and Grace Évora, among others.

In the United States, he has opened concerts for major rap artists and appeared on tv programs that have helped raise his profile. For example, he won twice the nationally recognized Wild Out Wednesday competition on Black Entertainment Television (BET). The Vibe magazine, in its December 2007 issue, included him in a list of the best MCs in the United States, selecting one from each state. Chachi was chosen to represent Rohde Island. In Cabo Verde, the 2014 CVMA Awards honored him with the best hip-hop award for his remix of Grace Évora’s song “Sabim”.

Chachi Carvalho among students. Photo: Steve Szydlowski (reproduced from The Providence Journal)

Chachi Carvalho has also worked in education. He helped create an academic support program for older students who were short on credits and was the coordinator of the School Culture and Community Engagement at Charles E. Shea High School in Pawtucket, the school from which he graduated in 1995. “It’s good to give back to this school community”, he told Cabo Verde & a Música – Virtual Museum. In addition, he coaches soccer, track and field, and unified basketball, and several years ago he built a recording studio at the school.

Chachi Carvalho is co-owner of Beatbox Studio in Pawtucket, where artistic development programs and internship opportunities are offered to young people. He also helps artists from all genres bring their ideas to life, he says. He founded and serves as the artistic director of the annual Culture Shock music festival, also in Pawtucket.