Rick Sollo

Geraldo Antonio de Carvalho, known across Brazil as Rick Sollo or simply Rick, was a singer, songwriter and producer who helped define a generation of sertanejo music. Born on 5 December 1966 in Monte do Carmo, Tocantins, he moved with his family to the Federal District as a child and grew up hearing his father, Vitor Antonio, sing and compose for Folia de Reis celebrations. His mother was Aldenora Cirilo de Carvalho. By the age of ten he was already performing. His first duo was with his sister Dalva under the name Sereno and Serenata, a partnership cut short when their father forbade Dalva from singing in night venues.

Rick kept searching for a stage partner. One early act, Rick and Ray, borrowed stage names inspired by the Puerto Rican boy band Menudo. In 1986, in Brasilia, he joined Ivair dos Reis Goncalves, known as Renner, and the two began a long apprenticeship in nightclubs. They spent about five years playing only live dates before an independent CD in 1991 and an official Chantecler debut in 1992. The breakthrough arrived in 1998 with "Ela e Demais," a dance-floor anthem whose chorus about a goddess, a madwoman and a sorceress became one of the most recognisable hooks in Brazilian country music. Hits such as "Cara de Pau," "Filha," "Nos Bares da Cidade," "Bandida" and "So Pensando em Voce" followed. Over roughly twenty-five years as Rick and Renner they sold more than ten million CDs and, by one Warner-era estimate, played to audiences totaling hundreds of millions.

Rick was never only a frontman. He wrote songs recorded by Chitaozinho and Xororo, Zeze Di Camargo and Luciano, Daniel, Gian and Giovani, Joao Paulo and Daniel, Gino and Geno, Bruno and Marrone and many others. Titles associated with his pen include "Pagina de Amigos," "Fazer Amor," "Dificil Nao Falar de Amor" and "Eu Menti." As a producer he steered later Rick and Renner albums and long stretches of Gino and Geno's catalogue, and worked on Daniel's "Dificil Nao Falar de Amor" and Hugo and Tiago's "Sou Eu."

The duo's path was not unbroken. In 2010 Rick began a solo turn that, together with Renner's Senate run, fed separation rumours. On 1 January 2011 they announced a pause. Rick signed with Leonardo's Talisma Music office and released the solo album "Pronto pra Te Amar" (2011), featuring Leonardo and Eduardo Costa, then "Foi Deus" (2015) with guests including Gusttavo Lima, Chitaozinho and Xororo and Padre Fabio de Melo. He briefly partnered with Giovani of Gian and Giovani as Dois Coracoes in 2017, filming clips that included a New York shoot for "Sonhar Com Voce." Rick and Renner reunited in 2012, parted again in 2015 after further legal trouble involving Renner, and returned once more in 2018, announcing the comeback on Domingao do Faustao. They remained active into 2026.

Rick's private life was rooted in a decades-long relationship with Geralda Helena Carvalho, whom he met early in his career and later honoured in the song "Perfeicao." He was a father and grandfather. Children named in public accounts include Victor Henrique and Monica; Wikipedia and Brazilian profiles also list twins Valentino and Matteo and younger children Lucia and Renn. Grandchildren named after his death include Mateus, Maria Helena, Isabela and Mariana.

On the morning of 21 September 2026 Rick flew from Jundiai toward Santa Catarina for a lunch with the mayor of Sao Joaquim. From Porto Belo he boarded a Bell 430 helicopter, registration PP-MGR, with businessman Bruno Avelar, videomaker Paulo Soares and the flight crew. The aircraft lost contact around midday near the Serra do Corvo Branco in bad weather. After an overnight search involving state firefighters, civil defence, the Brazilian Air Force and thermal drones, wreckage was found on 22 September in the Santa Barbara area of Urubici. The Corpo de Bombeiros Militar de Santa Catarina confirmed that all five people on board had died. Rick was 59.

His voice remains woven into Brazilian popular memory: wedding playlists, radio bailao hours and the shared repertoire of sertanejo duos who grew up covering Rick and Renner. Partners, peers and fans remembered not only the hits but the craftsman who wrote for others as generously as he sang for himself.