History
Som Livre was founded in March 1969 by music producer João Araújo. It was founded with the purpose of developing and commercializing soap opera soundtracks produced by TV Globo. Its first telenovela soundtrack was O Cafona (1971).[7] Other notable soundtracks produced by the label include O Bem-Amado, O Bofe, O Primeiro Amor (The First Love), O Espigão (The Spike), Corrida do Ouro (The Gold Rush), Os Ossos do Barão (The Bones of the Baron), and O Rebu.
In the early 1970s, the label partnered with Sonopresse, Disques Carrere, and Disques Trema to release music videos in Brazil.[8] In 1974, Som Livre created the "SOMA" label with the intention of developing more affordable albums.[9] Som Livre began collaborations with musical artists Djavan and Rita Lee in 1976.[10][11][12] Other musical artist collaborators included Guilherme Arantes, Tim Maia, Lulu Santos, Barão Vermelho, Cazuza, Luiz Melodia, Gal Costa, Simone, Jorge Ben Jor, Renata Vasconcellos, Elis Regina, Fafá de Belém, Moraes Moreira, Djavan, Novos Baianos, Fábio Jr., Agepê, Francis Hime, and Xuxa. In 1988, the label produced Xuxa’s third album, Xou da Xuxa 3, which was the best-selling album in Som Livre’s history with 3,316,704 copies sold.[10][11][12]
In 1999, the company started selling its products online, reaching R$1.342 million in sales within four months.[13] Som Livre was the first Brazilian record label to release cell phone ringtones.[14]
In 2007, Som Livre released its SLAP label, which focused on signing on new Brazilian talent. New artists collaborations included Latin Grammy-nominated Maria Gadú and Michel Teló, Tiago Iorc, and Little Joy.[15][16][17] In celebration of its 5-year anniversary, SLAP hosted a music festival at Cine Jóia in São Paulo. The festival featured Maria Gadú, Silva, Thaís Gulin, Tiago Iorc, Ana Canãs, Dani Black, and Jesuton and Marcelo Jeneci.[18][19]
In 2014, Som Livre partnered with Eagle Rock Entertainment, signing onto international artists such as The Rolling Stones and Elton John.[20] In 2016, the label launched its Austro Music label, dedicated to electronic music. Austro Music has worked with DJ DIB, Elefantz, Naza Brothers, and WAO.[21]
With the rise in streaming service popularity, Som Livre partnered with Deezer, Spotify, Apple Music, and Globoplay.[22][21] With Spotify, the two companies developed a new component through app which paired 27 iconic telenovela characters to their respective soundtrack.[21][23] In 2018, the label worked with Apple Music to stream its music on Apple's platform.[21][24] Som Livre’s partnership with Globoplay led to an "on demand" service, in which the label released artist content exclusively for its subscribers.
