Funk artist MC Negão Original — Photo: Reproduction/Instagram
Funk artist MC Negão Original, on the run from the police for his alleged participation in a virtual embezzlement scheme, is experiencing one of his best moments as an artist. His most recent song, “Cuida do Pet”, reached 13th position in the Spotify top 20 in two weeks.
🚨The law does not prevent a fugitive from launching or publicizing their work – and this is not considered a new crime (read more below).
Made in partnership with Aaron Modesto, Willian, Iguinho CT and DU’L, the song was “born” before João Vitor Marcelino Guido, the artist’s real name, had his arrest ordered by the courts and his whereabouts were considered unknown by the police.
The singer had already done his part in the song, previews of which went viral on social media between March and April. The Negão Original excerpt was the most prominent.
His part was so successful that it had its own version, called “Por Isso Ela Mente”. Previews of this excerpt have more than 2 million views on YouTube and TikTok.
Upon learning that the unfinished version was popular, MC Negão Original got in touch with the others involved in the song and suggested that an official version be released. Including music video.
However, MC Negão Original recorded his part isolated from the other participants in the song, all in different locations.
The official music video reached the 1 million views mark in one week. A version made by AI, launched at the end of May, has accumulated 2 million views on YouTube.
Suspicions about MC Negão Original
In February this year, the Civil Police launched an operation investigating a criminal organization specializing in virtual scams.
According to investigators, the artist was linked to a fraud scheme that claimed victims in several states and generated around R$100 million over five years.
According to the police, criminals sent text or audio messages pretending to be INSS employees. They then asked the victims for supposed “proof of life” to avoid blocking the benefit.
During the approach, the scammers convinced mainly elderly people to participate in video calls and install applications on their cell phones.
In practice, these applications allowed remote access to devices and captured personal data, bank passwords and other sensitive information.
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According to the São Paulo police, excerpts from MC Negão Original's songs caught the attention of investigators during the investigation of the case.
Among the slang terms that appear in the songs is the term “Raul”, used to refer to scammers — people who deceive victims to obtain money.
Another slang term mentioned in the lyrics is “7”, a reference to article 171 of the Penal Code, which deals with the crime of embezzlement.
g1 contacted the São Paulo Public Security Secretariat (SSP-SP), which stated that "efforts to locate and arrest MC Negão Original and the others involved in the case are underway."
The report tried to contact the funk player's defense. The space will be updated if there is any return.
Can a fugitive launch and publicize his work?
Funk artist MC Negão Original — Photo: Reproduction/Instagram
Yes, a person who is on the run can continue working normally and is not committing any illegality as a result.
Euro Bento Maciel Filho, master in Criminal Law, explained to g1 that MC Negão Original's situation is not unusual.
"The duty of finding a fugitive person lies with the State. In this case, the artist has no obligation to surrender to the police, for example. Even though he is a fugitive, he has the right to work. I, for example, have already followed cases in which the person remains at large until the final judgment [when there is no longer any possibility of appeal].
He also stated that the people involved in releasing the songs did not commit a crime.
“The penal code says that the crime is ‘helping a criminal to escape or hide’. Anyone who produces or works on publicity with the artist does not fit into this parameter. Helping, for example, would be lending a car to someone who is known to be on the run and wants to escape.”
How has Rauls sung funk?
Mainly since the 2010s, São Paulo funk has been singing about the lives of the Rauls. Not necessarily about the scams applied, but how criminals take advantage of the stolen money.
Names like MC Kelvinho and MC Kapela became known for singing, almost exclusively, songs with embezzlement as their theme. One of Kelvinho’s biggest hits, “O Corre”, has 22 million views on YouTube and has the following verses:
"The guys who live off scams / Knockout at Santa [Santander bank] / It's us who are the ones running / And the novices are scared / The Civilian tries to give the blow / It's okay to go to jail / The settlement is paid / And life is easy"
The report spoke to three MCs and a music producer. Everyone asked to speak off the record with the reporter, as they feared reprisals from the police and a possible association with the crime.
According to the ears, talking about the lives of coup plotters was a niche within funk. Before, few MCs reaped the rewards of singing the dynamics of fraud.
Starting in the 2020s, with the growth of cybercrime, the number of funk artists who decided to talk about the topic also grew.
"The younger kids want to surf the wave. If at the time of ostentatious funk people talked about clothing brand
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