Like millions of São Paulo residents, Castanheiro is a migrant. Coming from Recife as a child, at age 11 he began his artistic career playing zabumba. He performed with artists such as Trio Nordestino, Zé do Baião and Luiz Gonzaga. But Castanheiro also served as manager of one of the biggest forró houses in the city, as well as artistic director of a record company and radio programmer.