Daddy Winnie pintor

In 1993, the reggae artist Papa Winnie came to Brazil but he had no band to play shows with him. He immediately picked four people: Nelson Meirelles, Marcelo Lobato, Alexandre Menezes and Marcelo Yuka as the band. After Papa Winnie's shows, the four decided to stay together picking Falcão as the 5th member and vocalist.

In 1994, they released their first album, on Warner, O Rappa. It was initially only known to small groups within the working class suburbs or Rio de Janeiro. In 1996 the album Rappa Mundi was released. Most of the music was a success, especially the cover of "Hey Joe", a song made famous by The Jimi Hendrix Experience.

However it wasn't until the third album Lado B Lado A in 1999, that O Rappa gained widespread fame selling over 150 000 copies of that album. Their film clip for their song Minha Alma was also held in high regard winning many MTV Brasil's Vídeo Music Awards.

In November 2000, drummer Marcelo Yuka was shot during a robbery. He tried to avoid the assault by slamming his car against the bandits. The incident left him a paraplegic and he was forced to leave the band. He was replaced by Marcelo Lobato.

In August 2001, the group released its first live album, Instinto Coletivo. It featured a couple of tracks recorded in the studio with the participation of Sepultura and Asian Dub Foundation.

On 7 July 2007, O Rappa performed at the Brazilian leg of Live Earth in Rio de Janeiro.

In 2008 they released their latest album, 7 Vezes. In 2010, the band launched the live album and the DVD O Rappa Ao Vivo Na Rocinha, which was recorded during a concert at Rocinha, Rio de Janeiro's largest favela. The album featured the band's biggest hits as well as many b-side tracks.