Most 80-year-olds celebrate their birthdays with a cup of tea and a couple of Werther's Originals. But when you're living legend and a global football icon, you can dare to push the boat out a little. The news that Pele has released a single to mark the milestone, therefore, comes as no surprise.
The three-time World Cup winner's debut single Acredita No Véio (Listen To The Old Man) was written in collaboration with virtuoso guitar duo Rodrigo y Gabriela and encompasses that same delicate samba style the great man brought to the beautiful game.
"I didn't want the public to make the comparison between Pelé the composer and Pelé the footballer," says the man himself. "That would have been a huge injustice - in football my talent was a gift from God, music was just for fun."
Fans will be pleased to hear the track not only comprises of sumptuous latin beats but also features the dulcet tones of Pele, too. What's more, FFT reckon he genuinely has a cracking voice. The lyrics are personal to Brazil's all-time leading goalscorer.
"I wrote this one because when I used to play with Santos, the coach used to say that when we lost it was the players' fault, but when we won it was the macumba (black magic) had helped. The song is joking about that - of course, macumba doesn't win games at all."
Pele, considered by many to be the greatest ever to play the game, turns 80 on October 23. He wanted to find a new way to leave his mark on the world after achieving so much on his journey so far
"I've written many books, I've scored many goals, I've fathered children, I've planted many trees. The only thing that's lacking is a musical memento of my life," he explains, putting us all to shame in the process.
Rumours that Pele is being pencilled in for a headline slot at Glastonbury 2021 are as yet unconfirmed.
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