But in Brazil, Antonio Carlos Jobim isn’t exactly considered as pop culture, more like a major composer (and rightly so, IMHO: his oeuvre is much more impressive than George Gershwin’s, and leaves guys like Aaron Copeland in the dust). The airport in Rio de Janeiro was re-named after him when passed away in 1994. The guy who wrote the lyrics, Vinicius de Moraes, was a diplomat and one of the country’s major 20th Century poets. « Musica popular brasileira », the broad category that includes bossa nova, has a very different status from pop music in most countries (including from the Brazilian version of that genre); it attracts the best artists and intellectuals in the country. E.g., one of the “hippies” who led the Tropicalia rebellion against bossa nova in the 1960s was Lula’s first Minister of Culture, a leader in developing countries’ pushback against TRIPS, and a huge supporter of Creative Commons (as well being one of the best live acts I’ve ever seen). Don’t call it pop!