Mestre Bomba was born in Bahia, Brazil, and has practiced capoeira since 1980.  He became interested in capoeira at the age of ten after he saw his father, a well-known capoeirista, fighting in a roda.

Because his mother prohibited him from practicing capoeira, which at the time was seen as an outlaw fringe activity, and his father also did not want him to play capoeira, Mestre Bomba initially trained in secret under Mestre Buguelo of Grupo Cativeiro in Bahia in 1980.

He later moved to Grupo Esquiva where he trained under Mestre Coentro, and in 1985 started training with his current Mestre, Mestre Benivaldo, who founded Capoeira Barro Vermelho in 1993.  Bomba attained the rank of Professor, was later promoted to Contra Mestre, and in May 2014 attained the highest rank of Mestre.