Mestre Paulo dos Anjos (lit. Paulo of the Angels) was born on 15th August 1936 in the city of Sergipana, Sergipe. In 1950, at the age of fourteen, he moved to Salvador, Bahia and was, at the time, a promising boxer. Since meeting Mestre Canjiquinha a year earler, he became more and more enamoured with Capoeira and would frequently visit street rodas in Salvador and in the cities of Recôncavo. Before long, his skills in the roda began to draw attention from other players and soon became a well respected Mestre after being recognised as such by his own Mestre, Canjiquinha.

He was widely respected in the capoeira world and was also a well known singer. He recorded a CD and, with his unique style, ensured that the musical traditions of capoeira angola were maintained. Alongside Mestre Gato, he gave classes on the island of Itaparica and other metropolitan regions in Salvador.

In the 1970s, he moved to São Paulo for five years. In São Jose dos Campos, he formed the group Anjos de Angola (Angels of Angola). In 1978, he won the capoeira championship at the Pacaembu gymnasium in the state capital. He returned to Salvador in 1980 and influenced the movement of capoeiristas fighting for better working conditions. Beginning in 1987, he led the Brazilian Capoeira Angola Association and combined his capoeira work with his activities as a civil servant in Salvador’s town hall.

Today, many of his students have become teachers and mestres in their own right. Some already have their own academies in Salvador and São Paulo. These include: Virgílio do Retiro, Jaime de Mar Grande, Jorge Satélite, Pássaro Preto, Amâncio, Neguinho, Renê, Alfredo, Djalma, Galego, Mala, Josias, Cabeção, Jequié, Feijão, vital, Al Capone and many others.

Few modern capoeiristas have aligned themselves so closely to the traditions of capoeira as Mestre Paulo dos Anjos did. He died on 26th August 1999 in Salvador after contracting an infection during surgery in a local hospital. His death represents not only the loss of a very distinguished human being, but also an irreplaceable loss for capoeira, particularly the lineage of capoeira angola.