André Luís Ruas was born in Santos, São Paulo on January 29, 1975. His stage name, "Pinguim", comes from a childhood nickname owing to a T-shirt with a penguin drawing on it he constantly wore; his friends used to joke that he was very similar in physical appearance to the aforementioned penguin, and so the name stuck. He officially began his musical career in 1987, serving a drummer for bands such as Expresso Noturno, Mestra and Aldeia; through one of those projects he met his future Charlie BrownJr. bandmate Thiago Castanho. In 2005, following a major reshuffle on the line-up of Charlie Brown Jr., he was invited by vocalist Chorão to join the band, replacing original members Renato Pelado and Champignon as drummer and beatboxer, respectively. At the time with his own band, Revolucionnários, Champignon initially criticized his replacement as just an attempt to copy him and his style, but would eventually apologize for his statements, befriending Pinguim; he was present in Champignon's funeral following his suicide on September 9, 2013, claiming that "he always seemed to be a happy person". During his three-year tenure with Charlie Brown Jr. Pinguim took part on the recording of the albums Imunidade Musical and Ritmo, Ritual e Responsa, and the DVD Ritmo, Ritual e Responsa ao Vivo, released shortly after his departure from the band following the expiration of his contract and the lack of interest of both parties on renewing it. Alongside his Charlie Brown Jr. bandmates he also cameod as himself in the 2007 filmO Magnata, written and co-produced by Chorão. Following his work with Charlie Brown Jr. he founded in 2013 the electronic music duo Beach Beat alongside singer Beto Gerônimo, and for a brief time in 2014 played for rap rock group Conexão Baixada. Also in 2014 he joined Bula with also former Charlie Brown Jr. member Marcão, replacing original drummer Bruno Graveto. In 2015 he joined Áries alongside Lu Andrade of Rouge. In 2017, he and Marcão were guest musicians on Bruno Thadeu's song "A Miséria Comprou a Razão ". In 2019, he, Marcão and Heitor Gomes reunited Charlie Brown Jr. for a controversial series of shows around Brazil, with guest vocalists.
