In May 2013, five friends with a taste for music got together for a small performance at a Gala Soiree at TAGV, in Coimbra. Thus the first meeting of Os Quatro e Meia was held.

The band is currently made up of six members – João Cristóvão Rodrigues (violin and mandolin), Mário Ferreira (accordion and vocals), Pedro Figueiredo (percussion), Ricardo Liz Almeida (guitar and vocals), Rui Marques (double bass) and Tiago Nogueira (guitar and vocals).

Based on the idea that "every day is a good day, some are simply more work than others", the band appropriated a recurring expression from our daily lives, “P'ra Frente é Que É Lisboa”, to create their first composition, and thus name their debut single. The debut album – “Pontos nos Is” – was released on June 30, 2017, with the Sony Music Portugal label, and went straight to first place in the national sales charts.

The “Pontos nos Is” tour took in venues such as Casa da Música (Porto), CC Olga Cadaval (Sintra), Casino de Tróia and festivals such as MEO Marés Vivas or O Sol da Caparica, showcasing the songs from the album, with the good mood and energy that so characterise Os Quatro e Meia.

The debut at the Coliseu do Porto, in November 2018, was a success, as well as at the Coliseu dos Recreios, in October 2019, having performed to a sold-out audience.

In 2020, Quatro e Meia return with their second full-length original album “O Tempo Vai Esperar”. The album consists of 11 tracks and was released in September, produced by João Só. The singles A Terra Gira, Canção do Metro and the most recent Bom Rapaz, which features a special appearance by musician Carlão, are some of the songs included in the album which, like Pontos nos Is, reached first place in the national sales charts the week it was released.

2020 ended with a sold-out concert at Campo Pequeno and in 2021 they made their debut in a double dose at the Super Bock Arena – Pavilhão Rosa Mota, with a full house, having counted on Tatanka and Carlão as guests in all three concerts.

2021 also brought a nomination for the Play Awards, in the “Best Band” category. 2022 was the year in which the band gave the biggest concert of their career so far, at the Estádio Cidade de Coimbra, on June 25, and was present on the main stage of one of the biggest summer festivals in the country, NOS Alive.

To complete the range of challenges, Os Quatro e Meia were finalists in the 2022 Festival da Canção, with “Amanhã”, by Tiago Nogueira, finishing the competition in 2nd place. 2023 marked the band's 10th anniversary, with their debut on international stages, at the acclaimed The Jazz Cafe, in London. In November, they took the festivities to the stage of the largest venue in the country, the Altice Arena, which sold out about half a year before the concert date. In 2024, another internationalization arrived: the long-awaited debut in Brazil, in October.

Previously, on June 22, Os Quatro e Meia joined Miguel Araújo and his band, for a unique concert, which took place at the Manuel Possolo Hippodrome, in Cascais. In December, they returned to the Super Bock Arena, in Porto, for two special Christmas concerts, both sold out.

2026 will bring the return to MEO Arena, on February 14th.