Have been considering moving to Brazil, but worried about crime, please advise?

I have been thinking about a couple of things. One is just buying up property (beachfront land) in Brazil (Natal area) and the other is maybe moving to Brazil. If I moved to Brazil I would have to live in either Rio or Sao Paolo as that is where the work is for me (most likely Rio). I currently live in China where violent crime is almost non-existent and I quite enjoy this. I do want to move though and Brazil is one of the few places that is up and coming and I can make good money and property prices are coming up etc. It's just the crime. Should I be so worried about it? What is your experience?