Yes, safety wise. I still remember the impression it made the first time my local friends drove me out there (having arrived at the in town airport) to the popping sounds of gunfire from the adjacent poor neighborhoods as we drove along the highway.
I would suggest trying to bite the bullet and find a place in the city, and enjoying some of the street/night life in Savassi or visiting one of the cachaca distilleries' bars to sample the wares or having a beer at the bar right on the lake in Pampulha.
There is a shuttle bus from the airport to the rodoviaria (bus station) in the city.