Riccardo Fabbriconi (born 10 February 2003), known professionally as Blanco, is an Italian singer, rapper and songwriter. He rose to fame following the success of his singles "
Mi fai impazzire" and "
La canzone nostra". In 2022, he won the
Sanremo Music Festival 2022
The Sanremo Music Festival 2022 ( it, 72º Festival della Canzone Italiana di Sanremo 2022) was the 72nd edition of the annual Sanremo Music Festival, a television song contest held in the Teatro Ariston of Sanremo, organised and broadcast by ...
alongside
Mahmood with the song "
Brividi
"" (; ) is a song by Italian singers Mahmood and Blanco, released by Island Records and Universal Music on 2 February 2022. It is the winner of the Italian Sanremo Music Festival 2022 and Italy's entry at .
"" broke the record for the most str ...
", and represented host nation Italy at the
Eurovision Song Contest 2022 in
Turin.
Early life
Riccardo Fabbriconi was born in
Brescia
Brescia (, locally ; lmo, link=no, label=Eastern Lombard, Lombard, Brèsa ; lat, Brixia; vec, Bressa) is a city and ''comune'' in the region of Lombardy, Northern Italy. It is situated at the foot of the Alps, a few kilometers from the lakes ...
on 10 February 2003, to a father from
Rome and a mother from
Lombardy, and raised in
Calvagese della Riviera, a small town on
Lake Garda
Lake Garda ( it, Lago di Garda or ; lmo, label=Eastern Lombard, Lach de Garda; vec, Ƚago de Garda; la, Benacus; grc, Βήνακος) is the largest lake in Italy.
It is a popular holiday location in northern Italy, about halfway between ...
. He spent most of his childhood between his hometown, Brescia and
Desenzano del Garda
Desenzano del Garda ( lmo, label=Brescian, Dezensà) is a town and '' comune'' in the province of Brescia, in Lombardy, Italy, on the southwestern shore of Lake Garda. It borders the communes of Castiglione delle Stiviere, Lonato, Padenghe sul Gar ...
, where he attended school. During childhood, his father introduced him to artists such as
Lucio Battisti
Lucio Battisti (5 March 1943 – 9 September 1998) was an influential Italian singer-songwriter and composer. He is widely recognized for songs that defined the late 1960s and 1970s era of Italian songwriting.
Battisti released 18 studio albums ...
,
Lucio Dalla and
Pino Daniele, and he also enjoyed most
pop radio; growing up, he was involved in the
Italian hip hop
Italian hip hop started in the 1980s. One of the first hip hop crews to catch the attention of the Italian mainstream was Bologna's Isola Posse All Star, then and still today produced by Sandro Orru, who had written the soundtrack to the animat ...
scene.
Career
2020–2021: "Mi fai impazzire" and ''Blu celeste''
In June 2020, he released on
SoundCloud
SoundCloud is an online audio distribution platform and music sharing website that enables its users to upload, promote, and share audio. Founded in 2007 by Alexander Ljung and Eric Wahlforss, SoundCloud is one of the largest music streaming se ...
his
EP ''Quarantine Paranoid'', thanks to which he was noticed and signed by
Universal
Universal is the adjective for universe.
Universal may also refer to:
Companies
* NBCUniversal, a media and entertainment company
** Universal Animation Studios, an American Animation studio, and a subsidiary of NBCUniversal
** Universal TV, a t ...
and
Island Records
Island Records is a multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It was founded in 1959 by Chris Blackwell, Graeme Goodall, and Leslie Kong in Jamaica, and was eventually sold to PolyGram in 1989. Island and A&M Records, anothe ...
. He subsequently released his debut single "Belladonna (Adieu)", followed by his second single "
Notti in bianco", which became a
sleeper hit in the summer of 2021, peaking at number two on
FIMI's singles chart. On 8 January 2021, Blanco, Mace and
Salmo
''Salmo'' is a genus of ray-finned fish from the family Salmonidae. The single ''Salmo'' species naturally found in the Atlantic North America is the Atlantic salmon, whereas the salmon and trout of the Pacific basin belong to another genus, ''O ...
released the collaborative single "
La canzone nostra". It became Blanco's first single to peak at number one on FIMI's singles chart and was certified quintuple platinum, having sold 350,000 copies.
[ Type "Tutti gli anni" in the section "Anno" and "Blanco" in the section "Filtra".]
On 26 February 2021, Blanco released his single "
Paraocchi", which also reached the top ten of FIMI's singles chart. On 18 June 2021, he released the
hit
Hit means to strike someone or something.
Hit or HIT may also refer to:
Arts, entertainment and media Fictional entities
* Hit, a fictional character from '' Dragon Ball Super''
* Homicide International Trust, or HIT, a fictional organization ...
single "
Mi fai impazzire" in collaboration with
Sfera Ebbasta
Gionata Boschetti (; (born 7 December 1992) (Death February 3rd 2023), known professionally as Sfera Ebbasta, also called (Sfra Ebsta) (), is an Italian rapper and singer.
Ebbasta rose to prominence after the release of ''XDVR'' (2015), recorde ...
; it peaked at number one on FIMI's singles chart for eight consecutive weeks and was certified sextuple platinum, having sold 420,000 copies.
On 10 September 2021, Blanco released his debut studio album ''
Blu celeste'', containing nine original tracks produced by
Michelangelo, as well as the previously published singles "Notti in bianco", "
Ladro di fiori" and "Paraocchi". The album, which debuted atop FIMI's album chart, was certified as a gold record a week after its release, having sold 250,000
album-equivalent units
The album-equivalent unit, or album equivalent, is a measurement unit in music industry to define the consumption of music that equals the purchase of one album copy. This consumption includes streaming and song downloads in addition to traditio ...
, and as a platinum record the following week.
Simultaneously,
the lead single of the same name debuted at number one on FIMI's singles chart and Blanco's songs occupied the entire top ten; furthermore, all twelve tracks included in the album appeared concomitantly on the chart. In November 2021, the track "
Finché non mi seppelliscono
"Finché non mi seppelliscono" () is a song by Italian singer Blanco. It was written by Blanco and Michelangelo, and produced by Michelangelo.
The song was included in Blanco's debut album '' Blu celeste'' and released as a radio single on 12 No ...
" was selected as a
radio single
In music, a single is a type of release, typically a song recording of fewer tracks than an LP record or an album. One can be released for sale to the public in a variety of formats. In most cases, a single is a song that is released separate ...
.
2022–present: Sanremo and Eurovision Song Contest
In December 2021,
RAI announced that
Mahmood and Blanco would be participating together in the
Sanremo Music Festival 2022
The Sanremo Music Festival 2022 ( it, 72º Festival della Canzone Italiana di Sanremo 2022) was the 72nd edition of the annual Sanremo Music Festival, a television song contest held in the Teatro Ariston of Sanremo, organised and broadcast by ...
with the song "
Brividi
"" (; ) is a song by Italian singers Mahmood and Blanco, released by Island Records and Universal Music on 2 February 2022. It is the winner of the Italian Sanremo Music Festival 2022 and Italy's entry at .
"" broke the record for the most str ...
". They won the competition with over fifty percent of the vote and subsequently confirmed their participation in the
Eurovision Song Contest 2022 as
Italy's representatives.
Critics commented how for the first time in the history of the festival a performance put on the same level
homosexual
Homosexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or sexual behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality is "an enduring pattern of emotional, romantic, and/or sexual attractions" to p ...
and
heterosexual love. "Brividi" recorded over 3.3 million streams in 24 hours, becoming the most-streamed song in a single day on
Spotify in Italy. It debuted at number one on FIMI's singles chart and peaked at number fifteen on the
''Billboard'' Global 200.
Blanco was chosen by the
Italian Episcopal Conference
The Italian Episcopal Conference ( it, Conferenza Episcopale Italiana) or CEI is the episcopal conference of the Italian bishops of the Catholic Church, the official assembly of the bishops in Italy.
The conference was founded in 1971 and carr ...
(CEI) to introduce
Pope Francis's meeting at
Piazza San Pietro on 18 April. He performed "Blu celeste" accompanied by Michelangelo. The choice was criticized by the
bishop
A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution.
In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...
of
Ventimiglia
Ventimiglia (; lij, label=Intemelio, Ventemiglia , lij, label= Genoese, Vintimiggia; french: Vintimille ; oc, label= Provençal, Ventemilha ) is a resort town in the province of Imperia, Liguria, northern Italy. It is located southwest of ...
,
Monsignor , who thought the message expressed through Blanco's performance was "not suitable to a catholic context"; however, a representative of the CEI, Don Michele Falabretti, replied to the concerns and restated the decision to invite Blanco to the event.
Artistry
Blanco was originally described as a
rapper and
trapper
Animal trapping, or simply trapping or gin, is the use of a device to remotely catch an animal. Animals may be trapped for a variety of purposes, including food, the fur trade, hunting, pest control, and wildlife management.
History
Neolithic ...
,
although he always rejected any labels, saying that "music should always and exclusively be listened without giving too many definitions". After the release of his debut album, critics found
pop
Pop or POP may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Music
* Pop music, a musical genre Artists
* POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade
* Pop!, a UK pop group
* Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band
Albums
* ''Pop'' ( ...
,
punk
Punk or punks may refer to:
Genres, subculture, and related aspects
* Punk rock, a music genre originating in the 1970s associated with various subgenres
* Punk subculture, a subculture associated with punk rock, or aspects of the subculture s ...
,
rock
Rock most often refers to:
* Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids
* Rock music, a genre of popular music
Rock or Rocks may also refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...
and
funk
Funk is a music genre that originated in African American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African Americans in the mid ...
influences in Blanco's music. ''Rolling Stone Italia'' defined him as "genreless".
Claudio Cabona of ''Rockol'' commented on how Blanco is capable of mixing rap with a "nihilistic
punk
Punk or punks may refer to:
Genres, subculture, and related aspects
* Punk rock, a music genre originating in the 1970s associated with various subgenres
* Punk subculture, a subculture associated with punk rock, or aspects of the subculture s ...
attitude". ''
La Repubblica
''la Repubblica'' (; the Republic) is an Italian daily general-interest newspaper. It was founded in 1976 in Rome by Gruppo Editoriale L'Espresso (now known as GEDI Gruppo Editoriale) and led by Eugenio Scalfari, Carlo Caracciolo and Arnold ...
'' described him as "the new face of the post-trap". While talking about his way of delivering his lyrics, heavily inspired by his personal experiences,
Blanco said: "I don't sing, I shout with the heart".
Among his inspirations, Blanco named several Italian singer-songwriters including
Adriano Celentano
Adriano Celentano (; born 6 January 1938) is an Italian musician, singer, composer, actor, and filmmaker. He is dubbed "''il Molleggiato''" (the springy one) because of his dancing.
Celentano's many albums frequently enjoyed both commercial and ...
,
Domenico Modugno
Domenico Modugno (; 9 January 1928 – 6 August 1994) was an Italian singer, actor and, later in life, a member of the Italian Parliament. He is known for his 1958 international hit song " Nel blu dipinto di blu", for which he received Grammy A ...
,
Luigi Tenco
Luigi Tenco (21 March 1938 – 27 January 1967) was an Italian singer-songwriter.
Biography
Tenco was born in Cassine (province of Alessandria) in 1938, the son of Teresa Zoccola and Giuseppe Tenco. He never knew his father, who died in uncle ...
,
Franco Battiato
Francesco "Franco" Battiato (; 23 March 1945 – 18 May 2021) was an Italian musician, singer, composer, filmmaker and, under the pseudonym Süphan Barzani, also a painter. Battiato's songs contain esoteric, philosophical and religious themes, a ...
and
Gino Paoli
Gino Paoli (; born 23 September 1934 in Monfalcone) is an Italian singer-songwriter. He is a seminal figure who has written a number of songs widely regarded as classics in Italian popular music, including: " Il cielo in una stanza", "Che cosa ...
.
Discography
Studio albums
Singles
Guest appearances
Other charted songs
Videography
Tours
*
Blu celeste Tour (2022)
Awards and nominations
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Blanco
Blanco (singer)
Italian rappers
Living people
21st-century Italian male singers
2003 births
Sanremo Music Festival winners
Eurovision Song Contest entrants of 2022
Eurovision Song Contest entrants for Italy
Island Records artists
Universal Music Group artists
People from Brescia