Articolo 31 is a band from

Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

, formed in 1990 by

J-Ax Alessandro Aleotti (; born 5 August 1972), known as J-Ax (), is an Italian rapper, formerly in the rap group Articolo 31 with his DJ Vito Luca Perrini (DJ Jad). He is the brother of Weedo (also known as Grido from boyband Gemelli DiVersi). On 6 ...

and DJ Jad, combining hip hop,

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 m ...

, pop and traditional Italian musical forms. They are one of the most popular Italian hip hop groups.

Band history

Articolo 31 were formed by rapper

(real name Alessandro Aleotti) and DJ Jad (Vito Luca Perrini). In the spoken intro of the album ''Strade di Città'' ("City Streets"), it is stated that the band is named after the article of the

Irish constitution The Constitution of Ireland ( ga, Bunreacht na hÉireann, ) is the fundamental law of Ireland. It asserts the national sovereignty of the Irish people. The constitution, based on a system of representative democracy, is broadly within the traditio ...

guaranteeing freedom of the press, although article 31 of the Irish constitution is not about the freedom of the press. They probably meant the Section 31 of the Broadcasting Authority Act. Articolo 31 released one of the first Italian hip hop records, ''Strade di città'', in 1993. Soon, they signed with

BMG Ricordi Bertelsmann Music Group (BMG) was a division of a German media company Bertelsmann before its completion of sale of the majority of its assets to Sony Corporation of America on 1 October 2008. Although it was established in 1987, the music co ...

and started to mix rap with pop music - a move that earned them great commercial success but that alienated the underground hip hop scene, who perceived them as traitors. In 1997,

DJ Gruff Sandro Orrù (born January 8, 1968), known as DJ Gruff, Gruffetti or Lowdy N.C.N., is a pioneer of the Italian Hip Hop scene. Known for his original take on rapping and scratching techniques since 1982, DJ Gruff has been active on the Hip Hop sce ...

dissed Articolo 31 in a track titled ''1 vs 2'' on the first album of the beatmaker Fritz da Cat, starting a feud that would go on for years. In 2001, Articolo 31 collaborated with the American old school rapper

Kurtis Blow Kurtis Walker (born August 9, 1959), professionally known by his stage name Kurtis Blow, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record/film producer, b-boy, DJ, public speaker and minister. He is the first commercially successful rapper ...

on the album ''XChé SI!''. In the same year, they made the film '' Senza filtro'' (in English, ''"

Without filter ''Without filter'' ( it, Senza filtro) is a 2001 Cinema of Italy, Italian film directed by Mimmo Raimondi starring J-Ax, DJ Jad and Luciano Federico. The film stars the hip hop duo Articolo 31 in their acting debut. Cast * J-Ax, Alessandro Aleo ...

"''). Their producer was

Franco Godi Franco Godi (born 10 June 1940) is an Italian composer, conductor, arranger and record producer. Born in Milan, Godi grew up in Prato where he started his musical activity as the member of a band. After working in a local radio station, in 1962 he ...

, who also produced the music for the ''Signor Rossi'' animated series. Their 2002 album ''Domani smetto'' represented a further departure from hip hop, increasingly relying on the formula of rapping over pop music samples. Several of their songs rotate around the theme of soft drugs legalization in Italy (pointing strongly in favour). Following their 2003 album "Italiano medio", the band took a break. Both J Ax and DJ Jad have been involved with solo projects. In 2006, the group declared an indefinite

hiatus Hiatus may refer to: *Hiatus (anatomy), a natural fissure in a structure * Hiatus (stratigraphy), a discontinuity in the age of strata in stratigraphy *''Hiatus'', a genus of picture-winged flies with sole member species '' Hiatus fulvipes'' * Gl ...

. Their posse, ''

Spaghetti Funk Spaghetti Funk was an Italian collective of hip hop musicians. History The crew was founded in 1994 by Articolo 31 with the leader J-Ax, from the writer Raptuz and the historian rapper Space One, inspired by an idea of Franco Godi Franco God ...

'', includes other popular performers like Space One and pop rappers

Gemelli DiVersi Gemelli DiVersi is an Italian hip hop group, best known for their hit single "Mary". Biography Gemelli DiVersi formed in 1997 in Milan when two Italian rap crews, La Cricca and Rima Nel Cuore, merged. Their first single was 1998's "Un attimo anc ...

Band members

- vocals *DJ Jad - turntables

Discography

References

{{Authority control Italian hip hop groups Musical groups from Milan Hip hop groups from Milan Italian rappers