Nina Zilli
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Maria Chiara Fraschetta (born 2 February 1980), better known by her stage name Nina Zilli (), is an Italian singer-songwriter. After releasing her debut single "50mila", she achieved commercial success with the album '' Sempre lontano'', released after participating in the newcomers' section of the
Sanremo Music Festival 2010 The Sanremo Music Festival 2010 was the 60th annual Sanremo Music Festival, held at the Teatro Ariston in Sanremo, province of Imperia, during the five nights between 16 February 2010 and 20 February 2010. The show was broadcast by Rai 1 and pres ...
. During the
Sanremo Music Festival 2012 The Sanremo Music Festival 2012 was the 62nd annual Sanremo Music Festival. It was held at the Teatro Ariston in Sanremo, province of Imperia, during the five nights between 14 February 2012 and 18 February 2012, and it was broadcast by Rai 1. Th ...
, Zilli was chosen to represent Italy in the
Eurovision Song Contest 2012 The Eurovision Song Contest 2012 was the 57th edition of the Eurovision Song Contest. It took place in Baku, Azerbaijan, following the country's victory at the with the song " Running Scared" by the duo Ell & Nikki. It was the first time Azerb ...
in
Baku Baku (, ; az, Bakı ) is the capital and largest city of Azerbaijan, as well as the largest city on the Caspian Sea and of the Caucasus region. Baku is located below sea level, which makes it the lowest lying national capital in the world a ...
, Azerbaijan, where she placed 9th with the song " L'amore è femmina (Out of Love)", included in her second studio album. Zilli returned to the
Sanremo Music Festival The Sanremo Music Festival, officially the Italian Song Festival () and commonly known as just (), is the most popular Italian song contest and awards ceremony, held annually in the city of Sanremo, Liguria. It is the longest-running annual ...
in 2015, and competed with the song "Sola" from her upcoming album, ''Frasi&Fumo''. She was also a judge of ''
Italia's Got Talent ''Italia's Got Talent'' is the Italian version of the international ''Got Talent'' series. The pilot episode was aired on 12 December 2009 on Canale 5 and it was seen by 5.3 million people. After this episode, Mediaset decided to hold on this sho ...
'' from 2015 to 2017.


Biography


Childhood and early beginnings

Nina Zilli was born on 2 February 1980 in
Piacenza Piacenza (; egl, label= Piacentino, Piaṡëinsa ; ) is a city and in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy, and the capital of the eponymous province. As of 2022, Piacenza is the ninth largest city in the region by population, with over ...
,
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 ...
, to a father from
Emilia-Romagna egl, Emigliàn (man) egl, Emiglièna (woman) rgn, Rumagnòl (man) rgn, Rumagnòla (woman) it, Emiliano (man) it, Emiliana (woman) or it, Romagnolo (man) it, Romagnola (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title ...
and a mother from
Apulia it, Pugliese , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographic ...
, and grew up in
Gossolengo Gossolengo ( egl, label= Piacentino, Uslëing or ) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the province of Piacenza in the Italian region Emilia-Romagna, located about northwest of Bologna and about southwest of Piacenza, in the valley of the Trebbia ...
, nine kilometers southwest of Piacenza, After moving to Ireland, she started performing live and, at the age of thirteen, she started studying opera singing at the conservatory. In 1997 she founded her first band, The Jerks. After completing high school at the
Liceo The Gran Teatre del Liceu (, English: Great Theatre of the Lyceum), known as ''El Liceu'', is an opera house in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. Located in La Rambla, it is the oldest running theatre in Barcelona. Founded in 1837 at another loca ...
Scientifico Respighi in Piacenza, she spent two years in the United States, living in Chicago and New York.


TV career and the band Chiara e gli Scuri

Between 2000 and 2001 she co-presented Red Ronnie's TV show ''Roxy Bar'', broadcast in Italy by TMC2. In 2001 she also debuted as a VJ for
MTV Italy MTV is an Italian pay television network, owned by Paramount Networks EMEAA and operated by Sky Italia. History Prior to the launch of a 24-hour Italian speaking MTV, MTV viewers in Italy received the pan-European version of MTV. Regionalization ...
. Meanwhile she obtained a recording contract with her new band, Chiara e gli Scuri, founded in 2000. In 2001 the band released the single "Tutti al mare". They also started working on an album, but it was never released, due to some disagreements with the recording label. During the same years, Zilli started her academic studies, later graduating in Public Relations from the
IULM University of Milan The IULM University - Milan ( it, Libera Università di Lingue e Comunicazione IULM ) is a university located in Milan, Italy. It was founded in 1968 and is organized in four faculties. . History and profile The University Institute for ...
.


Debut EP ''Nina Zilli''

In 2009, she chose the stage name Nina Zilli, combining her mother's surname with
Nina Simone Eunice Kathleen Waymon (February 21, 1933 – April 21, 2003), known professionally as Nina Simone (), was an American singer, songwriter, pianist, and civil rights activist. Her music spanned styles including classical, folk, gospel, blues, ...
's first name. Zilli released her debut single, " 50mila", on 28 July 2009. The song features vocals by Giuliano Palma, though a Nina only version was later included in the soundtrack of
Ferzan Özpetek Ferzan Özpetek (born 3 February 1959) is a Turkish-Italian film director and screenwriter, residing in Italy. Biography Ferzan Özpetek was born in Istanbul in 1959. In 1976, he decided to move to Italy to study Cinema History at Sapienza Unive ...
's film '' Loose Cannons''. Nina Zilli's self-titled debut
extended play An extended play record, usually referred to as an EP, is a musical recording that contains more tracks than a single but fewer than an album or LP record.
, '' Nina Zilli'', was released by
Universal Music Universal Music Group N.V. (often abbreviated as UMG and referred to as just Universal Music) is a Netherlands, Dutch–United States, American multinational Music industry, music corporation under Law of the Netherlands, Dutch law. UMG's cor ...
on 11 September 2011. The EP peaked at number 54 on the
Italian Albums Chart The Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana (FIMI) is an umbrella organization that keeps track of virtually all aspects of the music recording industry in Italy. It was established in 1992, when major corporate labels left the previously exist ...
, and it also spawned the singles "L'inferno", released in September 2009, and "L'amore verrà", an Italian-language cover of
The Supremes The Supremes were an American girl group and a premier act of Motown Records during the 1960s. Founded as the Primettes in Detroit, Michigan, in 1959, the Supremes were the most commercially successful of Motown's acts and the most successful ...
"
You Can't Hurry Love "You Can't Hurry Love" is a 1966 song originally recorded by the Supremes on the Motown label. It was released on July 25 of 1966 as the second single from their studio album '' The Supremes A' Go-Go'' ( 1966). Written and produced by Motown p ...
".


Sanremo Music Festival 2010 and ''Sempre Lontano''

On 12 January 2010, it was announced that Nina Zilli was one of the winners of the contest ''Sanremo New Generation'', allowing her to participate in the newcomers section of the 60th Sanremo Music Festival. Zilli's entry, " L'uomo che amava le donne", was performed for the first time on 18 February 2010, and it was admitted to the final, later won by Tony Maiello's "Il linguaggio della resa". During the competition, Zilli received the Critics' Award "
Mia Martini Mia Martini (; born Domenica Rita Adriana Bertè ; 20 September 1947 – 12 May 1995) was an Italian singer, songwriter and musician.James Christopher MongerMia Martini allmusic.comFederation of the Italian Music Industry The Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana (FIMI) is an umbrella organization that keeps track of virtually all aspects of the music recording industry in Italy. It was established in 1992, when major corporate labels left the previously exist ...
and it was included in Zilli's debut album, '' Sempre lontano'', released on 19 February 2010. A special edition of the album was released on 30 November 2010, together with the single "Bacio d'a(d)dio". On 18 February 2011, the album was certified platinum in Italy, for domestic sales exceeding 60,000 copies. In February 2011, she received two nominations at the 2011
TRL Awards The ''MTV Awards'' (known as ''TRL Awards'' from 2006 to 2012) were established in 2006 by MTV Italy, awarded to the most popular artists and music videos in Italy. Originally an annual event for the most requested videos and artists on ''Total R ...
in the categories Best Look and Italians Do It Better. Zilli was also the presenter of the night, broadcast by
MTV Italy MTV is an Italian pay television network, owned by Paramount Networks EMEAA and operated by Sky Italia. History Prior to the launch of a 24-hour Italian speaking MTV, MTV viewers in Italy received the pan-European version of MTV. Regionalization ...
on 20 April 2011. In March 2011, ''Sempre lontano'' was also released in Spain.


Sanremo Music Festival 2012, ''L'amore è Femmina'' and Eurovision Song Contest

In January 2012, Zilli was chosen as one of the participants in the Big Artists section of the 62nd Sanremo Music Festival, performing the song " Per sempre". During the competition, Zilli also performed a cover of Mina's "
Grande grande grande "Grande grande grande" is a 1972 Italian song, written by Alberto Testa and Tony Renis. It was a No. 1 hit for Mina (Italian singer), Mina in Italy and for Shirley Bassey released as "Never Never Never" in the U.K., U.S. and Australia. The 1973 S ...
", in a duet with British singer
Skye Edwards Skye Edwards (born Shirley Klaris Yonavieve Edwards; 27 May 1974), sometimes simply Skye, is a British singer-songwriter. Her career began in 1994 when she and the Godfrey brothers (Paul Godfrey, a DJ, and Ross Godfrey, a multi-instrumentalist ...
. On the final of the show, she was chosen by a specific jury as the Italian entry to the
Eurovision Song Contest 2012 The Eurovision Song Contest 2012 was the 57th edition of the Eurovision Song Contest. It took place in Baku, Azerbaijan, following the country's victory at the with the song " Running Scared" by the duo Ell & Nikki. It was the first time Azerb ...
. Zilli's second studio album, '' L'amore è femmina'', was released on 15 February 2012. In March of the same year, she co-presented the show ''Panariello non esiste'', created by Italian comedian
Giorgio Panariello Giorgio Panariello (born 30 September 1960 in Florence) is an Italian comedian, film and stage actor, director and television presenter. Biography Born in Florence to a father of Campanian origin, he raised in Cinquale, a seaside town in the pro ...
and broadcast by
Canale 5 Canale 5 () is an Italian free-to-air television channel of Mediaset, owned by MFE - MediaForEurope. It was the first private television network to have a national coverage in Italy in 1980. On 4 December 2012, Mediaset launched Canale 5 HD, a s ...
. Zilli represented
Italy in the Eurovision Song Contest 2012 Italy participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2012 in Baku, Azerbaijan. The Italian entry was selected through an internal selection, organised by the Italian broadcaster RAI. The artist was selected by a special committee from the participan ...
with the song " L'amore è femmina (Out of Love)". As Italy is one of the "Big Five" who provide the most financial funding into the contest she was automatically allocated in the final. After scoring 101 points, she placed in 9th place.


Italia's Got Talent ''Italia's Got Talent'' is the Italian version of the international ''Got Talent'' series. The pilot episode was aired on 12 December 2009 on Canale 5 and it was seen by 5.3 million people. After this episode, Mediaset decided to hold on this sho ...
and ''Frasi & fumo''

In the summer of 2014, it was confirmed that she will be part of
Italia's Got Talent ''Italia's Got Talent'' is the Italian version of the international ''Got Talent'' series. The pilot episode was aired on 12 December 2009 on Canale 5 and it was seen by 5.3 million people. After this episode, Mediaset decided to hold on this sho ...
jury for its sixth series, aired in 2015 by the pay-TV
Sky Uno Sky Uno ( en, Sky One) is an Italian entertainment television channel, based on the defunct reality television channel ''SKY Vivo'', both owned and broadcast by Sky Italia. It broadcasts the Italian version of the shows ''The X Factor'', ''Got T ...
. Zilli was also confirmed as one of the contestants of the
Sanremo Music Festival 2015 The Sanremo Music Festival 2015 (''65° Festival della Canzone Italiana di Sanremo 2015'') was the 65th annual Sanremo Music Festival, a television song contest held at the Teatro Ariston in Sanremo, Liguria, between 10 and 14 February 2015 and b ...
. She will compete with the song "Sola", which will be included in her third studio album, ''Frasi & fumo''.


Discography

* '' Sempre lontano'' (2010) * '' L'amore è femmina'' (2012) * '' Frasi & fumo'' (2015) * ''
Modern Art Modern art includes artistic work produced during the period extending roughly from the 1860s to the 1970s, and denotes the styles and philosophies of the art produced during that era. The term is usually associated with art in which the tradi ...
'' (2017)


Awards


Notes


External links

*
Nina Zilli
at ''
Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...
'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Zilli, Nina 1980 births Living people People from Piacenza Italian women singer-songwriters Italian singer-songwriters Italian pop singers Eurovision Song Contest entrants for Italy Eurovision Song Contest entrants of 2012 21st-century Italian singers 21st-century Italian women singers IULM University of Milan alumni