L'Italo-Americano

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 3, 2022 www.italoamericano.org 18 L'Italo-Americano " I chose Los Ange- les because it feels like I am picking up r i g h t w h e r e I l e f t off!" International artist Eros R a m a z z o t t i o p e n e d h i s N o r t h A m e r i c a n B a t t i t o Infinito World Tour in the City of Angels on October 30. Back in 2020, the South- ern Californian city was, in fact, the only date of his tour, which was canceled because of Covid-19. "For this reason, performing here was particu- larly exciting, " the pop singer said. Ramazzotti is, unques- tionably, one of the most suc- cessful Italian artists in the world, with songs that not only made the history of Ital- ian music but led him to sell 70 million records globally, gather 2 billion streams and have almost 2 billion views on YouTube. Eros' last original album, Vita ce n'è, dated back to 2018 and was followed by a colossal tour of more than 90 shows in 32 countries. Four years later, the international- ly acclaimed Italian singer- songwriter has returned with a tour of more than 70 shows around the world. After Los Angeles, the tour touched Houston (November 2) and will be in Miami (November 5 ) , a n d N e w Y o r k C i t y (November 10). On stage Ramazzotti, who was born and raised in Rome, performed the hits that made him famous and with which he won millions of fans. This is not the first time t h e I t a l i a n p o p s i n g e r , m u s i c i a n a n d s o n g w r i t e r toured the United States dur- ing his 35-years-long career. Eros, your connection with US fans began a long t i m e a g o , i n t h e l a t e 1990s. What memories do you have of your early performances, such as the one in 1998 at Radio City Music Hall for the tour of your ninth album, Eros? I h a v e m a n y m e m o r i e s related to all the concerts played at Radio City Music H a l l , b u t t h e o n e t h a t inevitably comes to mind is the one in 1991 when, despite having a broken leg, I per- formed, and I was the first Italian to do so in that the- ater. It was one of the most exciting evenings of my life. In general, I think the USA is an incredible country, a small world ready to welcome anyone. Every time, it is wonderful to know your audience is so diverse, that it comes from so many different cultures but that, on t h e n i g h t o f t h e c o n c e r t , everyone chooses to be there to hear your music and what you have to say. What memories do you have of your collabora- tion with American artist T i n a T u r n e r f o r C o s e della Vita/Things of Life? Collaborating with Tina Turner was one of the most beautiful experiences of my life. The crazy thing is that she was the one who sought me out. I could hardly believe it, it seemed i m p o s s i b l e t h a t a l e g - endary artist like her would seek me out to sing together, I am very honored for that. My duets are always sincere and heartfelt: every time, I look for that special connec- tion with the artist I work with, and I believe my collab- oration with Tina remains one of the most successful precisely because we found e a c h o t h e r s o m u c h o n a human level. There are twelve songs i n B a t t i t o I n f i n i t o . What's been your main i n s p i r a t i o n f o r t h e album? Mainly love and its impact on the world, I think. I want- ed to tell how love comes in infinite forms and I did it by experimenting with different sounds, from Latino music to more retro vibes, which have been trending again lately, even among younger listen- ers. There are also two col- l a b o r a t i o n s , o n e w i t h Jovanotti and one with a lifelong friend, Alejandro Sanz. Can you tell us how they both came about? Making Soy with Alejan- dro Sanz was fun and chal- lenging, and it's great to see t h e p u b l i c e m b r a c i n g t h e song with the same enthusi- asm! Alejandro and I had the opportunity to collaborate before, and when I contacted him to work t o g e t h e r o n t h i s t r a c k , I immediately sensed his great enthusiasm. With Figli della Terra, thanks to the support of a great friend and artist like Lorenzo Jovanotti, I wanted to convey a concept that for me is fundamental and, I believe, very current: this is the only planet we have and, today, it needs care and pro- tection as never before. Even in our daily lives, we can take important and meaningful steps to protect it. Which song best repre- sents the artistic and per- sonal phase you are going through now and why? I think Ama is the single that best represents how I feel: it is an invitation to love as you want to, without lim- its, boundaries or barriers. It's about looking at the world with new eyes, even in com- plex times like today's, when hatred and resentment are all too present. Surround your- self with love, because loving is beautiful! Being of your genera- tion, I found myself very m u c h i n G l i U l t i m i Romantici. What, in your opinion, made "questi tempi aridi," these times so barren? I think the difficult period t h a t h a s j u s t p a s s e d a n d , unfortunately, is not com- pletely over, greatly affected our relationships, our bonds. From these terrible times, we learned that what matters are human relationships and how we spend our time. The free- d o m w e e n j o y e d a n d f e l t before will probably never fully return, but we changed, we evolved and we are now adapting to a new way of life, a new way of relating to each other. The set design will be very high-tech: why this choice? For this comeback of mine, I wanted to go big, to surprise my audience with a high-tech stage, although the focus of the whole show remains the music, with a spotlight also on the special team that follows me in every live show, from the musicians to the backup singers, all the way to the Battito Infinito World Tour's production team. During past tours of the US, have you had a chance to carve out time to be a tourist, and if so, what do you enjoy doing and what is the place you are most attached to? Unfortunately, the down- side of being in such a won- derful profession is the tight schedule I have to keep to get to different locations around the world. This means I can't be as much of a tourist as I would like. However, I am fascinated by how diverse and cosmopolitan New York is: it is truly a one-of-a-kind city, full of life, full of stimuli, a city that never seems to stop and that gives me a lot of energy each time. I love the skyline, the lights and colors of Central Park, of the city itself: it's magical. So many Italian artists c h o s e L o s A n g e l e s a s their base, is that some- thing you've ever consid- ered? To be honest no: I think in Italy I have everything I need and, above all, I would not be able to give up my family. I try to spend as much time as possible with my children, whenever I can: the distance for me would be really too much! SILVIA GIUDICI Eros Ramazzotti is one of Italy's most popular singer-songwriters (Photo: Maki Galimberti) E r o s R a m a z z o t t i o n U S s t a g e s f o r i t s Battito Infinito Tour LIFE PEOPLE PLACES HERITAGE

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