Ditonellapiaga: “I choose what to do, without the obligation of the hit”

The career of Toe in the soreborn Margherita Carducci, essentially exploded in February 2022, when she appeared on stage at the Ariston in Sanremo competing at the Festival in the company of Donatella Rector with “Chimica”, a song which, despite reaching sixteenth place in the final ranking, had a good life beyond the singing event and which represented a sort of generational exchange.

She had arrived at the festival, noticed by Amadeus, thanks to a lucky handful of singles. Meanwhile, in January 2022 “Camouflage” (Read the review here), his first album, which was then reissued with the addition of the song performed together with Donatella Rettore. Her work also earned her the Targa Tenco 2022 as best debut album.

Then follows a period of silence which is interrupted in February 2023 when he returns to the Sanremo Festival, as a guest in the cover evening and performs together with Colla Zio (the competing band) in the cover of “Salirò”, the great success of Daniele Silvestri.

She recently took the stage at the Roman Concertone on May 1st, a performance that anticipated the new album “Flash” coming out May 10th.

We met Margherita and found a frank, direct, funny girl with very specific ideas.

How was “Flash” born?

After a break in which I lived and listened to music, because when I write I listen to little of it. I have experienced moments in which I did something else, I was in the countryside, I took my time and then at a certain point I said, “ah, now I'm ready” because in any case there is something to write about.

What inspired you to write?

There wasn't one specific thing. At a certain point I realized that I wanted to come back and experiment. More than anything, I think I listened to things related to my adolescence, things from the 90s, late 90s, early 2000s. For example, I listened to some records by Madonna which I had never explored. I found artists I listened to when I was, like, a kid Avril Lavigne for example. I made these listens linked to my adolescence, precisely because this record is a bit of a bridge between my youth and the fact that I'm moving towards adulthood and I'm realizing it. So there's some nostalgia for those times gone by and also an awareness that my age is changing and I'm changing too.

It's a record in which there are many different atmospheres. Where do they come from and how do they fit together?

I think it's a stylistic feature of mine that I tried to free myself from, but I couldn't. It's an internal struggle, a war between necessarily being coherent in the set of pieces and instead being more similar to what perhaps automatically comes to me, that is, eclectic. In my opinion, the atmospheres are partly mine and partly linked to what the producers I worked with saw in me and to their world of reference. I'll give you an example: I worked with Ok Giorgio (in “Mary”, “Fossi come te”, “È tutto vero” and “Come prima”) which made me listen and took me in a direction, it didn't tear me away from mine, it simply showed me a new road, in which I was able to talk about my fragility, my intimacy. The songs, however, are very delicate and personal. Francesco Fugazza he brought me just so far from my comfort zone. So distorted guitars, rock. The productions are very different from those I have always sought in my works and I worked with those who saw aspects in me that I had never thought I could have in my vocality. On the first album I had a more breathy, more spoken voice. In “Flash” I sing louder and I think this is partly due to the fact that I studied, and partly to the fact that people guided me in a different way. Then there are the producers Benjamin Ventura And Alessandro Casagni with whom I wrote the first album. With them I am closer to my “home base”, that is, linked to the previous album or in general to a writing that has evolved but still has a familiar sound and flavour.

What is the thing that has changed most of all compared to the past?

I think it's the fact that this is now a profession. In my first album, “Camouflage”, music was just a passion. That's fine, in all things that are just passions you see the positive aspects, but then you lack the support to be able to do that thing 100% professionally. Now it is a profession and therefore there is professionalism and there is a structure, a support that I am honored by and I feel lucky because not everyone manages to get there. So basically you don't have to do a production in the spare time between babysitting and housemaiding. Obviously, however, when it's a job there are also huge burdens and things you don't like and others you have to struggle with. I'm not complaining, I'm lucky to do a job that is also my passion. Sometimes it makes me think: maybe I should find another passion, like painting, so I have a totally naive outlet

How difficult was it, if it was, to get to this point?

That was fast. But then I had, pass me the term, a recoil, in the sense that I took a highway towards the stars, but at a certain point, I'm not saying through the stables, but through the atmosphere near the earth you have to go through it. After you do Sanremo it's all “wow”, absurd, incredible. If I think back to how I was before Sanremo, to all the desires I had and how far away I saw them… and then at a certain point the distances completely disappeared. Afterwards I chose to stay still because I needed to write my own songs, because I don't have other people write them to me, I don't like it. Then you think back to Sanremo and say: “damn, but that was something that is still television”. And at a certain point you have to get out of that state and so during the writing I fell a bit, maybe things don't always go as you think. I choose to do something because I want to do it, not because they tell me: “Hey, you have to make a hit”. And this, I must say, is a great fortune because these days unfortunately it is difficult to make music as freely as possible. So in general there are also moments of discouragement, thinking about how productive you have to be, how active you always have to be. But it's normal, as in all jobs.

Let's go back to “Flash”. There are guests, how did you choose them, how do they fit into the songs and how do they fit into the album?

It was the songs that called the guest. When I wrote them, some were born already complete. For example “DNA” had two verses but I didn't like it, I thought it needed a breath of fresh air and so I immediately thought of the Coma Cose, because they have that type of tone, sound and attitude, suitable for a piece that has a slightly hip hop beat. I heard Fausto and they wrote a verse, which was also very cool because they dribble, so it breaks up the song a lot and it was exactly what was needed. The song with Gaia (“Una”) is one of the first songs I wrote for the record and it was perfect for her. In short, it was quite natural, also by virtue of our friendship. With regard to Thunderbolts, well, we are friends and had already collaborated. He had written the chorus of “Non ti perdo mai”, a piece from the previous album and when I wrote “Come prima” I thought that we needed a person who had the delicacy and a poetic pen like he has. And lastly Whitemary (Biancamaria Scoccia) with whom we have known each other for a long time and is perhaps the featuring I am happiest with, because it is a piece that without her would never have been like this. It was born from the ashes of another song that I trashed and I only kept a very small part on which the whole piece was built and she was very active in the writing and also in the production, the bass line is very cool.

How much has the album been played and how much has been produced?

Much more played than the previous one. There are more real instruments, pianos, guitars, many guitars even made by different people which is already new for me. The first album was only produced by the four hands of the two producers (Alessandro Casagni and Benjamin Ventura) and there weren't even any hints of real instruments. Honestly, partly out of necessity, partly out of inexperience. We hadn't really thought about involving anyone else. I increasingly think that it is essential to involve musicians regardless of what is played or not played, their contribution is important.

Speaking of involvement, on the album there is a song written with La Representative di Lista.

That's right, writing with them was a crazy experience. We were in Palermo in April, so already great wellness. Fish, heat, in short, I must say it was pleasant and we had fun. The day we wrote “Mary” we were in the studio at their house with a lot of people, who came and went, someone was playing, there was a bass player, Carmelo Donato on synth, Dario who played 800 instruments and Veronica who was there and racked his brains for the words. But then there were also friends of theirs who did other things, like ordering pizza, so it was fun, very chaotic but pulsating.

What will the tour be like? What will the lineup be like?

The tour will be a balance between the songs from the old album and those from the new one. Finally I can bring my friends on stage because in my band we are all friends. There are Benjamin and Alessandro with whom I made most of the album, keyboard and drums respectively. Adriano on bass, who is another historical friend and Paolo who is a very strong guitarist, all people in fact, with whom I have always worked and always made music. It will be a very “up” live show because there are many danceable pieces, but it will have a beautiful curve that also allows for a more intimate, intimate moment which in my opinion is the most beautiful of the concert, because the straight bass drum, the ballets, the lights are beautiful , but then when you take everything away, you say: “Ah OK, that's nice.”

What adjectives would you use to describe this album?

I'm mega self-critical, so I definitely wouldn't say wonderful, stupendous, incredible, all of fame of the records in history, no! But I would say lightning, because it is very strong, lit. Then I would say: brilliant, also tying it a little to the title. Finally I would call it very true. Because compared to the previous album I drew much more on personal things and left the theatrical aspect a bit lost. Then he will come back! But I think I told more about myself, without stories. Except for “Mary,” which is obviously a story.

How do you see yourself in 10 years?

I do not know! … old?! I hope satisfied and happy. I hope to see myself having done some big concerts, not in terms of audience numbers. I want to have the chance to play with many people and unfortunately this is very difficult with the budget, so I hope to see myself with many musicians, here, on a stage. Then I hope to also see myself calm, well in the countryside, out and about not necessarily always at 2000. Maybe even doing something else, it's not a problem.

The Flash Tour 2024 will leave on May 15th with the sold out at the Largo Venue in his Rome, concerts will then follow May 24th at Bissuola Live in Mestre, del May 25th at the Mi ami Festival in Milan, of 7 June at the Chroma Festival in Bastia Umbra, del June 14th at the Svincolando Festival of Montecassiano, del June 29th at the ARCTIC Festival in Bra and finally the live performance of 4th July at the Popcast Festival in Castiglione della Pescaia.