Loredana Bertè was the most international Italian ever

Before Madonnawho in 1984 chose to pose in a wedding dress for the cover of “Like a Virgin”, two years after Loredana Bertè had worn that costume in the video clip of “Non sono una donna” and on the Festivalbar stage, in that iconic performance that crowned her victory. Then Lady Gagawho in 2011 showed off on the stage of one of her concerts a fake baby bump wrapped in a black leather dress, very similar to the one that the voice of “You’re beautiful” had shown – causing a stir – at the 1986 Sanremo Festival to the tune of “Re”. Now too Rosaliawho on the cover of her latest album “Lux” is portrayed as a nun, complete with a veil to cover her head, repeating – if we can say so – a provocation also launched by Bertè in 1982, when in the cover photos of “Traslocando” she wore monastic clothes. Agatha Christie said: «A clue is a clue, two clues are a coincidence, but three clues are proof». The images of Loredana Bertè’s life – and career – many of which will be collected in the photographic book “Loredana Bertè – 50 times Beautiful”, to be released on November 25th by Rizzoli (the cover – which you can find below – takes up one of the images, signed by the brilliant Mauro Balletti, Mina’s right-hand man for years, taken on the set of “Traslocando”), testify to an often underestimated truth: the lioness of Italian rock was always ahead of her time.

Always one step ahead

Not only on a musical level, and there is also a lot to say. In 1979 with “And the moon knocked” brought reggae to the top of the Italian charts. In 1980 with the album “Loredanabertè”, that of “On the high seas”, was among the first Italian artists to bring the funk. In 1985 with “Carioca” made Italians discover the myth of Djavanhero of Brazilian popular music whose “Jazz” he had already reinterpreted two years earlier. In 1997 he was among the first protagonists of Italian pop to try his hand at rapwhen the genre was still a niche, with that wonderful experiment that was “Turn of the century rap”, contained in the album “A combat robin”. Not only on a musical level, we were saying: but on a pop culture and customs level more generally. Loredana Bertè embodied, with a ferocious freedom, the ability to always stay one step ahead: in fashions, in images, in the narratives of the body, in the very spirit of pop (just think of her marriage to Björn Borg, which the whole world talked about). It makes you wonder what Loredana Bertè would have been if she had been born artistically today, in the globalized and hyper-connected world of social media and streaming platformsinstead of fifty years ago. We are not exaggerating if we say that she would probably have been the most international Italian artist ever. Because looking at it today, in retrospect, the proof is clear: Bertè was international before Italy even understood what it meant to be one.

How many Italian singers have a video signed by Warhol?

One could not say otherwise of an artist whose human trajectory has met those of giants such as Andy Warhol, Tina Turner, Michael Jackson and Madonna herself. Sometimes even ending up collaborating with us. The American dream chased by Bertè at the end of the 70s brought her to the court of the king of Pop art, who also directed the video clip for “Movie“: “In New York everything was possible. Friendships. Meetings. Partnerships. With Andy Warhol we understood each other, liked and loved each other from the first glance. Far ahead of his time, Andy had shot the video clip for “Movie” for “Made in Italy”. In New York, exactly like in the images shot by Warhol, I walked from one side of the city to the other. There was an atmosphere of discovery. There were friends. There were the nights, the meetings, the adventures, the traveling company. I stopped by Andy’s Factory every day. Warhol was crazy about pasta and I cooked for him and his followers”, she says in the 2015 book “Moving – It went like this”. In 1982, in the midst of the success of “I’m Not a Lady”, she toured local TV in Germany with the Jackson 5: “I was crazy about the Jackson 5 and never left them for the entire duration of the mini-tour. We went clubbing until dawn. I demanded the boom, the photos, the memories and I also met Michael. Over time we became friends and over the years I followed some of his concerts live. In 1988 he performed in Turin. One morning, while I was reading about the preparations in the newspaper, I heard the doorbell ring. He was a driver, a limousine was waiting for me on the street. As in a fairy tale – because Michael lived in fairy tales – he had sent to fetch me to join him. I was left with a jacket that I still have.” And Madonna? «I got to know her well in America. If you want to know, he also stole my Moschino jacket. I was in Los Angeles taking photos for the album and for the newspapers. I arrived and Madonna was there to greet the photographer and she had a slew of stylists. He had suits, jackets, whatever. I arrive with my fantastic Moschino jacket, which I had bought. She looks at me and says “this is beautiful!”. I replied “of course it’s beautiful, it’s mine”. She replies “give it to me”. I said no and she insisted “I want your jacket”. Then the photographer arrives and in the end I had to give it to him.”

At ease in the great salons of international pop culture

Glamorous anecdotes or not, the reports speak of a curious Loredana Bertè, open to the world, at ease in the great salons of art and international pop culture. Reread today, his story almost makes you smile. In 1974 Rai censored the debut album “Streaking”: not only for the provocative themes touched on in the lyrics (“Your stage” contained the word “fuck”, for the first time in the lyrics of a song), but also for theand photographs depicting Bertè naked. The same “You are very beautiful” in 1975 he encountered the ax of censorship, in that case preventive. The original text said: «In bed he always told me / you are worth only a little more than nothing». The CGD record companies, in order not to run into the problems of the previous year again, thought it appropriate to modify it thus: «And then he always told me / you are worth only a little more than nothing». The fake baby bump in Sanremo in 1986 caused her more damage than anything else: the scandals and controversies overwhelmed her and the failure of the operation also led the record company to terminate the contract with her. «I wanted to show that a woman when she is pregnant is not sick but is even stronger. Instead the record company even tore away my recording contract”, Loredana would have said. The fact is that while Italy tried to keep up with her, Loredana always went elsewhere.