Lorenzo Fragola: “I’m thirty years old and now I do what I want”
The desire to start again, first of all from himself, with rhythms dictated by passion and not by market logic. To find himself, Lorenzo Fragola had to stop for some time, return to his “home” dimension, from a human and artistic point of view. Rediscovering the squares around Italy by organizing a tour in complete autonomy, accompanied by his band, last summer. Leaving behind the years of success brought by the victory of X Factor in 2014, saying no several times, rebuilding a group of trusted people around you. Last week he went on TV, at Le Iene, in front of millions of spectators to say “I’m not dead, here I am”. He thinks of the next Sanremo Festival as an opportunity and today he is ready to present his new single: it is called “Storte” and comes out today, November 26th.
Accompanied by an essential black and white cover, it features in the center the image of a man who seems about to fall, but perhaps begins to fly. A piano and vocal song, with a simple melody, indie sounds and pop production, very close to the new generation of singer-songwriters. As has already happened in the past, this song also features the collaboration of Mameli (as well as Andrea Bonomo), an artist who shares an artistic partnership with Fragola that began some time ago, in addition to his homeland, Sicily. “Storte” is a single far from the torments like “Fuori c’รจ il sole” or “Infinite tempi”, the song that gave him a platinum record and was included in an album, “Bengala”, where we remember the piece “Super Martina”, sung in duet with Gazzelle. A first clue, perhaps, of a musical path that today seems to be taking again.
Lorenzo, where did you start again?
“I started again doing what I like and this is not at all a given, it is a goal that is reached after many years, after many things that don’t convince you. After winning The full awareness of what I was doing. I always hoped that there would come a moment when I could stop and really reflect on what I was doing. That moment only came later but today I know where I want to start again.”
You are thirty years old, you achieved success very young. You participated twice in the Sanremo Festival, you won gold and platinum records. What does it mean to re-enter the world of music?
“I started almost 11 years ago now, I have experienced different moments in my career, since then many things have changed, even in terms of communication. When I started, the radio or TV had enormous weight: if a song was played on the radio or you were invited on TV, it was a fundamental step for success. Today, however, the power to get a song to the public is fragmented, there is no longer a single channel for making music heard. This changes the way we work and how we perceive success a lot.”
Are you working on an album, besides this single?
“I am very happy because I have gathered around me people who have the same vision of music as me, starting with Mameli (Mauro Castiglione) with whom there is a great artistic understanding. Today I find myself working with a different company, Numero Uno (linked to Sony Music Italia), which is smaller, almost independent, and functions a bit like a factory. I have been lucky enough to meet people who have completely embraced my vision, which in the past was not always a given. This for me today is a real finish line”.
Do you have a different approach to working on this album? What directions would you like it to take?
“I don’t know where I would like to place it, I can tell you where I wouldn’t want it. I would like to be fluid from a musical point of view. I don’t know how to say it better: I would like to be able to convey my personality in what I do, letting each project reflect the moment of my life in which it was born. If the listener could perceive that, even when I move in different directions, there is always a bit of me, I would be happy.”
Would you do X Factor again today?
“I’m grateful for that experience, because ultimately it changed my life and allowed me to really start doing what I’ve always wanted: music. I ended up on AX Factor a bit by chance, with a song and a guitar, today those who go on that stage are better prepared. But if I had to recommend it to a young person today, I’d say no. Simply because I believe that there are other spaces, safer and freer, to take the first steps: the web, your own social channels, independent work. I still like it: it’s a good show, it’s still enjoyable to watch. But its formula, in my opinion, is a bit dated. Today, leaving the X Factor no longer guarantees a certain type of visibility, it doesn’t offer that advantage that once came from the television medium.
You participated in the Sanremo Festival twice in a row, ten years have passed since then. Would you like to return to the Ariston stage today?
“We have proposed a song, let’s see what will happen, in any case I will be calm. I would like to return above all to be able to live that experience to the fullest and with more tranquility. I have been there twice, I was very young, now I would return to enjoy those days. They can be very demanding between the competition and the interviews and everything else but today I know it and I would face it with a different approach. During my journey at a certain point I said enough, I am thirty years old and now I do what I want. Years ago it would not have been like this, I would have stopped to think about what the radios, the public, the record companies wanted.”
