“Without a good villain there can be no good story.” Rose Villain, whose stage name contains “villain,” quotes Hitchcock in the hope that her participation in the Sanremo festival will be a good story. Real name Rosa Luini, born in 1989, one achievement after another – from Salmo to Gué – to give Italian rap a voice and a female face, and now the leap.
The weight of expectations?
“I'm Zen at the moment, but I know that I'm going to get upset on the first night… The problem is the excitement of the people around me.” Otherwise, every morning I make myself a broccoli drink for vitamins and study the piece. My singing teacher says I'm a Rottweiler: When Ama calls my name, he lets go of the leash and forces me to sprint.
“Click boom!”, the song, is not a story of empowerment, but the story of a toxic relationship…
“I am at the forefront of advocating for women's rights and I define myself as a feminist. I think there may be room to talk about a feminist who is passive in a relationship and not what she wants to be.”
There are no women in the Italian charts…
“After ten years, I want one of us to win again. But not because it's time for a woman to step forward, but because there are strong artists who shouldn't be punished. I hope for Loredana Berté: I grew up with her and Mia Martini, my favorite woman.
Do you see excesses in political correctness?
“Delicate subject. Many people suffer from their diversity. There must be room for everyone without losing the meritocracy. However, we are still living in a phase in which only this attention can bring about change.”
Rap with its macho models doesn't help…
“The way Pio and Amedeo or Striscia la Nozia talk about women offends me more than Baby Gang's.” I understand the children who grow up angry: if you want to take revenge with rap, you have to be on one express in a certain way. But when I hear them say ‘bitches,’ I’m not happy.”
Does a female prime minister help?
“A man can also fight for women’s rights.”
“Yes, to varying degrees. From cat calling to vulgar messages on social media to attempted rape when I was 18. They stopped me on the street in San Diego and tied me up with plastic straps: I came out unharmed.”
“If I were a man, I would be considered Lazza or Sfera. Sometimes you feel pressure to wear an outfit that shows something.”
So it's wrong for Elodie to show off her body?
Anus. When she was a cubist, she was massacred, and now it's like she's using her past in the series.”
How will you be at Ariston?
“Different from what you imagine: dark and pompous.”
“Radio Gotham” is his first album… Where does this dark soul come from?
“Since childhood, I have felt a restlessness that I cannot escape. Thanks to the outlet that music provides, I manage to prevent it from dominating my life.”
His second album, “Radio Sakura,” will be released on March 8th. Is there light?
“It’s the sequel. The precedent was the shadow, but these songs, which also spoke about mental health and grief, created a human connection for many people. I felt understood and I felt myself blossoming. So here’s the title: Sakura is the cherry blossom in Japan.”
He studied and lived in America…
“A full 14 years… As a child I saw Britney's 'Baby One More Time' on MTV and I knew that was what I wanted to be. My parents wanted me to finish high school, and at 18 I began to pursue my dream: I studied music in Los Angeles and New York. I also signed with Republic Records (Taylor Swift, Drake and The Weeknd's label) but they didn't understand my project. They wanted me to be the pretty girl with the pink bows.
She returned to Italy. A mistake?
“In New York I met an Italian producer, Sixpm, and from the first moment I knew it would suit me musically.” He put me in touch with Guè for “Chico” and I started writing songs in Italian. “
Now Sixpm is her husband and produced “Click boom!”…
“At work he demands the best and sometimes pushes too hard… When we're done he resets everything, sometimes I sulk at him.”