Caparezza

Caparezza [kapaˈrɛttsa], meaning "Curly Head" in the Molfetta dialect), is the pseudonym of Michele Salvemini (born 9 October 1973), an Italian rapper. Born in Molfetta, in the southern region of Apulia, Caparezza debuted in 1997 at the Sanremo Festival under the name MikiMix.

Caparezza was born in Molfetta on October 9, 1973. Caparezza’s mother was a teacher and his father was a worker and former musician, so Michele started playing music as a child. He studied accounting, although he dreamed of writing comics. After completing High School, Michele began to work in advertising, and won a scholarship for the Academy of Media and Journalism in Milan. However, he soon decided to leave the advertising world to fully devote himself to music.

Early career

Salvemini began his career as MikiMix, a b boy pop singer, releasing the album La mia buona stella. This early release was not well received; Allmusic gave the album 2.5 stars out of 5. He also anchored the broadcast Segnali di Fumo (Smoke Signals) together with Paola Maugeri on the Video Music Italian channel. After performing in Milan’s pubs, MikiMix made his debut at the Castrocaro Music Festival and subsequently participated in two Sanremo Festivals in the New Generation section, in 1995 and in 1997.

From Mikimix to Caparezza

Caparezza in concert in Turin, 2006

Salvemini returned to Molfetta with no intention to further pursue a musical career but soon began to compose music in his garage. He also stopped cutting his hair and beard and changed his pseudonym from MikiMix to Caparezza ("Curly Head" in the Apulian dialect). In 2000 he published his first album under his new stage name, ?!. In the album, he rejects the music he produced as MikiMix in favor of his new musical style. Reviewing the album for Allmusic, Jason Birchmeier wrote "The Italian rapper drops his rhymes with just as much fluency and dexterity as his American peers throughout the album. [...] Caparezza's mastery of the Italian dialect [makes] this album so stunning."

Salvemini's fourth abum and second album under the name Caparezza, Verità Supposte, Supposed Truths (note that in Italian supposte can mean both supposed and suppositories), led him to success in 2003–2004. His fifth album, Habemus Capa (a pun on the habemus papam statement with which the Catholic church announces a new pope), is a criticism of society's contradictions. Salvemini imagines his death and his descent to Hell, which is actually our world, describing a dreadful aspect of modern society in every song. It was released in 2006.

In 2008 he released his sixth album, Le dimensioni del mio caos (The Dimensions Of My Chaos), a concept album involving a time-warped hippie and social commentary regarding modern society. In a mixed review, Allmusic writer Mariano Prunes called it "ambitious but definitely overreaching", saying that "its length and unyielding energy can get grating as it goes along".

After the release of Habemus Capa and before releasing Le dimensioni del mio Caos, Caparezza also published a book in 2008, Saghe Mentali, a humorous description of his discography, including the soon to be released Le dimensioni del mio Caos, using a different literary style for each album.

On 28 January 2011, he published the first single from the seventh album Il sogno eretico, entitled "Goodbye Malinconia", featuring Tony Hadley of Spandau Ballet. Il sogno eretico (The heretic dream) is a concept album that urges its listeners to reject tenets and dogma and to use critical thinking. The songs allude to historic figures who were labeled heretics, including Galileo Galilei, Joan of Arc, Giordano Bruno and Girolamo Savonarola. Salvemini links the lives of these figures to topical interests for the purpose of interpreting widely known facts from a different angle. In the song La fine di Gaia Caparezza addresses end of the world prophecies (denying their validity) and various conspiracy theories, while in other songs he discusses religion, politics, misbehavior and attitudes towards wealth and power.

Michele sings together with Diego Perrone, who replaced Stefano Ciannamea (the creator, and now administrator of Caparezza’s official web site.) Diego Perrone is also the lead singer in the band Medusa. Caparezza was also a member of Sunny Cola Connection, a group who sings in the Apulian dialect. He has also worked with many other musicians, like the Italian rappers Puni, Piotta, 99 Posse (Tarantelle pé campà) and Mondo Marcio and with pop musician Roy Paci & Aretuska, and with Medusa.

Caparezza’s band includes Rino Corrieri (drums), Gaetano Camporeale (keyboards), Giovanni Astorino (bass) and Alfredo Ferrero (guitar).

Caparezza's "Fuori dal tunnel" enjoyed great success in Italy as a "summer hit"; however, the singer opposes the song's use in clubs and on television, because it is meant to denounce the de–individualization of entertainment. However, the contract with his record label barred him from preventing its use in the commercials or TV broadcasts criticized in the song. Another song on Verità Supposte is "Vengo dalla Luna", which tells the story of an alien (Caparezza) who comes to Earth and is astonished by humanity's intolerance of different races and cultures. The song opposes prejudice toward immigrants. In Habemus Capa songs include "La mia parte intollerante" which again discusses marginalization (that song talks about a marginalized 16-year-old boy). On the fourth album, the song "Eroe" (also known as "Luigi delle Bicocche") tells the story of a blue-collar worker who manages to support a family while resisting the temptations of loan sharks and draw poker, hailing him as a true hero. "Vieni a ballare in Puglia" discusses current economic and environmental issues in Puglia; the "Caduti del lavoro", the forest fires in Gargano and the air pollution in Taranto. This song, like "Fuori dal tunnel", was generally misunderstood by the mainstream public who generally failed to understand its satirical nature and often interpreted it as a song praising the rapper's homeland.

The music of Caparezza is predominately described as hip hop, but has a diverse and unique sound. Allmusic writer Mariano Prunes describes Caparezza as "[defying] classification with his fascinating cross-contamination of styles" He describes the music of Le Dimensioni del Mio Caos as rap and heavy metal. Caparezza's lyrics focus on subjects such as personal honesty and the hypocrisy of the music industry.

Caparezza is highly influenced by Frank Zappa, whom Caparezza considers his "mentor". Caparezza criticizes society and politics with sharp irony in contexts which are often fantastic and unreal. Caparezza's lyrics include unusual metaphors, and references to movies, comics, commercials, TV broadcasting, classic writers, other musicians. Many of these metaphors are subtle and thus difficult to identify or fully understand.

• Tengo duro (1997; as Mikimix)
• La mia buona stella (1997; as Mikimix)
• ?! (2000)
• Verità supposte (2003)
• Habemus Capa (2006)
• Le dimensioni del mio caos (2008)
• Il sogno eretico (2011)
• Museica (2014)