"In the age of hits, likes and views, if I tried to do what my father did more than sixty years ago I could never succeed."
The surname Morandi, the fourth and last child of Gianni (had by his second wife Anna Dan), he left at home: the road is his, whether it is uphill or downhill, and he is looking for it under the name of Tredici Pietro in homage to the Bolognese “balotta”, his clique of friends. Because if there is one thing he has in common with his father Gianni, besides the love for music, it is the desire to smile and be in company.
The rapper's new album is out on Friday, April 4, digitally and physically: it's called "Non guardare giù" (Epic Records/Sony Music Italy). A journey through different musical styles, from trap to acoustic, from old school rap to drum & bass, until touching on Italian soul and rock. Each song is a stage of authentic artistic and personal growth that is also reflected in the profound lyrics, in which he leaves room for universal themes always bringing them back to more intimate reflections.
An album that «is very important to me, I would say consecrating» and that he can't wait to take around Italy and also to his beloved Sardinia: « I've visited it far and wide, from Cagliari to Porto Cervo. A place of the heart? Carloforte, of course ». Location of the successful series “L'isola di Pietro” starring Gianni Morandi, a great success on the small screen that had the merit of bringing the singer from Monghidoro back into the arms of another love of his, acting.
Twenty-eight years old, Pietro Morandi left Bologna five years ago to move to Milan. Passionate about music since he was a child («Even though my family wasn’t exactly happy with this path»), he has to deal, like everyone else in his generation, and not only, with « a world where only performance and perfection count, where you win or lose. We know, or at least we are convinced, that we won’t do better than our parents».
And he knows something about unattainable goals: « My father, the son of a shoemaker and a housewife, is the representative of the Italy of the economic boom, of a country that made it. The constant comparison with him is exhausting but I realize that perhaps it is an inevitable retaliation for me. I try to make my own music. I have nothing to do with what he was musically and I have never tried to exploit him ». For years he was a victim of impostor syndrome « then, thanks to therapy, I overcame it. The reason is that many things did not go well for me. And then I understood that if I succeeded or failed it was because of my own merit or fault».
This is where “Don’t look down” comes from: « A provocation, an invitation not to let yourself be taken by despair. It means not to pay attention to the disaster that is under our feet, don’t stop: go forward trying to be less afraid».
The days of his debut in 2018 with the first single Pizza e Fichi are far away. Today Pietro is one of the most interesting artists on the Italian urban scene and presents a project that explores fragility, insecurities and internal challenges, offering the public an authentic and sincere portrait of his evolution, developed during writing sessions in Umbria. The singles “verità” (verity) and “morire” (die) with Nerissima Serpe, and “Serve amore” (need love) with Irbis anticipated it. And on TikTok “Tempesta” feat. Lil Busso and PSICOLOGI, colleagues and friends with whom he had already collaborated in the past. For the production of the album he relied on Sedd and Fudasca, and a great team of producers composed of Tommaso Ottomano, Galeffi Bros, Chakra, Mantovani, Milanezie, kofi bae, Drast, Rivaundici, Verano, Kermit and Cali Low. “Non guardare giù” comes after the singles “HIGH” and “BIG PANORAMA” and after the joint album “LOVESICK” with Lil Busso, released in December 2022.
From digital platforms to Sanremo is a moment: "I tried this year - he confesses - but it didn't work. Another proof, if there was any need, that I'm not recommended".
