Madame

For Francesca Calearo, born in 2002 in the province of Vicenza and better known as Madame, the career began at just sixteen: in 2018 came her platinum-certified single "Sciccherie", which introduced the world to her slurred diction, explosive emotionality and genuine pursuit of a contemporary expressive language blending hip-hop, trap and r'n'b.

Signed to Sugar, managed by Paola Zukar — the definitive manager of Italian rap — and buoyed by a string of high-profile collaborations, she arrives at the Sanremo Festival in 2021 with "Voce", later certified quadruple platinum, then debuts with the album "Madame" (2021), double platinum, and doubles down on that success with "Marea", a triple-platinum summer single.

She quickly becomes the rising star of the scene, at least on the female side, but the celebration of her success, and the satisfaction of public curiosity, are long delayed by the pandemic's upheavals. She fills the waiting time with numerous collaborations with MACE, Rkomi, Massimo Pericolo, Emis Killa, Marco Mengoni, Ariete and many others, as well as a handful of singles, among which "Tu mi hai capito" (feat. Sfera Ebbasta) stands out especially for its streaming numbers.

After appearing at Sanremo 2023 comes the long-awaited, ambitious and explicit second album: "L'amore" (2023). "Disenchantment" (2026) sees her return after a couple of years of lower media exposure, and seems to find a synthesis between the first two chapters of her discography, helped along by production led by Bias.

(Antonio Silvestri)