Shiva

Rapper Andrea "Shiva" Arrigoni, born in 1999, has been active on the scene since 2015 and has two youthful albums to his name: the adolescent, gothic-tinged "Tempo anima" (2017) and the far more trap-leaning "Solo" (2018). The single "Auto Blu" (2020) raised fears of an early end to his career. "Dolce vita" (2021), however, continues down the path of a trap sound backed by full command of rhyme and, finally, production to match. The commercial outcome is, relatively speaking, disappointing: just a gold record. "Milano Demons" (2022), propelled by the viral TikTok hit "Take 4", achieves the hoped-for success instead, helped along by numerous collaborations. The formula is repeated on "Santana Season" (2023). In October 2023 he is arrested for attempted murder and illegal possession of weapons, spends a few months in prison, releasing "Milano Shotta Freestyle" from his cell in January 2024, and then moves to house arrest, marking the occasion with the track "First Day Out" in May. While it remains to be seen whether his six-and-a-half-year sentence will be confirmed, an album arrives that is hard not to read in light of this experience: "Milano Angels" (2024). He contributes to Sfera Ebbasta's "Santana Money Gang" (2025) and returns to his solo discography with "Vangelo" (2026): the moments of apparent redemption after his legal troubles already feel far behind him.

(Antonio Silvestri)