Franco de Vita

Born in Caracas, Venezuela but raised in Rome, Italy until the age of 13, de Vita went on to study piano at university. In 1982, after graduating, de Vita became the lead vocalist, keyboardist and songwriter for the group Icaro and released one self-titled album with the band in 1983. One year later the singer inked a deal with the label Sonográfica, who issued de Vita’s debut solo effort “Franco de Vita” in 1984. The album, which exposed the singer-songwriter’s musical talents to much of Venezuela, spawned the hits “Somos Tres”, “No Hay Cielo”, and “Un Bue Perdedor”. De Vito’s follow-up, 1986’s “Fantasía”, more or less repeated the success of its predecessor, however brought with it the catalyst to de Vita’s international success. The single “Sólo Importas Tú”, taken from the album, later became the soundtrack to the Spanish-speaking telenovela “La Dama De Rosa”, and exposed the singer to a huge international audience.

Franco de Vita subsequently signed with CBS Records to release his third studio album “Al Norte del Sur” in 1988. The album earned widespread commercial success and critical acclaim, and highlighted de Vita’s thoughtful, socially conscious approach to life. Subsequent international hit-singles included “Te Amo” and “Louis”, the latter of which refers to a taxi driver daydreaming about the Beatles. The musician’s fourth full-length “Extranjero”, issued in 1990, built on the success of “Al Norte del Sur” producing the No. 1 U.S. Latin Chart smash hit “No Basta”.

The live release “En Vivo Marzo 16” arrived in 1992, followed by “Voces a mi Alrededor” in 1993, the acoustic “Fuera de Este Mundo” in 1996, and “Nada Es Igual” in 1999. De Vita’s steady stream of well-received original releases continued into the new millennium with the release of the hugely popular “Stop” in 2004, aided by the singles “Tú De Qué Vas” and “Si La Ves”, and “Mil y Una Historias En Vivo” in 2006. The album “Simplemente La Verdad” earned a Latin Grammy nomination for Best Singer-Songwriter Album in 2008, and was succeeded by the live album “En Primera Fila” in May 2011, which won the Latin Grammy Award for Best Male Pop Vocal Album the same year.