I took a break from our story last week to talk about Sanremo. I was very excited for the guys and I’m sure all of you were very happy about the news!

So, let’s get back to the story. We know Piero is on his way to audition for Ti Lascio Una Canzone. That’s one down and two to go. We know Piero almost missed his opportunity. Is it possible Ignazio almost missed his? Let’s go back to Marsala 2008 and see what’s going on with 14-year-old Ignazio.

When we last left Ignazio, he was telling us about a person who was very dear to his family who loaned his parents the money so that he could continue his singing lessons.

So, all was well again, but wait, what’s going on? Ignazio no longer wants to do the competitions! But if he doesn’t compete how will he ever be discovered?

 

I would think that being able to go forward, Ignazio would continue with the lessons and competitions but no, one day it all stopped. It didn’t go away, Ignazio pushed it away. He had all he could take of the competitions. What Ignazio wanted was to be out of the competitions! All the hard work seemed in vain. Facing one competition after another. After a while the stages change but not the faces.

Those who work so hard just to be on that stage and those who walk in and take what rightfully belongs to another.

 

No Ignazio had it. He was done with it. Not with the singing, no that was who he was that was never going away. Singing from morning till night no that wasn’t going to end. No, it was Time to Hang Up the Dreams and walk away from the competitions!

What happened to cause this sudden change in his life’s plan.  I’ll let Ignazio explain it to you….

Instead, I felt like a crap. No, not when they called me to audition, before I felt like crap, so much so that I almost lost it that night when they talked to me for the first time about Ti Lascio Una Canzone. The fact is that competition after competition, year after year, perhaps because I grew up and became less naïve, now I was fourteen, at a certain point in 2008 I realized that, as wonderful as it was, the music world was starting to give me the first disappointments: people who paid to see their child win, recommendations and various scams.

My problem is that I have always been for healthy competition, getting to the first place because a person really deserves to be rewarded as such. But it was not like that anymore. I did not want to participate anymore in any competition. I began to give up many proposals. I was in this terrible mood when, in September of that year, I was offered a competition in Caltanissetta, which was presented by the great Nico dei Gabbiani and he had as president of the jury Franco Fasano, author and composer of songs like ‘Ti Lascero’ who won the Sanremo Festival, and also singer songwriter as ‘E Quel Giorno Non Mi Perderai Piu.’

It seems Ignazio began to realize that life isn’t always fair and there are people in life who cheat you out of the things that can give your life meaning! Can you imagine working so hard and knowing you did your best, but someone walks in and takes it away from you for selfish reasons? That’s a hard lesson to learn at such a young age. I think this experience was one of the things that made Ignazio as compassionate as he is. He didn’t care about winning for himself, he cared about the competition being fair.

Where did he get this sense of fair play? I’m going to venture a guess. I’m getting ahead of the story but, one thing that stands out in my mind is Gianluca’s description of when he met Caterina, Ignazio’s mother, for the first time. He was at the audition for Ti Lascio Una Canzone and he had just come out of the recording room and Caterina told him, “Bravo, that was very good!” Even though she was there for Ignazio’s audition she still took the time to compliment Gianluca. Now that’s a sense of fair play! True integrity! That’s where Ignazio gets it from!

Let’s get back to Ignazio….

Instinctively I said no. I did not want to take part in any competition that could turn out to be made up. But after so many evenings talking to my family and Liliana, who was always present and always ready to give me some advice, I convinced myself. I am happy to say that there are no recommendations in that competition: I reached third place. But the greatest satisfaction was not the result.

 

At the end of the final evening Franco Fasano took the stage, proposing that I do a test in Rome. He did not promise me anything for sure. The test was for a television program that, having seen the great success of the first edition, had reached its second edition.

That program was Ti Lascio Una Canzone.

This story begs us to look at what Ignazio did after he became a star. He didn’t forget about the competitions and the way people used them to advance their children over those who worked so hard and really deserved to win. No, instead from the very first moment when he was successful, he started to help others!

Let’s look at how Ignazio has helped some aspiring young artist.

In February 2014, Katya Pantaleo, a young singer from Marsala, won the Premio della Critica at Sanremo with the song “Come in paradiso” music, lyrics and arrangement by Ignazio. He sure can write those songs!!!

On August 30, 2014, Chiara Cusumano and Giorgia Vassalo, The Duo Sisters, reached the finals of the Festival di Castrocaro, performing a song composed by Ignazio: “Paura d’Amare”.

On February 2, 2014, Ignazio collaborated with singer Roberto Amadè in a project that resulted in a wonderful concert, the Amadè-Boschetto concert which was organized through the Cultural and Artistic Center “Ignazio Boschetto,” with the support of The Town Hall of Marsala. The Teatro Impero archipelago hall has long applauded this initiative which brought together several artists from Marsala.

For those of you who don’t know who Roberto Amadè is, let me tell you a little bit about him and the wonderful work he and Ignazio did together.

Roberto Amadè is an Italian singer and songwriter. He was born in Vercelli, Italy on April 3, 1982. He is the son of Claudio Chapel bassist in the Orchestra of the Teatro alla Scala of Milan since 1979. Like Ignazio, Roberto plays multiple instruments. He graduated from the Albertina Academy of Fine Arts of Turin. One of his works entitled “Abbado” (dedicated to the conductor Claudio Abbado) is on exhibition at the Teatro alla Scala Foundation.

Roberto was very fascinated by music for cinema and in 2008 he composed the soundtrack for the film “La terra nelanque” (The Land in the Blood).

This certainly brings to mind the theme song that Ignazio wrote for the Italian series Màkari! 

In December 2010, Roberto was the winner of Arena Sanremo with the song “Come Poggia,” (Like Rain) and thus was admitted to the 2011 Sanremo Festival where he won third place in the “Young” category. The song “Come Poggia” is arranged by Roberto Amadè together with Celso Valli. (We know the name Celso Valli, he was also one of the producers of Il Volo.)

With his participation in 2011 Sanremo Festival, his debut album “Tutti gli incanti della vita” (All the Charms of Life) was re-released on February 16, 2011, with the new title “Come Poggia,” by Universal Music Group and Roberto, at the time, came under contract with Michele Torpedine. And so, the friendship with Ignazio begins and remains till today.

The Amadè-Boschetto concert was a great collaboration between two amazing entertainers who recognize the value of bringing young aspiring artists front and center and giving them the opportunity they would probably never have without their help.

Let me add to this by recognizing Ignazio’s production company, Floki Productions. At 25 he started his own production company. Does this surprise you? It doesn’t surprise me. It makes a lot of sense to me.

Floki Productions I’m sure is Ignazio’s dream. So, where does the dream begin. It began with Nico Arezzo!

In many ways Nico reminds me of Ignazio. He knows what he wants, and he goes after it. Nico was the first artist to sign a contract with Ignazio under Floki Productions.

You will remember that Ignazio released Nico’s song Gorilla on June 30, 2020 (in the middle of the pandemic) in a “Live on Instagram.” Let’s listen to what Ignazio had to say about that:

On Thursday night we were the first to do a high-quality sound live on Instagram.

People wouldn’t dream of doing what Ignazio did. What a spectacular show!

While the music world was trying to restart, Ignazio, at age 25, made his debut as a producer. And what a phenomenal production it was!

Ignazio tells us…. Production has always been my dream. It started with an idea to give a chance to those who deserve a break. And Ignazio reminds us….as it happened 11 years ago to me, Gianluca and Piero.

That statement truly sums up who Ignazio is!

Following in Ignazio’s footsteps, Nico has gone into production but most recently, Ignazio invited Nico to perform with him in a concert at Milan. A phenomenal performance by two phenomenal men!

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by nico arezzo (@nico_arezzo)

Of course, Ignazio did not stop at Nico. In October 2021, Ignazio signed Giada Luppi. You might say that name is familiar. Giada is a World Champion Figure Skater.

Giada is not only a Championship skater, but also a singer!

Giada has a very clear idea about her future. “I will compete a few more years because I think I have already dedicated so much of my life to skating and then I would like to devote myself completely to music.”

With her debut single, in collaboration with Ignazio and manager Michele Torpedine she entered what she hopes would become her career in the entertainment world.

We are now witnessing this dream to come to life for Giada.

 

Giada’s latest release is Principe is amazing.  She has an amazing voice, and she is starting to share it with us now!

Does it seem to you that Ignazio knows how to pick them? Amazing just like him!

Our story today is not just about a teenager who has to face the realities of life but also what he learned from those realities and how he lives his life because of those realities.

Ignazio has always been very kind and compassionate. He’s always worried about the other guy, and he puts everyone else first leaving what remains for himself!

We’re all so very grateful that when Ignazio felt it was Time to Hang Up the Dreams, he didn’t actually do it. If he did, we would have lost a phenomenal voice not to mention the voices he brought front and center in his passion to help struggling artist!

Join me next week as I go back Through the Fields of My Mind and open the door to a new adventure!

Two down and one to go but we have to wait until January for Gianluca to meet his fate. First, we have to bring in Christmas Il Volo style and of course we need to ring out the old and bring in the new year with the guys. And I need to tell you which picture was the picture of the year for 2023!

*What I have written here are excerpts from the book the guys wrote about their lives. “Il Volo, Un’avventura Straordinario, La Nostra Storia.” (An Extraordinary Adventure, Our Story) This is just a small piece of each mans’ story. The book is written in Italian. If you can read Italian, I would highly recommend that you read it. It’s wonderful! If not, I can only hope that someday it will be translated into English. Or you can use Google Translate to translate it.

I also recommend you read their second book “IL Volo: Quello Che Porto Nel Cuore” (What I Carry in My Heart)

Just in time for Christmas, the guys released a new EP 4Xmas Amazing Grace, O Tannenbaum, Feliz Navidad and Happy Xmas (the War is Over) order yours now on Spotify, Amazon, etc.

If you would like to share a story with me, please email:  susan.flightcrew@yahoo.com

To read more Il Volo stories visit us at http://www.ilvoloflightcrw.com and don’t forget to visit the Archives.

Credit to owners of all photos and videos