Hit Week 2011 – The young Italian music is coming to L.A., New York and Miami!

“Hit Week” is coming to LA again. Forget about the old Italian music you are used to listen abroad and discover the newest and the most acclaimed bands of Italy!
The first idea for Hit Week came out in 2007 with the mission to convey to the world the contemporary Italian music. The first edition arrived in 2009, when Los Angeles hosted for 10 days bands and singers like Franco Battiato, Negrita, Giovanni Allevi, Afterhours, Africa Unite, Linea 77, Calibro 35, Belladonna, The Niro, Marco Fabi and Jesus Was Homeless. The best of the Italian “panorama”.

The success of the event was even bigger than any expectation and the audience was enthusiastic of listening to something new instead of the old Italian hits most Americans know. Very important, the audience was composed also by many young Americans who simply loved the new Italian sound.

Thanks to this success, for the next year “Hit Week” also decided to reach New York. Elisa, Negrita, Ludovico Einaudi, Roy Paci & Aretuska, Giovanni Alle- vi, Après La Classe and many others hit the East and the West Coast for an incredibly fun week. The same Minister of Youth Giorgia Meloni took part to the opening night, being the main supporter of the event together with the Ministry of Economic Development, the National Institute of Foreign Trade, Apulia Region, the Italian Culture Institutes of New York and Los Angeles.

Also, trough a special contest, two beginner bands (Thank You For The Drum Machine and My Awsome Mixtape) had the chance to join the main artists. Good way to start their career! The Italian television Mtv Italia supported the event and showed some special episodes of “Hit Week 2010”. What are we going to see this year? Last September 30 La Città del Gusto (The City of Taste) in Rome, Italy, hosted the final contest of “Hit Week” where two beginner bands have been chosen for the 2011 edition. Serpenti (exciting electro dance sound!) and Lamigdala (voice/guitar and drums for an alternative Pop-Rock duo) have been voted solidly by the jury as best beginner bands: we will see them in United States in a few days together with Subsonica, Caparezza, Nicola Conte, Casino Royale, Après la Classe and Erica Mou.

Starting October 9, the Festival will reach Los Angeles, New Y ork and Miami, the new entry for year 2011. The bands will get into the most important cities for music business and will have the chance to present themselves to a broader audience. The Festival will be in Los Angeles October 11, 12 and 13. Here is a brief introduction to the bands for those who haven’t had the chance to meet them yet.

Subsonica: one of the most popular rock band in Italy! Formed in Turin in 1996 by producer and Africa Unite guitarist Max Casacci and singer Samuel Romano, Subsonica are also Boosta, Ninja and Vicio, and are one of the most interesting bands of the moment.

Casino Royale: their name is inspired by Ian Fleming’s saga. Casino Royale started their career in 1987 and are still exploring different music territories: black rock, reggae, hip hop, dub and funk.

Caparezza: his name means “Curly Head”. When he decided to grow his hair he also changed his name from Mikimix into Caparezza. Michele Salvemini (his real name) often collaborates with worldwide active associations such as Emergency, Greenpeace, Legambiente and Medici Senza Frontiere.

Après la Classe: they joined “Hit Week” in 2010. Audience must have loved them because they are coming back this year! The band was formed in 1996 in Puglia, “the heel of Italy”. “Mammalitaliani” is their third album and will be presented in the US for the first time; an album that mixes folk music with electronic and original songwriting. Après la Classe are Cesko (voice, guitar), Puccia (voice, accordion, keyboards,) Combass (bass), Rekkia (drums).

Erica Mou: born in 1990, Erica is one of the youngest songwriters in Italy and has already collected a high number of awards. Her new album includes Oltre, theme of the movie “I baci mai dati” by Roberta Torre, the only Italian movie at Sundance Film Festival and one of the most acclaimed at the last Venice Film Festival.

“Hit Week” was made possible also by important commercial partners like Gibson, Ducati, San Pellegrino, Antinori, Aperol, Aqua Panna, Bisol, Consorzio del Prosciutto di San Daniele, Birra Oro di Milano, KCRW (the most important radio dedicated to World Music in the USA), and to the partnership with the California’s Universities.

Moreover, thanks to a special agreement between the National Institute of Foreign Trade, the Ministry of Economic Development and the Federation of Italian Music Industry (FIMI), in 2010 the biggest American operators took part to the exhibitions in Los Angeles in order to listen to the singers’ performances and close several commercial agreements for the United States, and will be at “Hit Week” this year again.

We can’t wait for the shows! See you at Catalina Jazz Club, El Rey Theatre and Key Club. For a more detailed program of “Hit Week” visit the official website www.hitweek.it

Alessandra Mastroianni
Contributor