Person Details

Birthday:

Aliases: Zucchero Fornaciari , Zucchero "Sugar" Fornaciari , Adelmo Fornaciari

Gender: Male

Place of birth: Roncocesi, Reggio Emilia, Emilia-Romagna, Italy

Homepage: https://www.zucchero.it/eng/

Movie Involvements: 17

TV Involvements: 8


Most Famous Work

Biography

Adelmo Fornaciari (born 25 September 1955), known professionally as Zucchero Fornaciari or simply Zucchero, is an Italian singer, musician and songwriter. His stage name is the Italian word for "sugar", as his primary school teacher used to call him. His music is largely inspired by gospel, soul, blues and rock music, and alternates between Italian ballads and more rhythmic R&B-boogie-like pieces. He is credited as the "father of Italian blues", introducing blues to the big stage in Italy. He is one of the few European blues artists who still enjoys great international success. In his career, spanning four decades, Fornaciari has sold over 60 million records around the world, and internationally his most successful singles are "Diamante", "Il Volo/My Love", "Baila (Sexy Thing)/Baila morena", and the duet "Senza una donna (Without a Woman)" with Paul Young. He has won numerous awards, including four Festivalbar, nine Wind Music Awards, two World Music Awards (1993, 1996), six IFPI Europe Platinum Awards, and a Grammy Award nomination. He has collaborated and performed with many famous artists, including Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Brian May, Miles Davis, Ray Charles, Billy Preston, John Lee Hooker, Scorpions, Sheryl Crow, Blues Brothers Band, Elvis Costello, Roland Orzabal, Joe Cocker, Sharon Corr, B. B. King, Sting, Buddy Guy, Bono, Bryan Adams, Mark Knopfler, Iggy Pop, Coldplay, Dolores O'Riordan, Paul Young, Peter Gabriel, Alejandro Sanz, Luciano Pavarotti, and Andrea Bocelli. Adelmo Fornaciari was born 25 September 1955 in Roncocesi, a frazione (small village) near Reggio Emilia. His father, Giuseppe Fornaciari, and mother, Rina Bondavalli, came from rural families. At a young age, he was the goalkeeper of A.C. Reggiana 1919. He spent much of his childhood in the seaside town of Forte dei Marmi (Province of Lucca, Tuscany). There, he sang in the choir and played an organ in the local church. At the age of 12 or 13, he discovered American soul and blues music thanks to an African-American friend who was studying in Bologna and lived near his home. The first song he played to Fornaciari was "(Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay" by Otis Redding, and this immediately inspired his interest in soul music. The friend taught Fornaciari how to play on the guitar songs by Redding, Marvin Gaye, and Sam & Dave. Fornaciari then got together with friends to play rhythm and blues, finding his own way to fuse black music and Mediterranean music. He started writing his own songs when he was 13 or 14 years old, and after learning basic instruments, from 16 he moved on to learning the tenor saxophone. In Forte dei Marmi, he finished his technical high school studies, and moved again, this time to the city of Carrara. ... Source: Article "Zucchero Fornaciari" from Wikipedia in English, licensed under CC-BY-SA.

Most Famous Work

Top of the Pops
Average
7

Top of the Pops

(1964) Self
La chanson de l'année
Average
0
Sanremo Music Festival
Average
8

Sanremo Music Festival

(1951) Self - Special Guest
TV Story Superstar
Average
0

TV Story Superstar

(2020) Self (archive footage)
Willkommen bei Carmen Nebel
Average
4
Die ultimative Chartshow
Average
8
Star Academy
Average
6

Star Academy

(2001) Self
Ennio
Average
8

Ennio

(2022) Self

Acting

Year Character Movie/Tv
2023 Self
2022 Self
2021 Self
Self
2020 Self
Se stesso
Self (archive footage)
2013 Himself
2008 Self
2007 Voce, chitarra acustica, chitarra elettrica, pianoforte
2004 Self
Self
Self
2003 Self
Self
2001 Self
2000 Self
1999 Self
1998 Self
Self
Self
1996 Self
Self
1995 Himself
1992 Self
Self
1987 Self
1982 Self
1976 Self
1974 Self
1964 Self
1951 Self - Special Guest
N/A
N/A
Year Character Movie/Tv

Sound

Year Role Movie/Tv
2023 Original Music Composer
1988 Music
Year Role Movie/Tv

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