Biography
Mariella Nava, born February 3, 1960, in Taranto, earned equal acclaim for her own recordings and for the material she supplied to other performers. She entered the industry in 1986 by writing “Questi figli” for Gianni Morandi. Participation at the Sanremo Music Festival followed in both 1987 and 1988 with the entries “Fai piano” and “Uno spiraglio al cuore,” tracks that appeared together on her debut album, Per paura o per amore. The 1989 sophomore release Il giorno e la notte contained “Dentro di me,” a song banned from airplay for its frank sexual imagery; regular appearances on Maurizio Costanzo’s television program nevertheless turned the track into her first major hit.
Two further Sanremo submissions arrived in 1991: Nava performed “Gli uomini” herself and placed it on that year’s album Crescendo, while Renato Zero interpreted the moving “Spalle al muro,” which reached second place and unexpectedly elevated her profile. She and Zero also performed the duet “Crescendo” together at Festivalbar. From that point forward she moved fluidly between supplying songs for artists such as Andrea Bocelli, Syria, Mietta, Loredana Bertè and Lucio Dalla and maintaining her own recording career. Repeated Sanremo appearances marked the 1990s and early 2000s, including a third-place finish in 1999 with “Così è la vita” and a 2000 duet with Amedeo Minghi on “Futuro con te.”
During the same span she issued the albums Mendicante e altre storie (1992), Scrivo (1994), the anthology Uscire (1995), Dimmi che mi vuoi bene (1998), Così è la vita (1999), Pazza di te (2000) and Questa sono io (2002). The 2004 set Condivisioni featured the duet “It’s Forever” with Dionne Warwick, later adopted as the official anthem of the 2005 world ski championships. Nava joined the cast of the reality series Music Farm in 2005 and released Dentro una rosa two years later. At the close of 2007 she offered the new song “Stasera torno prima” exclusively online as a tribute to victims of workplace accidents.
Two further Sanremo submissions arrived in 1991: Nava performed “Gli uomini” herself and placed it on that year’s album Crescendo, while Renato Zero interpreted the moving “Spalle al muro,” which reached second place and unexpectedly elevated her profile. She and Zero also performed the duet “Crescendo” together at Festivalbar. From that point forward she moved fluidly between supplying songs for artists such as Andrea Bocelli, Syria, Mietta, Loredana Bertè and Lucio Dalla and maintaining her own recording career. Repeated Sanremo appearances marked the 1990s and early 2000s, including a third-place finish in 1999 with “Così è la vita” and a 2000 duet with Amedeo Minghi on “Futuro con te.”
During the same span she issued the albums Mendicante e altre storie (1992), Scrivo (1994), the anthology Uscire (1995), Dimmi che mi vuoi bene (1998), Così è la vita (1999), Pazza di te (2000) and Questa sono io (2002). The 2004 set Condivisioni featured the duet “It’s Forever” with Dionne Warwick, later adopted as the official anthem of the 2005 world ski championships. Nava joined the cast of the reality series Music Farm in 2005 and released Dentro una rosa two years later. At the close of 2007 she offered the new song “Stasera torno prima” exclusively online as a tribute to victims of workplace accidents.
Albums
Singles
