Irama (born Filippo Maria Fanti on 20 December 1995), is an Italian singer and songwriter, who draws on a background in freestyle rap competitions for his stylized Italian pop. Born in Carrara, Italy and now based in Milan, he wrote his first song at age seven. Later in childhood, he discovered hip-hop and started taking part in freestyle competitions with friends. In 2016, his debut single, "Cosa resterà", competed in the Sanremo Music Festival, making it to the top 8 of the Newcomers' competition. The song was later included on his eponymous debut album, which was released on 12 February 2017. Irama's commercial breakthrough followed in 2018, when he won the 17th season of the talent show Amici di Maria De Filippi. Subsequently, he released his second album, titled Giovani, which debuted at #1 on the Italian Album Chart. In 2019, Irama competed in the Sanremo Music Festival again, this time in the Big Artists' competition. His entry, "La ragazza con il cuore di latta", which eventually finished 7th in the festival, also served as the lead single of Giovani per sempre, a reissue of his previous album.