Tag: Radar Italia

RADAR Italia Celebrates 5 Years of Success With a New Class of Rising Stars

June 18, 2025

Since popping up in 2020, RADAR Italia has not only supported emerging artists but also reflected the cultural and musical richness of Italy. Over the past five years, it has spotlighted more than 40 rising talents, helping them grow and often gain international recognition. In turn, these diverse voices have made Italy’s music scene more inclusive, representative, and attuned to a new generation of fans with their unique sounds.

“This anniversary is a chance to celebrate the achievements of the many artists who have been part of the program. For five years, RADAR Italia has been a reference point for emerging talent, offering not just visibility but also concrete tools to grow and carve out a space in music,” said Melanie Parejo, Head of Music for South and Eastern Europe at Spotify. “But our commitment goes beyond selection: We support them at every stage of their journey, helping build authentic connections with audiences and explore new creative opportunities. RADAR is a bridge between artists and the millions of listeners looking for new voices and stories to discover.”

RADAR Italia has served as a launchpad for many artists, with the likes of BLANCO, Mara Sattei, Tony Boy, ARIETE, and Rhove representing some of the most influential voices in Italian music today.

On average, our featured RADAR Italia artists experience over a 100% increase in streams and an almost 200% increase in listeners within a year of joining the program. That includes BigMama, who went from 11,000 monthly listeners before joining RADAR Italia in 2021 to over 800,000 listeners by the time she took the stage at Sanremo in 2024. 

“Being part of Spotify RADAR was a milestone in my career, and I hope it will be the same for the young artists selected this year,” said BigMama. “Most importantly, the collaboration with Spotify doesn’t end when the program does—it continues over time, because when you become part of RADAR, you’re part of a family forever.”

Celebrating five years with RADAR Italia’s Class of 2025

To mark the fifth anniversary of RADAR Italia, Casa Spotify hosted a special event to both reflect on the program’s achievements and present the artists featured in the 2025 edition: Marte, Carla Hero, Emma Nolde, Glocky, Sayf, and camoufly.

RADAR Italy Returns With 6 Artists Transforming the Country’s Music Landscape

April 24, 2024

As Spotify’s program to spotlight rising talent from around the world, RADAR supports emerging artists on their journeys to global stardom. Since its launch in 2020, RADAR has featured more than two dozen up-and-coming Italian artists. From BLANCO to BigMama, ARIETE to Il Tre, Rhove to NASKA, many of these entertainers have leveraged RADAR to boost their profiles and connect with new fans near and far.

Now we’re launching our fourth edition of RADAR Italy, featuring Tony Boy, okgiorgio, Coca Puma, STE, Sally Cruz, and centomilacarie.

This group reflects the wide range of styles and genres that extend across the country. They’re driving music trends, influencing everything from rap to electronic to a Gen Z wave of fluid, genreless sounds. As part of the program, all receive Spotify support through a dedicated playlist, special editorial placement, and personalized marketing plans.

To introduce—and celebrate—this year’s class, we brought all six artists to Milan for our first-ever RADAR live event in Italy. Along with performances from our guests of honor, content creator Federico Felletti also interviewed each artist.

Keep reading to get to know these rising stars.

Tony Boy

Amid the growing popularity of rap in Italy, Tony Boy is one to watch closely. The young artist has made a name for himself as an urban singer-songwriter with a penchant for introspective storytelling. His new album, NOSTALGIA (export), is a strong follow-up to his earlier work, including 2020’s Going Hard and 2023’s Umile.

okgiorgio

As RADAR Italy’s first producer and DJ, okgiorgio sits at the forefront of the country’s electronic music scene. The artist pulls from genres like stutter house and U.K. garage to create music with equal parts emotion and danceability.

Coca Puma

Newcomer Coca Puma is a singer-songwriter, producer, and musician who combines genres such as indie, dream pop, nu jazz, and electronica. Her recent debut album, Panorama Olivia, showcases a unique approach to music that has been influenced by her experiences traveling abroad, jazz studies, and eclectic listening habits.

STE

Neapolitan music has emerged as a national phenomenon in recent years, and rap remains a prominent part of the city’s music culture. But R&B is also on the rise, and STE is one of Naples’ most promising representatives, fusing the rhythms of contemporary R&B with Afrobeats and traditional Neapolitan sounds.

Sally Cruz

With the release of her first single, “UN DISASTRO,” Sally Cruz launched her music career in 2022 just as pop punk was beginning to trend in Italy. Today, the artist is also influenced by urban and electronic sounds, evidenced by “LA NOTTE,” her collaboration with thasup and Mike Defunto that recently landed on Spotify’s Hot Hits Italia playlist.

centomilacarie

Centomilacarie, who has been playing music since the age of four, mixes raw and unfiltered songwriting with a diverse sonic palette to create a style all his own. Most recently, the artist collaborated with MACE on two songs from the Italian producer’s latest album, MĀYĀ.

Stream our RADAR Italia playlist to discover more emerging Italian artists.

RADAR Italia Returns With 6 Artists Who Are Changing the Face of Italian Pop

April 12, 2023

Since its launch in 2020, RADAR has served as Spotify’s program to showcase emerging artists from all around the world, supporting them and taking their talents to the global musical stage. 

Now, we’re launching our third edition of RADAR Italia, featuring Assurditè, Asteria, Camilla Magli, Icy Subzero, Naska, and piazzabologna.

These six artists reflect the kaleidoscope of new pop sounds taking Italy by storm. And as part of the program, they will all receive Spotify support in the form of a dedicated playlist, special editorial placement, and personalized marketing plan.

In the previous editions of the program, 24 artists significantly increased their audiences, and many found new fans from other parts of the globe. 

  • Rhove was the first Italian artist to be named one of Spotify’s RADAR Global artists, reflecting the worldwide potential of Italian music. He saw his daily Spotify listens increase by 775% globally following his RADAR participation, and his hit single “Shakerando“ caught fire last year, becoming Spotify’s second-most-streamed song in Italy in 2022.
  • BLANCO has seen his career hit new heights since taking part in RADAR Italia. In 2022, he partnered with Mahmood on the Sanremo-winning track “Brividi,” which conquered the record for the most-listened-to song in a single day in Italy in the history of Spotify. And globally, he’s seen his Spotify streams grow by 3,000%.
  • ARIETE rode the wave of her RADAR momentum in 2022, increasing her worldwide followers by 560% and her number of global Spotify streams by 160%.

Our latest rising stars showcase the innovation and experimentation coming from the world of Italian pop as well. 

“Spotify has always aimed to capture the ways that music and culture are constantly evolving in our different markets,” said Melanie Parejo, Spotify Head of Music for Southern Europe. “One thing we’ve noticed are more fluid styles that can’t be easily categorized. The six artists selected for the 2023 edition of RADAR Italia fully represent this phenomenon, with a pop sound that’s varied and inclusive of many genres.”

Get to know the six artists participating in the 2023 edition of RADAR Italia. 

Icy Subzero 

Born in Rome, Icy Subzero (aka Matteo D’Alessio) is a young and promising artist who is infusing Italian pop with a dose of rap. After first releasing a string of singles between 2019 and 2020, Icy Subzero upped the ante with his 2022 EP, Sottozero. Featuring tracks like “EGO” and “MUJER,” which were certified Gold and Platinum in Italy, respectively, the album gave the Italian rapper his first taste of fame.

Naska 

When it comes to Italian pop’s punk influences, Naska (aka Diego Caterbetti) is a shining example of this new trend. As soon as he finished high school, he moved to Milan to focus on his musical journey. Growing up with the pop-punk hits of Blink 182 and Sum 41, he later became passionate about the American emo trap scene led by Lil Peep.

Assurditè

Chiara Balzan (aka Assurditè) is a singer-songwriter from the Milanese hinterland. Capable of transporting us into a colorful, sparkling, and ironic world, ​​Assurditè blends indie with R&B, and delicacy with coolness.

Asteria

Asteria (aka Anita Ferrari) is a 23-year-old Bergamo native. With lyrics that reflect the constantly changing and chaotic circumstances of modern society, this singer-songwriter takes us on a journey through her mysterious and nocturnal soundscapes.

Camilla Magli

Born and raised in Carovigno (BR), this Italian singer-songwriter first appeared on Italy’s version of X Factor in 2014. Since this appearance, she’s further developed her sound, combining poetic and introspective songwriting with melodic and dreamlike atmospheres.

piazzabologna

While the project may appear to be helmed by a single person, piazzabologna is actually a collective made up of several vocalists and instrumentalists. Their songs represent the natural evolution of Italian indie with an eye constantly fixed on Italy’s pop canon. This trait is exemplified by their single “Per sentirsi meno soli.”

Like what you heard? Discover the artists who are reinventing Italian pop on our playlist RADAR Italia.