Nuova Scena reveals the most hidden side of rap. And judges make the difference

For years we have been that there is no musical genre angrier than rap, but New Scene – Rhythm + Flow Italia he taught us that stereotypes are often an end in themselves, given that rap contains many more nuances than one might think. We notice this in the first three episodes of the talent show visible on Netflix, when in three different urban contexts – Rome, Milan and Naples – young and often inexperienced kids try to gamble everything with the hope of turning a passion into a job. Through bars that reach straight to the three professionals who are preparing to judge them, the aspiring competitors speak of broken humanity, of an underlying anger towards society and poverty, but also of fears, hunger and love with extreme delicacy. The beautiful thing about New Scene it is, however, also reveal the less boastful side of rap, showing kids who, in the throes of emotion and tension, struggle to articulate words, forget their own verses and go into total panic. It happens when there are people on the other side Fabri Fibra, Geolier And Rose Villain to express an opinion, and it happens because it's one thing to improvise a battle in your circle of friends and another to do it in front of the cameras, with dozens of authors following your every step so that the show succeeds in the best possible way.

It wasn't easy to think of a program built on rap – also because all the previous attempts were unsuccessful – but New Sceneperhaps also because behind it there are two giants like Netflix and Fremantle, she managed to create her figure through the adrenaline suggested by the editingthe search for the most particular and evocative peripheral locations – a round of applause for the location manager – and, above all, the construction of a story consistent with the mission that New Scene aims: identify the most promising talents capable of marking the new Italian rap scenewith a prize up for grabs for the winner of 100,000 euros. What makes the difference in this round are, of course, the judges and their respective moods. On the one hand there is Fabri Fibra, perhaps one of the artists most courted by television who, in the human relationship with the competitors, he proves much more understanding and affable than his verses suggest; on the other there is Geolier, which especially after Sanremo has proven to have a grace and elegance that is anything but obvious for a twenty-three year old boy who could have easily gone to his head after the success; and finally on the other there is still Rose Villainwho suffers a bit from the idea of ​​being one of the few women to be taken seriously by the Italian rap scene.

Karim El Maktafi

For the rest, beyond the flows and the bars, to hit of New Scene it's mostly the stories. Stories of life, of pain, of redemption, of the suburbs, of the bourgeoisie, but above all of the desire to make it and to bring out something that everyday life tends to slow down. Rap, with its effervescence and its ability to get straight to the point, it can be an excellent valve to vent something unsaid, and the Netflix talent show tells this very well. Despite the poor valorization of guest stars, like Lazza, Nayt, Nitro, Fred De Palma, Rocco Hunt and others, treated as simple extras, but the question is another: New Scene has he managed to make rap and its mechanisms accessible to a wider audience? We would like to say yes, but the impression is that to give it a chance New Scene especially those who already know rap. Even though we live in 2024, it seems that this musical genre still discounts an unfair tax inherited from a completely different background. New Scene may not have changed many minds, but it could certainly help open a gap to ensure that rap is better understood and accepted by those who have proudly snubbed it until now.

Nuova Scena is written by Dino Clemente, Matteo Lenardon, Paola Papa, Antonio Vicaretti and by Chiara Guerra, Vincenzo Majorana, Marina Pagliari, directed by Alessio Muzi, and arrives in our country after the success achieved in the USA and France. The episodes 5, 6, 7 they will be available from Monday 26 Februarywhile the final gives Monday 4 March.

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