This article was published in issue 28-29 of Vanity Fairon newsstands until July 19.
Talk with Tananai it’s like taking a crash course in Milanese youth slang. If something amuses him “breaks” him, the things that are part of a trend are “in a wave”, obviously he “flips” when he has a passion, and if he is prepared on a topic he is “very skilled”. Then there is the more traditional “all fat dripping”, which somewhat summarizes his initial reaction to the news that he would have participated in Sanremo last February. The last place in the standings, on the other hand, was of a completely different nature, with a thought that went like this: «Let’s make sure that after the Festival I find myself a real job». Instead Tananai did not need it, on the contrary he overturned the table as just a Vasco Rossi from the beginning. While televoting ditched him, his song Casual sex he took possession of our minds, blasting his way with “Baby, come back to me, and throw that gun away.” A viral video in which he celebrated the worst placement on the scoreboard like a triumph did the rest. And we asked ourselves: who is that guy who makes us laugh?
Here he is, Alberto Cotta Ramusino. Unkempt hair like Timothée Chalamet, wrinkled air, dark circles, white smile, white shirt, natural sympathy. Twenty-seven years old, he comes from Cologno Monzese, on the outskirts of Milan. A platinum with Casual sexone double with Baby Goddamna summer tour in the main Italian festivals and now the single-hit of the summer, The sweet lifewith Fedez and Mara Sattei, and a new piece, Pastawith hit potential.
Has passed by …
“From rags to riches.”
I meant from the niche to the mainstream.
“Personal satisfaction is a thousand, the question of happiness is different.”
Because?
«Expectations also rise, now I can fall higher and hurt myself more. I am a little more aware ».
What do they tell you when they stop you on the street?
«’Baby, come on what is it?’, Always. And then I am pleased when they ask me for advice on how to do it. “
What do you answer?
“To insist. If you make music you have to be consistent, you don’t have to do it for results. Because you take a lot of doors in your face. Another piece of advice is to try not to suck ”.
You are welcome?
“Musically, I mean.”
Doors in the face taken: an estimate?
“On the order of hundreds.”
What did they tell her?
“The last email before starting the Tananai project, when I was still Not For Us, said:”Sorry, but you are not for us “, sorry but you’re not doing it for us. I wrote those names (laughs, ed) “.
Tananai means “little pest”.
“My paternal grandfather gave me the nickname. As a child I used to mess at his house, I broke everything, there is still a hole in a tile that I have dug for years ».
Is it still a plague?
“Oh yeah. I’m just a bit more mature in choosing where to mess, I’m not going to put myself in bad situations ».
What kind of trouble is this?
“Casini in relationships. When I party, I really party. And in my lives I always do a brothel ».
Are you the nice guy of the group, the one who makes everyone laugh?
“Yes, but I’m also the one who gets the worst of it.”
Let’s talk about the dark side of Tananai.
«When I am with others it is because I want to be there, but it is more times that I prefer to be alone. I’m a sensitive and a bit humoral type ».
In an old piece, Wanting badlyhe sang: «We have been under the cash register of half of Europe, torn apart with anxiety and drugs».
“In that song I was talking about the relationship with a person, the anxiety between us, the first parties as kids, the experiences with drugs. But in reality I never had a real relationship with drugs, in the past I tried something but I never liked it, I felt that my personality was canceled, that I lost the sense of myself “.
And then there is anger.
“Anger and FOMO, the problems of my generation.”
The FOMO (fear of missing out) is the anxiety of being excluded from pleasant events or experiences.
“This is serious. Last summer I spent it all in FOMO, I had an irrepressible desire to eat the evenings, the people, and at the same time the fear of missing the party or the meeting that could change my life. I was always around and very tired ».
«Life without love, tell me what life is it», she sings with
Fedez. Agree?
«Life without love is bad. You have to be in love, curious, it’s not just the feeling for a person “.
She is engaged to Sara.
“I’ve been lucky for three years. She is a sensitive girl, she helps me to face difficulties, and she is beautiful ».
How did you meet?
«By chance one evening in a club in Milan. She came to me and she said: maybe I know who you are. She followed me on Instagram, when nobody was spinning me yet. Then she went to her friends of hers, after a while she came back to ask me for a cigarette, I offered her a drink and I attached a piece to her (attached button, ed). She couldn’t take it anymore and she has me
said: but shut up! And he gave me a kiss. ‘
So he’s not the casual sex type?
«They are more serious stories, I am interested in knowing a person, sucking as much as possible and giving as much as possible. With casual sex you can do it, but up to a certain point. ”
“The patch” he posted in the club about what was it?
“About architecture. I told Sara the whole story of the place where we were, Macau, a former slaughterhouse ».
In fact, you studied Architecture.
“Two years. I am fascinated by the idea that people live their lives and create their memories inside a house, it’s like with songs, you associate experiences with objects, this thing has always made me flipping. But architecture was not for me ».
He wanted to make music. Did her parents agree?
“They supported me. My father is a dentist, but he never wanted me to do his job, he knew I wouldn’t be happy. Then, fortunately, there is my sister who makes them canonically proud, she has two degrees and is a teacher. If it goes badly, you can support me. “
Didn’t success bring you money?
“I’m better than before, the only thing that has changed is that I now live in a nice apartment in Milan alone, without roommates. Machines and brands don’t interest me ».
Sanremo, the turning point.
“It was not easy to make it last in the standings, I thought I had thrown away the opportunity, I told myself that I would have to find a job to support myself after the Festival, but at the same time I was very sure of my song”.
Are you following the public debate on young people and work? The former are accused of not wanting to make sacrifices, the employers of exploitation.
«For me the rhetoric of the pat on the back as gratification does not exist. We are already an unfortunate generation, we have found a world that if it does not collapse before the age of 70 is all dripping fat. We cannot afford to spend our time being exploited ”.
Did you do any other work before the music?
“I’ve been a waiter, a helper in the kitchen, I know what it’s like to sweat, but I’m not the person who broke my back the most. We musicians are privileged people ».
When did you realize that something had changed for you?
«The day after the end of Sanremo. We had to rest, but requests for interviews, performances and guests kept coming. Then there was the gold record ».
And what was said?
“Wow! It was nice, it took them some time to notice me, eh… ».
They also noticed her because of her appearance: they like her.
“Yes, I know, they told me. I get a little embarrassed, I’m more used to doors in the face than to compliments ».
He said he was bullied as a child.
“I was chubby and there were insults and shoves. But nothing serious, I don’t want to be the spokesperson for an issue that is important and must be treated seriously ».
What is your relationship with Fedez?
“We are friends, we have in common the fact that we never want to stay in the comfort zone”.
What are you dreaming of today?
«To continue to do this job forever, up to the age of 80. Until someone comes to tell me: take off, you are old. Here, I want to get there ».
***
The protagonists of the hit The sweet lifethe most played and best-selling single already platinum, are together on the cover of Vanity Fair and they tell each other in three intimate interviews.
Beyond Tananai,
HERE to read the interview with FEDEZ («When everything has changed»), made by the director Simone Marchetti.
HERE to read the interview with MARA SATTEI (“Nothing to declare”), signed by Stefania Saltalamacchia.
Source: Vanity Fair
