Three, the (in)visible boy

This article is published in issue 38 of Vanity Fair on newsstands until 19 September 2023

«They have contacted me many times from X Factor and Amici, but they are not for me: I build my career alone». And the foundations for it to be solid are all there: the mixtape Krakow Vol.2 sold out physical copies in less than a week, the single Nice Guido entered Spotify’s Top Viral hits Tand I promise, Krakow Pt.3 And Your name they conquered TikTok even obtaining gold and platinum certifications. Added to this is the debut album Wings – For those who have no place in this world finished straight at the top of the sales charts. Guido Seniaborn in ’97, better known as The Three, is the brightest rising star of the Italian hip hop scene. The secret? Be different. The background is not the seedy hinterland of a large metropolis, but the charming and provincial one Santa Maria delle Mole, in the heart of the Castelli Romani. No difficulties within the home: his car salesman dad and housewife mum are his beloved cornerstones. The chosen stage name, in addition to the date of birth (3 September), recalls, not by chance, the family unit. Free-range character, tough guy attitude, heart of cream and the ability to rap a thousand thousand words per second: the 26-year-old artist is ready to get back on track with Invisiblenew album out September 15th.

Let’s start from the title of the album: have you ever felt invisible?
«For a long time, which is why I decided to develop this concept».

When did it happen?
«I was younger. Many teenagers are misunderstood in the eyes of the world, unable to assert themselves
their art or to communicate what they want to be.”

She did it: she is no longer invisible.
«Sometimes I still feel like it, especially if I take a dive into the past: when I started to express the desire to make music I wasn’t taken seriously. Those around me considered rap like a game.”

The moment they realized he wasn’t joking?
«After the first mixtape released on the web, complete with merchandising, the first earnings and live shows arrived. My parents had the perception that something was changing and music could become my job. I had become visible.”

How did the choice to rap come about?
«As a kid I liked artists of that genre because they said what they wanted. I also wanted to express moods through music. Initially I made stupid rhymes about classmates. Soon I realized I kept time well and, when I freestyled, people were listening.”

From the attitude she has, nothing seems to affect her. There must be something that hurt her.
«The words of the people. At the beginning, as a teenager, I was inundated, especially on social media, with heavy, cruel insults, even towards my parents. Even though I was fourteen, I showed a strong character. Not all kids have the ability to emerge from the weight of certain offenses, which is why my songs have a motivational wave, they invite you to be whoever you want, expressing feelings and fears.”

This summer the media painted a merciless portrait of his generation: killings for trivial reasons, sexual violence, child abuse. What’s wrong?
«The problem lies in contexts in which education and culture are absent. Coming from there means not having the tools to understand what is right or wrong. Many of my peers want to do things, but if there is no future it means that the past is missing and the present is missing. If you have nothing to lose, you turn into something bad. We must condemn these attitudes, but we are not all like that.”

What is the big problem of his peers?
«Not knowing what they want to become as adults. It’s like playing football: you make all the passes well, but at the best moment you can’t reach the goal. I was already rapping at school.”

Ever fallen into bad company?
«Like all teenagers, some wrong turns can happen, you get close to smoking, alcohol,
but having a strong brain and personality I simply refused.”

Indeed, she expresses values ​​that contrast with a large portion of her colleagues who are all about sex, cars, drugs and money.
“It’s often just fiction.”

Which rappers and trappers don’t set a good example?
“Everyone is free to do what they like: there is nothing right and nothing wrong.”

It’s a bit of a clever answer.
“No, I speak clearly.”

So tell me if music, art, beauty can help escape from the black holes of certain realities?
«Yes, but above all it is passions that illuminate the path of young people. For me it was like this and I am enthusiastic about what I do.”

He’s a really good boy…
«In most cases yes, sometimes less. For example, I behaved badly
with people I loved.”

Does “the bad heart” of the piece Blackout have anything to do with it?
«My relationships have always failed. I destroy bonds.”

How come?
«I love to be listened to, but I don’t do the same. I have learned loyalty over time: making mistakes repeatedly is not the right way, you have to take responsibility.”

How is your heart now?
«He could be better. For seven years I was with a girl, the person I loved the most. Unfortunately I wasn’t able to prove it to him. I’m single, but I still feel connected to her. The situation is complex.”

What is his name?
«I prefer not to say. He will read the interview and recognize himself.”

Cover and video of the new recording project have a glacial setting in Iceland. Metaphor?
«It represents me: an uninhabited, cold and wonderful place».

It feels cold and uninhabited, then.
«It’s very difficult to be close to me. The life I live sometimes doesn’t make me behave in the right way. People move away. And the difficult period I am experiencing accentuates these situations.”

Let’s stay on the new job. In Krakow Pt.4 He describes himself as a phoenix.
«I am: after the first album (and the tour) I died in a figurative sense. With the new rebirth.”

He was reborn even after going through moments of depression. He talks about it in Chaos.
«We are all depressed, some more, some less. There is always an aspect of life that doesn’t go as we would like.”

What was bringing her down?
«Thinking of not being able to fulfill myself. I was afraid I had wasted time by taking the wrong path. I also went through dark periods in scientific high school: I wasn’t good at it, and this condition created great inconveniences. In the morning I didn’t want to get my feet out of bed. I felt like I didn’t have a goal, I kept going without knowing why. Something wasn’t working in me. My parents helped me.”

Did you have psychological support?
«Yes, but the truth is one: you have to help yourself, no one does it for you».

In the song The courage of fear admits that, to be afraid, you need to have courage.
«I’m afraid that this moment will end. And the awareness of having to get used, one day, to the idea of ​​living without my parents.”

In this regard, the piece Lettera al padre closes the album.
«Dad is my example, the person I look up to as a man. He and my mother will be loyal to me no matter what.”

On his body, studded with tattoos, I see many butterflies.
«The butterfly is my symbol. And an invitation to reflect: he doesn’t live long, but he does it by flying.”

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