Ermal Meta: A Journey from Albania to the Pinnacle of Italian Music

Ermal Meta, born in 1981, is one of the major figures in the national music scene and will be a guest today, May 11th, on Verissimo. He has just announced that he is expecting a daughter who will be named Fortuna. Let's discover all the curiosities about the singer. The origins and the bands Ermal Meta was born in Fier, Albania, on April 20, 1981 (he is therefore 43 years old). At the age of 13, he moved with his family (mother, brother, and sister) to Bari, Italy, distancing himself from his father, whom he has always described as violent. Influenced by his mother, the first violin of the Fier orchestra, Ermal grew up listening to classical music and playing, from the age of 16, piano and guitar. He was part of various groups before joining Ameba 4 as a guitarist, with whom he participated in the Sanremo Festival 2006 in the Young section with the song 'Rido...forse mi sbaglio', being eliminated on the first night. Shortly after, the band disbanded. In 2007, Meta founded the group La Fame di Camilla, with which he released three studio albums and participated in the Sanremo Festival 2010, competing in the Young section with the song 'Buio e luce', also in this case eliminated. The group disbanded in 2013. Solo career With the single 'Odio le favole', Ermal Meta took part in Sanremo Giovani 2015, being selected among the new proposals of the 2016 Festival. In the following months, his first solo album, 'Umano', was released. Then came two consecutive participations in Sanremo among the big names, in 2017 and 2018, securing third place with the song 'Vietato morire' and triumphing, instead, in 2018, together with Fabrizio Moro with the song 'Non mi avete fatto niente'. The victory allowed the two to also participate in the subsequent Eurovision Song Contest in Lisbon, where they finished fifth. The two participations in the Sanremo festival correspond to two successful albums such as 'Vietato morire' and 'Non abbiamo armi', from which numerous singles were extracted. In 2021 his fourth album, 'Tribù urbana', was released, containing the song 'Un milione di cose da dirti', presented at the 71st Sanremo festival, where he finished third. The relationship with the father The singer-songwriter has spoken on several occasions about his father, describing him as a violent person from whom it was necessary to distance himself. Two songs in particular talk about the relationship between Ermal and the parent: 'Lettera a mio padre' (2014) and 'Vietato morire' (2017). Here is a small excerpt from 'Lettera a mio padre': 'Of beasts like you there are around, and it is not easy / To discover them, you know why? They are mask manufacturers / They spit you into the world just to have an easy meal / I am still here, my skin is even tougher than yours / It's never easy to accept to recognize yourself / Among my wrinkles that look more and more like yours / And this blood that tastes a bit of monster and also a bit of me / Makes me think that I would like to say thank you because you are not here.' Songs written for others Even before embarking on a solo career, Meta dedicated himself to writing songs for many Italian interpreters such as Emma, Francesco Renga, Patty Pravo, Chiara Galiazzo, Marco Mengoni, Francesca Michielin, Francesco Sarcina, Red Canzian, Giusy Ferreri, and Lorenzo Fragola as well as having arranged some songs for Negrita and for the already mentioned Renga and Sarcina. In 2013 he wrote the song 'Non so ballare', brought by Annalisa to the Sanremo Festival. In the same year, Meta composed together with Niccolò Agliardi the song 'Non mi interessa' for Patty Pravo, with whom he made a duet. He also signed the songs 'Pronto a correre', '20 sigarette', and 'Natale senza regali' for Marco Mengoni. In 2014 he wrote together with Gianni Pollex the single 'Straordinario' by Chiara Galiazzo, presented by her at the Sanremo Festival 2015. Also, in the same period, he returned to collaborate with Marco Mengoni for the writing of the songs 'Invincibile' (written together with Matteo Buzzanca), 'La neve prima che cada' and 'Io ti aspetto' (written with Dario Faini). In 2015 he wrote for Lorenzo Fragola two songs: 'La nostra vita è oggi' and 'Resta dove sei'. As a producer, together with Fabrizio Ferraguzzo and Roberto Cardelli, he contributed to the realization of the second solo album of Francesco Sarcina of Le Vibrazioni, 'Femmina', of which he signed the songs 'Un miracolo' (written with Antonio Filippelli), 'Femmina' (composed together with Sarcina), 'Ossigeno', and 'Benvenuta nel mondo'. In the same year, he participated in the composition of the singles 'Occhi profondi' and 'Arriverà l'amore' for Emma Marrone. In 2019 he was the author of two songs by Alberto Urso: 'Il mondo tranne me' and 'Resta per sempre'. Other songs by Ermal Meta include: 'Era una vita che ti stavo aspettando' by Francesco Renga, 'Un cuore in due' by Francesca Michielin, and 'Big Boy' by Sergio Silvestre. Private life and the upcoming daughter The singer-songwriter was engaged for many years with a well-known radio DJ, Silvia Notargiacomo, always maintaining great discretion. Ermal's heart now belongs to another woman, Chiara Sturdà. Even in this, there is maximum discretion on the part of the two, although some social photos have leaked. Chiara Sturdà, born in 1990 in Milan (she is 34 years old), after working in the world of accounting, decided to take another path in the television world, landing on Sportitalia as a sports commentator. Today she works as a sports agent and marketing manager for a company that deals with consulting for athletes. The two are about to become parents. With a post on Instagram, the singer and composer announced the news to fans, revealing the pregnancy of his partner Chiara Sturdà and the name of the baby girl, who will be named Fortuna. A news that quickly made the rounds on the web, amid the enthusiasm of fans and friends of the couple.