The man who goes by the name Neffa was born Giovanni Pellino in 1967 in Sca… Read Full Bio ↴The man who goes by the name Neffa was born Giovanni Pellino in 1967 in Scafati, Italy, a small town near Naples, but he spent much of his youth in the northern cities of Turin and Bologna.

He began his musical career as a drummer in various hardcore bands, one of which was the influential Negazione, using the name "Jeff," but later decided to switch to hip-hop. Pellino, who at this point was performing under the name Neffa, in honor of the Paraguayan Cremonese soccer star, hooked up with DJ Gruff and Deda to form Sangue Misto, a hip-hop group whose debut, 1994's SXM, is often considered the first great Italian rap album.

In 1996 Neffa decided to try out his luck as a solo artist, and recorded the appropriately titled Neffa & I Messaggeri della Dopa in 1996 with a group of Italian and American artists collectively called I Messaggeri della Dopa. The musician stuck with stalwarts Gruff and Deda for his next record, 1998's 107 Elementi, followed the next year with the five-song EP Chicopisco.

It was after this that Neffa decided to explore his other musical interests, namely soul, funk, and R&B, all of which are heard in his 2001 album, Arrivi e Partenze. Although he received a lot of criticism from the Italian rap community, the album did well commercially, and gained Neffa attention from a more mainstream audience. He followed up the success of Arrivi e Partenze two years later with I Molteplici Mondi di Giovanni, Il Cantante Neffa, and in 2006 his third album as a singer, Il Mondo Nuovo, was released in Italy.

Le ragazze sole
Neffa Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Anche quest'anno agosto io lavoro
Gli amici mi hanno già lasciato solo
E non ho mai avuto caldo come ora
La radio sta dicendo che l'umidità
Da domani salirà

Qui in città
Sole e estate

Le ragazze sole non ci sono più
E vorrei stare al mare
Con il grande amore
Sotto il cielo blu

La notte l'afa non si può soffrire
Solo alle cinque riesco un po' a dormire
E sogno il lungomare e l'aria della sera
Un bar che resta aperto sulla spiaggia e poi
Mi sveglio e sto sudando già

Qui in città
Sole e estate
Le ragazze sole non ci sono più
E vorrei stare al mare
Con il grande amore
Sotto il cielo blu

E non ho mai avuto caldo come ora
La radio sta dicendo che l'umidità
Da domani salirà

Qui in città
Sole e estate
Le ragazze sole non ci sono più
E vorrei stare al mare
Con il grande amore
Sotto il cielo blu
Sotto il cielo blu
Sotto il cielo blu

(Grazie ad Anna 85 per questo testo)

Overall Meaning

Neffa's song "Le ragazze sole" is about the feelings of loneliness and longing for the summer during the month of August. The first stanza sets the scene with the singer feeling left behind by his friends who have left for holiday, while the oppressive heat is intensified by the radio warning of even higher humidity. The second stanza speaks to the singer's desire to be by the sea with his love, but instead he's stuck in the city with only the heat and the memory of the sea to keep him company. The last stanza reinforces the singer's wish to escape the city and be under the blue sky with his love by the sea, even with the knowledge that the heat and humidity will only get worse.

Line by Line Meaning

Anche quest'anno agosto io lavoro
Once again this August, I have to work

Gli amici mi hanno già lasciato solo
My friends have already left me alone

E non ho mai avuto caldo come ora
And I've never been this hot before

La radio sta dicendo che l'umidità
The radio is saying that the humidity

Da domani salirà
will be rising starting tomorrow

Qui in città
Here in the city

Sole e estate
Sun and summer

Le ragazze sole non ci sono più
The single girls are no longer around

E vorrei stare al mare
And I would like to be at the sea

Con il grande amore
With my great love

Sotto il cielo blu
Under the blue sky