Renato Fiacchini was born in Rome in the Via di Ripetta, next to the Via del Corso.
He quit his studies early to devote himself to his true passion, playing music and singing - though initially with little success. He replied to the criticisms (including the recurring insult Sei uno zero! - "You're a zero!") by assuming the alter-ego of Renato Zero. After several different jobs, including an appearance in an advertisement for ice-cream, he recorded his first singles in 1965: "Tu, sì", "Il deserto", "La solitudine", which were never issued. His first published single, "Non basta sai/In mezzo ai guai" (1967), sold a total of 20 copies.
In the late 1960s Zero's career was favoured by the glam-rock fashion, which he had somehow presaged with his sexual ambiguity and androgynous appearance. At the same time, this led him to be accused of cloning characters like David Bowie. In 1973 he issued his first LP, No! Mamma, no! (live), but with little success. The follow-up Invenzioni met the same fate.
Birth of the "Zerophilia"
It was not until 1976 that he scored his first hit with the single "Madame". "Madame" and the album including it, Trapezio, established a regular and loyal audience for Zero. This was to increase exponentially in the following years, until he could boast a huge following of die-hard fans that he dubbed "Sorcini" ("Little Mice").
The late 1970s were indeed years of great success for Zero's character, with the LPs Zerofobia ("Zerophobia", 1977), Zerolandia (1978) and Erozero (1979) topping the Italian charts. At this time Renato Zero was amongst the two or three most popular singers in Italy and his song "Il Carrozzone" was already regarded, also by critics, as one of the best Italian songs ever.
In 1979 Zero played himself in the movie "Ciao Nì" (his usual greeting to his fans, which can be roughly translated as "Hi pal!"). In Italy this film was to be more successful than the blockbuster "Superman".
The 1980s
In the 1980s he began to abandon make-up and greasepaint, but this did not rid Zero of his mania for grandeur: in the 1980 tour, for example, he entered the scene riding a white horse. In 1982 he began a collaboration with the opera director Renato Serio, who was to write the string arrangements for almost all of Zero's following LPs. In late 1983 he took part in RAI's Fantastico 3, then the most popular Italian TV show.
His career continued to be successful until 1984, with top-charts songs like "Amico" ("Friend") and "Spiagge" ("Beaches"). That year, however, his album Leoni si nasce and the tour of the same name, in which he appeared disguised as a lion and escorted by four aborigines, were commercial failures. The album Zero of 1987 marked the low point of his career: instead of playing in arenas and stadiums, Zero had to sing almost for free in the piazzas and discos of Italy's minor cities.
1990s and 2000s: the Comeback
In 1991 Renato Zero participated to the Sanremo Music Festival with "Spalle al muro", and from that moment on his career began to rise again. In 1993 he was nr.1 in the Italian charts with the LP Quando non sei più nessuno. The following year Imperfetto repeated this success. During his tour concerts would regularly sell out, and he returned to his famous dress changes during the spectacles, although in a less kitsch and more balanced style.
In 2004 his tour "Cattura il sogno/Il sogno continua" (Catch the dream/The dream continues) was awarded from Pollstar magazine as the most successful of the year in Italy and as well as one of the most successful worldwide (#30). The recording af the Roman concerts, held at Olimpico Stadium in June, was the best selled musical DVD of 2004. In 2005 he took part to the Italian stage of Live 8, in the Circo Massimo. In November his new album Il dono ("The Gift") topped the charts and maintained #1 until the end of the year. In December 2005 he performed in the Vatican with a song dedicated to Pope John Paul II. Renato Zero's most recent tour started in February 2006 and is entitled Zero movimento. During some concerts held at the time of the campaign for the April 2006 elections he declared himself against former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi.
Naturalmente Strano
Renato Zero Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Che tutto è a posto che tutto va
Intanto per non sbagliare
Mi sveglio e canto...
Qualcosa mi dice che sarebbe meglio
Pensassi a me...
E invece niente
Sono afflitto dal mondo anch'io
Il suo male lo faccio mio...
Cambio le serrature,
Ma questo cuore mi vola via
Vivo con dignità la mia latitanza
Ma puntualmente torno voce nel coro
Aspettando che...
La notte scenda
Perché la notte somiglia a me
È molto calda
Bugiarda anche lei non è
Privo di un'etichetta
Infilo il naso dove mi va...
Brucio la vita eppure non ho fretta
Rifiuto l'uniforme
Gli inviti della pubblicità
Pranzo coi neri ceno coi rossi
Mi fidanzo con chi mi va...
Io sono strano
Forse per questo più umano e già
Io sono strano
Se vuoi vedere che effetto fa...
Sali sul treno...
È brodo riscaldato
Un desiderio andato una fotografia
Per questo nessuno osa né s'improvvisa
Si lascia cadere il sogno
Nel grande oceano dell'omertà
D'essere uomo
Io mi vergogno è la verità
Almeno strano
Sta diventando una qualità
Un figlio naturale
Del controsenso che vuoi che sia
Quando è col mio cervello che ancora penso
Quando quello che ho dentro
Nessuno me lo porterà via
E la miseria è il prezzo
Che paga chi è senza fantasia...
Io sono strano
Forse per questo più umano e già
Io sono strano
Se vuoi vedere che effetto fa... sali sul treno...
Son di tutti e di nessuno
Sono roccia e prateria
Non ho un limite un orario
L'odio io non so che sia
Io mi perdo e mi ritrovo
Vecchio e nuovo usato mai
Mi sbiadisco e mi coloro
Son di me l'altra metà... strano...
Strano...
(Coro) strano...
(Coro) strano...
Stammi lontano... stammi lontano... stammi lontano...
Sono cose strane... sono cose strane... sono cose strane...
Stammi lontano... stammi lontano... stammi lontano...
Io sono strano... io sono strano... io sono strano...
Strano... strano... strano...
The lyrics of Renato Zero's song Naturalmente Strano speak to a feeling of confusion and disorientation in the world, and a desire to break free from societal norms and expectations. The singer acknowledges that they attempt to imagine that everything is okay, but ultimately cannot escape their own feelings of unease. They try to distance themselves from the world by changing physical things like locks, but ultimately feel as though their heart is not under their control. Throughout the song, the singer expresses their unconventional outlook on life, rejecting the uniformity and conformity that society seems to value.
Lines such as "I don't have a label, I stick my nose wherever I please" and "I lunch with the blacks, I dine with the reds, I date whoever I want" suggest a desire to break down divisions and boundaries. The singer asserts that they are "strange," and even ashamed of it, yet this strangeness is becoming a valued quality. The song speaks to the idea that being different and breaking away from societal expectations can be a source of strength and empowerment, even if it makes one feel alienated at times.
Overall, Naturalmente Strano is a song for those who feel out of place in the world, who long for something more authentic and true to themselves. It is a ballad of self-discovery and acceptance, and a tribute to the strange and unconventional among us.
Line by Line Meaning
Mi sforzo d'immaginare
I try to imagine
Che tutto è a posto che tutto va
That everything is fine and everything is going well
Intanto per non sbagliare
Meanwhile, to be on the safe side
Mi sveglio e canto...
I wake up and sing...
Qualcosa mi dice che sarebbe meglio
Something tells me it would be better
Pensassi a me...
To think about myself...
E invece niente
And instead, nothing
Sono afflitto dal mondo anch'io
I am also afflicted by the world
Seguo la gente
I follow the people
Il suo male lo faccio mio...
Their pain becomes my own...
Cambio le serrature,
I change the locks,
Ma questo cuore mi vola via
But this heart flies away from me
Vivo con dignità la mia latitanza
I live my hiding with dignity
Ma puntualmente torno voce nel coro
But I always return to the chorus
Aspettando che...
Waiting for...
La notte scenda
The night to fall
Perché la notte somiglia a me
Because the night is like me
È molto calda
It's very hot
Bugiarda anche lei non è
She's not even lying
Privo di un'etichetta
Without a label
Infilo il naso dove mi va...
I stick my nose where I want...
Brucio la vita eppure non ho fretta
I burn my life, yet I'm not in a hurry
Rifiuto l'uniforme
I refuse the uniform
Gli inviti della pubblicità
The invitations of advertisement
Pranzo coi neri ceno coi rossi
I have lunch with the blacks, dine with the reds
Mi fidanzo con chi mi va...
I date whoever I want...
Io sono strano
I'm strange
Forse per questo più umano e già
Perhaps that's why I'm more human
Se vuoi vedere che effetto fa...
If you want to see what effect it has...
Sali sul treno...
Get on the train...
È brodo riscaldato
It's reheated broth
Un desiderio andato una fotografia
A gone desire, a photograph
Per questo nessuno osa né s'improvvisa
That's why no one dares or improvises
Si lascia cadere il sogno
They let the dream fall
Nel grande oceano dell'omertà
Into the great ocean of silence
D'essere uomo
Of being a man
Io mi vergogno è la verità
I'm ashamed, it's the truth
Almeno strano
At least strange
Sta diventando una qualità
It's becoming a quality
Un figlio naturale
A natural son
Del controsenso che vuoi che sia
Of the nonsense it is
Quando è col mio cervello che ancora penso
When it's with my brain that I still think
Quando quello che ho dentro
When what I have inside
Nessuno me lo porterà via
No one will take it away from me
E la miseria è il prezzo
And misery is the price
Che paga chi è senza fantasia...
That those who are without imagination pay...
Son di tutti e di nessuno
I'm everyone's and no one's
Sono roccia e prateria
I'm rock and prairie
Non ho un limite un orario
I have no limit, no schedule
L'odio io non so che sia
I don't know what hate is
Io mi perdo e mi ritrovo
I lose myself and find myself
Vecchio e nuovo usato mai
Old and new, never used
Mi sbiadisco e mi coloro
I fade away and color myself
Son di me l'altra metà... strano...
I am the other half of myself... strange...
(Coro) strano...
(Chorus) Strange...
Stammi lontano... stammi lontano... stammi lontano...
Stay away from me... stay away from me... stay away from me...
Sono cose strane... sono cose strane... sono cose strane...
These are strange things... these are strange things... these are strange things...
Io sono strano... io sono strano... io sono strano...
I'm strange... I'm strange... I'm strange...
Strano... strano... strano...
Strange... strange... strange...
Contributed by Mia E. Suggest a correction in the comments below.