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.
Potrebbe essere Dio
Renato Zero Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Adesso, non c'è più
Sei troppo ingenuo da credere
Che un Dio, sei tu
Dio, non sarà aritmetica
Ne parapsicologia
Non sta nei falsi tuoi simboli
Nella pornografia
Lo vendi per una dose
Lo butti via in una frase
Lo cercherai in farmacia
Pensi Lui vada a petrolio
La fede, non è un imbroglio
E non c'è Dio sulla luna
Ma in questa terra che trema
Se mai, non sarà Dio
Sarà ricostruire
Se mai, lo ritroverai
In un pensiero, in un desiderio
Nel tuo delirio, nel tuo cielo, Dio
Potrebbe essere Dio
E anch'io, con te cercherei
Nella paura una strada sicura
Un'altra promessa
Magari la stessa, Dio
Riporta Dio, dove nascerai
Là dove morirai
Riporta Dio nella fabbrica
Nei sogni più avari che fai
Ti giochi Dio al Totocalcio
Lo vendi per una dose
Lo butti via in una frase
Lo cercherai in farmacia
E Dio non è un manifesto
La morte senza un pretesto
La noia o un altro veleno
La bocca di un altro squalo
Se mai, un Dio, non ce l'hai
Io ti presenterò il mio
Dove abita, io non saprei
Magari in un cuore in un atto d'amore
Nel tuo immenso io, c'è Dio
Potrebbe essere Dio
E tu, al posto suo
Mi tradiresti?
Mi uccideresti?
Mi lasceresti senza, un Dio?
Se mai, non sarà Dio
Sarà ricostruire
Se mai, lo ritroverai
In un pensiero, in un desiderio
Nel tuo delirio, nel tuo cielo, Dio
In Renato Zero's song Potrebbe essere Dio, the artist challenges the conventional notion of God and religion. The lyrics take a critical look at human behavior regarding the worship of God and how man-made constructs have corrupted and distorted the concept of God. The chorus "Potrebbe essere Dio" (It could be God) suggests that there is no set definition of God and that each individual's interpretation of God may differ.
The opening lines of the song "Se c'era un Dio da discutere, adesso non c'è più" (If there was a God to discuss, now there isn't) insinuate that there might have been a discourse about God at some point, but it has come to an end. The following line "Sei troppo ingenuo da credere, che un Dio sei tu" (You're too naive to believe that you are God) is a dig at people who believe that they are God or hold themselves on the same level as God.
The verse "Dio, non sarà aritmetica, ne parapsicologia, non sta nei falsi tuoi simboli, nella pornografia" (God is neither arithmetic nor parapsychology, it doesn't lie in your false symbols or in pornography) speaks about how man-made concepts, whether it be numerology or symbols, are not representative of God.
The song is a critique of how people often use God for their own gains, be it for monetary profit, for making false promises, or in the worst cases, promoting hate and violence against others. The lyrics urge people to look beyond the distorted and corrupted interpretations of God and try to find the real meaning of God in their hearts and actions.
Line by Line Meaning
Se c'era un Dio da discutere
If there was a God to discuss
Adesso, non c'è più
Now, there is no more
Sei troppo ingenuo da credere
You are too naive to believe
Che un Dio, sei tu
That you are a God
Dio, non sarà aritmetica
God is not arithmetic
Ne parapsicologia
Nor parapsychology
Non sta nei falsi tuoi simboli
He does not reside in your false symbols
Nella pornografia
Or pornography
Ti giochi Dio al Totocalcio
You gamble God like in soccer pools
Lo vendi per una dose
You sell Him for a fix
Lo butti via in una frase
You throw Him away in a sentence
Lo cercherai in farmacia
You will look for Him in the pharmacy
Pensi Lui vada a petrolio
You think that He runs on oil
La fede, non è un imbroglio
Faith is not a hoax
E non c'è Dio sulla luna
And there is no God on the moon
Ma in questa terra che trema
But in this trembling earth
Se mai, non sarà Dio
If ever, it won't be God
Sarà ricostruire
It will be to reconstruct
Se mai, lo ritroverai
If ever, you will find Him
In un pensiero, in un desiderio
In a thought, in a desire
Nel tuo delirio, nel tuo cielo, Dio
In your delirium, in your heaven, God
Potrebbe essere Dio
It could be God
E anch'io, con te cercherei
And I too, would search with you
Nella paura una strada sicura
In fear, a safe path
Un'altra promessa
Another promise
Magari la stessa, Dio
Maybe the same, God
Riporta Dio, dove nascerai
Bring back God, where you will be born
Là dove morirai
Where you will die
Riporta Dio nella fabbrica
Bring back God in the factory
Nei sogni più avari che fai
In your greediest dreams
E Dio non è un manifesto
And God is not a manifesto
La morte senza un pretesto
Death without a pretext
La noia o un altro veleno
Boredom or another poison
La bocca di un altro squalo
The mouth of another shark
Se mai, un Dio, non ce l'hai
If ever, you don't have a God
Io ti presenterò il mio
I will present you mine
Dove abita, io non saprei
Where He lives, I wouldn't know
Magari in un cuore in un atto d'amore
Maybe in a heart, in an act of love
Nel tuo immenso io, c'è Dio
In your immense self, there is God
E tu, al posto suo
And you, in His place
Mi tradiresti?
Would you betray me?
Mi uccideresti?
Would you kill me?
Mi lasceresti senza, un Dio?
Would you leave me without a God?
Se mai, non sarà Dio
If ever, it won't be God
Sarà ricostruire
It will be to reconstruct
Se mai, lo ritroverai
If ever, you will find Him
In un pensiero, in un desiderio
In a thought, in a desire
Nel tuo delirio, nel tuo cielo, Dio
In your delirium, in your heaven, God
Lyrics © Warner/Chappell Music, Inc., Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: Renato Zero, Roberto Conrado
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Angela M.
Una preghiera cantata, una poesia recitata. Un inno all'amore! Un invito alla sensibilità, un invito alla generosità. Un capolavoro.
Rosa Catenacci
Renato è l unico e leale non mi tradirà mai!!!!!!
Paolo Vecchiarelli
Grande grande grande
GrilloParlante31
Concordo ❤️🙏
Michele Martini
Svegliati-R. Z.
Arcangelo Matera
@Simona Salerno ..
Chaelie01 Marco
Grazie Renato sei tutti noi.... Ogni tua essenza anima Dio e in noi tutti... Un brano è una nostra stessa preghiera voli in alto in cielo e sia fatta la sua volontà e così sia... 🙏🙏🙏♥️
Fabio Attianese
Canzone meravigliosa, altra perla di Renato. Solo lui riesce ad indurti a riflessioni così profonde, a toccare tematiche come la fede con tanta sensibilità, immediatezza, originalità...Immenso Renato
Domenico Berardi
Condivido dal Canada 🇨🇦
Hectorsito 007
No entendí muy bien la letra, soy español y le pedí a un amigo que la tradujera, pero no entiendo si Renato es un cura o una representación de Dios y que le reprocha al joven. Si me lo aclararas te estaría muy agradecido. Buona sera.