Mia Martini
Italian singer acclaimed for her emotional depth and the Critics Award later named in her honor
Mia Martini was born Domenica Rita Adriana Bertè on 20 September 1947 in Bagnara Calabra, Reggio Calabria, the second of four daughters. Her father taught Latin and Greek, and her mother was an elementary school teacher. Nicknamed "Mimì," she grew up in Porto Recanati, Marche, and showed an early interest in music, performing at parties and entering song contests. In 1962, she convinced her mother to take her to Milan for an audition.
Producer Carlo Alberto Rossi launched her as a yé-yé girl. She recorded her first song in 1963 and won the Bellaria Festival in 1964 with "Come puoi farlo tu." After her parents split, she moved to Rome with her mother and sisters. In 1969, she served four months in prison in Sardinia for possessing a marijuana cigarette—then a strictly prosecutable crime. A meeting with producer Alberigo Crocetta proved decisive. He created her stage name: "Mia" after actress Mia Farrow, and "Martini" as one of the most recognized Italian words abroad. Her debut album, *Oltre la collina*, featuring "Padre davvero," is considered one of the best Italian albums by a female artist. Hits like "Piccolo uomo," "Donna sola," "Minuetto," "Inno," "Al mondo," "Che vuoi che sia se t'ho aspettato tanto," "Per amarti," and "La costruzione di un amore" made her one of the most popular Italian artists of the 1970s. She remains the only female artist to win the Festivalbar twice consecutively, in 1972 and 1973.
In the late 1970s, two important encounters occurred: a musical collaboration with Charles Aznavour, and an artistic and sentimental partnership with singer-songwriter Ivano Fossati. At the 1982 Sanremo Music Festival, she sang Fossati's "E non finisce mica il cielo" and received the Critics Award, created specifically for her. After her death in 1995, that award was renamed the "Mia Martini" Critics Award. In 1983, she was forced to leave the music industry because colleagues and the music sector considered her a bringer of bad luck, barring her from events, shows, and concerts. This exile lasted seven years.
She returned to Sanremo in 1989 with "Almeno tu nell'universo," which brought renewed success. Later hits included "Gli uomini non cambiano," "
- born
- 20 September 1947
- died
- 12 May 1995
- field
- Singer, songwriter, musician
- nationality
- Italian
- known_for
- Winning two consecutive Festivalbar (1972, 1973); only female artist to do so; receiving the Critics Award at Sanremo 1982, later renamed the Mia Martini Critics Award after her death
Quick Facts
- Alias
- Mimì Bertè
- Background
- solo_singer
- Birth Name
- Domenica Rita Adriana Bertè
- Birth Date
- df=y · 1947 · 9 · 20
- Birth Place
- Bagnara Calabra, Calabria, Italy
- Origin
- Porto Recanati, Marche, Italy
- Death Date
- df=y · 1995 · 5 · 12 · 1947 · 9 · 20
- Death Place
- Cardano al Campo, Lombardy, Italy
- Genre
- Pop / blues / jazz / pop rock / canzone napoletana / folk music
- Occupation
- Singer-songwriter / musician
- Years Active
- 19631983 / 19891995
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
Mia Martini began her career as Mimì Bertè, winning the Bellaria Festival in 1964 and recording early songs under producer Carlo Alberto Rossi. In 1969 she served four months in prison in Sardinia for possession of a marijuana cigarette; she was later acquitted. Her debut album as Mia Martini, Oltre la collina (1971), with the song 'Padre davvero', is considered one of the best Italian albums by a female artist. Hit songs like 'Piccolo uomo', 'Minuetto', and 'Donna sola' made her one of the most popular Italian artists of the 1970s. In the late 1970s she began a musical collaboration with Charles Aznavour and an artistic and sentimental partnership with Ivano Fossati.
Reader's Guide
Mia Martini's significance lies in her powerful vocal expression and her role as a pioneering female artist in Italian music. She is the only female artist to have won the Festivalbar twice consecutively (1972 and 1973). In 1982 at the Sanremo Music Festival, she sang 'E non finisce mica il cielo' and received the Critics Award, which was created specifically for her interpretation and later named after her. From 1983, she was forced to leave the music industry for seven years because the music sector and colleagues considered her a person bringing bad luck, barring her from events. She returned in 1989 at Sanremo with 'Almeno tu nell'universo', achieving new success. She represented Italy at Eurovision twice (1977 and 1992). Her legacy includes later hits such as 'Gli uomini non cambiano' and 'La nevicata del '56'. She died from a drug overdose on 12 May 1995.
Did You Know?
- She served four months in prison in 1969 for possession of a marijuana cigarette, a crime then strictly prosecutable regardless of drug type.
- She is the only female artist to have won the Festivalbar twice consecutively, in 1972 and 1973.
- The Critics Award at the Sanremo Music Festival was created for her in 1982 and renamed the 'Mia Martini' Critics Awards after her death in 1996.
- She was forced to leave the music industry for seven years (1983–1989) because colleagues considered her a person bringing bad luck.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Mia Martini?
Mia Martini (born Domenica Rita Adriana Bertè in 1947) was an Italian singer-songwriter celebrated for the raw emotional intensity she brought to every performance. Fans and critics alike regarded her as one of Italy's most distinctive vocal artists of the late twentieth century.
What is Mia Martini most famous for?
She holds the distinction of being the only female artist to win back-to-back Festivalbar titles in 1972 and 1973. She also took home the Critics Award at the 1982 Sanremo Festival, a prize that was later renamed in her memory.
How did Mia Martini's music career begin?
After convincing her mother to take her to Milan for an audition in 1962, she was picked up by producer Carlo Alberto Rossi, who shaped her into a yé-yé pop singer. She cut her first record in 1963 and captured the Bellaria Festival in 1964 with the track 'Come puoi farlo tu.'
What is the Mia Martini Critics Award?
Following her death in 1995, the Italian music industry renamed the Critics Award at the Sanremo Music Festival after her. The prize now carries her name as a permanent tribute to her artistic legacy.
Where was Mia Martini from and what was her background?
She was born in Bagnara Calabra, in the province of Reggio Calabria, and raised in Porto Recanati in the Marche region. Her father was a Latin and Greek teacher and her mother an elementary-school teacher, giving her a cultured household in which she began singing at local parties and contests as a child.
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