16 Essential Italian Singers For Your Music Playlist

Sampling the most distinct Italian voices in music

The Italian jukebox echoes a tradition of world-class vocalists stretching from the old country to modern America. From Luciano Pavarotti’s jaw-dropping tenor notes to Lady Gaga’s eclectic pop beats, Italian artists have left their mark on popular music genres through several different eras.

Earlier this summer, the Growing Up Italian podcast hosted a bracket elimination-style poll of the top Italian American singers in history on their Instagram account. When voting was decided, GUI followers crowned legendary crooner, Frank Sinatra, as the "Best Italian Singer." Below is a look at the 16 Italian singers who are considered among the best ever.

Additionally, we went ahead and created a playlist on our Spotify account with a full collection of songs by these various artists with Italian roots. 

ANDREA BOCELLI

Born in Lajatico, a town near Pisa, Italy, Andrea Bocelli is known for his mixture of opera and pop, or “popera”. His breakthrough came in 1992 when Zucchero Fornaciari, an Italian pop star, asked him to record a demo of “Miserere”. In 1997, Bocelli reached American listeners with the release of his album Romanza, which has sold over 17 million copies worldwide. Since then, he has sung with the likes of Celine Dion, Josh Groban, and Jennifer Lopez.

Playlist Track: Con Te Partiro

TIZIANO FERRO

Tiziano Ferro made his debut in 2001 and two years later he became one of Italy’s top pop stars with the release of his second album, 111 Centoundici. Originally from Latina, Italy, Ferro sings a mixture of R&B/hip-hop and records his songs in Spanish and Italian. He maintains a very strong following in many Spanish-speaking countries.

Playlist Track: Il Mestiere Della Vita

LUCIANO PAVAROTTI

Considered one of the finest bel canto opera singers of the 20th century, Luciano Pavarotti is an Italian operatic lyric tenor who made his operatic debut in 1961 as Rodolfo in La Bohème in Reggio nell’Emilia, Italy. Originally from Modena, Italy, Pavarotti has performed in opera houses throughout Europe and Australia. He made his American debut in Miami in 1965 singing with Joan Sutherland in Lucia di Lammermoor. His performance of “Nessun Dorma” is one of his most notable songs.

Playlist Track: Ave Maria

NINO D'ANGELO

Nino D’Angelo was arguably the foremost pop icon in the 1980s from Naples, Italy.

D’Angelo, an actor as well as an Italian singer, worked his way up to the top with his charm and swoon-worthy voice. Many of his films worked in tandem with his albums and starred him as the lead, usually a romantic melodrama about a poor boy who becomes a singer. He wrote “Napoli, Napoli” for the Naples’s soccer club and it’s still sung as the anthem at games to this day.

Playlist Track: Chiara

TOTO CUTUGNO

Toto Cutugno was an Italian pop singer who reached fame in the 1980s before he won the 1990 Eurovision Song Contest. Originally from Fosdinovo, Italy, Cutugno is also a prolific songwriter, writing hits for European stars like Joe Dassin, Mireille Mathieu, Dalida, Johnny Halliday, Michel Sardou, Claude François, and Gigliola Cinquetti.

Playlist Track: L'Italiano

EROS RAMAZZOTTI

Born in Rome, Eros Ramazzotti topped the charts in Western Europe in the mid-80s and charmed Italian audiences with his spirited tenor voice and passionate love songs. His moody pop-rock sound gave him collaborations with Tina Turner, Ricky Martin, Luis Fonsi, and more during the 1990s.

Playlist Track: La Cosa Mas Bella

LAURA PAUSINI

A top ten recording artist in Italy, Laura Pausini’s beautiful vocals and contemporary pop sound put her alongside artists like Celine Dion and Michael Bolton. Born in Faenza, Italy, Pausini rose to fame in 1993 and since then she has sold more than 70 million albums and has 226 platinum records. The Italian singer has won multiple awards including one Grammy Award, 6 World Music Awards, and 1 Golden Globe, and was nominated for an Oscar for her song “Io Sì/Seen”.

Playlist Track: En Cambio No

UMBERTO TOZZI

Hailing from Turin in the Piedmont region of Italy, Umberto Tozzi was a renowned pop artist during the 1970s. At a very young age, Turin joined the band, Off Sound, in 1968 and later worked with Adriano Pappalardo, a singer, actor, and television personality. In 1974, Turin released his first hit, “Un Corpo un ‘Anima” but his breakthrough came with his song “Gloria” which topped the Italian and Latin American charts. If you’ve ever been to a wedding anywhere in Italian America, you know Tozzi’s prolific hit, “Ti Amo.”

Playlist Track: Ti Amo

FRANK SINATRA

Often hailed as the greatest American singer of 20th-century popular music, Frank Sinatra was born in Hoboken, New Jersey, and was inspired by the Bing Crosby records he listened to as a young boy. He began singing as a teenager and in 1935, he won a talent competition on the popular radio program Major Bowes’ Amateur Hour. He toured with multiple bands before beginning his solo career in the early 1940s. He was a cultural phenomenon causing near-hysteria in his mostly young female fans. For a rare snippet of Sinatra Crooning in Italian, tap the link below. 

Playlist Track: Come Back to Sorrento

JIMMY ROSELLI

The other kid from Hoboken, Jimmy Roselli was known for his performance of the song, “My Way” and rubbed shoulders with the likes of Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Perry Como, Vic Damone, and Jerry Vale. He didn’t reach Sinatra’s level of fame possibly due to passing up on opportunities that could have furthered his career like an appearance on The Tonight Show and a part in The Godfather II. It’s believed he had many fans in the mafia but refused to share his club earnings which gained him some enemies.

Playlist Track: Buona Sera, Mrs. Campbell

LADY GAGA

Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta or more commonly known as Lady Gaga reached fame in the early 2000s with mega pop hits like “Just Dance”, “Bad Romance,” and “Born This Way.” The singer is known for her strong vocal talents, provocative lyrics, and flamboyant costumes. Some of her most famous outfits include the meat dress (a protest against the US military’s “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy rather than animal rights) and the sky-high white wig and voluminous layered white dress she wore at the 2010 Brit Awards.

Playlist Track: Eh, Eh (Nothing Else I Can Say)

TONY BENNETT

Born in Astoria, Queens, New York, Anthony Dominick Benedetto, famously known as Tony Bennett, gained popularity during the 1950s and ’60s with songs like “I Left My Heart in San Francisco.” His popularity waned when rock music came onto the scene, but he rebounded in the 1990s with an MTV unplugged appearance. He has since teamed up with Lady Gaga and other popular artists in his successful Duets and Duets II albums, adding to his collection of 20 Grammy Awards.

Playlist Track: Stranger in Paradise (with Andrea Boccelli)

ARIANA GRANDE

Born to Italian American parents, Ariana Grande began performing onstage when she was a child. She appeared on Broadway at age 15 and eventually landed the role of Cat on TV’s Victorious. In 2013, she released her first album, Yours Truly, and has released four more albums. Some of Grande’s most notable songs include “Dangerous Woman”, “Bang Bang”, and “No Tears Left to Cry,” enabling her to work with artists like Nicki Minaj, Miley Cyrus, Lana Del Rey, and Lady Gaga. Aside from her mainstream success, Grande teamed up with famed Italian singer, Andre Bocelli, for the song "E Piu Ti Penso" on Bocelli's album, Cinema. 

Playlist Track: E Piu Ti Penso (featuring Andrea Bocelli)

LOUIS PRIMA

Born in New Orleans, Louisiana to an Italian family who emigrated to the US by way of Argentina, Louis Prima was a famous jazz musician during the 1940s and 50s. Influenced by Louis Armstrong and King Oliver, Prima picked up the trumpet at age 15 and played around local clubs before moving to New York City in the early 30s. In 1956, Prima made a deal with Capitol Records which marked the beginning of his recording career. Some of his notable songs include, “Just a Gigolo/I Ain’t Got Nobody”, “Buona Sera” and “Oh Marie.”

Playlist Track: Zooma Zooma

FRANKIE VALLI

Born Francesco Stephen Castelluccio in Newark, New Jersey, Frankie Valli was the lead vocalist for The Four Seasons. The group was known for songs like “Sherry,” “Walk Like a Man” and “Working My Way Back to You”. Valli maintained a successful solo career with singles like “Grease” from the movie musical, “Can’t Take My Eyes Off of You”, and “My Eyes Adored You.” In 2005, the Tony Award-winning Broadway musical Jersey Boys opened, telling the story of Valli and The Four Seasons, accompanied by their most famous songs.

Playlist Track: Come Si Bella (as Frankie Valli and The Romans).

DEAN MARTIN

Born Dino Paul Crocetti to Italian immigrants in Steubenville, Ohio, Dean Martin is one of the famed members of the Rat Pack. The group included Frank Sinatra, Sammy Davis Jr., Joey Bishop, and Peter Lawford. His fame took off in 1953 when his song “That’s Amore” became one of his biggest hits. He subsequently released several other Italian tunes, such as "Volare" in 1958. Martin also had a notable acting career appearing in 51 films during his lifetime including Some Came Running (1958) with Shirley MacLaine and Frank Sinatra and Bells are Ringing (1960) with Judy Holliday.

Playlist Track: Volare