orn in Carrara, Italy, raised in Monza, and now based in Milan, Filippo Maria Fanti—better known as Irama—loves Aerosmith. The classic rock band blasts from the stereo upon his request, and just as Steven Tyler wails “I don’t want to miss a thing,” Irama slips out, a TV special that raised funds for Italy’s COVID-19 pandemic. The show was a spinoff of the original talent series , which first catapulted the artist to success in 2018. Since then he has topped the Italian Albums chart with several multi-platinum singles. Through it all, Irama’s lifelong love of rock has been in his heart: By the age of seven he had already written his first song, and at night he dreamed of becoming a professional drummer. “We are all born with a rhythm inside,” he tells . “A heartbeat.”
