Italy lost one of its most beloved artists on Monday. Raffaella Carrà died at the age of 78. “She left us. She left for a better world where her humanity, her inimitable laughter and her extraordinary talent will shine forever ”, announced Sergio Japino, her former companion in a press release relayed by several transalpine media.
“She passed away at 4:20 pm today [lundi], following an illness which for some time had attacked his body so small but still overflowing with energy ”, indicates the message. Singer, actress, TV and radio presenter, coach of the Italian version of The Voice during three seasons, Raffaella Carrà was not in the habit of saving himself.
Icon
Born in Bologna in June 1943, she began her career as a child in the cinema. But it is mainly thanks to music that she gained notoriety far beyond the borders of Italy to reach Spain, Greece and South America. During his musical career, which began in 1970, Raffaella Carrà sold some 60 million albums and performed hits such as Rumore, Tanti Auguri or A Far L’Amore Comincia Tu. Ten years ago, a version remixed by Bob Sinclar had in turn met with success before dressing one of the iconic sequences of the film La Grande Bellezza by Paolo Sorrentino.
Raffaella Carrà was also a gay icon. On this subject, she had declared to Vanity Fair Italy that she did not know the reason. “I will die without knowing it. On my grave will be written: “Why do gays love me so much?” “. In fact, the artist had, since the 1970s, regularly expressed his support for the LGBT community. “Live this week in joy, but the fights are not over. There is still a long way to go to break down prejudices ”,
she declared in 2017, year in which she was crowned a “global gay icon”, during World Pride in Madrid (Spain).
This Monday, it is just an icon that generations of Italians mourn whose life has been punctuated, on screens and dance floors, for more than five decades, by this blond woman.