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Franco de Vita

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Let's continue learning more about this Venezuelan singer-songwriter who is well known in all of Latin America and in Europe because of his hits, so many hits...

Well, Europe?

Europe... Well, Spain is Europe.

Vamos!

Well, there you go. There you go? In fact, you have just returned from a tour of Europe.

We're going to!

How many shows?

So far, we have performed four shows.

Is this part of the tour "Las mil y una historias"?

No, in Spain we're introducing the "Stop" record.

Yes, it was a little delayed. But we caught the attention of a company, and that's why we're introducing the "Stop" record. When we go on tour, this, of course, is the same "Mil y una historias" where we're going to play all of the hits. That's what I think that the public is expecting, but we're focusing on the Latin American public that lives in Spain.

Yes. It's a tour that has had a lot of success in Latin America. It must have made an impact there.

Yes, we have been having an exciting time there. The fact is, that we've been on tour for three years. We almost never stop! I'm telling César Pulido, who is my partner, to stop. And he says that he is not to blame, that the phone never stops ringing. And I say to him: "I have to write music, I have to..." "Yes, yes". But, let's go here, let's go there.

You told him: "Stop!" Thats why you're promoting the "Stop" record in Spain?

Exactly! Stop!

To come out specifically in Spain, to conquer the Spanish market, has been one of your goals.

Yes, that's true... We speak the same language. I have records in Spanish. I think that having our following in Latin America: Colombia, Venezuela, Peru, Ecuador, Argentina, is to our benefit. I mean, they've known me for a long time. We have already done half of a tour in Spain, and we haven't had any disappointing performances. We did have a good time there. But then we lost contact with the record companies, then we had contact, then none. But now, we have been working with them again. That was almost six years ago. With the foundation of Latin American fans that we have, I think that it could be a new history to begin.

If we look at history and go further back, and further back?

How much further back?

Many years ago, when you were a young man and you used to have a rock'n roll band and a cover band.

Yes.

That's what the gossips say.

Yes, I performed all kind of music.

What was the name of that band? The first band you played with? What was its name?

Fresas".

What did "Fresas" perform?

We played covers of Led Zeppeelin, Black Sabbath, Cream, the bands of those times.

And you used to have long hair?

Long hair, earrings. Risking your life but you had them.

Were you the lead singer of the group?

I was the singer in the group. And, I was just learning, I was just beginning to play the guitar.

Ok.

And I played the acoustic guitar. There was a guy who played better than I did. He played better than me, but usually, I accompanied him, and did my thing with the guitar. And then... the thing is... at that moment there were concerts in Venezuela. What can I say? We played at "23 de enero", I don't know if anyone here knows Venezuela, but we went to venues that were in "23 de enero", in Catia, in "shady" places. And the concerts usually ended badly. The cops came in. People went out running. They threw their pot in our instruments. And we were like, "No, this is not ours, this is not ours!".

[laughing]

And then it became difficult, very difficult, for you to get a recording contract. It was impossible. You would send a promo to a record label, you would take it to a record label, and they would say nothing, not a thing.

Forget about it.

When we saw we couldn't make it with rock music, or me at least, I mean, I said, "Well, this isn't for me. You can't make a living doing this". Then I started another band, out of the blue, like, "You, you... What do you play? Ok, you on the guitar, you on the drums, you, let's go!" That was with a friend who was the drummer. He and I started to look for another musician, and we organized a group called Corpus. You do like Corpus, don't you?

Better than "Fresa", yes.

Yes, Corpus is better.

And do you remember anything that you played at that time that can show us... a little bit of Franco when he was 17?

Oh sole mío! Stare in fronte a te, I swear I used to play it!

Really?

When I was drunk. I did!

[laughing]

And with Corpus, you started to write your own music?

I was writing some things. The first song that I... well, I had composed many things, but they were... The most difficult part of all this was learning to express my thoughts, because telling a story in two minutes, in just two minutes, is not easy. You have to put your ideas into two minutes, two and a half minutes. That's all the time you have. So, my songs lasted 15 minutes. It was a story, this, this, and this, and that... So, I had to learn to condense my thoughts, to make a song that lasted two and a half minutes and showed my thoughts in two and a half minutes. Well, anyhow, I think that the first song where I said, "I can do this" was a song called "Lluvia", that was in the CD... Do you remember "Lluvia"?: Este trueno anuncia la lluvia...

Play it, play it!

¿Qué voy a tocar, si no me acuerdo de nada? Even more, that song is a song that talks about the problem of rain, especially in Venezuela, where "ranchos" fall down when it rains...

Everything falls down.

..it takes people, it takes everything, and that happened, by the way, in 2000, when there was a terrible disaster in Vargas. And I had my CD on the market for three months before the disaster in Vargas. But, I had composed that song when I was 17.

Ok.

And one day I went to see a movie by Almodóvar... That has the final credits with Caetano Veloso, who makes a version by Simon Díaz's "Luna llena"... "Luna menguante"... What is the name of that song by Simón Díaz, "Luna..."? It goes:

Eo vido una garza mora dándole batalla a un río, así es como se enamora mi corazón con el mío, no puede ser, así es como se enamora mi corazón con el mío. A really beautiful song by Simón Díaz. Caetano Veloso makes a cover version of it, and Almodóvar includes the credits of the movie with this song. I was shocked at the cinema, crying... And I was in Spain, you know, saying, "Venezuela, my dear home country". The song and all that stuff came to my mind. Then I get home and I take up again "Lluvia", the song I had written so many years ago. And I did it with the guitar. Ese trueno anuncia la lluvia, las palomas se refugian, luego de volar muy libres dando vuelta al campanario... Then I said, "I think I wrote a tune" and I had never written one. I went to Venezuela, I went to Simón Díaz...

Oh, you went to visit Simón Díaz...

I showed it to him.

Who you didn't know.

I did know him. But I had never interacted with him because he was from one musical genre and I was from other. Anyhow, I said, "Simón, what did I do?" He said: "You've created a tune". We need a cuatro. Cuatro is an instrument from Venezuela.

Yes.

Then we looked for a cuatro player, I kind of gave him the chords. I had the man start playing the cuatro, and I died when I heard the song played on the cuatro. I told Simón: "Here you have the lyrics, this is the melody, sing it and then I'll imitate what you do". And that's what I did. Simón Díaz sang it first, and then I imitated Simón Díaz in that song. I liked the feeling so much, and I believed in it so much, that I created another tune.

And are you going to sing that one for us?

No.. I am...

You're gonna sing it to me a cappella, that's how tunes are sung.

Cántame, que con tu voz se calma mi dolor, cántame, cántame. Y mírame que por tus ojos pierdo la razón. Mírame, mírame y cántame por la mañana que es que es cuando, cántame por la noche que es que es cuando duele más y cántame por la mañana antes de que salga el sol y que la luna no se entere lo que he llorado por ti y que la luna no se entere que yo anoche no dormí.

Cántame.

Hey, it was worth it!

[clapping]

It was worth waiting for the right time to come.

It is a beautiful musical genre indeed. Amazing. Why are you looking over there?

They're telling me... The thing is, the audience wants to ask questions.

Really, they do?

Oh.

So, we're going to let them ask at least one.

As many as you want.

They can ask more? Ok. Franco, have you written for other composers? Can you tell me their names?

Not for singer/songwriters, but I have done it for singers.

Other singers.

Yes, such as Chayanne, Ricky Martin, Ana Belén, Óscar de León.

Óscar de León too?

Yes, he sang one song. Haven't you heard the song "Señora"? Señora de mil encantos, señora de tantos. She was a prostitute. It was the story of a prostitute.

Ha, ha, ha. I thought so...

It was a prostitute who falls in love with a client. It goes: Señora de mil encantos, señora de tantos, señora que espera que la vida le tendrá piedad. Señora de su paciente, señora de nadie, que lo de señora no le queda mal.

Alright! Well, when we come back, we'll talk a little more about what's coming on the new CD. Stay tuned, we'll be back with more about Franco De Vita.

And why did I take the guitar?

I don't know.

[laughing]

[clapping]

...un buen perdedor, el mundo no cambiará, alguien sin duda ocupe tu lugar.

** We're going to enjoy the creations of a unique artist, Franco De Vita.**

If he remembers.

You're going to remember because I'm going to make it very easy for you. It's the only one I'm going to ask for!

Which one?

"El buen perdedor" Now? "El buen perdedor"?

Ok, no. But just show us a little something before "El buen perdedor".

You're going to sing along with me, aren't you? Ay si nos hubieran visto, estábamos allí sentados frente a frente, no podía faltarnos la luna y hablábamos de todo un poco y todo nos causaba risa como dos tontos y yo que no veía la hora de tenerte en mis brazos y poderte decir: te amo, desde el primer momento en que te vi y hace tiempo te buscaba, ya te imaginaba, sí. Te amo, aunque no es tan fácil de decir y defino lo que siento con estas palabras: te amo. Uh. Te amo.

Ok.

[clapping]

Listen, wasn't that about a summer love?

Yes.

Yes?

Yes. It is... Yes, have I told you that? Had I told you before?

At some point, and I kind of remember it. But tell us all. They don't know.

Luckily, I have fallen in love... I can say that I have fallen in love about three times in my life, deeply in love.

Really? I thought that happens only once.

Yes. That's why I say "luckily". I am a super lucky man. It's happened to me three times... really, really fallen in love, like, like... [laughing] Yes, completely, completely,

Is there another song about that? Songs about falling in love completely, completely?

Yes, "El buen perdedor" was the result of another crush.

But that is the last one.

That is the last one.

Well, what's next?

I'm going to sing something to you that I haven't sung to anyone else.

From the new CD?

Yes. Let me try to remember.

Todo cambia, ya lo sé, pero hay cosas que se resisten. No pretendo ser distinto. Metí la pata más de una vez lo sé. Pero yo nunca te olvidé porque eres de esas cosas que por más que pasa el tiempo no, no se olvidan. Esos besos que me diste no se olvidan, hay que tener mala memoria, no, no se olvida, por más que pongo a remojar tus huellas no se quitan y eso no se olvida.

Just that part.

[clapping]

Oh, beautiful.

Do you like it?

I love it! I love it when you play the minor chord when it is least expected.

Mm, look at the pianist! She knows a lot! Ha, ha, ha.

Well, I had to say it because that's how you get hooked by music, right?

Well, usually minor chords are very effective for romantic music.

And obviously you're Italian.

From Italian parents.

Born in Venezuela, but you can hear a lot from Italian pop in your music, right?

Well, I was born in Venezuela. We moved to Italy, I was in Italy until I was 13. So, Italian music was a big influence on me. But then I went to Venezuela, and other things hooked me... rock music and all that. I think I'm like... a mix, I'm a mixture of many kinds of music... I have assimilated all the musical genres in the world. And I thank Venezuela for that because it's been a country that has been influenced by many other places. There, I started to discover so many Latin genres that were like... Oh no, salsa, no... salsa, no... and then I discovered that I couldn't even play it, I mean, I couldn't play salsa.

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