Sabrina Salerno

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Sabrina Salerno
Sabrina Salerno on the cover of her single "Gringo" (1989)
Sabrina Salerno on the cover of her single "Gringo" (1989)
Background information
Birth name Norma Sabrina Salerno
Born March 15, 1968 (1968-03-15) (age 40)
Genoa, Italy
Genre(s) Pop, dance-pop
Occupation(s) Singer, showgirl, model, actress and record producer
Instrument(s) Vocals
Years active 1986-present
Website www.sabrinasalerno.com

Sabrina Salerno (born 15 March 1968 in Genoa, Italy as Norma Sabrina Salerno) is an Italian singer, showgirl, model, actress and record producer.

Contents

[edit] Biography

[edit] The '80s

After winning a beauty contest in her native region, Liguria, she started modeling, and in 1985 made her TV debut in the prime time show Premiatissima on Canale 5. That same year, her debut single was released: "Sexy girl", produced by Claudio Cecchetto, the single became a Top 20 hit in her native Italy and in Germany.

She released her first album in late 1987, simply titled Sabrina, which soon became her stage name in the 1980s. In addition to "Sexy Girl", the album included Sabrina's international top 5 breakthrough, the smash hit single "Boys (Summertime Love)", which has sold more than 1,5 million copies to date worldwide, and "Hot Girl", which made the top 10 in five European countries.

In 1988, Sabrina received "The Best European Singer" award during the Festivalbar event, and enjoyed another European-wide summer hit with the single "All Of Me (Boy Oh Boy)" (produced by Stock, Aitken & Waterman). Later in that year, her second album, Super Sabrina, was released, and she established herself as a true European sex symbol thanks to the raunchy videos that accompanied hits such as "My Chico" and "Like a Yo Yo" (produced by Giorgio Moroder). The latter became the TV theme of Odiens, a very popular Italian Saturday prime time TV show, in which Sabrina also starred.

Thanks to the success of the albums and her sexy image, she was soon to perform in several European TV shows and concert such as the Montreux Pop Festival in 1988. Another famous performance was in 1989 at the Olympic Stadium in Moscow, where fifty thousand people gathered over three days to enjoy Sabrina's shows & music.

In 1989, she starred in the Italian movie Fratelli d'Italia and released a remix album called Super Sabrina Remix, as well as a new single, "Gringo".

[edit] The 90s

In 1990, Sabrina co-hosted the daily morning TV show Ricomincio da 2 with Raffaella Carrà on Rai Due, and appeared on the popular music show Festivalbar with a new single called "Yeah, Yeah".

1991 marked a turning point in Sabrina's career: she performed a duet with Italian singer Jo Squillo in singing "Siamo donne", her first release in the Italian language. They performed together at 1991's Sanremo Music Festival to much acclaim. Sabrina's third studio album, Over the Pop, was released the same year, and for the first time she was allowed to co-write and produce some of the songs. It was clear that Sabrina's will to mature as an artist were emerging, and this desire for independence and a distancing from her sexy image led to conflict with her management. As a result the album promotion was interrupted and only one more single, "Shadows of the Night" was released from album. A picture disc edition of "Over the Pop" was released later in '91, now including "Siamo donne". A brand new single, "Cover model", was released in France and Italy with only limited success. Sabrina parted ways with her label and management, a decision that took to a four-years hiatus in her career and just in 1995 she was able to come back to show biz, co-hosting some Italian TV shows and releasing with an indie label two new singles, "Rockawillie" and "Angel Boy", which were minor hits in Italy and Scandinavian countries.

The following year she established her own recording studio in Treviso with her then-husband Enrico Monti and released her first Italian language album, Maschio dove sei ? in which she collaborated with Massimo Riva (Vasco Rossi's guitarist and longtime friend), who added a more mature pop/rock influence to Sabrina's music. The album was surprisingly acclaimed by the critics, but was a commercial failure due to a lack of promotion and distribution.

Disillusioned by the flop of the album, Sabrina focused her attention on other projects.

1996 saw her theater debut with the comedy I cavalieri della Tavola Rotonda, playing the role of Morgan le Fay, and after a two year stint she then hosted the game show Il mercante in fiera on TMC.

In 1998 after the success of her stage debut, she was cast in a new comedy called Uomini sull'orlo di una crisi di nervi which was also very successful, but during production she suffered a broken knee and was unable to continue. She had recovered by the summer and could host the TV show Cocco di mamma on Rai Uno. In this show she had the chance to sing some Italian and international summer hits of the past, and these performances led to her pursuing a musical comeback. The same year she was in the cast of Italian music band 883's debut movie, Jolly Blu, and of the sit-com Tutti gli uomini sono uguali aired on Italia 1.

In 1999, she released a new album, Flower's Broken, in Italy and Spain but, although an early curiosity was evoked by the new single - "I Love You" - video, both album and single were unsuccessful. She was a guest on the UK show Eurotrash where she performed her new single "I Love You".

[edit] The '00s

2001 saw Sabrina's comeback to theatre with the musical Emozioni that received very good reviews from critics; with this show she toured Italy for almost three years and the cast included Vladimir Luxuria.

In 2002, she hosted another TV show on Italia 1 called Matricole & Meteore, in which she travelled the world in order to uncover the current situations of former stars such as Shannen Doherty, Al Corley, Gary Coleman, Jimmy Sommerville, Charlene Tilton and others.

In April 2004, she gave birth to her first child, a son called Luca.

In 2005, she has starred in the independent film Colori that was premiered at the Salerno's Independent Cinema Festival, where she won the The Critics' Choice Awards as best actress. Sabrina also took part in ITV's Hit Me Baby One More Time where she sung live "Boys (Summertime Love)" and Sugababes' "Hole in the Head". In November that year she performed "Boys (Summertime Love)" and "All of Me (Boy Oh Boy)" on Russian concert "Дискотека 80-х".

In 2006, she released (only through her official web site) a new song called "I Feel Love (Good Sensation)". Also in 2006, Iranian model/actress Aylar Lie released a cover of Sabrina's "Boys (Summertime Love)" hit from 1987 accompanied by a live music video.

In 2007, she toured throughout France Zénith venues with all her old hits and her own cover version of the disco anthem "Born to Be Alive", premiered at her official MySpace page.

On December 31, 2007 she appeared in the New Year's Eve show of Gato Fedorento, on Portuguese television, with a live lip-synched performance in front of 10,000 people.

In 2008 she will tour again throughout France with the nostalgia tour RFM Party 80 organized by French network RFM and she will release her first official greatest hits album.

Nowadays she is also a record producer : she owns a recording studio which was used by Sade, Simply Red, Vasco Rossi and many others. She runs a management agency, called New Boys Productions, and manages a lot of dance acts.

[edit] Discography

Music Portal

[edit] Albums

  1. Boys (Summertime Love)
  2. Hot girl
  3. Get Ready (Holiday Rock)
  4. Kiss
  5. Sexy Girl
  6. Kiss Me
  7. Lady Marmalade
  8. My Sharona
  9. Da Ya Think I'm Sexy
  • 1988 Super Sabrina (as "Sabrina") Finland #9, Switzerland #28, Sweden #39, lots of other chart data unavailable still. Originally released in late 1988 in Italy, but in most territories during spring 1989.
  1. Like A Yo Yo
  2. All Of Me
  3. Doctors Orders
  4. Funky Girl
  5. My Chico
  6. Pirate Of Love
  7. Guys And Dolls
  8. Sex
  9. Gringo (included in the remix album Super Sabrina Remix)
  • 1991 Over The Pop (as "Sabrina")
  1. SIAMO DONNE (feat. JO SQUILLO)
  2. PROMISES IN THE DARK
  3. VOLA
  4. YOU CAN GET IT IF YOU REALLY WANT
  5. DIRTY BOY LOOK
  6. DOMINATION
  7. LOVE IS LIKE MAGIC
  8. YEAH YEAH(REMIX)
  9. AFRAID TO LOVE
  10. LOVE DREAM
  11. WITH A BOY LIKE YOU
  12. YESTERDAY ONCE MORE
  13. SHADOWS OF THE NIGHT
  14. YEAH YEAH(ACAPELLA)
  • 1996 Numeri / Maschio dove sei (as "Sabrina Salerno") (produced by Massimo Riva, Enrico Monti and Sabrina Salerno)
  1. MASCHIO DOVE SEI?
  2. PALPITO D'AMORE
  3. FATTA E RIFATTA
  4. CUORE
  5. NON VA
  6. LA PORTA E' SEMPRE LA
  7. ALICE RIVIVRA'
  8. MESSICO
  9. TANGO ITALIANO
  10. GIOCO PERVERSO
  11. NUMERI
  • 1999 Flower's Broken (as "Sabrina Salerno")
  1. Shallala
  2. Jimmy
  3. I Love You
  4. Diamond in the Sand
  5. I Want You
  6. You Oughta Know
  7. Flower's Broken
  8. Love Is All There Is
  9. Russian Lover
  10. Never Too Late
  • 2008 THE BEST (as "Sabrina Salerno")
  1. The release has been announced on her official MySpace page [1]

[edit] Singles

Film Portal

[edit] Filmography

  • 2006 Film D
  • 2005 Colori
  • 1998 Tutti gli uomini sono uguali (TV sit-com)
  • 1998 Jolly Blu
  • 1989 Fratelli d'Italia
  • 1988 Festa di Capodanno (mini series)
  • 1986 Grandi magazzini
  • 1986 Professione vacanze (TV series)
  • 1986 Ferragosto O.K. (TV movie)

[edit] See also

[edit] External links