Madame

Francesca Calearo (born 16 January 2002), known professionally as Madame, is an Italian rapper and singer-songwriter. After signing a recording contract with Sugar Music at age 16, she gained popularity in August 2019, when her single "Sciccherie" was shared by Cristiano Ronaldo on his Instagram profile. Between 2019 and 2020, she released several singles as lead artist and collaborations with, among others, Marracash, Negramaro, DRD, Ghali, Ensi and producer Chris Nolan. In March 2021 she competed in the 71st Sanremo Music Festival. Her entry "Voce", which earned her one of the most streams artist in Amazon Music Italy in 2021 alongside Cos Mass, Mahmood and Alessandra Amoroso as well as the single "Il mio amico" recorded with Fabri Fibra, were included in her debut album Madame, released on 19 March 2021. Biography Francesca Calearo was born in Vicenza on 16 January 2002 and grew up in the town of Creazzo. As a child, she developed an interest in music thanks to her father, an amateur musician with an interest in Italian singer-songwriters. Being influenced by artists like Ludovico Einaudi, Calearo started taking piano lessons in middle school, and later continued to study music as an autodidact. She studied Human Sciences at the liceo Don Giuseppe Fogazzaro in Vicenza. She chose the pseudonym "Madame" after trying a random generator for drag queen names, which yielded the result "Madame Wild" for Calearo. She found it represented the idea of "elegance and sophistication" she wanted to pursue, as well as her will to be "a Woman with capital W". Madame's debut single, "Anna", was produced by rapper Eiemgei and released in September 2018 by Arcade Army Records. At the age of 16, she signed a recording contract with Sugar Music, whom released her second single "Sciccherie" on 14 December 2018. The song received airplay from Italian radio networks including Radio DeeJay. In August 2019, Cristiano Ronaldo posted an Instagram story on his account with a video of himself listeing to "Sciccherie" on his home's terrace. Ronaldo's story attracted media attention to the song, leading several outlets to talk about Madame's music for the first time.