Biography

Italian rapper and producer Salmo has topped charts and broken streaming records with his aggressive, unruly mixture of hardcore hip-hop, metal, and bass-heavy electronic music. Following work with several rap, metal, and hardcore groups, he made his solo debut with 2011's The Island Chainsaw Massacre, which featured production influenced by grime, dubstep, and drum'n'bass. Subsequent full-lengths Midnite (2013), Hellvisback (2016), and Playlist (2018) all conquered the Italian charts, as Salmo performed to sold-out crowds at arenas throughout Italy and beyond. Born Maurizio Pisciottu in the Sardinian town of Olbia, rapper and producer Salmo recorded a few demos as part of the trio Premeditazione e Dolo prior to making his own Sotto Pelle in 2004. He formed nu-metal group Skasico with his Premeditazione e Dolo bandmates, and additionally participated in hardcore punk band To Ed Gein and stoner metal group Three Pigs Trip. His first official album, however, was 2011's The Island Chainsaw Massacre, which was followed by Death U.S.B. in 2012. The Italian MTV Hip-Hop Awards named Salmo Best Crossover. He also took part in the Machete crew, whose first two mixtapes appeared in 2012. Salmo's third album, Midnite, arrived in 2013, and became his first number one album in Italy. Recorded while on tour in support of Midnite, Sony Music issued the live album/DVD S.A.L.M.O. Documentary in 2014. The rapper's fourth studio LP, Hellvisback, appeared in early 2016 and debuted atop the Italian album chart. It featured blink-182 drummer Travis Barker on two tracks. Salmo performed at numerous European festivals throughout 2017, and his single "Perdonami" quickly reached triple-platinum status in his home country. 2018 full-length Playlist broke several streaming records upon release, with nearly all of its tracks immediately hitting the Top 20. His studio albums from Death USB to Playlist were issued as the LP box set The Complete Vinyl Edition. He produced 2019's Machete Mixtape 4, and his own Playlist Live appeared at the end of the year. He released a series of limited picture-disc singles in 2020 and released "La Canzone Nostra" (with Mace and Blanco) in 2021. ~ Andy Kellman & Marcy Donelson, Rovi