If you name Fabio Rizzo, Palermo, everyone knows him. Fabio is not just a musician it's a musical producer, of proverbial flair and sympathy, but without knowing it (or maybe yes) it embodies a dream. The dream come true of an independent music label. Fabio works in a field, that of notes, of discovery, of romantic gambling, which many pursue. Well he, every day, in the bright rooms of the Indingo Studios, set in Lampedusa Palace, grabs it and puts it into play.
It is a work of gut and soul, of acumen, skills, created over time, with great perseverance. Fabio, 42 years old with contagious enthusiasm, is at the helm of the 800A records. A independent music label which for years has been a point of reference in the environment, for quality and passion.
Founding the 800A, how to become a music producer
How does the adventure begin? "I have always worked on my production projects in the bands I was a part of - Fabio begins -. Then, about fifteen years ago, from 2008, I started putting my ideas at the service of other artists. Fabio begins as a musician in groups like i Second Grace, the Waines, to name just two. Myth band in Palermo, also by virtue of the fact that they have been successful and “toured” in Europe and America.
"Music is made to be carried around - explains Fabio - like a suitcase of sensations, it's a strange job, my mom never understood it completely, she always trusted me, and supports me in what I do, recognize the time I invest. I gained concrete results, 15 years ago I worked in the radio and supervised the direction of the works of David Enia, Eleonora Lombardo by Mario Perrotta, just to say a few names, in Rai I signed about ten programs, there I became passionate about the sound story, what I earned in Rai I reinvested in my little 800A. A lot of skills have been useful to me, both for management and, in general, for coordinating complex productions. Those years of radio gave me the tools".
The roster of an independent music label
Less than a month ago, a new single was released for his independent label with an irreverent name (800A is a way of hiding a rant). Is titled Hail Mary on the contrary and is part of the new album by Alessio Bondì,
Sergio Beercock, another spearhead of the roster, proposes a work around the body and the voice. Beercock minimizes tools. Angelo Daddelli & I picciotti, they work on the musicality of a radical Sicily, "I'm interested in working with folk", says Fabio, and then there are the rookies: the twenty-year-olds Gabriel Pirillo, and Ezra. Prillo has signed a piece now and Ezra, has just released her first single Plant and hurricane, on May 13. It's still Chris Obehi, Aurora D'Amico, Rebulaid. Other sounds of great involvement.
How do you choose the artists to produce? "There is no recipe, you come into contact first of all with a person and with his idea of music and songs and this idea gives me an epidermal shock, one of my little advantages is that I trust a vision, I imagine them from there at two years. If you think about it a real hallucination, I see a girl or a boy with an out-of-tune guitar, in a little Palermo place or I hear a ramshackle demo and I have a completely creative vision, I tell myself: this person in two years can be someone, a artist who can excite people. Our decision is based on the potential of an emotion.
How the independent label 800A plans work around an artist
There are those who plan, imagine how much to invest economically, because a piece has characteristics to be included in certain playlist and it can generate a number of streams, but these are goals that don't interest us".
So how do you proceed? "A good example is the modality used with Alessio Bondì - Fabio specifies - I listen to him and think: how many people can we excite with this piece, how many hearts can we defeat?".
The process has stages. "From the base, up to the song production in studiesor - so we proceed -, until communication"Says Fabio,"an artisanal and sartorial planning, sewn right on him and on the public that has already bestowed great love on him".
800A records staff
You use the plural, can you tell me how many you are on the label and your roles? "The staff has grown, it is made up of various aspects ”, says Fabio. "Now there are those who take care of communication and also social strategies". They are Massimiliano Rotolo and Alessandra Agola, for videos and photos there is Vincenzo Guerrieri. They are young, all in their thirties, I raise the average age, the boss".
How did you meet? "This group was formed in 2019 on the occasion of the world sounds festival. I observed them and told them: I liked how you work, we collaborate on our label, on the artistic rotter".
To solidify and solidify an independent music label.
"The way of working, the method, has changed dramatically - Fabio explains -, having an internal staff assures me a quality, well-established and strong team".
The method is useful for developing the concept around an artist. "It allows me to manage artists quickly ". Fabio has clear ideas, so "he can reach higher without, every time, having to experiment with new professional relationships, having to explain, find harmony".
What Makes an Independent Music Label Project Work? "Music is the central pivot, but the images, the words, the literary references make the project fly ”. Thus explains Fabio, “the style compared to clothing, the look, theatrical aspects and storytelling of each artist". In short, let's go back to this traveling suitcase, driven by memories and agreements, and to the honest story of a sensation.
