Born Federico Leonardo Lucia in Milan, socially minded Italian rapper Fedez first made a splash in 2011, when he released the download-only sets Penisola Che Non C'è and Il Mio Primo Disco da Venduto. Signed to the Sony label, his first official album, Sig. Brainwash: L'arte di Accontentare, was issued in March 2013. It topped Italy's FIMI chart and was eventually awarded three-times platinum status. Re-releases of his first two sets caused them both to hit the Top Ten in June of 2013. Fedez served as a judge on the Italian version of X Factor.

His second album for Sony, Pop-Hoolista, followed in October 2014. It also topped the Italian charts, spending the rest of 2014 and nearly half of 2015 charting on its way to a double-platinum certification. In 2017, he scored another number one album in Comunisti col Rolex, a collaboration with fellow Milanese rapper J-Ax. Its pop-rap-EDM sound saw both performers singing and rapping, and the singles "Vorrei Ma Non Posto" and "Assenzio" both topped the chart. ~ Andy Kellman

An Italian rapper whose broad commercial appeal has been informed by the likes of the Diplomats, the Game, and Fabolous, Emis Killa has combined aggressive rhymes and pop choruses to achieve sustained mainstream success in his native country. Barely into his twenties when he released his acclaimed debut album, L'erba cattiva (2012), Emis has gone on to top the Italian chart with the successive full-lengths Mercurio (2013), Terza stagione (2016), and Supereroe (2018). Between his first and second proper LPs, Emis captured the attention of a U.S. audience when he participated in the cypher segment of the BET Hip Hop Awards.

Born Emiliano Rudolf Giambelli in Vimercate, near his eventual homebase of Milan, Emis Killa (the son of keyboardist Sergio Giambelli) started rapping during his early teenage years and made a name for himself at the age of 17, when he won a freestyle competition. Soon thereafter, he was affiliated with Blocco Recordz, which in 2009 and 2010 released his first two mixtapes, and then moved upward with the larger and storied Carosello label. L'erba cattiva, Emis' first proper album, followed in 2012, peaked at number two on Italy's official album chart, and with help from the breakthrough single "Parole di ghiaccio," went platinum. Accolades from the Italian version of Total Request Live (Best Emerging Artist), as well as the MTV Europe Music Awards (Best Italian Act), followed suit.

Mercurio, Emis' second album, quickly followed in 2013 and eclipsed the performance of the debut by topping the Italian chart, and likewise was platinum certified. Later in the year, Emis performed in the cypher segment of the BET Hip Hop Awards -- a major gesture of acceptance for a rapper who had grown up immersed in the recordings of U.S. artists. Despite a three-year gap between releases -- during which Emis coached on The Voice of Italy -- he again went to number one with the 2016 album Terza stagione. Preceded by another major hit single, "Rollercoaster," Supereroe continued the streak of chart-topping releases in 2018. ~ Andy Kellman