Giuseppe Povia was born in 1972 on the Milanese island of Elba. He began playing guitar from the age of 14 without formal instruction. Povia went from learning other artists' material by ear to creating his own compositions a few years later at the age of 20. In 1999, Povia enrolled in the Academy of Sanremo. Though his time there was short, Povia made an important connection during his stay with producer Giancarlo Bigazzi. Together the two recorded the single "E Vero," which became Povia's introduction to listeners nationwide. With his 2003 single "Mia Sorella" addressing bulimia, Povia not only won the Nuove Tendenze della Canzone Popolare e d'Autore award, but established a reputation as a socially conscious songwriter. In that vein, Povia's 2005 single "Avamposto 55" was a strong statement of solidarity with the children of Darfur, and started a campaign to build a hospital in that region. The proceeds of Povia's 2006 disc I Bambino Fanno "Oh" were donated to those ends; the album sold more than 200,000 units and received special accolades from Sony BMG, the artist's record label. "I Bambino" has since been translated into Spanish and become something of a theme for the international "Let Children be Children" campaign. Povia's 2006 single "No e il Momento" debuted well, receiving heavy video and radio rotation. ~ Evan C. Gutierrez