Velvet is an Italian rock group from Rome formed in 1998 under the influence of Britpop by Giancarlo Cornetta (drums), Pier Luigi Ferrantini (voice, guitar), Alessandro Sgreccia (guitar), and Pierfrancesco Bazzoffi (bass). Their first single, "Tokyo Eyes," appeared in the summer of 2000, and in 2001 they participated at the San Remo Festival with "Nascosto Dietro un Vetro." Both songs are featured on their debut album for EMI, Versomarte, which also includes the massive hit "Boyband," a satirical take on the prefabricated boy-band phenomenon. Success continued with the second album, 2002's Cose Comuni , which includes a celebrated cover of Edoardo Bennato's "Una Settimana, un Giorno." The summer of 2003 saw Velvet opening for pop stars such as Simply Red, Macy Gray, Craig David, and Alanis Morissette. 10 Motivi appeared in 2004, and a different version of the album was released the following year to include "Dovevo Dirti Molte Cose," a song the band presented at the 2005 San Remo Festival. An iTunes-only live album was made available in 2006. By now firmly established as one of the most successful Italian pop bands, Velvet was invited to perform at the Rome Live 8 concert on July 2, 2006. Their last record, simply titled Velvet, appears in March 2007. ~ Mariano Prunes, Rovi
