The Sicilian who built a soul voice from his father's example

Mario Biondi was born Mario Ranno in Catania, Sicily, in January 1971. His father was Giuseppe Ranno, a popular song singer known by the pseudonym Stefano Biondi, and the son took his stage name from him. In his youth he sang in small choirs, but his real passion was soul. He trained his ear by listening to records by Lou Rawls, Al Jarreau and Isaac Hayes, and by 1988 he was a devoted admirer of Ray Charles.

The years that followed were long, and not glamorous. Biondi accompanied established Italian names on their concert tours, among them Franco Califano, Peppino Di Capri, Fred Bongusto and Rosario Fiorello. Alongside that work came collaborations with Italian and international artists and a small output of disco music. He has also said that the friendship with fellow Catania native Gianni Bella was important for his artistic growth. It was a slow apprenticeship, the kind that teaches a singer phrasing and patience.

The breakthrough came in 2006 with the album Handful of Soul on Schema Records. Listeners heard what the description of his voice already promised: deep and warm, recalling the great interpreters of soul and rhythm and blues. “This Is What You Are” is one of the songs from that period that has stayed with listeners. A double disc of live material, I Love You More, followed in 2007, and Yes You, another live album, in 2010. In 2011 he released the double CD Due, and in 2013 the albums Sun and Mario Christmas.

After that the releases kept coming at a steady pace: Beyond in 2015, Best of Soul in 2016, Brasil in 2018, Dare in 2021, Romantic in 2022 and Crooning Undercover in 2023. When Sun appeared, he presented it as a record to celebrate life. A singer who started out in the shadow of a father's stage name ended up making his own name on the strength of one voice and the soul records he had listened to as a boy.