Raffaele Riefoli
| Raf | |
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Raf
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Raffaele Riefoli |
| Also known as | Raf Raff |
| Born | September 29, 1959 |
| Origin | Margherita di Savoia, Italy |
| Genres | Adult contemporary, soft rock, new wave, Dance-pop, Pop-rap, Electropop, rock, progressive rock, italian music, pop, punk rock, pop rock, songwriting music, jazz, Smooth jazz, Jazz fusion, italo disco, latin pop |
| Occupation(s) | Singer-songwriter |
| Instruments | Vocals |
| Years active | 1983–present |
| Labels | Carrere, East West, Columbia |
| Website | Raf Official Site |
Raffaele Riefoli (born September 29, 1959 in Margherita di Savoia, Italy) is an Italian singer-songwriter who is better known as simply Raf.
Riefoli lived the few first years of the 1980s in London, England, before starting out his musical career in 1984, landing mostly in the new wave scene with his English language debut album, Raf. His first single, "Self Control", which he co-wrote with Giancarlo Bigazzi and Steve Piccolo, was a huge hit not only in his native Italy but also in Austria (No. 7), Switzerland (No. 1) and Germany, where the single climbed as high as No. 2 in the Media Control single chart and spent a total of seven weeks within the Top 10. Raf's version of the song also managed to enter the Top-40 in France.
"Self Control" was recorded and released contemporaneously by American pop star Laura Branigan, previously best known for the hit singles "Gloria" (another cover version originally released by Umberto Tozzi) and "How Am I Supposed to Live Without You". Branigan's version was released as the first single off her 1984 album, also titled Self Control, and became a worldwide dance and pop success, hitting No. 4 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the U.S. Branigan's version hit the No. 1 spot in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Sweden, South Africa and Canada, and was a major hit in Ireland, Australia, France, the Netherlands and the UK. Raf's version, which was charting high in numerous markets in 1984/85, was highly expected to become the most popular song in the history of the Italian music industry.
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