Emir Kobilić (Bosnian pronunciation: [ěmir kôbilit͡ɕ]), known professionally as Salvatore Ganacci (Italian: [salvaˈtoːre ɡaˈnattʃi]), is a Bosnian-Swedish DJ and record producer. His performances at Tomorrowland in 2018 and 2019 became viral,[1] as did the music video for his song "Horse".[citation needed]
Salvatore Ganacci | |
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Background information | |
Birth name | Emir Kobilić |
Born | Sarajevo, SFR Yugoslavia, SR Bosnia and Herzegovina | 29 July 1986
Genres | |
Occupations | |
Labels |
Early life
editEmir Kobilić was born in Sarajevo, SFR Yugoslavia, and moved to Stockholm, Sweden.[2][3] He told an interviewer that his performing name derives from being nicknamed "Salvatore Ganacci" by his childhood friends while playing football, as his "style of play was very Italian".[2]
Career
editGanacci began studying at Musikmakarna in 2010, in Örnsköldsvik, Sweden. He went on to work as a producer.[4] In 2013, Ganacci, together with Sanjin, released his first song, called "Zlatan", inspired by Swedish footballer Zlatan Ibrahimović.[5] In the song itself, he used another alias, called "Youthman". In the following year, Ganacci released his collaboration with Sanjin, and Jillionaire of Major Lazer called "Fresh".[6] In 2015, Ganacci signed a record deal with Sebastian Ingrosso's Refune Music label.[7] He also released a track featuring vocals from Trinidad James entitled "Money in my mattress". MTV News said the accompanying video "will be the weirdest thing you watch all day".[8] In 2018, he released the track "Jook It" with Tujamo.[9]
Ganacci's song "Horse" was released on audio and video in 2019, by Owsla, a label co-owned by Skrillex.[10] It later garnered recognition at the Berlin Music Video Awards and the Grammis.[11][12][13] The music video for "Horse" was the overall winner of the Berlin Music Video Awards in 2020, also winning the award for the "Best Concept" category.
The video begins with a group of people in the forest torturing animals, before Ganacci is alerted by an eagle and arrives driving a shoe. He then subjects the torturers to the very punishments they were inflicting on the animals. Billboard commented "it's kind of funny, but mostly it's just bizarre".[14] As of September 2024, the video on OWSLA's official YouTube channel had over 58 million views.[15] Ganacci worked with director Vedran Rupic and said about the clip "My message is always about love, but I really love to experiment with what love can be."[14] PopMatters listed "Horse" and also Party Favor's "Wasabi" which featured Ganacci in its best dance tracks for 2019.[16]
Ganacci's next authored release was the "Boycycle" EP, which also came with a video. The new song had vocals from Sébastien Tellier and the video told the story of a being who is half-man, half-motorcycle.[17] Ganacci collaborated again with Rupic to make the video for "Step-Grandma" in 2021. He later received Best Performance in a Video at the UK Music Video Awards.[18]
In 2018, Ganacci performed at Tomorrowland Festival in Belgium and received attention due to his dancing and comedic antics. Journalists from publications such as Billboard, Mixmag and NME gave his performance rave reviews and clips went viral on the internet.[19][20][21] He returned to the main stage of Tomorrowland the following year, beginning his set by standing in the crowd booing his own performance.[22] He also played at Electric Daisy Carnival at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway.[23]
Ganacci occasionally posts comedic shorts in his YouTube channel; much like his music videos, these sketches tend to explore the humor in absurdist and surreal situations they depict.
One viral video of Ganacci depicts him at a Tomorrowland concert instructing the audience to "try to relax your anus," before correcting himself by saying "your shoulders".[24]
Awards and nominations
editYear | Ceremony | Award | Nominated work | Result | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
2020 | Berlin Music Video Awards | Best Music Video | "Horse" | Won | [12] |
2020 | Berlin Music Video Awards | Best Concept | "Horse" | Won | [13] |
2020 | Grammis | Music Video of the Year | "Horse" | Won | [11] |
2021 | UK Music Video Awards | Best Performance in a Video | "Step-Grandma" | Won | [18] |
References
edit- ^ Bein, Kat (2019-05-13). "Salvatore Ganacci On Bizarre 'Horse' Video: 'I Love To Experiment With What Love Can Be'". Billboard. Retrieved 2023-09-20.
- ^ a b Fabrick, Mark (May 10, 2016). "SALVATORE DISCUSSES HIS ORIGINS AND INSIDE JOKES". Your EDM.
- ^ "Salvatore Ganacci". Electric Love. Retrieved 30 January 2022.
- ^ "Emir Kobilić". Musikmakarna.
- ^ Sanjin & Youthman - Zlatan, retrieved 2022-02-28
- ^ "Jillionaire & Salvatore Ganacci ft. Sanjin - "Fresh"". Complex. April 25, 2014.
- ^ "Musikindustrin – MUSIKBOLAG Salvatore Ganacci i avtal med Refune".
- ^ Pell, Mike (July 20, 2015). "Salvatore Ganacci's "Money in my mattress" will be the weirdest thing you watch all day". MTV.
- ^ Todoroski, James (31 August 2018). "Interview: Tujamo discusses Salvatore Ganacci collaboration 'Jook It'". We Rave You. Retrieved 30 January 2022.
- ^ Staff (17 April 2019). "Salvatore Ganacci releases bizarre new single and video on Skrillex's OWSLA: Watch". DJ Mag. Retrieved 30 January 2022.
- ^ a b "Här är årets Grammisvinnare". Grammisgalan. 2020-02-06. Retrieved 2020-02-07.
- ^ a b Berlin Music Video Awards (16 April 2021). "Winners of the Berlin Music Video Awards 2020". berlinmva.com.
- ^ a b Berlin Music Video Awards (16 April 2021). "Winners of the Berlin Music Video Awards 2020". berlinmva.com.
- ^ a b Bein, Kat (13 May 2019). "Salvatore Ganacci On Bizarre "Horse" Video: "I Love To Experiment With What Love Can Be"". Billboard. Retrieved 20 July 2022.
- ^ "Salvatore Ganacci - Horse (Official Music Video)". YouTube. Retrieved 30 January 2022.
- ^ Lathan, Ryan (19 December 2019). "The Best Dance Tracks of 2019, PopMatters". PopMatters. Retrieved 30 January 2022.
- ^ Paredes, Josue (18 February 2020). "Salvatore Ganacci Releases "Boycycle" EP". EDM Tunes. Retrieved 30 January 2022.
- ^ a b Bardsley, Miranda (4 November 2021). "Dua Lipa, Pa Salieu, Joy Crookes, Little Simz, Celeste and Bicep win at UK Music Video Awards 2021". Music Week. Retrieved 30 January 2022.
- ^ Bein, Kat (23 July 2018). "Salvatore Ganacci Puts on Eye-Popping Performance at Tomorrowland 2018 With Hip-Shaking Set: Watch". Billboard. Retrieved 30 January 2022.
- ^ Funster (25 July 2018). "Salvatore Ganacci is the performance artist dance music needs right now". Mixmag. Retrieved 30 January 2022.
- ^ Trendell, Andrew (24 July 2018). "The best or worst ever? This DJ's Tomorrowland set has gone viral". NME. Retrieved 30 January 2022.
- ^ Staff (28 July 2019). "Tomorrowland MC Says He's on Ketamine for Salvatore Ganacci Intro". EDM.com. Retrieved 30 January 2022.
- ^ "Hear EDC sets from David Guetta, Tiësto, Don Diablo, Alison Wonderland, Salvatore Ganacci, more". DJ mag. 20 May 2019. Retrieved 30 January 2022.
- ^ @MORTENofficial (24 July 2017). "Best performance @tomorrowland @TheSalvatoreG 😭" (Tweet). Retrieved 24 September 2024 – via Twitter.
External links
edit- Official website
- Salvatore Ganacci discography at Discogs