Current:Home > MarketsAndrea Bocelli on working with Russell Crowe, meeting the Kardashians and new concert film -MoneyMatrix
Andrea Bocelli on working with Russell Crowe, meeting the Kardashians and new concert film
View
Date:2025-04-14 01:31:02
Pop quiz: What do Ed Sheeran, Russell Crowe, the Kardashians, Sofia Vergara, Johnny Depp and Will Smith have in common?
All of the aforementioned celebrities, and many more public figures, appear in a new concert film celebrating Andrea Bocelli's 30th anniversary in music. The three-day concert took place in July and was attended by over 30,000 people at an outdoor amphitheater in Tuscany. Bocelli teamed with director Sam Wrench, who directed Taylor Swift's "Eras Tour" movie, for his film. "Andrea Bocelli 30: The Celebration" receives a theatrical release this weekend.
The tenor has three children, all of whom appear in the film. So of course he's aware of the global phenomenon that Swift and her "Eras Tour" became.
"Virginia and Matteo went to Taylor Swift's concert in Milan," Bocelli, 66, reveals to USA TODAY before adding with a laugh, "and they told me every detail, of course."
Both Virginia, 12, and Matteo, 27, accompanied their father to the Academy Awards earlier this year. Bocelli kicked off a year-long celebration of his anniversary in music with a performance of "Time to Say Goodbye" alongside his son during the Oscars' In Memoriam segment. For the performance, Bocelli reimagined the song with Matteo and two-time Oscar-winning composer Hans Zimmer.
Need a break? Play the USA TODAY Daily Crossword Puzzle.
For "Andrea Bocelli 30," the singer shared the stage with two Oscar-winning actors in Crowe and Smith. The "Gladiator" actor performed "Take This Waltz" with the tenor. Smith took the stage with a spoken-word rendition of "You'll Never Walk Alone." Bocelli met both for the first time during the concert.
"Beautiful," Bocelli recalls of the performance with Crowe, "because he was very excited. Me too." And the tenor believes the audience in Tuscany also felt that same emotion.
Kim and Khloé Kardashian also appear in the film, receiving flowers from Bocelli at the stage. Then in a scene taped away from the amphitheater, the sisters reflect on Bocelli's accomplishments. A common theme throughout the piece is the idea that the tenor's career is defined not just by his nearly 90 million albums sold, but the way in which he's represented both Italy and classical music throughout his three-decades in the public spotlight.
"You shouldn't take anything for granted," Bocelli says of the compliments, before using an Italian expression with the help of a translator. "The reality of my life has superseded, has gone beyond every expectation of life."
Bocelli, who became completely blind at 12, was encouraged by his father to pursue music in the United States. Now in "Andrea Bocelli 30," he passes down that gift to his three children. In one scene his son Amos, 29, chats with Queen's Brian May. Amos studied piano but is now pursuing a career in spacial engineering. He and the Rock and Roll Hall of Famer were able to strike common ground: in addition to his music, May is an astrophysicist.
May also joined Bocelli on stage, performing Queen's "Who Wants to Live Forever." Bocelli is certainly not focused on the end: he just released a "Duets" album that featured both previously recorded songs and new collaborations. Bocelli will also play 10 shows across the U.S. this December, with additional dates across the country announced for February and June of next year.
But when asked about his music living on forever, he offers a succinct observation.
"I try to inspire peace and serenity. This is my goal."
veryGood! (7)
Related
- Moving abroad can be expensive: These 5 countries will 'pay' you to move there
- The U.S. economy is losing steam. Bank woes and other hurdles are to blame.
- Why it's so hard to mass produce houses in factories
- Who Olivia Rodrigo Fans Think Her New Song Vampire Is Really About
- A Mississippi company is sentenced for mislabeling cheap seafood as premium local fish
- Love Island’s Ekin-Su Cülcüloğlu and Davide Sanclimenti Break Up
- In the San Francisco Bay Area, the Pandemic Connects Rural Farmers and Urban Communities
- The economics of the influencer industry
- A White House order claims to end 'censorship.' What does that mean?
- Step up Your Fashion With the Top 17 Trending Amazon Styles Right Now
Ranking
- Rylee Arnold Shares a Long
- David's Bridal files for bankruptcy for the second time in 5 years
- 10 Trendy Amazon Jewelry Finds You'll Want to Wear All the Time
- Warming Trends: How Hairdressers Are Mobilizing to Counter Climate Change, Plus Polar Bears in Greenland and the ‘Sounds of the Ocean’
- Will the 'Yellowstone' finale be the last episode? What we know about Season 6, spinoffs
- Pull Up a Seat for Jennifer Lawrence's Chicken Shop Date With Amelia Dimoldenberg
- The Clean Energy Transition Enters Hyperdrive
- EPA Opens Civil Rights Investigation Into Louisiana’s ‘Cancer Alley’
Recommendation
Sarah J. Maas books explained: How to read 'ACOTAR,' 'Throne of Glass' in order.
In South Asia, Vehicle Exhaust, Agricultural Burning and In-Home Cooking Produce Some of the Most Toxic Air in the World
What Does Climate Justice in California Look Like?
City and State Officials Continue Searching for the Cause of Last Week’s E. Coli Contamination of Baltimore’s Water
What were Tom Selleck's juicy final 'Blue Bloods' words in Reagan family
Who bears the burden, and how much, when religious employees refuse Sabbath work?
City and State Officials Continue Searching for the Cause of Last Week’s E. Coli Contamination of Baltimore’s Water
New Mexico Wants it ‘Both Ways,’ Insisting on Environmental Regulations While Benefiting from Oil and Gas