We’ve had mainstream success, won awards & had a million streams but this album is for me, says Maneskin’s Damiano David

FOR Maneskin’s Damiano David, it feels like the right moment to release a solo album.

And the Italian singer reveals a more personal, previously hidden, side of himself on the record.

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David — who found fame when his band won the Eurovision Song Contest for Italy in 2021 — admits: “For a long time I felt misunderstood as a public figure. In terms of confidence, being in the public eye took a lot away from me.”

Chatting on a video call from his Los Angeles home, he adds: “For years, I felt like I was being watched all the time, that wherever I went there might be someone taking a picture, filming a video.

“So even going out to do the groceries was a challenge for me, not because of people asking for pictures, but because it caused a lot of anxiety.”

It’s a busy time for David when we speak as he is about to move house.

“It’s a little chaotic because I’m trying to keep track of everything, but it’s exciting too,” he says.

“There were different stages making this album. The first part was terrifying and extremely stressful because I had to force myself to face my fears. It was like a huge, scary monster.

“I had to face things that scare me, like going to the studio, having to introduce myself and adapt to the room.

“Just writing a song, I had to open up somehow.”

That process of confronting fear also forced the singer to confront his identity.

“People only knew a part of me through my role in the band,” he explains.

“I wanted to show who I really am — and not be afraid.

“Our generation is over cringe culture [mocking online], because people are allowed to be goofy, to be normal, to be fallible and make mistakes.

“But my brain was still focused on projecting perfection — yet I am convinced that perfection is the number one enemy of art and happiness. I don’t aim for perfection, I aim for greatness, to be good. So I have a constant fight in my brain about this.

“But I had a goal and so, after a demanding month which I found extremely hard, things got easier.”

On David’s first solo record, called Funny Little Fears, there are no hidden layers at all.

He says: “The spotlight is on me, and it’s my full personality — when I’m confident and secure and when I’m vulnerable and scared. It’s the full thing.

“But it’s changed everything for me, and I’m open to things.

“Someone mentioned acting. If the right thing comes, why not? Sometimes artists cross over and it looks forced. I wouldn’t like that, but if the right project came along and it was organic, then why not?”

My favourite song is Tango, which might be the fastest of the whole record. It’s very fast, very funny and the lyrics are almost making fun of myself.

David says he is grateful for the success that he has enjoyed with Maneskin since their Eurovision breakthrough with song Zitti e buoni.

He adds proudly: “I have achieved a lot with Maneskin. We’ve had mainstream success and won a bunch of awards and have our million streams or whatever.

"So this album is for me. And I was able to experience making it in a healthy, free and joyful way.”

Funny Little Fears is a less rocky sound than Maneskin, and David has been inspired by the likes of Keane, early Killers and even Billy Joel’s Piano Man.

“The top tier of pop music inspired this,” he says. “I tried to steal something from Elton John too. And I hope you can hear that.

“It’s a different sound. Even as a singer, I sound different. I have more range on here. Some of the songs are extremely fun to sing.

“My favourite song is Tango, which might be the fastest of the whole record. It’s very fast, very funny and the lyrics are almost making fun of myself.

“So it’s very dark but, at the same time, extremely happy with this dance vibe. It’s great to sing — a little cheeky, a little funny and inspired by a relationship that I had. It’s a cool song.”

The first single is an irresistibly gorgeous number called Silverlines, which David made with Labrinth, the London producer/singer known for Beneath Your Beautiful.

Other collaborations include with actress and model Suki Waterhouse and American singer songwriter d4vd known for TikTok hit Romantic Homicide.

“Labrinth is great,” says David. “How did it happen? I still don’t know, as it happened all so fast.

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“Sarah Hudson, who I wrote the song Next Summer with, writes with him and asked me about getting him to add something to it.

“So this opportunity came from the sky as I was lucky enough to be in the right place at the right moment.”

And writing that song was deeply therapeutic for David.

“It’s a song about getting out of dark places or dark moments, which is what this album did for me,” he says. “I was in a very unhappy and unsatisfied place.

“And I’m aware this life gives me so many privileges, but at the same time I am very sensitive, and this work involves many emotions and there’s lots of loneliness.”

At his lowest, he even considered walking away from music.

“Maybe quitting would have been

extreme,” he admits. “But a two-year hiatus was knocking at the door.

“But through the writing process, something shifted. When I write music, I get access to parts of my brain that I don’t normally have access to.

I was in a really dark place, deeply unhappy, and I knew I had to do something about it, fast.

“It’s like a stream of consciousness — I don’t always know what I’m writing about until I read it back. But it gives me clarity.

“It’s like putting the problem on paper, or what’s making me happy in that moment.

“At times, I thought that music itself was the problem — that maybe I wasn’t cut out for it, or that it had lost its sparkle for me.

“But then I realised it was exactly the opposite. It was the one thing I could hold on to.

“Making this record helped rebuild me and gave me the good life I have now.”

The hardest part for David was coming to terms with the fact that he wasn’t happy.

“It took the longest to admit,” he explains. Starting the record felt like a train wreck.

“I was in a really dark place, deeply unhappy, and I knew I had to do something about it, fast.”

One of the standout tracks, the hauntingly beautiful ballad Sick Of Myself, captures the raw emotion of that difficult period.

“That could have been the album title,” he tells me. “But then I thought it was too dark, and it took out the positive part — because the album is a journey from darkness to light.”

That journey also brought a new understanding of connection and vulnerability.

“I realised I need people,” he says. “I’ve always been convinced I could do everything on my own.

"Now I see how central and meaningful real connections are. I used to think happiness came from job satisfaction and status — and it doesn’t.

“I’ve grown and matured enough to see that there’s always someone who can bring light back into your life, even when everything seems like it’s falling apart.”

The First Line is an upbeat love song about his girlfriend, American actress and singer Dove Cameron.

He lights up: “Now that’s a very special one and my girlfriend loves the song because it’s about her. She loves the whole record.”

Their relationship, like the album, attracts plenty of attention — and with that comes scrutiny.

So how does he cope?

“We take whatever comes with it,” he says. “We’re very happy and have a strong connection, so there’s not much noise that can upset us.”

Everything I’ve been through making this record has changed and inspired me. It’s a new chapter and I’m ready for it.

David began his music career at the age of 15. By 17, he had co-founded Maneskin with Victoria De Angelis and Thomas Raggi, later joined by Ethan Torchio.

They started performing as buskers on the streets of Rome before becoming famous when they finished second on the Italian X Factor in 2017.

The singer has previously said he missed out on being a teenager. Today he adds that if he had started his career later he would have a stage name.

“I regret not having one,’ he says. “It helps separate your everyday life and your stage life. But then if the 15-year-old me could see me in LA making this record, he would be amazed. It’s been a crazy journey.”

And on the topic of Maneskin, how is their relationship today?

“We are still friends. I recently had dinner with Thomas here in LA. We’re all still good. We message each other and they’ve heard the album.”

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The start of June sees David embark on a mammoth world tour, including two shows at London’s Roundhouse in September.

“We’re designing the stage and working on the set,” he tells me. “I have a bunch of ideas that I hope I’m going to be able to pull off.

“I know it’s going to be very long and demanding, but I’m going to have the right amount of sleep and I’m working out and eating well. That really helps and not just on a physical level.

“It’s about being smart, working out the schedule, having little rests, and having people come around to make it feel less lonely and less like you’re travelling around the world out of a suitcase.

“Everything I’ve been through making this record has changed and inspired me. It’s a new chapter and I’m ready for it.”

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