Lorenzo Gabanizza is an Italian singer-songwriter. His childhood was troubled. His family of five lived in a poor, two-bedroom apartment with no hot water and no indoor toilet. Lorenzo was repeatedly sexually assaulted, leaving scars that would resurface in his adult years through depression.
Lorenzo sought refuge from these horrible situations in music – spinning his favourite records on the family turntable and singing the hits of the time. This allowed him to escape his harsh realities to a romantic paradise where he felt safe.
As he grew older, Lorenzo continued to find peace in music through performing. In 1991 he became the lead singer for Mantras, a Queen cover band. He continued to play in bands for over a decade until he began his solo career in 2007.
Through his music, Lorenzo takes on and conquers the many struggles of his troubled life. He works through his depression, abusive childhood and suicidal urges by embracing the overwhelming beauty of life.
He also uses his music, inspired by his personal issues, to help others. In the mid-1990s he founded a charity that raised money for the fight against AIDS. It was recognised by the Mercury Phoenix Trust, the anti-AIDS charity created by Queen.
In 2020, Lorenzo released the three-track EP “Someone Waiting At Their Door”. The title track is a musical embrace to all the victims and families caught up in the 2001 September 11th attacks in the US.
The poignant lyrics include: “They will be forever now, someone waiting at their door”. Lorenzo explains: “The victims, leaving home in the morning going to work, the families, staying at home, both had their lives broken in that moment and both will be waiting at their door, for that doors will never open again to let them reunite.”
Musicians involved in the project include Rich Hinman on pedal steel, Grammy-winning Ian Cameron on fiddle. The EP was engineered by Grammy-winning Don Tyler who has previously worked with Bob Dylan.
