From the venues of their hometown Bergamo, in the north of Italy, to the far-bigger stages of X-Factor Italia 2020 and the recent Future Echoes Festival in Sweden, Blue Wit’s young and ambitious members Fran, Edo and Manu seem ready to take over the world with their eclectic style and sonorities. On the occasion of their first gig in the British capital, we met Fran - Blue Wit’s lead vocalist and guitarist - and asked him about the band’s background, its present influences and future directions…

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When did the Blue Wit project begin?

Edo (drummer) and I started playing together when we were in uni in 2019. We both knew we were good musicians and we were interested in seeing what would come out of a collaboration between the two of us. We started jamming and penning songs down. Soon after we realised we worked well together and we started to create something unique for us! We knew we wanted to be a good band with strong songs and so we decided to start auditioning for bassists - that’s when Manu joined the party, and we couldn’t have asked for a better formation.

What’s it like, being young musicians in a small city like Bergamo? Do you feel close to the Italian music scene?

Being born a musician and getting raised in Bergamo has been pretty tough. The music scene there only awakened in recent years; also I write all my lyrics in English because of what I listen to (almost exclusively British and American music), which is why it’s been even harder for us to “please the audience” and feel integrated. I personally don’t feel any distance between us and the Italian music scene though, I think that there are many beautiful things coming out of there and the standard level of the production is getting very high. I just wanted to travel and see the world, and writing in English generally helps move towards that direction I think -  as long as you put a lot of work and thoughts into what you’re doing.

Is this the first time you’re playing in London? Fran, you’re already London-based - what brought you here and how would you describe your relationship with the city and its music?

Yes indeed! It is the first time we get to play here, and we can’t put into words how excited we are. I always wanted to play in the UK to see how we would connect with people here. I’m currently studying music production and sound engineering at Abbey Road Institute. I’ve been meeting so many musicians it feels surreal! I’ve only just arrived in London (I moved here at the end of 2020), but I already feel deeply connected with this city. I already had a few connections here so it wasn’t as hard as starting from zero. London is giving me a lot in terms of new experiences - and I’m very grateful for that.

You guys took part to X-Factor Italia last year, do you think the talent show experience helped you in terms of general visibility and career opportunities? Looking back, would you recommend it to fellow artists who are just starting out?

X Factor was a great experience for us mainly because it showed us we were actually ready to pursue a career in music. We can’t imagine a future that doesn’t involve music-making - so that was very encouraging. We did gain some visibility and some cool stories to tell at the pub, but overall I’d say it was mostly a formative journey for us, so yeah - I would recommend it to everyone that’s starting out. It teaches you a lot, both about yourself and your music, and it gets you going! Being featured in the programme (and seeing yourself on the telly) also is a great feeling.

What are your top 5 favourite bands and music influences?

Whoever listens to our music says that we’ve taken a lot from Arctic Monkeys and Alex Turner’s music in general, but I wouldn’t limit our main influence to that style of songwriting. I love Billie Eilish and Finneas, and what they write about is a big part of my writing too now. The Strokes and their attitude are another major influence - for everyone who’s making music today I think. Edo’s really into Catfish and the Bottleman at the moment and I believe that he’s taking a lot from them too. Manu loves funk and soul music, so I’d say that everything that comes from that world is part of what we are too.

Do you think your music taste has influenced your fashion? If so, who are your main style icons?

I am a massive fashion enthusiast, my mom’s got the coolest clothing shop so I grew up among clothes and magazines and worked in the field too. Music influences fashion more than people imagine! I really think that you can immediately tell what kind of music someone’s into by the way they dress. I also have a massive mission: to style the rest of the band! I can’t complain too much about their fashion though to be fair - I actually like that they both have their own personal style. Speaking of style icons, David Bowie is perhaps my main inspiration. He was a genius in both elegance and extravagance! Prince is another great example of fluidity and elegance. I’m always trying to find items that are interesting and “shocking”, something that people wouldn’t normally expect - that’s also why I was excited to come to Atika to have a look around and pick something grand for our gig!

Is there anything new coming up we should be looking forward to? What are Blue Wit’s aspirations and goals for the future?

We’re working on new music! I think that a change of direction is essential for a band in order to keep the audience on their toes,  so we’re excited to be producing new things. As for our immediate future, for now we want to try and find as many gigs as we can, we’re very keen to be playing around, showing people what we can do. Our main goal is to keep doing what we’re doing, and if something comes out of it, it will be even a greater gift. As I said, I would like to tour the world someday, but we’re only at the beginning of the journey - which is both scary and exciting!