Nayt is among the protagonists of the Sanremo Festival 2026. A presence that marks a symbolic passage for one of the most coherent and recognizable artists of contemporary Italian rap, capable of building his own path away from the television spotlight and arriving on the Ariston stage after over ten years of career.
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What is Nayt’s real name?
His real name is William Mezzanotte. Born in Isernia on 9 November 1994 and raised in Rome, he approached writing and music at a very young age. Release the first single, No Storyin 2011, followed by the debut album Nayt One in 2012. From the beginning he chose an independent path, focusing on introspective lyrics, a strong attention to language and a personal narrative that distinguishes him within the Italian hip hop scene.
How he became famous
The real statement comes with the trilogy Raptus (2015, 2017, 2019), considered a central point of his discography. Projects that allow him to consolidate a loyal audience and establish himself as a lucid, restless and generational voice. In the following years he released albums such as Mood (2020), Doom (2021) e Habitat (2023), confirming constant artistic growth and increasingly mature writing, capable of mixing rap, introspection and contemporary urban sounds.
Nayt’s most iconic songs
Among the best-known pieces of his repertoire are The eyes of the tiger, From scratch, He leaves And Hunger (in collaboration with MadMan), songs that tell of fragility, ambition, identity and generational discomfort, central themes in the artist’s poetics.
At Sanremo 2026 Nayt presents himself with Beforea song written by him and produced by Zef, which addresses the theme of human relationships and authenticity, questioning what remains when roles, masks and social superstructures fall. A choice consistent with his path and with a writing that, even on the most institutional stage of Italian music, does not give up depth and personal research.
With his participation in the Festival, Nayt brings to the Ariston a piece of Italian rap that has grown outside the traditional circuits, confirming how the boundary between the urban scene and the general public is now increasingly thin.
The lyrics to “Prima che”
With Prima che, Nayt chooses to strip off every filter and tell a part of herself without masks. The text moves on a delicate balance between vulnerability and lucidity, as if the artist had decided to stop a moment before a point of no return. The title itself suggests an urgency: say, do, clarify “before” it is too late.
The song addresses the theme of time passing and missed opportunities, but also that of the fear of truly exposing oneself. Nayt reflects on his own mistakes, on complicated relationships and on that sense of inadequacy that often accompanies those who live with amplified emotions.
Before the first woman
Before the first time
Before the first drug
Before the first idea
Before my true friend
That I saw him go
Before leaving
Before coming back here
Of the idea of having failed
Every time I trust
That people disgust me
That people are like me
Before asking me questions
Before being lazy
Before right and wrong
Who am I, who are you?
As long as you know what you’re getting
You don’t know what you lose
Maybe it’s late you said
What are you doing? I do not know
Reality cannot be seen
Until I see you
Until you see me (me)
Support each other
Bear with us saying
Which is worth it
Tell me is it true or don’t you believe it?
Reality cannot be seen
Until you see me
Until I see you (you)
Without objects or costumes, projects
Imagining posterity
Forced into the present
Escape us drunk or hung over
Who are you waiting for? I have no one to save us
Staring at the wall and getting tired
Find a hole and jump into it
I don’t believe who calls me
I think he got the name wrong
I don’t believe in those who love me more,
I don’t think it has value
Because I get confused in all this stuff I have on me
And I don’t know if it comforts me
Or it hinders my comparison
As long as you know what you’re getting
You don’t know what you lose
Maybe it’s late you said
What are you doing? I do not know
Reality cannot be seen
Until I see you
Until you see me (me)
Support each other
Bear with us saying
Which is worth it
Tell me is it true or don’t you believe it?
Reality cannot be seen
Until you see me
Until I see you (you)
Before anyone speaks
Before you tell yourself it’s late
Before you keep doing me
How come I keep doing it?
Before being discounted
Or to be forgotten
Before being someone
Who wants to be heard
Before you make a post
Before you check the likes
Before you give power to others
About what you do
Before putting on clothes
Of the love of being invested in it
To grow aggressive
Who are we?
As long as you know what you’re getting
You don’t know what you lose
Maybe it’s late you said
What are you doing? I do not know
Reality cannot be seen
Until I see you
Until you see me (me)
Support each other
Bear with us saying
Which is worth it
Tell me is it true or don’t you believe it?
Reality cannot be seen
Until you see me
Until I see you (you)
How I wish, how I wish
How I wish, how I wish
How I wish, how I wish
That you could see me.
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