Born in 1967 in Pavia, Italy, Massimo Pezzali first met Mauro Repetto, with whom he would later form the group 883, in high school, where, thanks to their similar musical tastes, the two soon became good friends. After a trip to the U.S. in 1988, Pezzali returned with a synthesizer and soon began writing songs with Repetto. A demo of theirs made it onto Italian radio, which eventually led to them performing on the television program 1,2,3 Jovanotti. Under the name 883, the duo released three albums before Mauro decided to pursue a career in acting, leaving Max to reorganize the band, this time with a group of young musicians. After a series of albums that brought them both national and international fame, 883 saw the release of their final full-length, Uno in Piu', in 2001. Pezzali, who was now determined to make it as a solo artist, issued his debut, Il Mondo Insieme a Te, in 2004, followed the next year by Tutto Max -- a greatest-hits compilation that traced his musical history since his participation in 883 through his most current solo work -- as well as a DVD and a tour. 2007 saw the release of his highly anticipated sophomore solo LP, Time Out, which went platinum, and in 2008 he published his first novel, Per prendersi una vita. In early 2011 Pezzali issued the hit single "Il mio secondo tempo" in advance of the release of his third full-length, Terraferma, which arrived later that year. The following year Pezzali dropped Hanno ucciso l'uomo ragno 2012, a re-recording of 883's 1992 debut with all of the tracks reinterpreted by Pezzali alongside some of Italy’s best-known rappers. 2013's Max 20 featured some of his biggest hits, as well as five new songs, including the single "L’universo tranne noi," and in 2015 he released a new studio LP, Astronave Max. ~ Marisa Brown, Rovi