With a head of curly dark hair that's served to provide him with a striking visual profile, Caparezza is an Italian hip-hop artist reaching beyond the genre's usual influences. Born as Michele Salvenini, he released his debut in 2000—rapping in a dialect of Italian, he speaks with an intense, clear enunciation peppered with philosophical excavations. His output is as prolific as it is varied, inspired by artists as diverse as Frank Zappa and Dr. Dre, while his ambitious concept albums reference everything from Spanish heavy metal to classical opera and Europop.