Laura Pausini - Io Canto Promoshoot 2006 by Bryan Adams

Laura Pausini, omri (born 16 May 1974) is an Italian pop singer-songwriter and record producer. She debuted in 1993, winning the newcomer artists' section of the 43rd Sanremo Music Festival with the song "La solitudine", which became an Italian standard and an international hit, reaching the top spot on the Italian Musica e Dischi singles chart, as well as on the Dutch Top 40 and on the Flemish Ultratop 50. Her eponymous debut album was released in Italy on 23 April 1993 and later became an international success, selling two million copies worldwide.

During her career, she has won numerous music awards, including three Latin Grammy Awards, a Billboard Latin Music Award and four World Music Awards. In 2006 she also became the first Italian female artist to win a Grammy Award, receiving the accolade for Best Latin Pop Album for the record Escucha. She has been honoured as a Commander Order of Merit of the Italian Republic by President Carlo Azeglio Ciampi.