Corona

Corona is a Eurodance group formed in Italy in 1993 by Italian songwriter, producer and DJ Frencesco ‘Checco’ Bontempi with Brazilian-born vocalist Olga de Souza joining shortly thereafter. Bontempi was better known then as Italo disco artist Lee Marrow. The duo’s first single, “The Rhythm of the Night” (1993), featured the lead vocals of Giovanna Bersola, who was uncredited. By the time they made the video for the song, de Souza had joined the group. The single was a Number 1 hit in Italy but it underwent a remix before it was rereleased and became a worldwide hit. “The Rhythm of the Night” reached the Top Ten in many countries including Australia, the UK, Austria, Spain, the Netherlands, France, and Germany. Their next two singles - “Baby Baby” and “Try Me Out” (both released in 1995) – were also massive hits. The duo’s debut album, The Rhythm of the Night, was released in 1995 and sold extremely well, landing at the Number 2 position on Billboard’s Top Heatseekers chart. After a change of labels, they released their second album, Walking on Music, was released in 1998. The album featured the singles “The Power of Love”, “Magic Touch”, and “Walking on Music”. The album and singles didn’t fare as well as expected and shortly thereafter, Bontempi left Corona. De Souza carried on, working with other songwriters and producers. The third album, 2001’s And Me U, was released under the band name Corona X. By the time of their fourth album, Y Generation (2014), the band’s name had reverted back to Corona.