Berlino
by Ernia
Italian rap, and density is the whole difficulty: C1- reflects how many words arrive per second, not exotic grammar. What makes the card unusual is its nouns. cigolio, fruscio, chiarore — a creak, a rustle, a glow — are sound and light words that almost never surface in pop lyrics, and Italian has a rich supply of them that learners never meet. Put molliche and foresta side by side and there is a fairy tale buried in the text. The adjectives are cold and precise: arido, limpido, scuro, grigio. Not a listening card for a beginner, but an excellent reading card at any level, because the vocabulary is worth more than the speed costs you.
How to study this song
Learning “Berlino” means 89 entries at C1- — 36 Italian words, 12 adjectives and 41 verb forms, every one taken from what the song actually says. Work through the glossary first: neve, sere and via are the words you will lean on most. This one leans on its verbs: 41 distinct forms against 12 adjectives, so conjugation is where the effort goes. At this level the words on their own are not the problem — it is the way they are put together that takes the work.
The words of this song, in six languages
Every word below is taken from this song and translated by us. Nothing here is the lyric itself — these are the individual words you need in order to follow it.
Vocabulary
| IT | EN | ES | FR | PT | NL |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| neve | snow | nieve | neige | neve | sneeuw |
| sere |
What this song teaches you
Level · C1-
- Vocabulary words
- 36
- Adjectives
- 12
- Word combos
- 11
- Expressions
- 10
- Verb forms
- 41
- Quiz questions
- 35
Background
About the song
“Berlino” is a 2026 Italian rap single by Ernia, one of the most prominent rappers of the Milan scene. His music pairs melodic hooks with introspective, storytelling lyrics that have made him a mainstay of Italian hip hop. Ernia — Matteo Professione, born in Milan in 1993 — writes in long conversational lines rather than punchlines, which is why the card is graded C1-: the vocabulary is ordinary, but it arrives fast and rarely stops for breath. The title is a useful detail in itself. Italian keeps its own names for foreign cities, so Berlin becomes Berlino, London Londra and Paris Parigi, and those endings change what the articles and adjectives around them have to do. It is the tenth track of “Per soldi e per amore”, his fourth studio album, released on 19 September 2025 and later certified platinum; the song went to radio as a single on 19 December. Ernia wrote it with Paolo Alberto Monachetti and Massimo Montonato, and Monachetti — better known as Charlie Charles — produced it.
Did you know?
Ernia is known for albums that top the Italian charts and for lyrics that reflect on relationships, ambition and life in the city.
Charts & streaming
Ernia is one of the most commercially dependable rappers in Italy: his album "Gemelli" (2019) was certified multi-platinum and spawned a string of certified singles, and "Io non ho paura" (2022) debuted at number one on the Italian albums chart. In the week of 16–22 January 2026 it was the most played song on Italian radio.