1997 - September

Italian release of Pipes & Flowers, Elisa’s first album. Produced by Corrado Rustici (Whitney Houston, Zucchero, etc), it quickly goes to triple platinum. Elisa is the author of both the lyrics and the music and participates in the arrangement as she would do with all of her recordings.

Between 1997 and 1998 ‘Pipes and Flowers’ is released in several European countries.

In Italy the album collects many important awards, such as the ‘Premio Tenco’ award and the PIM (award of the Italian Music). In this time period, Elisa becomes the opening act of Eros Ramazzotti on his European tour.

In October 1998 she records the song 'Cure me' produced by Darren Allison, and is included into the new release of 'Pipes & Flowers'.

The release of ‘La medicina buona’ by Italian band ‘La comitiva’ includes the song ‘Nottetempo’ in which Elisa sings the chorus.

2000 - May

Asile’s World is Elisa’s second album, (the word 'Asile' is simply 'Elisa' spelled backwards). Recorded between Europe and the U.S., the long–awaited sequel to ‘Pipes & Flowers’ is an intimate and varied work where the lyrics become more essential and more introspective. The sounds reflect Elisa’s research into the world of electronic music. For the ‘Asile’s world’ album, Elisa teams up with different and incredibile producers such as Howie B (Björk, U2), Roberto Vernetti, Mauro Malavasi, and Leo Z. Elisa herself produces one song.

The release of the song ‘'Luce (Tramonti a Nord Est)' is Elisa’s first track ever in Italian. The lyrics were originally written in English and then translated into Italian with the help of Elisa’s mother. Zucchero Sugar Fornaciari helped Elisa write the chorus.

'Luce (Tramonti a Nord Est)' is sung for the first time at the Sanremo Festival, the most important music event in Italy, which is also a competion of unreleased songs. Elisa, accompanied by the Solis String Quartet, wins the fifty-first edition of the festival. She also was awarded the Critics Award.

‘'Luce (Tramonti a Nord Est)' is included in the reissue of 'Asile's World' along with the original version of the song titled ‘Come speak to me’. The Sanremo Festival was a great opportunity for Elisa to expose her music to a large audience and after that her popularity in Italy grew enormously.

In the same year, Elisa also wins the Italian Music Award and an MTV European Award in the Best Italian Act category.

The release of the album ‘The Beamer’ by English producer and DJ Luke Gordon (aka Spacer) includes the song ‘Smile’ in which Elisa wrote the lyrics and sings the song. The album was released worldwide in the following months.

The 'Asile's World Live Club Tour' begins. Elisa will perform in 12 cities throughout Italy in some of the most important clubs of the day.

2001 - November

Then comes the Sun is Elisa’s third album. Here she abandons all the electronic arrangements ("the arrangement is just a dress for the song", Elisa said later) and focuses on the simplicity of the message. 'Then Comes the Sun' was recorded in California and produced by Corrado Rustici from August to September of 2001. Afterwards she is rewarded with a triumphal four months tour throughout Italy.

Milan. In the showcase of 'Then Comes the Sun' at Milan’s Palazzo Reale, Elisa sings four songs from the new album. In the following months she will be on stage for the ‘Then comes the Sun’ tour with more than 40 gigs. On this tour, she will be accompanied by Giorgio Pacorig (keyboards), Max Gelsi (bass), Andrea Rigonat (guitars), Bruno Farinelli (drums), and Giovanni Boscariol (keyboards). Lots of dates are soldout.

As a result of her rising stardom Elisa was asked to perform at the closing ceremonies of the ‘Salt Lake Winter Olympic Games’ that witnessed the passing of the Olympic Flag to the Mayor of Torino (Italy was the site of the next winter games). She chose to sing 'Luce', the tune that has won her so many music honors. It was televised and on radio worldwide. Four years later she will again sing 'Luce' at the closing ceremonies of the Torino Games.

In Modena, Elisa is one of the guests of the Pavarotti & Friends television show and duets with the unforgettable maestro Luciano Pavarotti in the song ‘Voglio vivere così'.

While 'Then Comes The Sun' becomes double platinum in Italy, a special edition of the album dedicated to the foreign market, simply titled 'Elisa', is released in over twenty countries including Germany, Spain, Netherlands, Norway, Greece, Sweden, South Africa, and New Zealand.

The tune 'Come speak to me' is chosen to launch the record and the video, directed by Philippe Andre, which is broadcast by MTV and other music channels throughout Europe.

A special edition of the CD is released in Spain and includes the Spanish version of 'Luce' entitled 'Háblame'.

Rather quickly her single and album appear in the charts in Europe.

In Palermo, Elisa debuts at the Teatro Massimo as the protagonist of Ellis Island, a musical work on immigration, with music by Giovanni Sollima, directed by Marco Baliani and lyrics by Roberto Alajmo. On stage, she plays the role of Felicita Sapegno.