Neapolitan song has long articulated experiences of loss, displacement, and subordination. This lecture follows
its evolution from nineteenth-century lament
and melodramatic pathos to the narratives of contemporary rap and trap, focusing on migration and representations
of the Camorra. It examines how changing musical forms mirror shifting social structures, from the Italian diaspora
to today’s globalized urban peripheries, highlighting continuity and rupture in how Naples narrates itself
through sound.

Lorella Di Gregorio teaches Spanish and Italian language and culture at the University
of Miami, where she serves as Acting Director of the Basic Spanish Language Program.
Her interdisciplinary research explores migration, cultural identity, and Mexican
and Southern Italian cultural production. She has published widely on transnational culture and regularly presents at international conferences. Originally from Italy, she holds a doctorate in literary, cultural, and linguistic studies from the University of Miami.