{"id":329680,"date":"2026-07-15T13:34:57","date_gmt":"2026-07-15T11:34:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/italien.news\/uncategorized\/self-control-raf\/"},"modified":"2026-07-15T13:35:09","modified_gmt":"2026-07-15T11:35:09","slug":"self-control-raf","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/italien.news\/en\/musik\/self-control-raf\/","title":{"rendered":"\u00abSelf Control\u00bb by Raf: Meaning & Lyrics"},"content":{"rendered":"
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A man for whom the night becomes his true home\u2014and who feels his self-control slipping away: \u00abSelf Control\u00bb by Raf is one of the biggest Italian hits of the 1980s and an anthem of Italo disco. In 1984, the song turned Raf\u2014who had been relatively unknown until then\u2014into an overnight star and topped the charts across half of Europe. Fun fact: That same summer, an American singer scored a global hit with the same song\u2014and both versions vied for the number-one spot at the same time. Here\u2019s how \u00abSelf Control\u00bb came to be, what it\u2019s about, and what its imagery means.<\/p>\n\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n\n\t

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\u00abSelf Control\u00bb \u2013 Profile<\/h4>\n
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  • Artist:<\/strong> Raf (Raffaele Riefoli)<\/li>\n
  • Published:<\/strong> 1984 (Single; debut album \u00abRaf,\u00bb Carrere)<\/li>\n
  • Lyrics\/Music:<\/strong> Giancarlo Bigazzi, Raf & Steve Piccolo \u00b7 Produced by Giancarlo Bigazzi \u00b7 Arranged by Celso Valli<\/li>\n
  • Genre:<\/strong> Italo Disco \/ Synth-Pop<\/li>\n
  • Special features:<\/strong> No. 1 in Italy and Switzerland\u2014at the same time, Laura Branigan's cover version became an international hit<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n
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    The Story Behind \u00abSelf Control\u00bb<\/h2>\n

    Raf, whose real name is Raffaele Riefoli and who was born in Apulia in 1959, had initially played in the Florentine new wave scene in the early 1980s before achieving his big breakthrough in 1984. Together with the experienced producer and songwriter Giancarlo Bigazzi and the American musician Steve Piccolo, he wrote a song that combined English lyrics with a driving, modern synthesizer sound\u2014arranged by Celso Valli.<\/p>\n

    The song was a huge success: \u00abSelf Control\u00bb spent seven weeks at the top of the charts in Italy, and did the same in Switzerland. In Germany, the song climbed to No. 2, and in Austria it made it into the Top 10\u2014and in Italy, it was certified Gold.<\/p>\n

    Perhaps the most remarkable turn of events, however, took place at the same time on the other side of the Atlantic: That same year, American singer Laura Branigan recorded her own version. Her version\u2014with a smoother pop sound and arranged by Harold Faltermeyer\u2014became a worldwide hit, reaching No. 4 on the U.S. charts and No. 1 in several countries. In Switzerland, the two \u00abSelf Controls\u00bb even traded the top spot several times in the summer of 1984. Suddenly, there were two global hits with the same title\u2014Raf\u2019s original and the international cover.<\/p>\n\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n\n\t

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    What is \u00abSelf Control\u00bb about?<\/h2>\n

    \u00abSelf Control\u00bb\u2014literally, \u00abself-control\u00bb\u2014tells the story of a man for whom the night becomes his true world. During the day, he keeps a low profile, but as soon as it gets dark, nightlife casts its spell on him: lights, music, unfamiliar faces\u2014a pull he cannot resist.<\/p>\n

    At the heart of the song is a loss of control. The singer feels as though another person\u2014or the night itself\u2014is gaining power over him and robbing him of the very self-control referred to in the title. Fascination and warning are closely intertwined here: the nocturnal world is both seductive and dangerous. This tension between desire and the loss of self is what makes the song so haunting to this day.<\/p>\n\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n

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    Photo: Elina Volkova \/ Pexels<\/figcaption>\n\t\t<\/figure>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n
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    \u00abSelf Control\u00bb: Lyrics & Meaning<\/h2>\n

    The lyrics to \u00abSelf Control\u00bb are protected by copyright, so we won\u2019t reproduce them line by line here; instead, we\u2019ll explain the key images and their meanings.<\/p>\n

    The Prologue (The World of Night).<\/strong> Right from the start, the song makes it clear that, for the narrator, the night is more than just a time of day\u2014it is his true home. What for others is a time to sleep is, for him, the moment when life truly begins.<\/p>\n

    The Chorus (Loss of Control).<\/strong> In the chorus, everything comes to a head: another force takes hold of the narrator and robs him of his self-control. This is precisely where the song\u2019s title comes into play\u2014as a catchy, almost incantatory moment in which surrender and warning converge.<\/p>\n

    The distinctive spot (nearby in the dark).<\/strong> Every now and then, a mysterious figure takes center stage, drawing very close under the cover of darkness. She represents the allure of nightlife\u2014attractive and yet threatening, because she robs the narrator of his sense of self.<\/p>\n

    The sound (bright sound, dark theme).<\/strong> The real secret lies in the contrast: a bright, danceable synthesizer sound overlays a dark theme. This tension between the cheerful exterior and the restless interior is a big part of the reason why \u00abSelf Control\u00bb is still so instantly catchy today.<\/p>\n\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n

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    \u00abSelf Control\u00bb live: Raf<\/h2>\n

    The fact that Raf still carries this song with him to this day is evident in this live performance of \u00abSelf Control\u00bb featuring Raf from the Rai program \u00abViva Rai2!\u00bb in May 2024\u2014decades after the original, and still with the driving energy of the classic.<\/p>\n\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n\n\t

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