Mace is the stage name of Italian DJ and beatmaker Simone Benussi (July 9, 1982), who has crafted beats for some of the most successful rappers in the Italian hip-hop scene, including Gué Pequeno, Gemitaiz, and Marracash. Hailing from Milan, Mace became infatuated with hip-hop culture from a very early age and started off as a graffiti artist before delving deep into music production. His first brush with fame arrived in the early aughts with the project La Crème alongside Jack the Smoker, who released the funk-tinged L’alba in 2003 and even opened for Ghostface Killah in Milan. In 2007, Mace pivoted to electronic music, founding the Reset! Collective with Alex Trecarichi, Rocco Civitelli, Vincenzo Catanzaro, and Matteo Ievolella. Future Madness, the group’s first full-length, came out in 2014 and featured guest spots by Gué Pequeno, EPMD’s Erick Sermon, and Paul King. In subsequent years, Mace rode the trap zeitgeist and landed production credits on Izi’s “Chic” (2016) and Fabri Fibra’s multi-platinum album Pamplona (2017) before dropping OBE (Out of Body Experience), his long-awaited studio debut, in 2021. Featuring cameos by FSK Satellite, Fritz da Cat, and Salmo, the album shot straight to the top of the Italian charts thanks to the Top 5 single “Buonanotte.”
