Giovanni Vernia

Giovanni Vernia (Genova, 23 agosto 1973) is an Italian actor, comedian, radio presenter, impressionist, director and DJ producer. He became famous for his portrayal of the comic character Jonny Groove, who first appeared on Zelig and was also the lead at the cinema in a film directed by Vernia himself, Ti stimo fratello. Born in Genova, he lived in the Ligurian capital until the age of 26, graduating in electronic engineering from the city's university with top marks, then moved to Milan in search of work. Alongside his job he cultivated his passion for comedy, enrolling in the Scuola Teatrale di Improvvisazione Comica and actively taking part in numerous comic workshops.

In early 2007 he began to build and develop his most famous character, Jonny Groove, a parody of the world of nightlife and discos, which brought him to the Zelig On The Road workshops in Verona and Rimini in the 2007/2008 season. In June 2008 he joined the cast of Zelig Off on Canale 5 and later Zelig. In October 2008 his dance single ESSIAMONOI was released, followed in March 2009 by his first music compilation, ESSIAMONOI Compilation. He made his debut with his first theatrical show, Essiamonoi, which plays on the duality between Jonny Groove and his normal twin brother Giovanni Vernia, and which toured the major theatres of Italy to sold-out houses. On 19 febbraio 2010 he was the only comic guest invited to take part in the 60º Festival della Canzone Italiana di Sanremo.

In June 2011 filming began on his first film, Ti stimo fratello, directed by Vernia himself together with his longtime collaborator Paolo Uzzi and again based on the contrast between the characters Jonny and Giovanni; the film was distributed by Warner Bros., released on 9 marzo 2012. In 2013 he was again at Zelig with his imitation/parody of Fabrizio Corona. In 2014 he returned to prime time on Canale 5 with Zelig. In 2015 he turned to the web, launching parodies of Fedez and Pif, and from September 2015 hosted his radio show on Rai Radio2 titled È QUI RADIO2?. In 2016 he launched a parody of the web phenomenon Gianluca Vacchi, reaching 5 million views in less than three days. In 2018 he took part in the eighth edition of Tale e quale show, coming fourth. In November 2021 he returned to perform at Zelig as Jonny Groove, a character he had not played for seven years.