National final season is gearing up, and we are excited for the return of the great spectacle of Italian talent known as the Festival di Sanremo. We hesitate to call this just a national final, since this is the first show of its kind, and the very program that the Eurovision Song Contest bases its own format on. A perennial, annual premier of just a glimpse of Italy’s most played, most well-written, and most striking artists and their newest unreleased music is held in the middle of the Eurovision preselection season to a huge amount of fanfare.
Over the course of a week, with a couple of different formats for staggering the competitive side of the show each night, Sanremo is the most prized music program in Italy. That in mind, the greater viewership stresses that Sanremo is NOT just a selection for a Eurovision song. For having such a deep and gilded musical history as Italy, this national competition is also a unique battleground of contemporary and classic tastes. Underground artists clash with industry veterans in a great reach for the trophy every spring when this show gives us its lights, camera, and action. We can’t count out the underdogs in the lineup, so let’s first take a look at the newcomers to the show – the ones who could by all accounts leave a mark this year for Italy and for the direction of popular music in general in years to come. Who’s debuting this year?
There’s no question that the myriad of fresh sounds coming to the Ariston Arena not only attempts to challenge modern musical convention, but also lights a fire of curiosity for other artists who have loftier, bigger visions for their experimental projects. To be an artist debuting in Sanremo is not limited to an honor for the artist’s public image, but also provides an incredible challenge for them: sing live with an orchestra, and execute it very well. In a later article, we’ll be taking a look at the returning artists for this year, some of whom have been established for longer than some of their co-competitors have been alive. Who are you most excited for, among the newcomers? Let us know!
Alfa is the first on our list, with two published albums induced by a sweet pop-rap flavor. The mastermind behind the Italian summer bop “Bellissimissima” which scored #4 in the Italian charts for the year 2023 is reaching something that looks like what could be a height of his career! It’s my instinct to expect something light, festive, and fun for his Sanremo song. Just a hint, the track he will be performing is called “Vai!”
Next, we can look forward to Angelina Mango: a fresh Italian pop singer and the daughter of artists Laura Valente of Matia Bazar and Giuseppe Mango. Arriving at the Ariston Arena with her song “La Noia”, Angelina is planning on following up her summer party jam “Ci pensiamo domani”, which received a double-platinum accreditation in 2023.
We then encounter Bnkr44, with their song “Governo punk”. Rhetoric, melody, and rhythm all sound so smoothly delivered for this group. There admittedly is not a ton of information on them for me to satiate my curiosity for their sound on the open internet, but their back catalog, especially listening closely at the instrumentation of their past tracks; shows an incredible amount of electric stamina that could bring a bassy, energetic, intense flavor to the Sanremo stage.
Maybe you’re one for pop with a chill vocal, a flash of synth, and a hint of rock. Previously known as The Jab, the duo who now call themselves Santi Francesi hail from Piedmont, and carry a history of having performed at the same events of big-name Italian acts. Viewers may recognize them from X Factor Italia 2022, in which they were coached by the singer Rkomi. It was also in this edition of the show that they won the contest and gave viewers the original track “Non è così male”. Santi Francesi later gained the attention of Italian listeners with singles like “Signorino”, “La Noia”, and “Buttami giù”. “L’amore in bocca” is the name of the song they’ll be performing at Ariston.
Gazzelle has a sound that is gritty, romantic, and refined. Being no stranger to the studio, having recorded four albums starting in 2017 and coloring in many spots the Italian charts since then, I think his music is best illustrated by the strength and optimistic tone of the guitar work in his songs, and the playfulness of his delivery. The listening is easy and blissful in its mood, depending on the track at hand. Maybe for Eurovision, Italy will want something like his entry this year, “Tutto qui”?
Geolier brings rap, rhythm, and swagger to Ariston. Coming to the stage with his new track “I p’ me, tu p’ te”, this artist carries a warm buzz of trap any time he records. A potent Los Angeles flare illustrates his flow execution, which is rounded out with hints of Afrobeats, danceable bass, and percussion switchups. His expertise of making a hit has become a confident truth of his, since he has two singles that charted all the way to #1 in Italy: “M’Manc”, and “Il male che mi fai”, his most recent.
Alessandra Amoroso is the definition of a household icon. Releasing music since 2009 and having been a guest performer in Sanremo a number of times, Alessandra has given Europe a myriad of Italian smash hits. Six platinum albums and electrifying singles are highlighted by her poignantly expressive voice, where we see rhythm find its footing with her unique storytelling voice. Adding to the credence that she’s a musical mastermind will be her first entry in Sanremo, “Fino a qui”.
Classing in the Italian music scene and delivering bar after bar like an expert, we will get to know BigMama, and her song “La rabbia non ti basta”. Viewers of the 2023 edition of Sanremo may recognize her voice from her duet with Elodie, who was competing at the time. Being one of the few acts born after the year 2000, BigMama is also an urban planning student in University. Being the only woman rapper in the lineup promises that we could receive something very special onstage.
Coming down to Sanremo also is the rapper and singer, Fred De Palma. Known for a well-heated sound with a strong Reggaeton atmosphere, the beats of the tropics come to life with the notoriety of some of his hits like “Extasi” and “Se Illuminaba”, featuring Ana Mena. If he stays true to his style, we may expect his Sanremo entry “Il cielo non ci vuole” to be something spicy and sonically quite impactful.
“Fragili” is the name of the song we will see performed by Il Tre, this year. Sexy, loungey, and sleek is how I’d describe the industrial hip-hop-adjacent wavelengths he has in the songs in his back catalog. Being no stranger to virality and having a number of singles strike gold and platinum in recent years, Il Tre even sports a best-selling album of the week in the year 2021, with the project Ali – Per chi non ha un posto in questo mondo.
La Sad is the band we can anticipate to bring an old-fashioned punk flavor to Ariston, with the competing track “Autodistruttivo”. Originally from Milan, the band has seen a top 30 charting spot with their 2022 album Sto Nella Sad. La Sad is one of the names that represent a resurgence of the succinctly anthemic sound of Italian punk, uniquely produced with punchy vocals, rapid percussion, and heartfelt lyrics.
Winner of the youth edition of Sanremo, Sanremo Giovani; Clara will follow her melancholic and modern victory song “Boulevard” to compete among the Festival di Sanremo artists, singing “Diamanti grezzi”. Both an actress and a singer while also having experienced a modeling career, Clara has impressed a diverse array of audiences for many of her 24 years.
Milanese rapper Ghali enters the fore, bringing a colorful history of storytelling lyrics, trap-pop-esque rhythms, and eye-catching visual art. Having put out five albums since 2017 and selling over one million records to date, the trajectory of Ghali has even earned him features with Stormzy, Travis Scott, and Ed Sheeran. His competitive entry this year is called “Casa mia”.
Vocally gifted Maninni will also be taking the big Sanremo stage for the first time with the track “Spettacolare”. First debuting for RAI in 2022 with the Sanremo Giovani competing song “Mille porte”, listeners of this humble artist would be able to expect melodic sway, lyrical seduction, and a sentimentality that pairs well to the orchestral dynamism of the Sanremo arrangement. Being a newer artist, his discography leaves delicate and promising hints of an addictive love song we may be able to anticipate, come the live performance.
Rose Villain has been recording music since 2016, and has also performed before at Sanremo. This performance on the big stage was not to serve in the competition, but to accompany in a duet for Rosa Chemical, a competing artist in the year 2023. Rose Villain has also previously worked with big name Italian rappers and singers, such as Guè Pequeno, Achille Lauro, Elisa, Fedez, Irama, and Fred de Palma, to name just a few. Known for boldly blending the sound signatures of hip-hop, pop, and rock; Fans of her work can soon look forward to the magnetically kitsch title “Click, Boom!” which will be closely followed by the auspiciously named album, Radio Sakura.
Part of what makes this national final so unique is its propensity of re-enrolling the heavy hitters of the Italian music industry. As we take another look at Sanremo later on, we cannot understate the huge pull the “Big” Sanremo artists provide for RAI and Eurovision viewership at large. Competing against the newcomers listed here, we come to find that old participants and even previous winners of the show are seeking to bring the heat back to Ariston. As this is Amadeus’s last year hosting the show, we can only assume that the popular artists are coming out with the big guns. Who are we gonna see coming back this year? I’ll highlight those names in a later piece. In the meantime, how great are these acts?
Going head-to-head with the artists I named here are past victors of Sanremo and previous victors who also went to Eurovision. Why don’t all the acts who win go to Eurovision? Simply because Sanremo is unique in that the winner of the contest holds first right of refusal, which sometimes passes the ticket along to the runner-up if the victor would like to win Sanremo and just leave it at that. The “Big” names of Sanremo always give the show a substantial amount of hype, of course. But would they be able to hold the fort against the debut artists from this year? Only the week of the competition will truly tell. Ci vediamo!
One thought on “Sanremo 2024: Meet the Newcomers”