Last week, I had the pleasure of introducing our Eurovision family to the new Sanremo artists: the ones with no previous track record on the greatest Italian stage of performance and musical art. A class who could claim their victory and/or go to Eurovision their first time around. Check out my flash reviews of these artists in my previous piece! This week, I want to highlight the old breadwinners. The names of these artists ring a charmed bell for many casual pop music listeners in Italy and the Italosphere, and crack smiles and stories from the street to the household, re-invoking the ways that these artists shifted the tune of their country in the past. Many of these acts are reaching deeply into their skills and the radiant legacies of their back catalogs to create stunning performances dedicated to the cusp of a new era. My approach in this article will be different to my Newcomers piece in that all the haute successes these acts had gained could be coined easily through just their Sanremo participation and not necessarily via the waves and toils of finding fame in the streaming era. Let’s have a look at who all is coming back, shall we?
Electro-pop star Annalisa has participated a great number of years in Sanremo, seeing a litany of different results with the exception of winning the contest. Debuting in 2013 and receiving 9th place with her song “Scintille”, Annalisa has returned to Sanremo in 2015, 2016, 2018, and most recently in 2021. Over the years, she has employed various genres and styles in her music that she leveraged very well into her Sanremo acts, and it would be wise to consider that with her ability to create hit after hit whether it be a ballad or uptempo song and perform it seamlessly, the victory could be well within her reach as we get to know “Sinceramente”.
Dargen D’Amico created a great amount of hype for himself, being the author of 2021 Sanremo runner-up song “Chiamami Per Nome”, sung by Francesca Michelin and Fedez. In the 2022 contest, D’Amico made his stage debut at Ariston with the sporty, chanting anthem “Dove si balla” which received 9th place overall. Being a star that blends pop and rap, a style very trendy in Italy, one could assume that his shot at victory with “Onda alta” would at the very least get the arena jumping shoulder-to-shoulder.
Viewers first saw Diodato in Sanremo thanks to his 2018 participation with Roy Paci, which touted the song “Adesso”. His melodic and passionate voice landed him 8th place that year, which only set the scene for his return in the year 2020 with “Fai Rumore”, which is in no small way one of the most celebrated and recognized songs in Italy this decade. He took the trophy home that year, but regretfully, as this was the beginning of the COVID-19 Pandemic, he was unable to set foot in Rotterdam and compete in the Eurovision Song Contest, as the show was canceled. He may redeem that lost ticket in Malmö, depending on how “Ti muovi” goes.
Emma is returning with “Apnea”. In 2011, she was just a short reach away from winning Sanremo with the band Modà and their song “Arriverà”. The next year, Emma successfully snatched the victory in Italy with the rockish track “Non è l’inferno”. Baby, that’s about a comeback! (She did not go on to represent Italy in Eurovision, however. This opportunity went to Nina Zilli, who won the ticket to Baku based on a second tier of voting.) In 2014, as the Italian broadcaster RAI was not using the Festival di Sanremo as the conduit to select their Eurovision song, Emma was named their representative, with the pop-rock banger “La mia città”. In 2022, Emma returned to Sanremo with “Ogni volta è così”, celebrating 6th place.
In Sanremo 1981, Fiorella Mannoia made her presence first known with the track “Caffè nero bollente”, the 11th place finisher. She went on to compete at the show several more times: three years later in 1984, then in 1987 where she was graced with the Critics’ Choice award, and most recently in 1988, capping off the decade where she had huge radio success in large part thanks to her competing songs. “Mariposa” is the name of her track this year. After over 35 years, she is determined to leave a memorable impact with the expertise and mastery she had acquired since the early experimental days of current Italian pop.
Il Volo is the name of a band remembered and sung about dearly by not just Festival di Sanremo viewers, but Eurovision fans as well. The dramatic operatic-pop trio won Sanremo and earned a top 3 spot in Eurovision 2015 in Vienna with the hit “Grande amore”. Following the success of their Eurovision leg and already widely boosted in publicity with features on TV programs around Europe and the Americas, Il Volo came back to Sanremo most recently in 2019 with the song “Musica che resta”, earning 3rd place in the final. “Capolavoro” is the name of their third entry to Sanremo, which we will hear performed in the 2024 edition of the show.
Singer and rapper Irama is a relatively fresh juggernaut for consumers of Italian popular music, especially looking at the number of times he has come to the Ariston arena to compete. Returning in 2024 with “Tu no”, first debuting in the show in 2016, Irama has made returns in 2019, 2021, and most recently in 2022 with the fourth place entry “Ovunque sarai”. His uniquely-timbred deep and emotive voice has enchanted the Sanremo audiences in recent years, and with a propensity of taking musical risks and shifting around the way he expresses his pieces, he has the right elements to win.
Loredana Bertè will solidify herself as a crown legend in Sanremo based on the fact that 2024 will show her twelfth participation in the contest, singing “Pazza”. The last four decades have painted a long and intimate relationship between the Sanremo festival and Loredana. She has seen smashing successes in her career since her first participation in 1986, the song being called “Re”. She has released 18 albums since 1974, and saw a glimpse at the golden tiger trophy more recently in the years 2012 and 2019, where she earned fourth place in both events. Expect her to be carrying herself with real, chosen swagger.
There are few names in the roster this year that have been celebrated as greatly as Mahmood. Winning first the youth edition of the show, Sanremo Giovani in 2018 with “Gioventù Bruciata”, the young and experimental r&b-pop artist did a layup the next year by winning the Festival di Sanremo in 2019, with “Soldi”. Mahmood earned 2nd place in Eurovision a few months later. Returning in 2022 with the rapper-singer Blanco and their song “Brividi” struck Mahmood with his third victory in the Sanremo family of shows, creating for him an exceptionally rare perfect winning streak. The idea that he can win again stems from his skill as a performer, and one-of-a-kind inventiveness as a writer and producer. I for one have grand expectations for “Tuta gold”.
Mr. Rain is one of the most recent and acutely attention-grabbing artists we will see, having earned 2nd place in Sanremo 2023 with the heartfelt and catchy “Supereroi”. Being a rapper, producer, and singer; Mr. Rain is greatly capable of crafting both a song and a performance that will captivate audiences two years in a row. Despite the entry “Due altalene” being only his second run in the show, he has been consistent in putting out singles and albums since 2015. Given his popularity last year, one can assume that we will see a leveled-up side of him.
A story of resilience can be championed by the band Negramaro. Eliminated in the 2005 edition of Sanremo Giovani with “Mentre tutto scorre”, the Pugliese band has given fans seven studio albums as well as a live album. It takes an incredible amount of work and industry savvy to instill a competitive sound for a Sanremo entry, and we can look forward to being impressed not only by Negramaro’s track, but the growth they’ve amassed since last showing their colors in Ariston. I wonder what we’ll find this year, hearing their entry “Ricominciamo tutto”?
Renga&Nek is a best friend duo comprised of Francesco Renga and Filippo Neviani, known by his artist name as “Nek”. Renga is a very familiar name to the show, as the performer has graced the stage before in 1991 as a part of the rock group, Timoria. He won the 2005 edition of Sanremo with “Angelo”, carrying over 54% of the televote! Renga has come back to the contest for several more editions since, making this participation his 8th time to date. Nek came in second place behind Il Volo in their victory year, almost scoring a Eurovision entry with the song “Fatti avante amore”. He followed this with the 19th place entry “Mi farò trovare pronto” in 2019. Bonds like these remind me of the innate sense of community Sanremo artists have. Their song is called “Pazzo di te”.
Ricchi e Poveri first came to Sanremo in 1971 and has since sung to compete 14 times! Winning in 1985 and representing Italy at Eurovision in 1978, the group has released 20 studio albums and became one of the most prolific and raved names of the latter half of the previous century. “Ma non tutta la via” is the name of their 15th Sanremo track, and with a title carrying such indomitable spirit, we can enjoy watching masters of music exhibit the skills and knowledge their younger co-competitors are, in a relative sense, only learning.
One of my favorite memories of going to Turin for Eurovision in 2022 was hearing Sangiovanni’s fifth scoring Sanremo song, “Farfalle”. What a jam it was! Despite now being only 21 years old, pop icon Sangiovanni is returning to Ariston in 2024. 2022 was the beginning of his stride, as he went on releasing earworm after earworm in the months after. This year’s song is called “Finiscimi” and I strongly look forward to it being like his other music: expressive, killer on the beat, and topped off with an insane hook.
Folks may recognize the summer tune “Italodisco” by The Kolors. This band had scored 9th in the year they first and last competed in 2018 with “Frida (mai, mai, mai)” Having a propensity for creating hits that have sexy bass and contagious melodies, The Kolors are reaching for the win this year with the song “Un ragazzo una ragazza”. Maybe Italy will see another band carry their flag to Sweden? Only the week of the show will tell.
The Festival di Sanremo continues to be a confluence of classic and experimental properties. It takes exceptional work, talent, and perseverance to create for the show; and each of these artists, but especially the newer ones, should be applauded and toasted to. Now we know a little more on the pantheon. The big question is: chi sarà il vincitore?