#sanremo song festival

[ortofosforico]

Warning:

Sanremo week is approaching, and this blog will be used and abused as a commenting platform.

[guysofeurovision]

[frc-ambaradan]

It's Sanremo time again!

Topolino #3350 cover by Alessandro Perina and Valeria Turati.

Longest-running annual TV music competition in the world... or just simply the longest.

5 days. From 8:30pm to at least 2:00 if not 3:00am... except for the grand final on Saturday (that's probably gonna end at dawn). The whole Country's taken hostage, competitor broadcasters (read Mediaset) don't even think anymore of putting up counter progamming.

And even if you're not interested in it, you'll end up knowing EVERYTHING. The winner. The one who should have been the winner. Every single drama. How many sequins are on the host's jacket. Who placed the bomb at Mediaset Radio headquarters?

[fiumedivita]

Sanremo 2024: how Italians go mad

You want to know why Italians are so weird and crazy? Here's how long the national song contest, the Sanremo Music Festival, was this year:

Just the 5 nights of the actual show were 26 hours and 3 minutes.

But then, if you add the pre-show, aftershow and Sunday specials you get 39 hours and 10 minutes.

It's a good thing we're famous for our espresso.

-------------------------- Here's a breakdown:

First night:

pre-show: 12 minutes

show: 5 hours 15 minutes (8:45pm - 2am)

after-show: 48 minutes

Total: 6 hours and 15 minutes

--------------------------

Second night:

pre-show: 11 minutes

show: 4 hours 45 minutes (8:44pm - 1:29am)

after-show: 45 minutes

Total: 5 hours and 41 minutes

--------------------------

Third night:

pre-show: 11 minutes

show: 4 hours 52 minutes (8:45pm - 1:37am)

after-show: 52 minutes

Total: 5 hours and 55 minutes

--------------------------

Fourth night:

pre-show: 12 minutes

show: 5 hours 14 minutes (8:45pm - 1:59am)

after-show: 61 minutes

Total: 6 hours and 27 minutes

--------------------------

Fifth night:

pre-show: 10 minutes

show: 5 hours 57 minutes (8:45pm - 2:42am)

after-show: No aftershow for the final! The host was actually co-hosting the main show.

Total: 6 hours and 7 minutes

--------------------------

Sunday specials:

Domenica In (interviews + songs): 5 hours and 54 minutes

Dietro Festival (BTS with all the drama): 51 minutes

[betweenthetimeandsound]

GOD BLESS AMADEUS.

That is all.

[eurovision-revisited]

Eurovision 2004 - Number 6 - Veruska - "Un angelo legato a un palo"

Meanwhile at Sanremo. It's not been a vintage year at the Ariston Theatre. There are so many relatively unknown names that it failed to attract it's usual audience. The TV ratings for the show have been falling and this year, they're the lowest yet.

However there are some bright points even if the names haven't got the longest pedigree in the Italian music industry. Take Veruska Pieroni. She was discovered and encouraged by actress and record producer Claudia Mori. She's had four singles out on a variety of labels over the previous four years and a debut album in 2002 that was debuted at the penultimate ever Un Disco per l'Estate. Her second album is due out later in 2004 and this time she's managed to get an upgrade to Sanremo to promote it. The song she's sent to Sanremo is the title track - Un angelo legato a un palo (An Angel Tied to a Pole).

That does sound like a particularly strained metaphor, yet the story behind it is tragic. For the first verse and a half, she and her partner are happy together. Their love lets Veruska soar even if she thought he was a bit dumb at first. But then there's an explosion. A bomb. I'm unsure if this is a figurative bomb or a real one - it certainly put all the doves to flight. Whatever happened was sudden and he is no longer there, nor will he ever be again.

She puts a whole bunch of feeling and strength into her vocal as the orchestra swells to the crescendo of the choruses - she has to compete with most of the string section as well as the more conventional rock band instrumentation, but her voice can cope well and she's not overwhelmed. I feel that as the song closes, it could easily have gone on for another couple of minute with more of a coda. It's vocal melodrama.

I don't know why this strikes such a chord with me. Of all the songs this year at Sanremo, why is it this one that I love so much? I'm still trying to work it out. I think I may be alone here.

She didn't do great. Even in this weak year, Veruska could only finish eighteenth of the twenty-two songs. The album was released to presumably little success, and then she just disappears. All the biographical information for Veruska just ends with the release of her 2004 album, but there is one tantalising possibility.

In 2009, an Veruska Pieroni published a book on an illuminated manuscript, the Graduale D, held in Prato Cathedral (St. Stephen's) in Tuscany. It still seems to be one of the main works regarding this particular manuscript, although it is the only work published by the author. Although singer Veruska is from Catania in Sicily and not Tuscany, her name is not that common. Did she shift from singing about angels to ecclesiastical history?

[nymphaforesta]

ITS EUROVISION TIME FUCKERS

[sweetiepootato]

Is it me or these songs have the same intro?

And what can be done in case both win?

[justmychampagneproblems]

Loved the parallel

Mina, Se telefonando (1966) x Elodie, Due (2023)

[ortofosforico]

Marco Mengoni and Gustaph out there representing the two opposite poles of Grindr on worldwide television.

[mishkakagehishka]

We literally have other fuvking musicians.

[guysofeurovision]

🤣❤️

[neamh-in-heaven]

Prime Video Italy one of us:

Context: two singers at the Italian song festival came to the stage like this:

[truthundressing]

hii elio!!!! would love to see 28, 36, and 99 on your spotify wrapped 🫂🌟

hi beloved !!!! thank youuu <33

28. hehe i answered here 🥰

36. Abbi cura di te - Highsnob and Hu

99. Mantieni il bacio - Michele Bravi

❤️‍🔥spotify wrapped 1-100❤️‍🔥

[animapunkocchidipeterpan]

MUDIMBI - IL MAGO 🩵

festival di Sanremo 2018

[hotchocolatelovesyou]

I just want to add that the Sanremo audience is veeeery lively and they will 100% boo you (and worse) if they don't like something or someone. If John Travolta ever goes back on that stage, he will be insulted and booed all the way back to America lmao

Even the orchestra might flip out. No, no one is safe. And no, I'm not exaggerating in the slightest.

Anyways, update! Get comfortable, it might be longer than expected.

So, Travolta went to Sanremo in a suit and a pair of white sneakers. It seems pretty basic, mh? Mind you, the shoes were from a brand called U-Power, and Travolta is one of their testimonials. The brand, since Travolta was dancing and obviously moving his feet, was clearly on display and now Rai (Rai for Italy is like Fox for America, yes?) wants to sue U-Power and Travolta for covert advertising. The funniest thing is that Rai might be sued too. Again.

First of first, it's unclear the reason why Travolta was even at the Festival. Amadeus said that Travolta himself volunteered for a guest appearance since he was already in the area (some articles say he was in France, others say he was already in Italy), BUT apparently Rai and the actor might have started seeking agreements for him to come to Sanremo way back in October instead. It is also not true that the actor was paid a lot, they simply reimbursed him for his expenses - while still very fucking expensive (hah), it's also not that much for people of his caliber.

It was also discovered that U-Power had announced on their website that their brand would've been the protagonist of the evening "with a special guest" (Travolta, their testimonial), clearly speaking of the festival.

It has been then speculated that U-Power literally paid Travolta to go to Sanremo, just to sponsor the shoes.

U-Power is denying everything and the company is claiming that the actor's presence at the festival had nothing to do with the brand in any way, but some things simply don't add up.

You have to understand that last year, Amadeus was co-hosting with Chiara Ferragni (another whole fucking mess by herself, but let's not get too carried away, just know that there might be a new law with her name). As a funny sketch, they were both joking about the fact that Amadeus did not have an Instagram account. Chiara, who started her career by being an influencer, helped him create one. On live television. On the opening night. Yup, Rai was fined 180 million euros for covert advertising. If I remember correctly, they had even posted a selfie as a first post to complete the account lol

Anyway, the point is that covert advertising is a big no no for Rai now.

This is indeed another topic that bothered Amadeus because the host saw this whole deal as another way to create drama (not necessarily from Travolta, more like from the public and social media in general). Still, there are some doubts about his and Rai's innocence:

Amadeus removed his own shoes to dance like Travolta does in Pulp Fiction - and this might be seen as a way to get more attention on the actor's shoes in comparison.

He also said to the actor "don't worry, be happy" - which is U-Power's slogan or something

Rai is guilty (bc they are) of not hiding the brand - they are defending themselves by claiming that Travolta came to Sanremo the very last second and he simply walked on stage. No one paid much attention to his sneakers because they didn't know the brand (and neither did Amadeus)

The assistant (?) they had picked to work with Travolta behind the scenes might have been too shy to ask the actor to cover his shoes with tape, maybe intimidated by how famous the dude is or by his big personality - gaining another accusation of being unprofessional, because why would they choose someone unable to stop the celebrity?

The owners of U-Power were literally in the front row at the Ariston Theatre (where the whole Festival takes place)

Now.

You guys, between me and you, I do not believe for a second that Amadeus is guilty of anything. At least not on purpose. He doesn't speak English, and "don't worry, be happy" is literally the most basic English phrase ever (@U-Power: do better), he was probably only trying to make a joke + the poor man is probably just a fan of the movie and wanted to recreate one of its most iconic scenes. Però è un po' sfigato, questo sì.

Rai is obviously ready to throw lawyers left and right. They are claiming to be innocent of all accusations, and in my opinion? I 100% believe in their incompetence. If I had one nickel for every time some technical issue happened over the course of the festival, I'd have many nickels, I'll tell you that. Also, no one here ever heard about U-Power's existence before this mess, so I can't really blame them for not knowing either. Even if they did, Rai had already lost quite much last time, why would they risk doing it all over again for an unknown shoe's brand of all things? But this is just my opinion, I guess we'll see.

Anyhow, tonight is the last night of the festival and also the most important one, so I 100% assure you that not one single person in Italy will give a fuck about Travolta and his shoes, at least not while they're watching Sanremo lol

I'm not sure if you're aware but John Travolta was invited to the Sanremo Festival (a very BIG deal) in Italy and the hosts, Amadeus and Fiorello, made him dance the "qua qua qua" (the chicken dance). He had to wear a chicken hat, but Travolta refused. He also didn't sign the documents that would allow the whole scene to be played again - so the whole chicken dance thing with him will not be shown in tv ever again - and he's been receiving so much shit by Amadeus and everybody else because he obviously knew what was going to happen and he was like super paid for his appearance

and it doesn't stop here lol

The festival lasts a week, and they have guests every night - yesterday night was Travolta, tonight was Russell Crowe. Crowe loves Italy, Italy loves Crowe. Crowe sung with his band (he was great tbh) and he then answered some questions asked by the hosts. He low-key made a joke about the Travolta thing and Amadeus had to high-five him (because how can you not) and now we are all waiting (but not really, the festival is much more important) to see if the fucking festival will make two Hollywood stars fight or not.