Life after Helsinki 2007 Eurovision

The most streamed song in Italy in 2023. The first ever video to be watched over 100 million times in less than a year. Amazing song. Eurovision Top-4 against all fandom odds. I always said this is Top-5 stuff. Love it.

  Andrea Mirò performed this fantastic song   Non è segreto  written by Armando Mango in Sanremo 1988 Newcomers but was eliminated from the final. She was there year before with equally fantastic  Notte di Praga , placing 4th. Later she would marry Eurovision veteran Enrico Ruggeri and go rock. 

  Anna Oxa debuted in Sanremo 1978 with a true evergreen Un'emozione da poco with rather revolutionary look and sound for the times. She placed 2nd and would return to Sanremo another 14 times holding the record with Toto Cutugno, Al Bano, Milva and Peppino Di Capri. Should she return one more time..... She has scored two wins (1989 with Fausto Leali, and 1999) and another 2nd place (1997).

  This song is very dear to my heart for reasons I don't even know myself. All I know when I heard this for the first time on a Sanremo oldies sampler it was love at first hearing. Casa bianca was the runner up in 1968 festival and was performed by both Marisa Sannia and Ornella Vanoni.   I prefer Marisa's version for reasons unknown.

  Patrizia Bulgari reached the Newcomers final 1991 with Giselle and returned the year after with Amica di scuola placing 5th. Two fantastic original songs with great vocals. Yet she disappeared. But I haven't forgotten!

  Mahmood first tried his luck in Sanremo in 2016 placing fourth with Dimentica among the Newcomers. The ones doing better (and I say being understood easier) were certain Francesco Gabbani, and a certain Ermal Meta, and err... Chiara Dello Iacovo who we haven't heard ever since. But he did beat a certain Irama though, what a cast that year!!! This blogger loved Dimentica from the first hearing and also got very interested in Mahmood and certainly I haven't been disappointed the past few years when he's been belting out hits in steady stream and has won two Sanremo along the way, and almost won Eurovision, too. What a find!

  Erminio Sinni placed 5th among the Newcomers in 1993 with a song L'amore vero by Riccardo Cocciante, winning also awards for the best music and lyrics. His real success has been however songwriting but this song has been fortunate and become a theme song for a South American soap opera and sold almost a million copies in late 1990's. Sinni himself mace a comeback to great public in The Voice Senior in 2020. 

 Today one song from Sanremo's recent years I have loved the most, Il diario degli errori  that Michele bravi took to 4th place in 2017.

  This Sicilian winner of Castrocaro 1987 new talent competition took part in Sanremo newcomers in 1993 with this song that I still love, Non volevo . He placed 6th (behind likes of Laura Pausini and Nek). I always thought he had something common with Battiato, Alice and likes and in fact he ended up working with Juri Camisasca in the 2000's besides writing for theater, films and television. Besides writing the fantastic pop number  Musica for Paolo Meneguzzi in 2007, that scored BIG in Latin America. 

Alice debuted in Sanremo (under her real name Carla Bissi) in 1972 without success, returned in 1981 and won it. That started a internationally successful pop career all the way to Eurovision 1984 with Franco Battiato. After that her music changed, she abandoned the search for hits and spotlight on festivals and television. Her label didn't like that very much though. She got her wish to publish a special album God is my DJ of sacred music and sacred in music only by agreeing to do Sanremo 2000 and a compilation album Personal Jukebox of new versions of her hits. Il giorno dell'indipendenza placed 11th. She has returned to semi-pop oriented music in her 2021 and 2014 albums, and has toured and released an album of Battiato's songs in 2022-23 after his death. 

  Eros Ramazzotti won Sanremo Newcomers in 1984 with Terra promessa . The rest is history. Still going strong, he has sold over 60 million albums worldwide, makes regularly world tours, releases his music both in Italian and in Spanish for the Latin America and is used to duet with likes of Cher, Tina Turner, Andrea Bocelli, Joe Cocker, Luciano Pavarotti, Laura Pausini and Ricky Martin just to name a few. This blogger fell to his charms already with this and still keep following and have seen him live in concert three times in Helsinki over the years.

  Catanian beauty Marcella Bella has a long career and nine Sanremos under her belt, and in the late 1980's  she scored a hit after hit there along with good placements (3rd, 6th, 4th) this being the third one in 1988 placing 4th, Dopo la tempesta . and being a Top-10 hit in Italy. One of my favorites along with Tanti auguri .

  Eurovision winner (and runner up) Gigliola Cinquetti teamed up with another Eurovision winner France Gall in Sanremo 1969 and their song La pioggia . Despite this being one of Gigliola's biggest hits and reached #2 in the Italian charts in Sanremo it only placed 6th.... 

  Pupo reached 3rd place in Sanremo 1980 with this Su di noi , maybe his biggest international hit. He has also written hits for others and made a career also as a tv host and author, while his own life has been quite a sitcvom as well it seems...

  Michele Zarrillo, or simply Zarrillo won Sanremo newcomers 1987 with La notte dei pensieri . Thatb was however already his third Sanremo including 1982 when he sung Una rosa blu that later become an evergreen. So far he has returned to Sanremo ten times after that with a total of 13 participation collecting three Top-5 placements and several big hits, including Cinque giorni .

  Roberto Amadè placed third in 2011 Sanremo Newcomers with this fabulous Come pioggia. Since then I have lost track on him (as most everyone) but apparently he wrote songs and did some musical collaborations outside pop scene, and even became an artist/painter. This track has however stayed with me. 

 Matia Bazar have participated in Sanremo 12 times winning it twice. The line up has changed over the years as have the lead female singer since Antonella Ruggiero left in 1989. She was replaced by Laura Valente, these days better known my youngsters as the mother of Angelina Mango. When Angelina takes the Ariston stage she follows not only her mom's but also dad's footsteps and who knows will outdo them both? Anyways, Antonella's Matia was fabulous, Laura's rockier but I liked that version, too, and especially this song, Dedicato a te . Silvia Mezzanotte followed her and brought them their second Sanremo win, while Roberta Faccani is the latest lady. However, none of the original members is left...

  Late Mango, Angelina Mango's dad btw, participated 7 times in Sanremo. This Tu...si from 1990 may not be among his biggest successes despite placing 7th but it's a very dear to me. Mango left us way too soon, in a dramatic way mid song on stage but before that he somewhat changed Italian pop music and left his mark with his unique voice and musical style. Now let's see what his and another Sanremo artists Laura Valente's love fruit Angelina wuill give us in Sanremo..... 

  This is probably the most boyband-esque Sanremo winner ever. Brothers Diego e Luca won Sanremo Newcomers with L'amore in 2008 and later gained a great success, released albums in Latin America, Brazil and Japan, treid Sanremo again and flopped. I have lost track on them after this song but according Wikipedia they are still active. Who knew? I just know I liked this song back in the day.

  Dolcenera won Sanremo newcomers 2003 with Siamo tutti là fuori , a song and personality I fell in love with immediately. She's been back a few times, had her ups and downs, has released many songs that would have fit Eurovision as a glove (in a good way) and I had hopes for her for many years. She's been collecting awards, touring, releasing music but somehow she's not in the spotlight she deserves.  But there's always Sanremo 2025 and Eurovision..... One can hope!