Life after Helsinki 2007 Eurovision

Marco Mengoni takes another crown before this incredible 2013 is over for him: his concert from Rimini on New Year's eve will be broadcasted live on Canale 5. The big New Year's eve variety shows have been a battle by RaiUno and Canale 5 for years and usually Canale 5 has lost it. I suspect they won't this year! The concert starts at 10pm in Rimini's Piazza Fellini and will lead Italians to 2014. As a warm up his concert #prontoacorrerelive from Taormina, Sicily this summer will be broadcasted on Italia1 on December 20, 2013. After New Year's he will retire from the spotlight to work in his next album. RaiUno is having a Carlo Conti conducted show live from Courmayeur with guests, including musical acts Moreno, Gigi D'Alessio, Anna Tatangelo, Karima, the Voice winner Elhaida Dani and Paola Iezzi (of Paola & Chiara). It seems like a battle lost.... :-)

Robert took his bike and went to meet Valentina Monetta yesterday and we had a chance to talk to her once again. This time we do a lot of name dropping, she tells how the swing version was born, something very personal, her hobbies and background and who would she like to sing for San Marino next year? And what's Calabria to do with it all? And in the case of victory? Here: Hello Valentina again and thank you for this interview! With the song Crisalide you come closer to your true self in singing, and a couple of nights ago you gave a concert in San Marino party singing in a very jazzy way. Who are your musical idols? I have many, I don't have just one above the others. I love soul, jazz, black music but growing I'm revalutating the sing-songwriters, especially in Italian music. And the music of the 1960's and 1970's. And names like Mina, Patty Pravo, Milva, Ornella Vanoni... all these artists that have combined jazz and bossa style with the Italian styl...