Amadeus, host of Italy’s Sanremo Music Festival for the final time this year, confirmed on RAI2 that Marco Mengoni would co-host the first night of the contest. Mengoni, who won last year’s edition with “Due Vite”, placed fourth at the Eurovision Song Contest 2023.
Marco Mengoni’s Sanremo history
Mengoni first competed in Italy’s longrunning Festival di Sanremo in 2010, where he placed third with his song “Credimi ancora”. Three years later, he won with the song “L’essenziale” and gained the right to represent Italy at the Eurovision Song Contest 2013 in Malmö, Sweden. He placed seventh, and pivoted to releasing albums rather than competing, but said he would happily return to Eurovision.
And return to Eurovision he did in 2023, when he won Sanremo a second time with his song “Due Vite”. At Eurovision, Mengoni beat his previous placing, achieving fourth place in the Eurovision final.
He will co-host the first night of the contest alongside Amadeus, who has hosted Sanremo for the past few years. However, the 2024 contest will be Amadeus’ final run as host.
Festival di Sanremo: a brief explanation
Italy’s renowned Festival di Sanremo is, in many ways, the original Eurovision–the contest we know and love was modeled after it, after all! First broadcast in 1951, it is the longest-running annual TV music competition in the world. Sanremo was developed as a way to revitalize the city of Sanremo’s economy and reputation after the Second World War, and has since split into two smaller contests: the “Big Artists” section, whose winner gets first refusal to represent Italy in Eurovision, and the “Newcomers” section, first included in 1984. Scores are determined through public voting and two groups of juries, and the festival takes place across five nights.
Italy’s Eurovision journey
Italy have participated in the Eurovision Song Contest since the very beginning and have always been considered a powerhouse in the contest. Italy have won the contest on three occasions: in 1964, 1990 and 2021. Italy withdrew after 1997, returning again in 2011 with Raphael Gualazzi who sang ‘Madness Of Love’. Raphael placed second in the 2011 Eurovison Song Contest after scoring 189 points.
Italy’s most recent entry is “Due Vite” by Marco Mengoni. At the close of voting, Italy scored a total of 350 points in the Eurovision 2023 Grand Final, placing 4th. Of these, 176 points came from the juries, whilst the remaining 174 points came from the televote.
Could Marco Mengoni replace Amadeus as next year’s Sanremo host? Are you looking forward to seeing him once again grace the Sanremo stage? As always, let us know what you think by commenting below. Also, be sure to follow “That Eurovision Site” on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, Threads and Bluesky as we look ahead to Eurovision 2024!
News Source: RAI2
Photo Credit: Andrea Bianchera
