“Why Sanremo is Sanremo», chanting the famous Baudian slogan. Today the motto sounds almost outdated. The current slogan is different: «Sanremo? No, thank you”. Yes, because by collecting rumors leaked from Rai’s office, from the team Carlo Conti and from the record company corridors, the Festival seems to have lost much of its charm. Possible?
PRECEDENT
A year ago at this time Carlo Conti was rubbing his hands: in his pocket was the “yes” of the phenomenon Olly (which has generated millions of streams and sold-out collections), of Giorgia’s recent success as a presenter about pancreatic cancer and the end of his marriage to Chiara Ferragni. A strong cast, which seems to draw on the legacy of Amadeus, an equally fortunate artistic director, who knows how to make the pandemic an opportunity to present to Ariston anyone who has a new project to launch – with theaters and sports halls closed – and who, thanks to Maneskin’s win at Eurovision, manages to keep anyone who has aversion to the Festival hooked.
VOICE
Currently the situation is reversed. There are rumors constantly circulating in the company. From Colombre and Marie Antoinette to La Niña, from Emma Nolde to Anna Castiglia, past Nada: Conti’s cast, as a songwriting exclusive, will not be on the same level as the latest edition’s ultra-pop cast. And this is worrying. Conti received a solid “no” vote Tiziano Ferro, Annalisa, Carmen console and also from Herniathe most listened to rapper of the moment with the album For Money and for Love, who even said in Sanremo: «I don’t feel the need to go there». He also refused the invitation Alphafresh from the hits I like: the songs are there, but afraid of being overwhelmed by such exposure Sangiovanni And Mango Angelina This singer-songwriter from Genoa prefers to stay at home. Likewise with Anna, 22 years old and 120 thousand tickets sold with a tour of the sports hall. The Poohs withdrew from the competition, “too stressed”, announcing themselves as super guests (Conti found out about them). Then Tananai, Emma, Naomi. A surprising and, in some cases, even bold “no”: just imagine those with stadium commitments scheduled for next summer, such as Rhythm And Teduaexpected at San Siro on June 11 and 24, no longer considers Sanremo a mandatory step. Singer-songwriters with long histories, such as Fabrizio Moro, Sergio Cammariere and Enrico Ruggeri, fear formulas that reward “performance more than music”. Facing resistance, Conti tried to launch a comeback. First, he increased the number of big names competing from 26 to 30, in an effort to accommodate the record companies: in negotiations, which were complicated by Rai’s demand that the record companies be held responsible for excessive singer behavior, the host and artistic director appeared willing to balance out some of the “small” names in exchange for a significant presence. Then on Saturday he postponed the big name announcement, scheduled for last Sunday on Tg1 at 13.30, for a week “in honor of Ornella Vanoni”. But in Rai, there has been talk for days about postponing it until the 30th: a move to have more time and try to reassure the doubters. Like Blanco, Angelina Mango and Elisa’s “dream”. He, as an experienced showman, took part: «Rumors and controversies played a role in the creation of the Festival, Pippo Baudo taught us that». Will be. But if for years Sanremo was a stable company, able to guarantee certain advantages in terms of ratings and prestige, now Sanremo seems to be affected by distrust and volatility.
HAPPY
The names in circulation, so to speak, in addition to those already mentioned, are the names of Amara (last year she had a duet with her partner Simone Cristicchi on the evening of the joint cover of La cura by Franco Battiato), Genoese rapper Sayf, Neapolitan Luchè, Frah Quintale, Fulminacci, revelation Non sei mica te Eddie Brock, Nayt, Tropico, Venerus, Chiello, with Gianni Morandi, Arisa, Malika Ayane, Serena Brancale, Sal Da Vinci assured the Rai1 audience. In the absence of wild cards, some would say, you’re better off betting on the outside. But what can we expect in terms of results – because Sanremo is growing rapidly in this regard, both in terms of ratings and advertising revenues – from such a cast, however bold? In the end, victory will be contested by the duo Marco Masini and Fedez (again in the race) and Elodie and Rkomi, with Tommaso Paradiso and Ermal Meta in pursuit. The overall picture suggests that this Sanremo marks the end of a cycle. It is not a coincidence that Conti himself, who without guilt finds himself in the middle of a very complicated phase, is already looking further ahead: «My successor? Stefano De Martino or Fiorella Mannoia”. But first, we have to try to bring the Sanremo brand index back into positive territory. And it won’t be easy. For now it looks like Club Tenco. Who knows what the sponsors will think.
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