Rai is set to hold a special one night gala to mark 70 years of the Festival di Sanremo in February.
The 70th edition of the Festival di Sanremo is set to feature an additional night, with Rai holding a gala night on February 3. The show according to Eurofestival News will feature an evening formed of songs, memories and emotions.
The evening will be held at the Sanremo Casino, the venue for the first edition of the competition in 1951. With Rai looking set to broadcast live from the red carpet before an evening of looking back at the music and moments from the contests past.
The competitive element of Sanremo 2020 will begin on February 4 and will run each night until February 8. The competing artists and their songs are as follows:
- Achille Lauro – Me ne frego (I don’t care)
- Alberto Urso – Il sole ad est (The sun to the east)
- Anastasio – Rosso di rabbia (Red with anger)
- Bugo e Morgan – Sincero (Sincere)
- Diodato – Fai rumore (Make noise)
- Elettra Lamborghini – Musica e il resto scompare (Music and the rest disappears)
- Elodie – Andromeda
- Enrico Nigiotti – Baciami adesso (Kiss me now)
- Francesco Gabbani – Viceversa (Vice versa)
- Giordana Angi – Come mia madre (Like my mother)
- Irene Grandi – Finalmente io (Finally I)
- Junior Cally – No grazie (No thanks)
- Le Vibrazioni – Dov’è (Where is it)
- Levante – Tiki Bom Bom
- Marco Masini – Il confronto (The comparison)
- Michele Zarrillo – Nell’estasi o nel fango (In ecstasy or mud)
- Paolo Jannacci – Voglio parlarti adesso (I want to talk to you now)
- Piero Pelù – Gigante (Giant)
- Pinguini Tattici Nucleari – Ringo Starr
- Rancore – Eden
- Raphael Gualazzi – Carioca
- Riki – Lo sappiamo entrambi (We both know it)
- Rita Pavone – Niente (Resilienza 74) (Nothing (Resilience 74))
- Tosca – Ho amato tutto (I loved everything)
Two of the participants previously represented Italy in the Eurovision Song Contest. Raphael Gualazzi represented Italy in 2011 with “Madness of Love” and finished second in the final. He was the first artist to represent Italy since the country last appear at the contest in 1997. Francesco Gabbani represented Italy in 2017 with “Occidentali’s Karma” and finished sixth in the final.
Source: Eurofestival News
Italy debuted in the Eurovision Song Contest in 1956 and has participated a total of 42 times to date. Italy returned to the Eurovision Song Contest in 2011 having last participated in the contest in 1997, the country has withdrawn from the contest on a number of occasions in the past. Italy has won the contest twice, the first time being in 1964 and the latest being in 1990. Italy’s hosting of the contest in 1991 has been remembered as one of the most chaotic contests to date. Since their return in 2011 Italy has finished in the top 10 on seven occasions.