Tonight Italy decides for the Eurovision Song Contest 2017!

The winner of the Campioni category at the 2017 Sanremo Song Festival will be eligible to represent Italy at Eurovision in Kyiv this May.

The Final is forecast to last about 3 hours and 40 minutes, so sit back and relax, get a coffe (if you like) and snacks while James and Bogdan #JAMDAN from EI do all the work for you. Feel free to tell us what you think and even shout to keep us awake! 🙂

You know the drill: Just refresh this page to get the views, comments and our points of view.

You can watch the live show  HERE from 20.40 CET.

16 singers will be competing tonight in the final of the 67th edition of the Festival della Canzone Italiana di Sanremo.

The scores in tonight’s show will be calculated as follows:

• Demoscopic Pole (30%)
• Expert Jury (30%)
• public vote (40%)

The top 3 acts will proceed to the Super final and fight for the Grand Prix.

The Champions singing tonight in the Final are:

• Alessio Bernabei – Nel mezzo di un applauso
• Bianca Atzei – Ora esisti solo tu
• Michele Bravi – Il diario degli errori
• Chiara – Nessun posto è casa mia
• Clementino – Ragazzi fuori
• Lodovica Comello – Il cielo non mi basta
• Elodie – Tutta colpa mia
• Francesco Gabbani – Occidentali’s Karma
• Fiorella Mannoia – Che sia benedetta
• Marco Masini – Spostato di un secondo
• Ermal Meta – Vietato morire
• Fabrizio Moro – Portami via
• Samuel – Vedrai
• Sergio Sylvestre – Con te
• Paola Turci – Fatti bella per me
• Michele Zarrillo – Mani nelle mani

#LIVE ROLLING BLOG starts HERE

JAMES: Buonaseara a tutto il mondo! Not long now till we go live to Italy to join the final of the Sanremo Music Festival 2017! You’ve got just enough time to get your drinks, grab your snacks, get comfy and sit back for the finest 53 hours of programming the Italian broadcaster can provide! 😉

See you soon!

JAMES: Not long till the show starts! Tonight’s hosts, Carlo Conti  and Maria DeFilippi are busy discussing how successful this year’s contest has been, and how it unites people. It was also the inspiration for Eurovision itself, so we’re incredibly grateful too!

BOGDAN: They’re also talking about tonight’s 12 special guests that will be performing alongside the 16 contestants, including Zucherro and Alvaro Soler

JAMES: Here we go! The first of what we’re sure will be many ad breaks… do let us know your favourite adverts, if you have one!

BOGDAN: They’re now saying this is what happens after Sanremo… severe depression and your life goes grey? :)))

JAMES: Oh, every Eurovision fan knowns Post-Eurovision Depression is a very real illness!!

BOGDAN:I love this ad! I think it’s for mobile phones, but I like the music. It’s also the sponsor of tonight’s show, TIM

JAMES: Here we go!! Officially starting!

JAMES: We’re in the Ariston Theatre in Sanremo – not far from Nice and Monaco on the lovely Cote d’Azur

BOGDAN: A music group made up of artists with special needs is opening the show tonight

JAMES: Our hosts just thanked the group for being a great example for other musicians, and the hall loves them!

JAMES: We’re lucky tonight that Bogdan actually speaks Italian, and so can tell us in a bit more detail what is happening – grazie Bogdan!

BOGDAN: Di niente! 😀 We’re being reminded of the contestants tonight, including the running order and the codes the Italian public will need for voting

JAMES: Apparently a singing gorilla is taking part tonight… now that could be interesting!

JAMES: My colleagues had a great laugh at my expense convincing me that due to an old EBU rule, France are allowed to use a giraffe on stage at Eurovision! I only believed them for a few minutes, honest! O__O

BOGDAN: The lines for voting are OPEN! You’re allowed to vote a maximum of 5 times

BOGDAN: It’s worth mentioning that neither of us have heard a lot of tonight’s songs before now, so for a lot of them, it’s our first time hearing them!

JAMES: So you’ll get our initial, and most likely uncensored reactions 😉

BOGDAN: So you’ve been warned 😉 Now we’re getting to meet our jury for tonight, whose opinions will form 30% of tonight’s results

JAMES: The special force were just thanked for their efforts in rescuing lives in the recent earthquakes in  Italy. One of the officers said it’s their passion, not a duty. How’s that for dedication?

BOGDAN: Ad break #1… or is it #2?

JAMES: We’ve lost track already… I didn’t know Stuart Little spoke Italian!

BOTH: CAAAAKKKEEEE!!!

JAMES: We’d just like to assure our readers, we’re not being paid to promote any of tonight’s adverts, we’re just enjoying them 😛

BOGDAN: Superman really got old…

JAMES: Bet he gets great reception up there!

BOGDAN: Back to the show!

JAMES: This is our first of our 12 guest performers tonight, Zucchero. He’s not actually a contestant

JAMES: Time for tea!!!

BOGDAN: Very strong voice, and Italian is such a beautiful language

BOGDAN: Zucchero is known internationally and is well liked

JAMES: Our lovely hosts for this evening

JAMES: And we also have our running order, below

BOGDAN: Our first Champion up tonight, Elodie

JAMES: She’ll be singing Tutta Colpa Mia – or All My Fault in English

BOGDAN: Am I the only one who thinks she looks like Rita Ora?

JAMES: No, I agree!

BOGDAN: She puts a lot of soul into her voice, I like it

JAMES: Yes, she does. It’s a strong ballad, and she definitely sings it with conviction. I’m convinced that was what won Eurovision for Ukraine in Stockholm!

BOGDAN: I love the orchestral sound. I think this would make a great Eurovision entry!

BOGDAN: Michele Zarrillo is up now with Mani Nelle Mani, or Hand In Hand. Before each singer performs, they’re showing a short good luck message filmed for them

JAMES: They did that at Eurovision one year… I think it was some time in the mid 1990s… can’t remember the exact year though…

BOGDAN: He’s singing about the first days of being in love, passion and torment…

JAMES: Another singer with convincing emotion in their performance

BOGDAN: Memories of love sleep inside the heart, but when it’s dark they come back to caress you…

JAMES: Just proves beyond all doubt that Italian is a beautiful and poetic language!

BOGDAN: I really like his passion. It’s great he sings from heart, unlike songs in other selections in the past that we could mention… but won’t

JAMES: Shaping up to be a strong selection tonight!

BOGDAN: Sergio Sylvestre singing Con Te up now

JAMES: Wow… another very soulful and powerful voice!!

BOGDAN: It’s a good effort

JAMES: I think something like this would do well at Eurovision – case and point, that crescendo and gospel choir!!

BOGDAN: Fiorella Mannoia  with Che Sia Benedetta up now – “May It Be Blessed”

JAMES: The crowd went wild at the mention of her name – one to watch for winner? Maybe!

BOGDAN: The UK and Switzerland have both just selected girls in red dresses, so it might be a sign!

BOGDAN: It’s a pleasant song, and again she sings it with conviction

JAMES: I must admit, I’m not usually a fan of spoken word songs like this, but it works

BOGDAN: Do you think this could be a winner, James?

JAMES: The people in the hall seem to think so! What a reaction!

BOGDAN: A little break between acts now with actresses from an new Italian mini series that’ll start next Monday

JAMES: See? You’d miss out on all these little explanations if it wasn’t for us!

JAMES: We can see from our stats that a lot of you in Italy are reading along tonight – hope you like our thoughts and comments, and are enjoying the show!

BOGDAN: See you after the break!

JAMES: Tutti amano Sanremo – Everyone loves Sanremo! As the show that inspired the whole Eurovision Song Contest, we certainly do!

BOGDAN: Fabrizio Moro and Portami Via (Take Me Away) incoming!

JAMES: A lot of ballads tonight… mind you, they’ll be in good company in Kyiv this May!

BOGDAN: Indeed! And another spoken-song too. Quite a slow song, but fitting for the end of the evening in the dance hall with your lover

JAMES: That’s a very poetic way to put it, Bogdan! I always felt that way about Marco Mengoni’s L’essenziale!

BOGDAN: A solid effort from Fabrizio. Now it’s time for Alessio Bernabei and Nel Mezzo di Un Applauso. Or In The Middle Of An Applause

BOGDAN: Nice intro!

JAMES: It’s definitely the most modern, upbeat sound so far this evening!

BOGDAN: It ticks a lot of Eurovision boxes – attractive singer, good beat, nice staging

JAMES: It also stands out against more traditional ballads heard so far tonight. I think this could do well if it went to Eurovision!

BOGDAN: And it has the kind of beat and tempo you can clap along to!

JAMES: Maybe that’s why they called it Applauso? 😛

BOGDAN: The universe applauds us, and I want to too!! :)))))

JAMES: Bit of a muted response from in the hall… perhaps it’s a more conservative crowd?

*political comments about leaving EU from bald gentlemen that hurt too much to write about*

JAMES: Marco Masini sings Spostato di Un Secondo coming up. We’re trying to work out an meaningful translation… bear with us!

BOGDAN: It’s Moved In One Second

JAMES: Neither of us are native Italian speakers, so please if we make mistakes or you can think of better translations, please let us know in the comments!

BOGDAN: Well, that’s coming up later, now it’s an interval act!

JAMES: Just seen a picture of President Trump onstage… we’re a little confused… but what’s Eurovision without being utterly confused by proceedings?!

BOGDAN: In retrospect, we’ve worked out that was Maurizzio and think he was special guest #2

JAMES: We’re now being treated to an all singing, all dancing live commercial for TIM, the sponsor of tonight’s show – interesting idea!

BOGDAN: Now it’s time for Marco Masini and Spostato di Un Secondo

JAMES: Spoken songs meets rap?!

BOGDAN: I think this is probably my least favourite song so far… just doesn’t do anything for me. But I must say, the instrumentals are nice

JAMES: Seconded. It feels like it’s trying to be too many different things at once and comes across as a bit all over the place… but yes, nice instrumentals

BOGDAN: We can see from our stats that there are lots of you reading along in Italy, and all around Europe. A big thank you from both of us, really nice to know we’re not alone and you’re all reading out there!

JAMES: We’re not alone, we’re in this together… wo-oh-oh-oh… *flashbacks*

BOGDAN: Ad break #4, amici!

JAMES: And we’re back, just in time for another performance by Zucchero and his impressive hat!

BOGDAN: Zucchero is now performing a song that he duetted with the world-famous Luciano Pavorotti, Miserere

JAMES: Just a quick shout out to Sarah, who is reading along out there and told me the last time good luck videos were used at Eurovision was in 1996 – thank you for giving us a more accurate date! 😀

JAMES: Ad break #5 – if you’re a fan of Italian adverts, you’re in luck tonight!

BOGDAN: We’re back, amici! Paola Turci and Fatti Bella Per Te – Make Yourself Beautiful For You

JAMES: An important message there!

JAMES: Hints of Adele, no? Adele is hugely popular across Europe, so can understand why potential Eurovision artists would want to tap into that sound

BOGDAN: Quite an empowering song – Beauty Never Lies 2017 😉 It’s like a rock anthem, I enjoyed it, but not sure it’s a winner

JAMES: Agreed, but saying it’s not a winner, Italy has a really strong line up tonight, I’m very impressed. Bianca Atzei singing Ora Esisti Solo Tu coming up now

BOGDAN: Now Exists Only You

JAMES: Awww, I didn’t know you cared!

BOGDAN: No, that’s the name of the song…

JAMES: Ah… awkward…

JAMES: She’s very pretty! I really like the sound of this!

BOGDAN: Nice dress with roses – hints of Nessun Grado di Seperazione 😛

BOGDAN: It’s a very strong declaration of love, stating how the pain of the past heals when you find the right person

JAMES: I think this is my favourite so far tonight!

BOGDAN: Mine too, very good performance, well done!

JAMES: Brava! She got a great reaction in the hall too!

JAMES: We’re now half way through all of tonight’s contestants!

BOGDAN: Now Tina Kunakey, a French model with Italian roots is giving us her thoughts on tonight’s show

BOGDAN: Non Ho L’Eta… one of my favourites ❤

JAMES: Francesco Gabbani is up now with Occidentali’s Karma… he may be one to watch tonight, according to fans!

JAMES: I can see why fans like this, quite a contemporary sound, bit pop but not so manufactured

BOGDAN: I’m not convinced yet… it sounds like it wants to be interesting, but isn’t quite pulling it off for me. Maybe after a few more listenings…

JAMES: And a dancing gorilla… why? Well why not…

BOGDAN: Definitely memorable for that reason! It’s entertaining, but I think there are stronger songs tonight

JAMES: It’s the kind of gimmick that can really sway televoters… everyone around Europe would remember the dancing gorilla song!!

BOGDAN: 6 songs left tonight!

JAMES: It’s been quite a strong selection tonight, I think there are a few songs that are contenders to win

BOGDAN: Song #11 now with Chiara’s Nessun Posto è Casa Mia – No Place Is My Home

JAMES: Should have paid your rent then, Chiara!

BOGDAN: A quiet ballad accompanied with a piano

JAMES: Not always a winning combination at Eurovision… Ireland failed to qualify with a similar premise in 2015 and Bosnia came 18th in 2012

BOGDAN: It’s not really going anywhere…

JAMES: It’s a solid vocal performance, but yeah… bit dull, doesn’t really grab your attention

BOGDAN: Shame… let’s hope Clementino and Ragazzi Fuori can keep us engaged… even if he looks like a Roman Lobb wannabe!

BOGDAN: The song doesn’t really do anything for me

JAMES: Me neither, being honest

BOGDAN: He sings with passion, but it’s another song that doesn’t really go anywhere

JAMES: Ragazzi Fuori means The Boys Outside… it’s an important social issue, of course, but not sure how well it would connect with an international audience. At least his team are happy with his performance!

BOGDAN: Ad break #412… or #7? It’s after midnight in our timezone 😉

JAMES: Another big shout out to all our readers following our comments in Italia! Grazie mile, amici! And thank you to the rest of you around the world too, of course! 😀

BOGDAN: We’re running out of snacks… please send more!

JAMES: And we’re back on Day 117 of Sanremo… only kidding! We love it really 😀

BOGDAN: Actress and singer Rita Pavone has just been given an award for her distinguished career. And she’s treating us to a little song too

JAMES: The audience loved that!

BOGDAN: Standing ovation and they’re chanting her name!

JAMES: Ermal Meta singing Vietato Morire coming up

BOGDAN: He’s singing Prohibited Death

JAMES: So it’s a light hearted comedy song then?

BOGDAN: Probably! 😀 Slight technical issue, but it’s resolved now

BOGDAN: It has a nice beat to it, think it’s definitely in the top half of the scoreboard

JAMES: I’m afraid I have to disagree, leaves me quite cold… can’t say why exactly, but think there are much stronger songs tonight

JAMES: Lodovica Comello next. Il Cielo Non Mi Basta

BOGDAN: The Sky Is Not Enough For Me

JAMES: Sounds like a pirated James Bond film… wonder if it’ll be a Bond-esq ballad a la Georgia?

BOGDAN: I like the start. It sounds familiar, but I can’t remember what song…

JAMES: Not a bad little song at all. Bit understated and an interesting wardrobe choice, but I quite liked it

BOGDAN: Another ad break, we’ll see you in a mo!

JAMES: And welcome back to Sanremo 2017! For anyone interested, we’re writing this live blog from Romania, where’s it’s just gone 1am… we’re just that dedicated to bringing you Eurovision history as it happens 😉

BOGDAN: Yes we are 😉 Special guest Enrico Montessane is on stage now

*both JAMES and BOGDAN lose track of Sanremo Festival for a few minutes as we hear the results from Spain*

*everyone is laughing at Sanremo and we’re not sure why… Spain, what were you thinking?! Where is Mirela?! Come on Italy, don’t let us down!*

BOGDAN: Finally, the penultimate song! Samuel  with Vedrai – You Will See… well, we hope we will see a good winner tonight – especially after that Spanish debacle!

JAMES: Everyone is clapping along, surely that’s a good sign

JAMES: It’s quite middle-of-the-road pop

BOGDAN: Started well, but didn’t live up to expectations

JAMES: Yeah, it’s not bad, per say… I think a lot of the powerful songs were grouped at the beginning of the night, so the second half of performances have seemed a little lacklustre in comparison

BOGDAN: Michele Bravi gets the honour of closing the Sanremo Music Festival 2017 with Il Diaro Degli Errori

JAMES: Diary of Errors… hopefully whoever Italy sends to Eurovision tonight won’t be another entry in this diary!

BOGDAN: Quite a strong voice for such a young performer

JAMES: Yes, and I’m happy we’ve ended on another strong ballad like the ones that started the evening

BOGDAN: Well… that was yesterday for us now!

BOGDAN: A pleasant rock ballad

JAMES: Lacked a bit of a crescendo for me, but yes, not a bad performance and a worthy song to close the festival 🙂

BOGDAN: All the contestants have performed, now it’s special guest actress and comedienne Geppi Cucciari to give us her thoughts on tonight’s show

JAMES: Didn’t they swap dresses? Could have sworn the host was wearing black earlier!

JAMES: I’m sure she’s very funny if you speak Italian, and the audience are in stitches, but we’re lost…  are they going to announce the results soon?

BOGDAN: Stop voting Italy!

JAMES: We’re on ad break #?? to count the votes, and we’ll be back soon!

BOGDAN: The Top 3 songs from the combined votes of the public, Demoscopic poll and jury will advance to the SuperFinal

JAMES: And we’re back! Just in time for a performance from Alvaro Soler

BOTH: I like this song!!

BOGDAN: All the results of the vote are going to be announced, from 16th place up to 1st

JAMES: Quite a bit of disappointment in the early stages of the scoring, the audience are gasping

BOGDAN: A lot of surprises here!!

JAMES: We have our final 3!

JAMES: Congratulations to Fiorella, Ermal and Francesco!

BOGDAN: The gorilla song is going to win…!?

JAMES: I’m pretty sure I heard somewhere that Fiorella already said she wouldn’t go to Eurovision if she won tonight… this could be interesting!!

BOGDAN: The vote has reopened, and Italians are now voting for their favourite act

JAMES: While they do that, we’re watching more Italian adverts – brb!

BOGDAN: Welcome back to Sanremo 2017, now entering it’s 4th week of being on air!

JAMES: Soon we’ll have our result, and I think it’s fair to say it’s anyone’s game right now

BOGDAN: But before that, we have a song about peace by Paolo Vallesi and Amara, Pace

JAMES: Sadly not this one…

JAMES: Still, this duet is really nice too

JAMES: Would you like to comment who you think is going to win, Bogdan?

BOGDAN: I think it’ll be between Fiorella and Francesco

JAMES: Same here. Two very different songs! And memorable for 2 very different reasons!

BOGDAN: Yes indeed! But before we get to the results, Emanuele Fasano will play the piano for our entertainment

JAMES: Very relaxing music… lovely, but also makes you kind of sleepy… especially at 2am!

BOGDAN: Now Carlo Cracco, a well known chef is giving us his thoughts – perhaps his recipe for Sanremo success! 😉

JAMES: I could do with some pizza right now, can we Tweet the show and ask for some?

BOGDAN: Journalist Massimo Giletti up now. Lots of opinions flying around tonight

JAMES: We’ve been live blogging for almost 6 hours now… a JamDan record!  If you’re still following along out there, thank you!

BOGDAN: ITALY, STOP VOTING!

BOGDAN: Awards time, and prize for the Best Lyrics has been given to Che Sia Benedetta

JAMES: The Critics’ Award has been given to Ermal Meta, and Best Arrangement to Al Bano – congrats!

BOGDAN: Francesco Gabbani has been given the TIM award from the sponsor – all our final 3 have an award tonight!

JAMES: But which one gets to take home the Sanremo trophy too?

BOGDAN: The jury are giving their opinions on tonight’s proceedings too… they said it was a difficult choice picking their winners

JAMES: Just wondering, if Italy ever host Eurovision again in the future, can we expect the contest to be a one night event, complete with semi-finals and final one after the other?

JAMES: Are they ready to give us the results yet?

BOGDAN: I think so…

BOGDAN: Looks like they’re getting ready to let us know!

JAMES: Last of the Big 5 to chose…

JAMES: Ermal Meta, 3rd place. Fiorella Mannoia 2nd..

Bogdan: And the Winner of Sanremo is Francesco Gabbani!

Together: Thank you all for following our blog and Congratulations to Italy!

Good night Europe! Good night world!

Author: James Scanlan and Bogdan Stefan

Source: Eurovision Ireland, Rai.it