Previewing the Entrants of Eurovision 2019 – Part Twenty-Two: Italy

Hello everyone and welcome to another post on The Blogging DJ. Today we will be continuing to look in-depth at each of the forty-one acts competing in the Eurovision Song Contest 2019. In this post, we will be previewing another of the ‘Big Five’, the countries who receive a free pass to the Grand Final as they provide the biggest financial benefit to the contest. That country is Italy, represented this year by Mahmood and his song “Soldi”.

Selection Process

Italy has traditionally picked their entry from their Sanremo Musical Festival, usually the winner of that year’s contest but there have been exceptions in the past. “Soldi” won the competition and the Italian broadcaster, RAI, announced that Mahmood will indeed represent Italy in Tel Aviv. As a member of the ‘Big Five’, Italy has automatically qualified for the Grand Final, with the draw to decide which half they will perform in to happen much closer to the contest.

Music Video

The Blogging DJ’s Review

Modern songs have a tendency to put musical trickery over an actual message (several songs in this year’s contest included), but you cannot say that about the Italian song in this year’s contest. Mahmood speaks to the audience directly, telling them about his poor relationship with his father due to the latter’s actions; even if you can’t speak Italian, you can understand the personal touch. At the same time, it is a very contemporary R&B song with great production and a couple of phrases that get stuck in your head. This song interestingly doesn’t have any kind of build in the chorus, which suits the slick production but also doesn’t create the kind of rousing finale that would light up a big arena. More of a very solid burner than an explosion. 8.5

Live Performance Video

Odds

According to Oddschecker, you can currently get odds ranging from 17/2 to 12/1 on Italy winning the Eurovision Song Contest. This suggests that bookmakers and betters see it as definitely being in the hunt for victory in Tel Aviv, depending on the staging and live performance.

Record at Eurovision

Italy have competed in the Eurovision Song Contest forty-four times since appearing in the first ever edition back in 1956. Their relatively small participation record is down to a lengthy hiatus between 1998 and 2010. They have won the contest twice; in 1964, with Gigliola Cinquetti and “Non ho l’età, and in 1990, with Toto Cutugno and “Insieme: 1992”. Last year, Ermal Meta & Fabrizio Moro sung a song addressing recent terrorist attacks called “Non mi avete fatto niente” and Europe reacted well, placing Italy in fifth place overall.

So what do you make of the Italian entry for Eurovision 2019? Are you sold on “Soldi”? Let me know your thoughts in the comments section below and don’t forget to like and subscribe to get the latest on the blog. Stay tuned for more Eurovision themed posts in the coming weeks!