It’s all change for Sanremo Giovani this season. Broadcaster Rai has revamped the rules of the competition for upcoming singers, with the competition returning to a format similar to 2019. The top-two placed Giovani acts will earn spots to compete alongside the Big Artists in the Sanremo 2022 in February.

Italian broadcaster confirmed the changes, led by the 2022 returning Artistic Director Amadeus.

Unlike in previous years, the Sanremo Giovani acts will not compete in their own section in the Sanremo Festival — the Nuove Proposte competition.

Instead the newcomers will be judged at the Sanremo Giovani final in December. There, 12 acts will compete, previously selected from a larger pool of 30.

The two highest placed will earn places in competition at the Sanremo Festival in February. This means that Italy’s entry for Eurovision 2022 could come via the Giovani contest.

Because of the possibility of also competing at Sanremo, all potential Giovani contestants must enter with both their Giovani entry as well as their potential Sanremo — and therefore Eurovision — entry.

Regarding the Giovani contest, Amadeus said, “Again this year it will be a great challenge and also a privilege to discover and find emerging artists.”

A return to the successful 2019 format

This show format is similar to what was used at Sanremo 2019. At that year’s Giovani competition, Elnar (with “Centomila volte”) and Mahmood (with “Gioventù bruciata”) each won a ticket to the Sanremo contest.

Mahmood went on to win Sanremo 2019 with his entry “Soldi” — and then placed second at Eurovision 2019. So the pressure is on for the Giovani 2022 hopefuls.

The Giovani competition has also lowered its age range. It now has a minimum age of 16 — also the youngest age for Eurovision, and a maximum of under 30.

Entries for Sanremo 2022 open today and will close one month later, on 16 October. Entries can only be submitted by record labels on behalf of their artists.

Sanremo Giovani has been held sporadically since 1993, and regularly since 2015. The show has become a pipeline for future Sanremo success. Former Sanremo Giovani stars include recent Eurovision acts Francesco Gabbani, Ermal Meta and Mahmood.

Sanremo Giovani will take place in December this year, while the big Sanremo Festival will run from 1 to 5 February 2022.

What do you think? Which upcoming Italian acts would you like to see competing in Sanremo Giovani? Can a newcomer act make it to Eurovision 2022? Tell us your thoughts below!

Read more Italy Eurovision news here

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There is a light guiding my way
There is a light guiding my way
2 years ago

Wait do you mean the submissions for Sanremo open and the NEXT day Davide van de Sfroos releases a new album after 7(!) years of career pause?!?? God please don’t let it be a mere coincidence! Look, first of all, I support the Giovani rules’ changes, because I lowkey liked 2020’s Giovani entries better than the Big Artists’ ones from that year. But you see, I need to say sorry, cause this year I have my hopes on the artist which is not giovani at all, but rather a renowned maestro. The man who 10 years ago -was criminally robbed-… Read more »

Last edited 2 years ago by There is a light guiding my way
Sabrina
Sabrina
2 years ago

Considering the high level of the Nuove Proposte entries this year, I’m on board with this decision. Six months went by and I’m still listening to Gaudiano and Wrongonyou.

Alvaro
Alvaro
2 years ago

Well then. December’s schedule of NF is going to be busy.

Thanos
Thanos
2 years ago

Well this may also mean that the Campioni songs will begin earlier during the big nights in February since we won’t be having the Nuove Proposte also performing these nights ?. And of course a chance to win the big festival will be given to emerging artists which is also good! I like this decision!

Last edited 2 years ago by Thanos
sucof
sucof
2 years ago
Reply to  Thanos

the intention is to shorten the evenings, the festival will start immediately at 20.30 and the number of singers in the competition will be reduced compared to last year.

Thanos
Thanos
2 years ago
Reply to  sucof

Nice that’s what I thought too. Sometimes the festival’s duration seems extremely long. The songs are always amazing, but it would be nice if they could be presented quicker.

Sot
Sot
2 years ago

Some Intervision stuff, if ESC boomers know what I mean 😉

Joey
Joey
2 years ago
Reply to  Sot

?

Sot
Sot
2 years ago
Reply to  Joey

I was sure people won’t understand… Intervision was an ESC ripoff created by the Soviet Union and many countries competed in the 70’s, like Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Finland etc. The contest was ditched in 2008 but it used a similar format

willchrisiam
willchrisiam
2 years ago

I know Sanremo is the most respected national final (I prefer a few others) and they certainly have the results but I’ll never understand the need to separate new artists from “big names”. Having the best song is surely more important than being a part of the set design. Of course everyone wants to attract the heavy hitters, I just don’t understand the separation.

ItaloV
ItaloV
2 years ago
Reply to  willchrisiam

Sanremo is not a national final. It is the festival of Italian music. That’s why there is the separation, so it can work as a spotlight for youth talents as well as to celebrate the Italian music as a whole. As a festival of the Italian music, it works differently from ESC, there are different nights where the singers sing other songs, with other artists and so on, hence the need for a separation between the categories.

willchrisiam
willchrisiam
2 years ago
Reply to  ItaloV

Of course I know that. I called it a nf because in the context od ESC it is. Get off your high horse. It still makes no sense to me because I don’t see it as a way of helping the newcomers to reach the final if only 2 spots are available. I might have the wrong impression about the process but that’s how I’ve always seen it.

Last edited 2 years ago by willchrisiam
willchrisiam
willchrisiam
2 years ago
Reply to  willchrisiam

My parents watched it way before my country returned to the ESC when I was only old enough to care about the mouse puppet I can’t find any info about.

ItaloJeck
ItaloJeck
2 years ago
Reply to  willchrisiam

I think, it was Canzonissima (with Topo Gigio)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i0yIptOdRXE

willchrisiam
willchrisiam
2 years ago
Reply to  ItaloJeck

That’s him! Thanks! But it was much later because it was the ’90s.

Ashton
Ashton
2 years ago
Reply to  ItaloV

ok but it literally is a national final. a national final is any selection of any kind that selects a song or artist for eurovision. im not sure why Italians are so stuck up about this, Sanremo is by definition a national final

ItaloV
ItaloV
2 years ago
Reply to  Ashton

It is not by definition a national final, since the winner does not compete to go to Eurovision as a main prize. It actually gets first refusal. If RAI decides to change their way of selecting the act for ESC, Sanremo will continue existing. People do not vote thinking about ESC. In the last Sanremo festival, ESC was mentioned only once. So you may call it as you want, but Sanremo is one thing, and other shows, events, and so one that only exist due to ESC, those are national finals by definition. And it is all good.

Ashton
Ashton
2 years ago
Reply to  ItaloV

it is by definition a national final but keep living in your italians-are-superior-and-the-best fantasy I guess

Vale
Vale
2 years ago
Reply to  Ashton

What a disrespectful comment. I just want to remind you that Italy didn’t participate at Eurovision for 14 years and still Sanremo Festival was held.

Ashton
Ashton
2 years ago
Reply to  Vale

that. does. not. matter. it is still a national selection because it SELECTS FOR EUROVISION. god this is tiring to explain. and disrespectful? girl get out

Vale
Vale
2 years ago
Reply to  Ashton

When people have zero arguments, they just behave disrespectful. You say ‘girl get out’ to someone else! Yes, Sanremo Festival is used ‘most of the times’ as a national selection for Eurovision, but it is not a rule. Regarding the sentence ‘italians-are-superior-and-the-best fantasy’, I invite you to look at a couple of other European nations that in terms of the superiority mentality are master of it.

ItaloV
ItaloV
2 years ago
Reply to  Ashton

When did any Italian said that they were the best? To say that Sanremo is not a national final is not saying that it is best or worse. As a matter of facts, if it was a national selection, acts will have all the showmanship that other shows have, and acts with more potential to win would be selected. That is the main difference. Italy participates, with what Italians like, not taking in consideration the votes of other countries as the fundamental goal.

Nudiecrudi
Nudiecrudi
2 years ago
Reply to  Ashton

It’s not a national selection. Just deal with it.
If none of the Sanremo partecipants accept the invitation to go to ESC
Rai could choose internally the Italian rappresentative.
And that possibility, seems impossible and very remote, but exists.

olvrfin
olvrfin
2 years ago

If Italy won’t break the string of poor results for the host country, no one will

olvrfin
olvrfin
2 years ago
Reply to  olvrfin

Yulia Samoylova wouldn’t if Russia was the host

Leo
Leo
2 years ago
Reply to  olvrfin

If Russia would have won the contest in 2016, Yulia Samoylova wouldn’t have been the host entry.

Sot
Sot
2 years ago
Reply to  Leo

He might have thought that Julia would represent Ukraine in 2017, so I guess it’s not a BIG mistake