The Wiwi Jury — our in-house team of music unprofessionals — is reviewing and rating the 37 competing songs in Eurovision 2025. Next we review Italy, who have chosen Lucio Corsi with “Volevo Essere Un Duro”.
Were we enchanted? Read on to find out!
Lucio Corsi – “Volevo Essere Un Duro” (Italy Eurovision 2025)
Review: Lucio Corsi – “Volevo Essere Un Duro”
Ruxandra: This song doesn’t feel like background music. It made me stop everything else and just listen. What I really love when I see this song performed is that I don’t get the impression I’m watching something “staged.” It’s simply singing with eyes closed, pure emotion that’s well executed, making me feel like I’m at a concert for those three minutes. The lyrics are an important element for me, and personally, one of the best this year. There is nothing placed randomly there, everything has a meaning and symbolises something. The best word to describe this whole performance is “natural” — and for me this says everything.
Score: 10
Jonathan: Lucio Corsi obviously has a lot of musical talent. But, I’m afraid I can’t connect with this song. It drags its heels so much that three minutes feels like ten, and I’m itching to hit the skip button. The monotone vocal delivery doesn’t help stir up any particularly rousing emotions, whilst the electric guitar solo is also somehow rather flat. No doubt the timeless quality of the song will have its fans – just not here.
Score: 3
Simon: Authentic singer-songwriter entry from Italy, which would be perfect for an afternoon espresso macchiato at a small town square in Tuscany. Lucio Corsi takes us on a personal journey and it feels natural to bop along. It could be lost a bit in a field of very in-your-face entries this year, but on the other hand it’s a pleasant break from some of the other noisy bits. Could have a fate like Rosa Linn and become somewhat viral after Eurovision as it fits perfectly in an IKEA or travel commercial, driving amidst beautiful scenery while watching the sunset on the horizon.
Score: 6.5
Scarlett: “Volevo Essere Un Duro” has that timeless quality that appeals to a range of audiences. It doesn’t necessarily bring anything novel from a musical standpoint, but Lucio’s lyrics come from the heart in talking about the reality, expectations, and insecurities that come with growing up. The melody is classic and comforting with its throwback, ’70s rock quality – like a nice, warm hug. And that’s all the song needs to capture people’s attention.
Score: 5.5
Italy Eurovision 2025 ranking
In the Eurovision 2025 Wiwi Jury, we have 17 jurors but only have room for four reviews. The remaining scores are below:
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Andreas: 7 Antranig: 2 Bernardo: 5.5 Burak: 5 Cinan: 5.5 Deban: 6 Jordi: 6.5 |
Lucy: 7 Pablo: 5 Suzanne: 5 Tom: 8 Tomas: 3.5 William: 8 |
We have removed the highest and lowest scores prior to calculating the average. This is to remove outliers and potential bias. We have removed a high of 10 and a low of 2.
Wiwi Jury verdict: 5.80/10
What do you think of Italy’s Eurovision 2025 entry? Share your own score and review for Lucio Corsi’s “Volevo Essere Un Duro” below!
IMO this will be Italy’s worse showing on finals night on the scoreboard in quiet a number of years.
7th place: Italy: Though I had many more songs I liked more in Sanremo (that’s an annual occurrence by now), I am fully on board with Lucio going to ESC. The song has that singer-songwriter feel to it, with the electric guitar parts adding to its quality and musicality. Lucio’s persona is fun and classy and his entire style is well-thought of while also feeling original. The lyrics are also great: optimistic but at the same time melancholic. I am of the opinion that Europe will be moved by this performance and Lucio will get a high place, like he… Read more »
a matter of taste, or in this case, the lack of
a really boring song, but I would not be surprised if it ends up with a good results. Italy is almost always so overrated imo
By far my favourite ESC contestant this year… And a great old-fashined midtempo song.
LUCIO, U R A STAR!
Italy – It’s been so hard trying to pick between two songs for my first place, but this is so close to my usual tastes I feel I must have this one as a winner. Lucio has such a great Bowie vibe (with a little Queen and ELO in between), I can’t help but love him. The song just makes me feel incredibly nostalgic and warm inside, and the music video absolutely resonates with me. I really hope Italy does well this year, as this is now my favourite Italian entry in years. 10/10
I’m sorry that score is actually insane. This is my winner as it is high quality music and makes you feel emotions and isn’t just your average bop with fireworks and high notes. The lyrics are fantastic and I promise that most Italians are glad this is in the contest. While I loved Giorga even more this is still fantastic and beats all the other entries for me atm. The soft rock vibe is such a throwback without sounding dated it’s just such a timeless sound. As well as this the song progresses beautifully with a nice climax at the… Read more »
I always appreciate writers who don’t just put random words together when writing lyrics, so big props to Lucio for creating something meaningful. While the song itself doesn’t excite me I think the first refusal mode Sanremo uses is great. Now someone who really wants to go to Eurovision gets the chance. I am actually a fan of Olly but if he doesn’t want it, it’s good he doesn’t have to. And while I’m thrilled he won Sanremo, I wish it’d have been with a better song. He has songs so much better than that. Sanremo is not above any… Read more »
15. Italy – Lucio Corsi – Volevo 7/10 – this has a very nice melody and bittersweet chorus, I very much like that this track seems to know what it is and doesn’t care what anyone else thinks. It might be a bit too old school for modern sensibilities and it doesn’t have the immediacy that a Eurovision track necessarily demands but nevertheless I’ll still enjoy those three minutes listening along whilst sipping my hot mug of cocoa.
This will finish higher than any of the current 7+ jury scores. It’s not the best Italy has sent but 5.8 is really low