Francesco Gabbani involves with his powerful pop

After his first time at the Milan Forum (1 October 2022) Francesco Gabbani returns to the Milanese arena and does so with a new, fourth, presence at the Sanremo Festival 2025 where he will present “Viva la vita”.

A well-known name, for his appearances in Sanremo, his television hosting and for having churned out a series of winning singles, the singer-songwriter from Carrara has no difficulty in filling the Milanese structure once again (to the limits of sold out).

Also on this occasion Gabbani brings to the table his energy and the empathy that he transmits with his music. In this case, everything is underlined by a setlist in which he re-proposes the hits, choosing between more up tempo and “pumped” songs and some melodic ballads.

So let’s start with a “tribal” version of “Magellan” (2017) included in a first section of the concert where he “pumps” more, and then leaves room for more delicate and slower things like “Eternally now” or to the melody of “Frozen leaves”.

Then the songs to sing come back like the undoubtedly successful “Space time” (written with Pacific and contained in the latest album “We only wanted to be happy”) in a contagious version, which makes the whole Forum sing. The same happens with ”Between the granitas and the grenades” or the equally choral “Sweat sticks to us” where he exaggerates a bit, reaching the threshold of the “tourist village” effect. To close the third section of the concert we return to the intensity of “My version of memories” And “We wanted just be happy”.

The contagious version of “Peace & love” (again from the last album and written with Riccardo Zanotti of Pinguini Tattici Nucleari) is a bit the essence of Gabbani’s musical proposal which becomes the singer of beautiful and good feelings, but does so without being saccharine, prosaic and sugary. Evidently when he says “Peace and love, I am for both, let’s do a little more” or when he invites the public to wave their hands with the victory/peace sign he really believes in what he says, in what he does.

After the full band part comes the intimate moment of the concert: the acoustic one in which Gabbani sits at the piano and accompanied by the string trio (present throughout the concert) performs a handful of intimate and delicate songs including “A smile inside the cried” (always signed with Pacifico “who must be here, somewhere among the audience” says the Tuscan singer-songwriter), played by Ornella Vanoni and contained in the Milanese singer’s album “Unica” published in 2021.

At the end of the acoustic part, Gabbani drops into the present. There are a few days left until Christmas and so ours makes a roundup of songs dedicated to this holiday, starting from his “Christmas is worth it”, streaming-only track from the latest album, followed by the classics “White Christmas” And “Jingle Bells”. all with a Christmas setting, complete with Santa’s village on the screen behind the band, Santa hats worn by the musicians and him in the traditional red and white suit and lots of snow on stage. Even the technicians come dressed as reindeer.

The return is entrusted to the r’n’r of “Frutta malinconia” followed by another Sanremo hit “Vice versa” (2020) (where he still crosses his pen with that of Pacifico). Then it’s time for the intense “Throw it away”, originally entrusted to the voice of Mina who included it in his latest album (November 2024) “Gassa d’Amante”. It’s almost time for the finale which arrives on the festive notes of his two most successful and visible songs: “Amen” And “Occidentalis Karma” with which he sends everyone home.

A note of merit certainly goes to the stage, its architecture and its graphic, colourful, dynamic and at times surprising solutions.

For his return to the Milan Forum Gabbani puts himself on stage and does it in the best way. His is a fresh but never banal pop, with lyrics in a double key, which can be experienced for their musicality but also invite attention, often the result of a ruthless observation of reality told with a good dose of irony.

But this is how his music is, contagious, always accompanied by a smile (and so it will be throughout the evening), ready to be consumed without however passing away as if it were a cool glass of water on a hot summer day.

Gabbani knows how to involve the public with just enough pandering but also with essence. It is definitely pop (in all meanings of the term) but it is with the “dignity of a King” (quoting Capossela), capable of making a monkey dance but also of bringing intensity driven by the voices of Vanoni and especially Mina.

Definitely pop, but thick.