5 moments from the first night of Sanremo that you might have missed

If it hadn’t been for a trio of brilliant co-hosts, the second night of Sanremo would have been just another relay of Italian songs without breaks, led by an impatient Carlo Conti. On X, memes about the speed with which the host called the competing artists to the stage abounded (to the point of forgetting to give flowers to Rocco Hunt at the end of his performance), along with throwbacks to the useless but hilarious moments gifted to us by Amadeus and Fiorello in past years. However, if this edition of Sanremo is breaking viewership records, there must be a reason—whether it's the songs chosen by Conti, the co-hosts, or the guests. Let’s try to figure it out together: here are five moments from the second night of Sanremo 2025 that you might have missed.

The Malgioglio Show

It’s now clear that this Festival is dominated by the power of the co-hosts. At almost 80 years old, the undisputed star of the evening was Cristiano Malgioglio. Breaking free from the rigid rules of the “Conti regime,” the Sicilian singer-songwriter decided to go completely off-script, delighting the stage each time with anecdotes and gags that brought a breath of fresh air to an otherwise rather dull evening. From the mile-long train to the glamour showdown with Bianca Balti, and even entering the stage with a mop: Malgioglio ruled the Ariston, even shouting at the audience to quiet down (he surely wouldn’t have liked the “si na pret” from the first night).

Damiano David Speaks Italian

The most shared meme on social media last night was undoubtedly the teasing of Damiano David, frontman of Måneskin, who, after winning the 2021 edition of the Festival, returned this year as an (inter)national guest. Now a global star, many fans have recently complained that the singer has chosen to pursue a solo career in English, distancing himself from his Roman roots. Hence the meme: Damiano David doesn’t know how to speak Italian. When the singer paid tribute to Lucio Dalla at the beginning of the evening, the X community praised him for “speaking Italian well, as if it were his native language.” Unfortunately, David had few words to say during the night, though he always expressed gratitude to Sanremo for being the pivotal point in his professional career.

Nino Frassica’s Toupee

Besides Malgioglio’s exuberant energy and Bianca Balti’s laid-back charm, the Sanremo audience laughed heartily with Nino Frassica last night. For his first entrance on the Ariston stage, the comedian and actor from Messina appeared wearing a black toupee perched on his head, a look quite evocative of co-host Malgioglio’s hairstyle. As if that weren’t enough, he spent the evening trying to “throw a wrench in the works” for Carlo Conti: while the host wanted to stick to the schedule meticulously without interruptions, Frassica interrupted him with small comic monologues that amused the entire audience. «Italy is a Republic founded on Nino Frassica», commented some users on X—and who could blame them?

Bianca Balti Greets Rose Villain

Bianca Balti was undoubtedly the star of last night. Effortlessly ignoring the pitying tone of Conti (and part of the press) who kept calling her a “warrior,” the top model brought to the Ariston stage a joy, enthusiasm, and charm that we frankly missed, giving us a series of fantastic moments, including the waltz with Cristiano Malgioglio, her excitement in presenting the singers, and her stunning outfit changes. But perhaps the best and most spontaneous moment was just before Rose Villain’s performance when she practically ran out from backstage and hugged her, saying “You’re so hot!” At Sanremo, we always need this kind of overflowing authenticity.

Explaining Sanremo to Dove Cameron

More than a moment, an instant: Dove Cameron, the American singer and actress dating Damiano David, is seated among the audience, and a man sitting next to her is whispering in her ear, presumably trying to explain the bizarre context of the Festival and its characters. The frame closely resembled many of those memes where a man gives an unsolicited and unnecessary explanation to a random girl—not that it was the case last night, but which Italian hasn’t thought at least once about explaining the complex mythology of Italian pop culture to a foreigner? The references often seen on the Sanremo stage date back decades, spanning generations. In no time, the frame became a meme with the whispered phrase to Cameron relating to almost every absurd aspect of Sanremo’s past behind-the-scenes stories. We bet this meme will last for a few years.