Jalisse’s return to A Voice for San Marino: “We dream of Eurovision after malice, suspicion, favoritism”

Jalisse won the Sanremo Festival on February 22, 1997. Then nothing more. They attempted to return to the musical event without success. But tonight they're performing at A voice for San Marino. You dream of Eurovision. And in an interview given to daily event they start talking about this triumph again. Alessandra Drusian and Fabio Ricci say that “after the victory was declared I had to pee, I arrived late at the press room. They greeted us coldly. The first question was: 'Why did you win Sanremo?' As if it were abuse. I kept the Doxa cards, we were in the lead from the first evening. Pavarotti, who was president of the jury but could not vote, said: “I too would have made Jalisse win.”

Malice, suspicion, favoritism

The Jaliss speak of “malice, suspicions of favoritism, the unfounded accusation of having plagiarized the Roxettes. Many articles have hurt us. They wanted to erase us. We won without a major behind us, demonstrating that two guys with a small production company could take over the Festival. » Their return to Sanremo was triumphant: “When Fiorello and Amadeus welcomed us this year at the Ariston and the crowd stood up, we were rewarded for our resilience. As I went down the stairs, I just thought about not passing out. We hadn't done any testing.” Ricci recounts the exclusions: “One year we had a piece by Bacalov, another a song written with Rita Levi Montalcini. And one, if it was a tango, rejected because Alessandra sang, later accepted in the interpretation of Iva Zanicchi.

Heaven is here

Tonight in San Marino we sing “Heaven is here. In a time like this, we must look for the beauty and strength in each of us. » And they say that people follow them with affection: “We are all a little Jalisse, confronted with daily oppression. » The start of his career was difficult: “Ale was a nurse, then he made his debut as a soloist. The discography snubbed it. So we became a duo. Alone, 10 years ago, she tried her luck on The Voice of Italy.” But according to Fabio, “young people today risk being carried away by a single song. We entered schools, especially after the L'Aquila earthquake, with projects dedicated to budding singer-songwriters. We wrote a song about an inmate.” Finally, the meeting with Sergio Mattarella: “In his speech, he recalled that music is fundamental to giving hope. Beyond any obstacle: we Jalisse and everyone.”

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