Italian singer
Mahmood
|
---|
Mahmood in November 2019
|
|
Birth name
| Alessandro Mahmoud
|
---|
Born
| (
1992-09-12
)
12 September 1992
(age 31)
Milan
, Italy
|
---|
Genres
| |
---|
Occupation(s)
| |
---|
Instrument(s)
| |
---|
Years active
| 2012?present
|
---|
Labels
| Universal Music
|
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|
Website
| mahmood
.it
|
---|
Musical artist
Alessandro Mahmoud
(
Italian:
[ales?sandro
ma(h)?mud]
,
Egyptian Arabic:
[mæħ?muːd]
; born 12 September 1992) (
Arabic
:
????????? ?????
), known professionally as
Mahmood
, is an Italian singer-songwriter. He rose to prominence after competing on the
sixth season
of the
Italian version
of
The X Factor
. He has won the
Sanremo Music Festival
twice, in
2019
with the song "
Soldi
" and in
2022
alongside
Blanco
with the song "
Brividi
". His Sanremo victories allowed him to represent Italy at the
Eurovision Song Contest
in those respective years, finishing in second place in
2019
and in sixth place in
2022
as the host entrant.
[1]
[2]
[3]
Mahmood has released three studio albums,
Gioventu bruciata
,
Ghettolimpo
and
Nei letti degli altri
.
Amazon Music Italy
listed him as one of the most streamed artists in
Italy
.
[4]
Early life
[
edit
]
Born in
Milan
to an
Egyptian
father and a
Sardinian
mother from
Orosei
, Mahmood was raised around
Gratosoglio
, a district of
Milan
.
[5]
When he was five years old, his parents divorced and he was subsequently raised by his mother.
[6]
[7]
Career
[
edit
]
2012?2018:
X Factor
and beginnings
[
edit
]
In 2012, Mahmood auditioned for the
sixth season
of the
Italian version
of
The X Factor
. He became part of the boys category mentored by
Simona Ventura
. He was originally eliminated at Judges Houses, then returned as a wildcard, before eventually being eliminated in the third episode.
[8]
[
better source needed
]
After this experience, he worked in a bar and attended a music school, studying piano, solfeggio and music theory, where he also started writing songs.
[9]
In 2013, he released his debut single "Fallin' Rain".
[10]
In 2016, Mahmood participated in the Newcomers Section of
Sanremo Music Festival
with the song "Dimentica". In 2017, he released the single "Pesos", with which he participated in the fifth edition of the Wind Summer Festival, winning the third episode of the Youth section.
[8]
In 2017, he was also featured on
Fabri Fibra
's single "Luna".
[11]
In September 2018, he released his debut
extended play
,
Gioventu bruciata
. In November 2018,
Marco Mengoni
released his fifth album,
Atlantico
, which features three tracks co-written by Mahmood, including the single "Hola (I Say)".
[8]
2018?2020:
Gioventu bruciata
, Sanremo and Eurovision
[
edit
]
In December 2018, Mahmood was one of 24 acts selected to compete in
Sanremo Giovani
, a televised competition aimed at selecting two newcomers as contestants of the
69th Sanremo Music Festival
.
[12]
Mahmood was placed first in the second episode of the show, with his entry "Gioventu bruciata", also receiving the Critics' Award among acts performing in the second final.
[13]
[14]
"
Soldi
" was later announced as his entry for the Sanremo Music Festival 2019.
[15]
Mahmood performed the song for the first time during the first live show of the 69th Sanremo Music Festival, which was held on 5 February 2019.
[16]
Dario "Dardust" Faini
, co-writer of the song, directed the Sanremo Orchestra during his performance.
[17]
During the third live show, "Soldi" was the first performance of the night.
[18]
On 8 February 2019, Mahmood performed the song in a new version, featuring rapper
Gue Pequeno
.
[19]
During the first round of the final, "Soldi" placed 7th in the televote, but was the most voted by the experts jury, and the second most voted by the press jury.
[20]
As a result, Mahmood gained a spot in the top three acts of the competition and after an additional performance, the song was declared the winner of the 69th Sanremo Music Festival.
[21]
Mahmood also received the "Enzo Jannacci" Award for Best Performance.
[22]
and the "Premio Baglioni d'oro" award for best song voted by the participating artists.
[23]
On 22 February 2019, Mahmood reissued
Gioventu bruciata
as a full-length
studio album
, which topped the Italian albums chart.
[24]
In April 2019, Mahmood was featured on the single "
Calipso
" by
Charlie Charles
and Dardust, which topped the Italian singles chart.
[25]
In May 2019, he represented
Italy
at the
Eurovision Song Contest 2019
in
Tel Aviv
,
Israel
. He performed "Soldi" in the grand final of the contest on 18 May, placing second in the final ranking. The song topped the charts in Greece, Israel, Italy and Lithuania and reached the top 10 in five more countries, eventually becoming the most-streamed Eurovision song ever on
Spotify
, a record held until late January 2021 when it was surpassed by the 2019 Eurovision winner, "
Arcade
" by
Duncan Laurence
.
[26]
[27]
Mahmood performed at the closing ceremony of the
2019 Summer Universiade
in
Naples
with three of his songs "Soldi", "
Gioventu bruciata
" and "Anni 90".
2020?present:
Ghettolimpo
, return to Sanremo and Eurovision
[
edit
]
On 11 June 2021, Mahmood released his second studio album,
Ghettolimpo
.
[28]
The album's release was preceded by five singles: "
Rapide
", "
Dorado
" (in collaboration with fellow Italian rapper
Sfera Ebbasta
and Colombian singer
Feid
), "
Inuyasha
", "
Zero
" (also included in the soundtrack of the
2021 Netflix series of the same name
) and "
Klan
".
Mahmood made his return to Sanremo in
2022
alongside
Blanco
with the song "
Brividi
", with which they won and thus earned the right to represent
Italy
at the
Eurovision Song Contest 2022
in
Turin
.
[29]
[30]
The song reached number 15 on the
Billboard
Global 200
chart dated 19 February 2022.
[31]
At the contest in Turin, "Brividi" finished in sixth place with 268 points.
[32]
Being a popular Eurovision star, Mahmood was one of the guest artists invited to sing at the grand final interval act "Liverpool Songbook" of the
ESC 2023
, he sang
Imagine
by John Lennon.
He competed once again in Sanremo in
2024
with the song "
Tuta gold
",
[33]
[34]
the song immediately peaked number 1 in Italy and entered the Global top songs on Spotify.
[35]
Public image
[
edit
]
Mahmood is a
portmanteau
of Alessandro's surname Mahmoud and the English expression
my mood
.
[36]
Mahmood speaks some Arabic, and is fluent in
Sardinian
.
[7]
Following his Sanremo win, then
Deputy Prime Minister
Matteo Salvini
, who is known for his
anti-immigrant
views, criticized him for winning over
Ultimo
who received the highest number of public votes.
[37]
Mahmood has an aversion to being categorized by his nationality and rumours of his sexuality.
[6]
He has stated that “labelling ourselves creates distinctions” and that “there is no need to explain our own preferences, until homosexuality will be perceived as a normal thing, which it is".
[38]
When speaking in favour of a proposed law against homophobic and transphobic
hate crimes
, he described having been subjected to homophobic bullying during his schooling.
[39]
According to Italian press, while he has refused to answer the question of whether he's gay, he has stated that he's "happy and taken".
He considers himself
Christian
[40]
and, more specifically, Roman Catholic,
[36]
despite disagreeing with the
Catholic Church
's teaching that homosexual acts are "
gravely sinful
".
In 2019, he was named to the Italian
Forbes
30 Under 30
, a list showcasing entrepreneurs, entertainers and celebrities who have made a name for themselves before reaching the age of 30.
[41]
Artistry
[
edit
]
Mahmood has described his music as
Moroccan pop
. According to him "what sets me apart are the
Middle Eastern
sounds that emerge here and there".
[38]
"Soldi", which is an autobiographic song about his "unconventional family", includes a sentence in Arabic.
[42]
One of his earliest musical memories is listening to Arabic music with his father before he left the family.
[43]
Growing up he also listened to Italian artists like
Lucio Battisti
,
Lucio Dalla
and
Paolo Conte
.
[43]
[6]
He considers himself very linked to Sardinia's culture and folklore, which often acts as a source of inspiration for the composition of his songs.
[7]
Mahmood has cited American singer
Frank Ocean
as his biggest influence: "[His music] is very free and in which everyone can identify themselves, gay or straight, because the essential is the person and the energy that he transmits and not the sexual orientation".
[44]
His other favourite artists include
Beyonce
,
Travis Scott
,
Jazmine Sullivan
,
Rosalia
and
SZA
.
[44]
[45]
Discography
[
edit
]
Studio albums
Filmography
[
edit
]
Films
[
edit
]
Awards and nominations
[
edit
]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
"Sanremo, il vincitore e Mahmood. Ultimo e secondo, terzo classificato Il Volo"
. La Repubblica. 10 February 2019.
- ^
Castagneri, Alice; Pavanello, Roberto (10 February 2019).
"Mahmood vince il Festival di Sanremo"
.
La Stampa
(in Italian)
. Retrieved
11 February
2019
.
- ^
Cabona, Claudio (14 January 2022).
"Festival di Sanremo 2022: tutti in cerca di musica leggerissima"
.
Rockol
(in Italian)
. Retrieved
2 February
2022
.
- ^
"Italian artistes top Amazon music July chart - P.M. News"
. Retrieved
9 August
2023
.
- ^
Rio, Paolo Giordano Laura (10 February 2019).
"Mahmood conquista l'Ariston: "Sono un ragazzo italiano"
"
.
Il Giornale
(in Italian)
. Retrieved
12 February
2019
.
- ^
a
b
c
"Italian Minister Pans Hit Song by an Immigrant's Son"
.
The New York Times
. 31 March 2019
. Retrieved
1 April
2019
.
- ^
a
b
c
"Mahmood: "Quel padre scomparso e la Sardegna, fonte della mia ispirazione" IL VIDEO"
.
unionesarda.it
(in Italian). 7 February 2019
. Retrieved
18 March
2019
.
- ^
a
b
c
"Mahmood (Italy) / Махмуд (Италия)"
.
esckaz.com
. Retrieved
21 March
2019
.
- ^
"Eurovision Song Contest 2019: Who Is Mahmood?"
.
Italics Magazine
. 23 February 2019
. Retrieved
28 March
2019
.
- ^
Alberto Muraro (24 July 2013).
"Mahmoud ? Fallin' Rain (audio e cover singolo)"
(in Italian). RadioMusik.it.
- ^
"Luna (feat. Mahmood) - Single by Fabri Fibra"
.
iTunes
. 21 June 2017
. Retrieved
17 March
2019
.
- ^
"Sanremo Giovani 2019, ecco i 24 cantanti selezionati per la finale: tanti ex dei talent"
.
La Stampa
. 27 November 2018
. Retrieved
16 February
2019
.
- ^
"Sanremo Giovani, Mahmood vince la seconda finale e va in gara tra i big. A lui anche il Premio della Critica. La classifica"
(in Italian). Rockol.it. 22 December 2018
. Retrieved
16 February
2019
.
- ^
Giuseppe Candela (22 December 2018).
"Sanremo giovani, Mahmood e il vincitore della seconda serata. Ecco il cast completo di Sanremo 2019"
.
Il Fatto Quotidiano
(in Italian)
. Retrieved
16 February
2019
.
- ^
"Sanremo 2019: duetti, ospiti e ultime notizie dal Festival"
.
TV Sorrisi e Canzoni
(in Italian). 8 February 2019
. Retrieved
16 February
2019
.
- ^
"Sanremo 2019, la cronaca della prima serata"
.
Rolling Stone
(in Italian). 5 February 2019
. Retrieved
16 February
2019
.
- ^
"Mahmood vince Sanremo 2019, l'ascolano Dario Faini ha scritto la canzone"
.
Il Resto Del Carlino
(in Italian). 10 February 2019
. Retrieved
16 February
2019
.
- ^
"Sanremo 2019, terza serata: date la conduzione del Festival alla Vanoni, gli Zen Circus spaccano"
(in Italian). Rockol.it. 7 February 2019
. Retrieved
16 February
2019
.
- ^
Alessandra Vitali (8 February 2019).
"Sanremo, la quarta serata e dei duetti. Con Ligabue l'Ariston e rock, Anastasio canta gli sdraiati"
.
la Repubblica
(in Italian)
. Retrieved
16 February
2019
.
- ^
"Classifiche Sanremo 2019"
(PDF)
(in Italian).
RAI
.
- ^
Alberto Mattioli (10 February 2019).
"Mahmood vince il Festival di Sanremo, sul podio Ultimo e Il Volo"
.
La Stampa
(in Italian)
. Retrieved
16 February
2019
.
- ^
"Sanremo 2019, il Premio Enzo Jannacci assegnato da Nuovoimaie a Mahmood"
(in Italian). Rockol. 8 February 2019
. Retrieved
16 February
2019
.
- ^
Barbara Conti (12 February 2019).
"Sanremo 2019: un Festival che vuole descrivere il nostro Paese"
.
Avanti! onLine
(in Italian)
. Retrieved
12 February
2019
.
- ^
"Discographie Mahmood (Albums)"
.
italiancharts.com
. Retrieved
7 May
2019
.
- ^
"Top Singoli ? Classifica settimanale WK 18"
(in Italian).
Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana
. Retrieved
3 May
2019
.
- ^
"Italy: Mahmood's "Soldi" is now the most-streamed Eurovision song on Spotify"
. Wiwibloggs. 16 October 2019
. Retrieved
14 April
2020
.
- ^
"
"Arcade" passes "Soldi" as the most-streamed Eurovision entry on Spotify"
. ESCXTRA. 29 January 2021
. Retrieved
14 February
2021
.
- ^
Graziola, Alberto (19 April 2021).
"Ghettolimpo, Mahmood, album, cover, significato, tracklist"
.
Soundsblog
(in Italian)
. Retrieved
11 June
2021
.
- ^
"Ready for Eurovision: Mahmood & Blanco win Sanremo 2022 in Italy"
.
Eurovisionworld
. 6 February 2022
. Retrieved
10 February
2022
.
- ^
"Mahmood & Blanco to represent Italy in Eurovision Song Contest 2022!"
.
EscXtra
. 6 February 2022
. Retrieved
10 February
2022
.
- ^
"Noemi a Sanremo 2022 canta Ti amo non lo so dire"
.
GQItalia.it
(in Italian). February 2022.
- ^
Amin, Meghna (15 May 2022).
"Eurovision 2022: Voting results between jury and televoters split revealed after Ukraine's Kalush Orchestra defeat UK at final hurdle"
.
metro.co.uk
.
metro
. Retrieved
16 May
2022
.
- ^
"Italy 2024: 'Sanremo' lineup revealed"
.
Eurovision.tv
.
European Broadcasting Union
(EBU). 3 December 2023
. Retrieved
3 December
2023
.
- ^
"Sanremo 2024: i cantanti e le canzoni, gli ospiti e i conduttori. Tutto sul Festival"
[Sanremo 2024: the singers and the songs, the guests and the hosts. Everything about the Festival].
TV Sorrisi e Canzoni
(in Italian). 20 December 2023
. Retrieved
20 December
2023
.
- ^
"La classifica finale di Sanremo 2024: vince Angelina Mango"
.
Sky TG24
(in Italian). 11 February 2024
. Retrieved
11 February
2024
.
- ^
a
b
"Dal Barrio ai Soldi, tutto quello che non sai (e dovresti sapere) sul miticissimo Mahmood"
[From Barrio to Soldi, everything you don't know (but should) about the legendary Mahmood].
Cosmopolitan
(in Italian). 24 April 2021
. Retrieved
4 February
2022
.
- ^
Lillo Montalto Monella (11 February 2019).
"Winner of Italy's Sanremo song contest highlights political divides"
.
Euronews
. Retrieved
26 April
2019
.
- ^
a
b
"Mahmood: 'Vi piace cantautore Moroccan pop?'
"
.
Vanity Fair
(in Italian). 1 February 2019
. Retrieved
22 March
2019
.
- ^
Luigi Bolognini (2 April 2021).
"Mahmood: 'Io, vittima di omofobia al liceo. La legge Zan e civilta'
"
[Mahmood: "I was a victim of homophobia in high school. The Zan law is civilisation.'].
La Repubblica
. Retrieved
4 March
2022
.
- ^
"Mahmood, imbarazzo all'Eurovision: 'C'e il Ramadam, [
sic
] come fai?'. E il cantante gela cosi il cronista"
[Mahmood, embarrassment at Eurovision: 'Do you celebrate Ramadan?'; the singer freezes the reporter.].
Il Fatto Quotidiano
(in Italian). 16 May 2019
. Retrieved
26 January
2022
.
- ^
"Forbes 100 30 Under 30 Italia 2019"
.
Forbes
. 29 March 2019
. Retrieved
26 April
2019
.
- ^
"Sanremo, Mahmood: Soldi canzone autobiografica piena di rabbia"
.
Il Sole 24 Ore
(in Italian). 11 February 2019
. Retrieved
20 May
2019
.
- ^
a
b
"Sanremo Giovani, il trionfo di Mahmood: da X Factor con la Ventura ai big del Festival"
.
Blasting News
. 22 December 2018
. Retrieved
20 May
2019
.
- ^
a
b
"La 'gioventu bruciata' di Mahmood"
.
Rolling Stone
. 30 September 2018
. Retrieved
13 May
2019
.
- ^
"40 cosas sobre Mahmood que (quizas) no sabias"
.
Los 40
. 20 June 2019
. Retrieved
20 June
2019
.
- ^
"Mahmood piglia tutto: Gioventu Bruciata trionfa a Sanremo Giovani"
.
Spettakolo.it
. 22 December 2018
. Retrieved
19 June
2019
.
- ^
"Mahmood vince il Festival di Sanremo. Oltre le polemiche e le critiche, a Baglioni il leoncino d'oro per l'innovazione (dall'inviata L.Varlese)"
.
HuffPost
. 9 February 2019
. Retrieved
19 June
2019
.
- ^
"OGAE Poll 2019: Italy's Mahmood crowned winner"
.
Wiwibloggs
. 30 April 2019
. Retrieved
19 June
2019
.
- ^
"Here are the winners of the 2019 Marcel Bezencon Awards"
.
eurovision.tv
. 18 May 2019
. Retrieved
20 May
2019
.
- ^
"Seat Music Awards 2019, Claudio Baglioni re-bis. Sfera Ebbasta pigliatutto ma non canta"
.
quotidiano.net
. 6 June 2019
. Retrieved
23 June
2019
.
- ^
"Mtv Ema 2019, Mahmood vince il "Best Italian Act"
"
.
Il Corriere della Sera
. 3 November 2019
. Retrieved
4 November
2019
.
- ^
Zani, Simone (29 April 2022).
"Eurovision 2022, Blanco e Mahmood sfiorano il colpaccio all'OGAE Poll! Malissimo Achille Lauro!"
.
imusicfun
(in Italian)
. Retrieved
21 August
2022
.
External links
[
edit
]
Wikimedia Commons has media related to
Mahmood
.
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Studio albums
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Singles
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Featured singles
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