With the Eurovision finals coming up, there has been one song that has been trending on MuseScore more than the others: “Per sempre sì” by Sal Da Vinci. The song (whose title translates to “forever yes”) first gained acclaim after winning the 2026 Sanremo Music Festival, marking Da Vinci as the first Neapolitan artist to win since 1988. It is now on its way to the Eurovision Finals, taking place on May 16th, 2026. While the song has had a bit of controversy in Italy, “Per sempre sì” shows how Neapolitan tradition and modern techniques can create a timeless love anthem.
The Music Behind “Per sempre sì”
Neapolitan music, or canzone napoletana, comes from Naples, Italy and tends to focus on love and romance. Some classic Neapolitan songs you might recognize include “‘O Sole Mio,” and “Funiculì Funiculà” which gained global popularity in the 19th century. By the 1970s, Neapolitan music’s popularity had declined and in its place came Neomelodico which combined the classic style of Neapolitan music with more modern pop techniques and has influenced Italian pop music as a whole. Da Vinci’s “Per sempre sì” is born out of those evolving traditions, and has led to Italians asking if it even counts as Neapolitan music.
As written by Jeff Matthews, “Strictly speaking, the Neapolitan Song is not folk-music, if by that term you mean the result of countless ancient improvisations and reworkings handed down from generation to generation of nameless troubadour. It is folk-music—in spite of being formally composed and published—if you mean that therein reflected is the ebullience, melancholy, joy, fatalism and thousand emotions that Neapolitan character is heir to.”
“Per sempre sì” brings modern funk into its sound with hi-hat heavy cymbals and congas used in its chorus, but the strings are the main focus with sweeping harmonies and counter melodies playing with the main melody of the vocal line. Da Vinci also adds some Neapolitan dialect into the song with lyrics like, “Accussì sarrà pe sempe sì.”
“Per sempre sì” and Its Controversies
According to an interview with Da Vinci, “Per sempre sì” is “a declaration of love that knows no boundaries, labels, or barriers, capable of speaking to everyone, regardless of age, orientation, or personal history.” So why has this song sparked so many debates?
Well its first controversy can be traced back to the 2026 Sanremo Music Festival, in which the song won the popular vote but was panned by critics, dismissing it as merely “wedding music.” As written in Global Event Magazine, “For years now, Italy has cultivated a form of cultural snobbery elegantly disguised as ‘good taste.’ A quiet conviction according to which, in order to be considered truly modern, an artist must appear sufficiently minimalist, vaguely detached, and preferably accompanied by the melancholic aesthetic of a dimly lit Milan apartment.” Da Vinci breaks the mold that Italian critics expect of modern artists. Additionally, one critic said it sounded like a soundtrack for a “Camorra wedding.” The Camorra being a Neapolitan mafia organization.
Da Vinci also received hate on the internet after sociologist Barbara Poggio accused him of glorifying femicide with lyrics such as, “without you, it’s worthless, there’s no point in living.” With Italian politician, Francesco Emilio Borrelli, weighing in: “Cultural debate is always legitimate, and no one is questioning academic freedom, but linking a love song to the topic of femicide is crossing a line.”
Perhaps the biggest controversy for all Eurovision artists this year is the inclusion of Israel representation in the competition, leading to the withdrawal of Spain, Ireland, Slovenia, the Netherlands, and Iceland. Da Vinci said of the situation: “It’s a political matter – music has nothing to do with it.”
“Per sempre sì” At Eurovision
With Eurovision around the corner, “Per sempre sì” has found itself as a major contender for first place with the song becoming the most streamed of all of the competitors. The performance is bound to be spectacular with reports claiming that rehearsals included a four act structure following a wedding day, including acrobatics and lots of choreography. While the controversy with Italian audiences continues to rage on, “Per sempre sì” still continues to garner more fans. There will always be a thin line to walk when it comes to balancing tradition and modernity, but there is something to be said of evolution and building new traditions that those in the future can build off of. Sal Da Vinci is pushing Neomelodico back onto the global stage and redefining what the genre is.
