The Italian singer Toto Cutugno, internationally known for his hit “Un italiano vero” and for winning the Eurovision Song Contest in 1990 with “Insieme: 1992”, died Tuesday at the age of 80, his representative announced.
“After a long illness, the singer’s condition has deteriorated in recent months,” revealed Danilo Mancuso, quoted by the Italian news agency Ansa.
The Italian Prime Minister, Giorgia Meloni, also reminded the singer through the social network X (formerly Twitter): “Farewell Toto Cutugno, a true Italian.”
Ciao to Toto Cutugno, a true Italian. pic.twitter.com/8RH6hy7FmK
-Giorgia Meloni (@GiorgiaMeloni) August 22, 2023
The Italian Minister of Culture, Gennaro Sangiuliano, recalled, for his part, “an artist proud to be Italian, also appreciated abroad, whose successes were the soundtrack of an era”.
With the scomparsa di Toto Cutugno the world of music loses a popular and important performer. An artist, with l’orgoglio di essere italiano, apprezzato anche all’estero, i cui Successi sono stati la colonna sonoro di un’epoca.
– Gennaro Sangiuliano (@g_sangiuliano) August 22, 2023
Toto Cutugno’s biggest hit dates back to 1983: “Un Italiano vero”, a song also known simply as “L’italiano”, which reached number one on the music charts in Italy and Switzerland, and number two in France.
In 1990, the Italian musician won the Eurovision Song Contest in Zagreb with the song “Insieme: 1992”, a song about Europe.
After Gigliola Cinquetti in 1964, he became the second Italian to win the Eurovision Song Contest.
The two artists appeared the following year, in 1991, at the edition of the festival that took place in Rome.
Salvatore Cutugno, known as Toto Cutugno, was born on July 7, 1943 in Tuscany and composed for numerous French singers, especially in the 1970s, such as Michel Sardou (“En chantant”), Mireille Mathieu, Gérard Lenorman, Joe Dassin, Johnny Hallyday, Hervé Vilard and Sheila.
The singer-songwriter has sold more than 100 million records, according to the newspaper Il Corriere della Sera.
Source: TSF
