Sal Da Vinci is the winner of the 76th edition of the Sanremo Festival. With Forever yes conquers the Ariston and closes a week on a high note, culminating in a standing ovation that anticipated the final verdict.
For the Neapolitan artist it is much more than a victory: it is the recognition of a career that spans over forty years between music, theater and television. Son of Mario Da Vinci, icon of the Neapolitan tradition, Sal grew up on stages since he was a child, building a loyal and transversal audience over time.
To whom is “Forever yes” dedicated?
The winning song is not a blanket statement. Forever yes it is dedicated to his wife Paola Pugliese, his life partner for over thirty years. A love story that began in his youth and remained solid over time, far from the spotlight but central to the artist’s human journey.
That “yes” in the title is not an idealized promise: it is a choice reiterated day after day. The song tells of a love that has known crises, changes, maturity. There is no rhetoric, but awareness. In a Festival often dominated by finished or tormented relationships, Sal Da Vinci brought the opposite narrative: the resistance of a bond that remains.
From origins to triumph
Born in New York in 1969 during his father’s tour, raised between Naples and Italian theaters, Sal Da Vinci has crossed musical eras and languages. From third place in Sanremo 2009 with I can’t make you fall in love up to the most recent successes such as Lipstick and coffeewhich has also gone viral among the new generations.
The 2026 victory comes as a definitive consecration. Not a sudden exploit, but the result of a long, coherent journey, rooted in tradition but capable of speaking to a wider audience.
Sal dedicated the award to the city of Naples.
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The lyrics of “Forever yes”
In the text of Forever Yes, Sal Da Vinci constructs an intimate narrative. The words don’t scream, but they insist. They tell of a love that has experienced crisis, that has come close to ending, but that finds the strength to get back on its feet. The protagonist does not present himself as a romantic hero. He admits his faults, recognizes the distances created, the misunderstandings. And it is precisely from this awareness that the promise is born. That “forever yes” is not naive, it is suffered. It is a response to the fear of missing out. The image that emerges is that of a couple who have gone through the darkness. The words evoke heavy silences, difficult nights, but also the physical and concrete need of the other. Love is not described as a static feeling, but as a daily decision.
It all started from the beginning
I who was just an unknown man to you
Then he became a king with a loving heart
You a queen now dressed in bridal white
We dreamed of children in a big house
And overcame all the difficulties
Because love is not love for life
If he hasn’t faced the steepest climb
And the music will turn on
And here I will wait for you
The greatest day
I will give you a gift
It will be you and me
Forever
Bonded for life that
Without you
It’s worth nothing
There’s no point in living
With his hand on his chest
I promise you
Before God
It will be you and me
From here
It will always be yes
I know well that the future is a great unknown
But with you it won’t scare me because
We will build everything but we will not raise a wall
Arguing and making love, then what harm is there?
And the music will turn on
For you I will sing
The greatest day
I will give you a gift
It will be you and me
Forever
Bonded for life that
Without you
It’s worth nothing
There’s no point in living
With his hand on his chest
I promise you
Before God
It will be you and me
From here
It will be forever
Yes, only yes
For these days
And a thousand more
A simple yes
Eternity is inside a word
It will be you and me
Forever
Bonded for life that
Without you
It’s worth nothing
There’s no point in living
With his hand on his chest
I promise you
Before God
It will be you and me
Accussì
It will always be yes
