Egyptian-Italian singer-songwriter Mahmood rose to fame following popular performances at Italy’s Sanremo singing competition and Eurovision. In 2022 Mahmood represented Italy for the second time at Eurovision with the singer Blanco. The pair won the competition with their song “Brividi.”
Mahmood is a 2019 recipient of the MTV Europe Music Awards’ Best Italian Act. His two records thus far have reached numbers one and two on the Italian Albums chart.
Mahmood’s stage name is a version of his last name, Mahmoud, changed to also sound like “my mood” in English.
Mahmood describes his musical style as “Moroccan pop.” “[My father’s] favourite singer was from Morocco, and all that is reflected in my style; that’s why I call it Moroccan pop,” Mahmood told Metal Magazine.
“I listened to both Italian and Arab music growing up,” Mahmood told Time Magazine. “That Arab influence is very much present in my music and I really feel it when I’m writing.”
Mahmood won Second Place at Eurovision 2019
In 2012, Mahmood entered the sixth season of X Factor. He was eliminated by the third episode. In 2013, he released his first single “Fallin’ Rain.”
Mahmood, after focusing on his music, competed again in 2016 with the tv singing competition Sanremo Giovani. He performed the song “Dimentica” and finished in fourth place.
In 2018 Mahmood was one of two to win Sanremo Giovani with his song “Gioventú Bruciata.” He was one of 24 selected performers. The win awarded him the opportunity to compete at the 69th Sanremo Music Festival in 2019. Mahmood released his debut album Gioventú Bruciata in February of that year.
At the Sanremo festival, Mahmood competed with his autobiographical hit song “Soldi.” The song describes Mahmood’s childhood, defined by the absence of his father. Mahmood made it to the top three finalists, and after an additional performance, won the competition. He received the Enzo Jannacci award for best performance. He also won an award for best song voted by participating acts.
The Sanremo win gave Mahmood the opportunity to represent Italy in the 2019 Eurovision contest in Tel Aviv. Mahmood performed “Soldi” and finished in second place. Following the competition, “Soldi” topped charts internationally and set a record for number of streams on Spotify.
In June 2021 Mahmood released his second studio album Ghettolimpo.
Mahmood studied music as a child
Mahmood was born in Milan in 1992. His parents, an Egyptian father and Sardinian mother, divorced when he was a child.
“My father has other children around the world,” Mahmood told Vanity Fair. The singer, having grown up with only his mother, speaks Sardinian fluently. Although Mahmood did not learn his father’s tongue, he weaves Arabic language and Middle Eastern influences in his music.
“I’ve been studying music since I was 12 years old,” Mahmood said in a L’Unione Sarda interview. “I started with guitar classes, then I turned to singing, I studied piano and I started writing songs at 19.”
After high school, Mahmood continued studying music at Milan’s music institute. While there he met his first manager, band members, and producers.
“What distinguishes me are the Middle Eastern sounds that emerge here and there,” he said. “When I was 5 years old, I listened to the Arabic music cassettes of my father and Lucio Battisti.”
When asked about his sexuality, Mahmood believes his orientation should not be important. “…gay, straight… I think there should be no more distinctions of this kind,” said Mahmood. “But if we continue with these distinctions, homosexuality will never be perceived as a normal thing, which it is.”
Mahmood again wins Sanremo and performs at Eurovision 2022
Mahmood and BLANCO won the 72nd Sanremo festival with their song “Brividi” in February 2022. They were the fifteenth of 25 performances. The win came with the opportunity to represent Italy at Eurovision in May.
“I have a lot of family and friends who are afraid to expose their feelings and I think we wrote the song because we’re not so afraid anymore to be sincere with ourselves,” Mahmood told Eurovision about “Brividi.” “The power of the song is freedom, and I think that ‘Brividi’ doesn’t speak about exactly what kind of love we’re dealing with, but more about losing the fear to face someone you love and expose your emotions.”
Italy hosted Eurovision this year in Turin, Italy. The Grand Final then took place on May 14.
“I’m super-happy to be here again,” said Mahmood. “It’s a great possibility to bring my story to a big stage.”
