[UPD] Watch the San Marino entry 'Chain of Lights'

Watch 'Chain Of Lights'

The San Marino broadcaster (SMRTV) were amongst the first countries to reveal who would be representing them in Vienna, It was back in November 2014  that it was announced that Michele Perniola and Anita Simoncini would be flying the flag for the microstate.

San Marino's participation in the Eurovision Song Contest 2015 was born from an intuition which comes from the Junior Eurovision Song Contest. It all started from the idea of having two young and beautiful singers on stage together: Anita Simoncini & Michele Perniola, both former Junior Eurovision artists for San Marino and both very young. The idea came to light right after the Junior Eurovision Song Contest in Malta ,and all immediately thought, it' was a strong idea. They already hold a record: they're the youngest couple and Anita is the first artist taking part to both competitions in a row.

At that point, they just needed the song, so SMRTV asked some European authors, producers, record companies to send them songs. They wanted to receive quality and be able to choose the best for the two youngsters. In the end they  chose Chain Of Lights by Ralph Siegel and  John O'Flynn, simply because it was the best song for Anita and Michele and they loved it. 

Ralph Siegel says that the song was not written for the Eurovision but that he adapted it for the contest and worked on it till it fitted them like a glove.

 It is more than a great honour to represent San Marino for the fourth time in the Eurovision Song Contest 2015 in Vienna, with the remarkable youngest duet in Eurovision, Anita Simoncini & Michele Perniola, together 32 years old.

John O'Flynn (lyrics) and me are more than happy that they, as well as the Executives from San Marino RTV, have chosen our song Chain Of Lights.

The demo version was over four minutes long, but it had to be three minutes. After hearing it, Anita and Michele loved the song and the idea immediately. They took a flight to Munich and we worked together until everybody was satisfied. They even flew back and forth to re-record the changes in the lyrics and music for this Eurovision version. San Marino RTV decided to send Chain Of Lights to Vienna and we all hope that people around the world will like it and wish to make a 'Chain of Lights' for peace and understanding.

 

Michele Perniola 

He was born on September 6th, 1998 in Palagiano in the province of Taranto, Italy, where he lives with his parents and two younger sisters and where he attends the second grade of Accounting High School. 

His early interest in music was founded by his musician father. From the age of 9 he attended school of classic ballet and took singing lessons. In late 2012 he rose to the national fame with his performances in Ti Lascio Una Canzone, the popular RAI 1 TV contest for the under 15's. He was rewarded by both jury and TV audience, being labeled as 'The Italian Michael Jackson'. he has performed duets with established Italian Eurovision artists such as Al Bano and Raf. On December the 1st, 2012 he won the sixth edition of the talent show, getting 43% of the total votes.

Michele was been chosen internally by San Marino RTV for their debut in the Junior Eurovision Song Contest 2013 in Kyiv with the song O-o-O Sole Intorno A Me (O-o-O Sunlight all around me) which was Michele’s first single release. He co-wrote this song together with his producer and vocal coach Antonello Carozza.

 I was very happy to have the opportunity to participate at the Junior Eurovision Song Contest 2013, it was a terrific experience, but now I am more than happy to be part of the amazing event of the Eurovision Song Contest 2015 in Vienna and to represent San Marino in the biggest music competition from all over Europe.

 

Anita Simoncini  

She was born on April the14th 1999 in San Marino and lives in Montegiardino, the smallest municipality of the country, surrounded by the loving presence of her parents, little brother and two older twin sisters. She is successfully attending the second year of high school with linguistic specialisation in the capital of the Republic, studying English, French and German. 

She started singing professionally at the age of seven years old in the context of the children choir organised by Fausto Giacomini, teacher at San Marino’s music institute Istituto Musicale Sammarinese. Since 2014, she has been attending singing lessons to improve her skills with her mentor Linda Hermes and Augusto Ciavatta at the Voice Academy in San Marino. 

She represented her country in the Junior Eurovision Song Contest 2014 in Malta as a member of the girl group - The Peppermints with the song Breaking My Heart, with the support of Beatrice Simoncini, one of her older sisters, who has become her manager since. They performed third in the final, placed 15th and achieved 21 points, the contest came at a crucial point of her career, and she loves to define it as one of the best times of her life. 

Besides singing, she also has a passion for ballet, which she started practicing at the age of four.. Her musical taste is very varied. She loves listening to soft rock bands, like Coldplay, but also nu metal bands, like Linkin Park. She loves artists like Radiohead, Nirvana, Beyoncé and Etta James, as well as dancing to the rhythms of DJs performing in the context of a more electronic perspective on music. 

 When I sing 'We've only got one life, so let's try to make our dreams survive' I really mean it, because I think there's nothing more important in life than pursuing our dreams; giving up is not an option. I wish our lights will illuminate the darkness of souls and minds, restoring faith and hope in Europe and the rest of the world. What we really need to understand is that we are able to shape the future at our own discretion and we have to do it remembering the importance of harmony and mutual respect, no matter where we come from'.

 

But most of all she is very curious and more than happy to represent her home country San Marino at the Eurovision Song Contest 2015 in Vienna. Definitely, she will have another great experience in Vienna and hopefully a successful time with a lucky result!