Måneskin - A rock band in the age of TikTok

Måneskin are currently the best-known Italian rock band in the world. Formed in Rome in 2016 by Damiano David (vocals), Victoria De Angelis (bass), Thomas Raggi (guitar) and Ethan Torchio (drums), in 2020 they achieved a level of worldwide fame well beyond any reasonable expectation, becoming in next to no time an emblematic example of how success can sometimes be directly proportional to the publicity handed out by the press and television. In practice, a huge media phenomenon, pumped up with limitless promotion and tailored to the social-media generation. Indeed, their success — often bordering on hysteria on the part of the mainstream press, which systematically ignores far more innovative musicians — appears, from every point of view, incomprehensible when you consider the number of bands with objectively superior technical and compositional quality.

Trying to explain the reasons behind this boundless exaltation seems difficult. If we rule out from the start the pseudo-conspiracy theories about a "system" pushing Måneskin because they embody values consistent with mainstream thinking (gender ideology, pro-Atlanticism, etc.), and the idea that everything happening is always orchestrated behind closed doors by who knows what shadowy higher minds, all that's left is to analyze other hypotheses in an attempt to get closer to the truth.

What's undeniably true is the behavior of TV channels and mainstream newspapers, along with all their social media offshoots, which daily push the hype to stratospheric levels. Since their Sanremo win, there has hardly been a day without articles, social media posts, or TV reports on every single thing said or done by Damiano or Victoria, with every provocative photo of the band reposted everywhere, every statement given maximum exposure, every single concert announced as a historic event and later discussed as though it were something epic, worthy of being proudly recounted to one's grandchildren.

Behind this hypertrophic media circus are journalists and news directors alike, but above all a relentless army of pseudo-influencers, mostly unknown to the wider public, know-it-all pundits highly active on Facebook, who devote themselves to a constant daily hagiography. So there's an endless back-and-forth over whether Damiano is dating Victoria or not, whether Damiano snorted cocaine at Eurovision, a chase after every social media storm over the sex toy strapped to his belt during a live show, from "Fuck Putin" to the "spicy confessions of girlfriend Giorgia Soleri", all the way to Victoria's bra that conveniently "slipped" during the MTV Video Music Awards.

On top of all this comes the other side of the coin: critics who push back in the opposite direction, but with equal intensity, against every event involving the band's two frontmen, in a sensational media show that so far has only ever played into Måneskin's hands.

Paradoxically, Måneskin also appear to be victims of this mechanism: perpetually in the spotlight, hailed as the saviors of rock, as if they were the new Beatles (someone actually said this), facing expectations impossible to live up to. But at the same time they're also (self-inflicted) executioners, because in this escalating game they get to enjoy all the perks of success, which they seem quite determined to hold onto.

Yet while success and fame undeniably bring advantages, they also raise the hype bar to almost absurd levels, turning the band into the target not only of fawning hagiography but also of fierce criticism — in both cases ending up branded with labels that will be impossible to shake off even in the long run.

All this makes it genuinely difficult to discuss the matter objectively without siding with one of the two camps. Still, it's undeniable that the media spectacle takes priority over the musical one. In fact, it can be stated with certainty that the music is secondary in this whole phenomenon, relegated to a mere backdrop for the aforementioned daily media circus. But let's try to examine a few aspects.

The supposed return to the past

If one wanted to take a charitable view of their story, one could say that, in the age of post-everything, Måneskin have represented a return to the past, to a museum-piece idea of rock, with all the merits and flaws that entails. This is the point their fans hammer home the most, though they draw this conclusion from an inevitably skewed perspective. Their view of contemporary music is in fact quite partial (as everyone's is, really, but in their case to such a degree that it becomes unreliable), since in most cases it's built solely on the musical knowledge offered by major mainstream channels, radio or TV, perpetually on the hunt for the new Led Zeppelin, the new Pink Floyd or the new Queen. Over the years this has shaped an audience of the perpetually dissatisfied, ever more convinced that rock died decades ago and that no one has ever managed to resurrect its former glory.

In truth, while Måneskin's music is certainly rock, it's rock in such a simplified form that it appears worlds away from all the historic bands of the '70s, as well as devoid of those ties to society and those intellectual references that have historically been a defining trait of rock music. Just consider, for instance, its connection to the avant-garde or to jazz, its constant evolution, and the mutual influence between one band and another, which over the years led to an unending succession of creative stimuli.

Måneskin's music appears entirely foreign to this evolutionary path, so simple and uncreative that it severs any link with any kind of youth subculture. In short, if rock had only ever been what Måneskin make, it wouldn't have been interesting or stimulating enough to remain, even after seventy years, a living and fertile art form.

Måneskin's audience

Young, good-looking, bursting with energy, transgressive at least on the surface (in reality, rather conformist), the four Romans seem perfectly suited to the enormous market of nostalgics. At the same time, they manage to catch the attention of a younger audience that might well also listen to trap music but is looking for something else, as long as it's delivered through the usual channels (social media, mainstream TV or talent shows). In this respect, they clearly outdo their peers Greta Van Fleet, who may seem irresistible to rock nostalgics but certainly not to younger generations. What's more, Måneskin's music is infinitely simpler than that of Greta Van Fleet, making it far more marketable than the American quartet's nostalgic formula.

It's likely, then, that part of their success stems from the huge simplification carried out by the Roman band. An operation so extreme that it turns out to be perfectly suited to today's social-media society of quick, instant consumption. If the brevity of TikTok videos is the key to that platform's success, the bare-bones simplicity of their songs (almost all Måneskin tracks run between two and three minutes) is certainly a crucial factor as well.

Måneskin's audience is therefore essentially that of big events — listeners who could just as easily attend concerts by Vasco Rossi or Ligabue, but maybe also those of Laura Pausini, U2, Guns N' Roses or Metallica. A crowd, in short, heavily conditioned by the media blitz that accompanies mass events, but one that undoubtedly guarantees a formidable platform for launching live shows like the one held on July 9, 2022 at Rome's Circus Maximus.

Finally, the music

As we've seen, one could talk endlessly about the Måneskin phenomenon without ever touching on the music itself. An incredible paradox, perhaps even unique in the history of Italian rock. But let's try to do just that, without prejudice.

One point in Måneskin's favour is that they came together exactly as every band should: a group of friends trying to play music together. Damiano David, a frontman with a distinctive voice that can be loved or found grating in equal measure, and bassist Victoria De Angelis met in 2015 and, together with guitarist Thomas Raggi (a friend of Victoria's) and drummer Ethan Torchio, recruited via a Facebook ad, they joined forces and formed a band. The name Måneskin is a Danish word (meaning "moonlight" in Italian), the language of De Angelis's mother. While Damiano and Victoria are probably the key image-makers behind the band's success, Thomas and Ethan really do seem like two guys who won the lottery.

They first came to public attention thanks to a rapid succession of talent shows and music competitions: first X Factor in 2017, then Sanremo in 2021, where they triumphed with their rock anthem "Zitti e buoni", which would also bring them a repeat win at the following Eurovision. These appearances would also prove decisive for their chart success. But let's take things in order.

Their first appearance on X Factor, in 2017, can be seen on YouTube and gives little hint of any particular talent. Backed by their mentor Manuel Agnelli, they placed second, behind Lorenzo Licitra. But that result opened the door to their first EP, released on none other than Sony.

On the EP Chosen (2017), what emerges is a callow band, at times still in a purely amateur phase. The strong impression is that any group of musicians in their first year of music studies could easily have recorded a more professional record. Eight tracks, only two of them original (a loosely strummed funk-rock), and a full six covers that actually worsen the originals. The emblem of this phase is perhaps their reworking of Caparezza's "Vengo dalla Luna", a song that was never going to be easy to revisit, given that it was already perfect in its original form.

The result is there for all to see (and hear). But instead of fading into obscurity like so many of their fellow talent-show alumni (winners included), Damiano and co. started getting invited onto TV shows, from Fabio Fazio to Claudio Bisio and Alessandro Cattelan, with many bringing them back onto national screens and thereby amplifying the impact of an EP that hadn't seemed destined to relaunch their fortunes.

In 2018, riding the remaining hype from X Factor, Måneskin released their debut LP, Il ballo della vita, which, while still decidedly below the average of the thousands of albums released every year, marks a huge step forward from the previous year's work. With "Torna a casa" and "Le parole lontane", the Roman band perhaps find the terrain most suited to them: the ballad. For the rest, it's a parade of already-heard ideas, with no particular flashes of originality, made up of songs around two minutes long, among which "New Song" seems the only one pointing to a possible future (which, indeed, it would turn out to be). It would be other songs, however, like "Morirò da Re" or "Lasciami stare", that would become some of their best-known hits.

Scrubbed clean of the amateurism of Chosen, Måneskin prepare, with a fair amount of help, for the big leap. In 2019 they return as guests on X Factor as if they were already celebrities, and little by little they gear up for the real turning point, which comes at the most famous Italian festival in the world. They arrive at Sanremo with "Zitti e buoni", a rock song fairly atypical for that kind of festival, unleashing a provocative show that was equally unusual for that audience. Unfortunately, it all comes across as somewhere between parody and theatre. The anger is staged, the rebelliousness is pure entertainment, and the tongues constantly stuck out at the cameras are so insincere (and so un-rebellious) that they make you long for the return of Claudio Villa or Toto Cutugno. Everything rests on a riff that even sparked plagiarism accusations, with ambiguous lyrics staging anger at no one knows what or whom, so vaguely that everyone can feel they're on the right side, the side of the good guys (Ligabue-style). The feeling, in short, isn't so much of witnessing youthful rebellion, but rather a parody of a rock band.

Going back to the plagiarism accusations, a couple of things are worth pointing out. On one hand, it's undeniable that the riff of The Vendettas' "You Want It, You've Got It" is absolutely identical to that of "Zitti e buoni", just as the melody and lyrics bear a strong resemblance to Anthony Laszlo's "F.D.T." (short for Fuori di testa — ring a bell?). While it really does seem difficult, perhaps even impossible, to imagine that Raggi never heard the Vendettas' riff, or that Damiano never listened to Laszlo's lyrics, it should also be said that the song's structure is made up of fragments so basic that they could coincide purely by chance — though that's certainly no excuse for Måneskin.

In any case, it marks the start of an avalanche that crosses national borders to sweep through Europe and the United States. First place at Sanremo, a subsequent Eurovision appearance, and another first place, both times with celebrations worthy of a Champions League final.

The album that follows the Sanremo triumph is titled Teatro d'ira (2021), and it's certainly their most ambitious work. The traditional hard rock of "Lividi sui gomiti" sounds like it was recorded by an already more mature band, and for the first time there seems to be at least a hint of sincerity and psychological insight. The new ballads "Coraline" and "Vent'anni" become two of their biggest hits, following in the footsteps of "Torna a casa" — slow and heartbroken — once again showing that this is the song format they handle best.

"In nome del padre" is the hardest moment of their career, while their greatest success lands on "I Wanna Be Your Slave", which trades in shopping-mall sadomasochistic lyrics and a predictably provocative video.

Thanks to their Eurovision triumph, both "Zitti e buoni" and the album Teatro d'ira - Vol. I, as well as the tracks "I Wanna Be Your Slave" and "Coraline", entered the weekly European and global charts, as well as Spotify's global chart. "Zitti e buoni" and "I Wanna Be Your Slave" also managed to break into the Billboard Global 200 Excl. US. On 4 July 2021, Måneskin even reached the top of Spotify's global chart with their cover of the Four Seasons' "Beggin'", included three years earlier on the EP Chosen. "Beggin'" also debuted on the Billboard Hot 100 (at No. 78) before climbing to No. 13, making Måneskin only the second Eurovision winner in recent history to enter that chart.

Starting in June 2021, the quartet performed on various European TV programmes. Then came their landing in America, with the historic performance opening for the Rolling Stones concert in Las Vegas on 6 November 2021, complete with a selfie alongside Mick Jagger, as well as appearances on hugely popular American TV shows such as The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon and The Ellen DeGeneres Show.

On April 8, 2022, they also release "Gasoline" as part of the Stand Up for Ukraine initiative organized by Global Citizen, the track they perform nine days later on stage at Coachella Festival, complete with Damiano's tirade against Vladimir Putin and the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Måneskin also contribute to the soundtrack of Baz Luhrmann's film "Elvis", with their cover of Presley's "If I Can Dream".

Worldwide success is followed by appearances at the most varied international music award shows, including, just to name a few, the American Music Awards, Brit Awards, Billboard Music Awards and the Mtv Music Awards, where Måneskin become the first Italians ever to win an award (Best Alternative Video for "I Wanna Be Your Slave").

Now international stars, Måneskin release photo shoots worthy of the best fashion magazines, showcasing their fluid, "no gender" look, along with new singles backed by bloated promotional campaigns, from "Mammamia", where Victoria comes up with a nice bassline, to "Supermodel", produced by Max Martin, Rami and Sly, and co-written by the band with Justin Tranter: a gaudy funk-rock that comes close to an oversimplified idea of Red Hot Chili Peppers.

In October 2022 they release the new single "The Loneliest", a typically vintage-leaning ballad, perfect for the international radio market.

Clearly, time could change the verdict on Måneskin. As with all ongoing artist profiles, this judgment cannot be considered final. Nothing rules out that Måneskin, in the near future, might manage to break free from the worlds that have dragged them toward a sterile kind of success, and perhaps find their true selves, relaunching a more sincere and authentic artistic identity of their own. If they do, we'll be the first to applaud them.

With Rush! (2023) they now abandon the Italian language almost entirely (used in only three tracks out of seventeen), making it clear that their real target is the international market - and in order to keep dominating it, they turn to production by Max Martin (already behind the desk for Lady Gaga, Katy Perry, Britney Spears, Ariana Grande, etc). While the amateurism of their early days is now a thing of the past, what can be said about Rush! isn't all that different from what was already said about the previous Teatro d'ira, of which the new record represents, in some ways, an evolution and, in others, simply a confirmation.

Despite its seventeen tracks (their longest LP), everything could really be boiled down to two chapters: on one hand there are the clones of "Zitti e buoni", chasing the right riff somewhere between rock and funk (most of the songs), and on the other there's the attempt to find a new rock ballad in the style of "Coraline", this time a largely failed attempt, with utterly predictable moments like "If Not For You" or "Il dono della vita".

The impression is that Måneskin are, to some extent, crushed under the weight of these two hits, and that they keep writing the same two songs over and over with minor variations.

Listening through the album is a tiresome slog of tracks that are too similar to one another, never truly interesting, and essentially doomed to insignificance within today's rock scene. It's striking how the much-hyped collaboration with Tom Morello on the single "Gossip" is reduced to a solo lasting just a few seconds, while "Feel" or "Bla Bla Bla" seem designed purely to get arena crowds singing along. The best track among the more traditionally rock ones is certainly "La fine", somewhere between "Zitti e buoni" and "In nome del padre".

Within all this predictable rock, however, two novelties are worth noting. "Kool Kids" is something completely anomalous in Måneskin's discography, essentially pure post-punk with an almost unrecognizable vocal performance and, above all, a convincing bass intro. Even though it's shamelessly inspired by Idles and the post-punk scene in general today, I think it's fair to say it's the best song the Roman band has ever written - at least setting aside the forcedly crude lyrics: an anthem to the most unbridled hedonism, where the crudeness stems not from anger but from conformism and the desire to build a new kind of audience.

Finally, "Gasoline", with its anti-militarist lyrics, is the second unpredictable track, both in its bass intro and in its melody and fiery finale.

That's not much for a fifty-two-minute record, but perhaps these two tracks could be a starting point for a less predictable future.

In 2023 they take part in the Mtv European Music Awards, winning the award for Best European Rock Act.

Rush! (Are U Coming?) is a smart commercial move. The reissue of Rush! with five new tracks added feels overall like a step forward, especially "Honey (Are U Coming?)", an aggressive track that gets straight to the point without wasting time, and might well be the best song in their discography. Love, or allusions to "reckless lives", are by now the band's favorite subjects, tackled without reaching any literary heights, but serviceable enough within an adolescent rock poetics. As usual, we get two song formats, the more traditional rock track and the ballad. "The Driver" belongs to the first category and stays within Måneskin's typical path, overall an improvement on previous efforts, while "Off My Face" is a classic funk-tinged rock number.

The two ballads are quite different: while "Valentine", with its vaguely Zeppelin-esque ending (it starts out like every other Måneskin ballad but speeds up toward the end with a fair dose of drama), carries pleasant vintage echoes, "Trastevere" is saccharine and cloying to the point of nausea, flat and predictable - basically three endless minutes that are genuinely hard to sit through without skipping.

Damiano announced his solo career in September 2024. In the following months he released three singles, blatantly aimed at a crossover, international pop sound that has little or nothing to do with the more rock-oriented aesthetic of his original band. Only those less familiar with the band's history were surprised, given that the singer was initially sidelined from the group precisely because he was considered too pop. His debut solo album, Funny Little Fears (2025), arrives at a time when interest in Måneskin has cooled off, and is crucial in giving new momentum to the career of a singer who, despite being only twenty-six, already has a cumbersome past behind him.

Across the 14 tracks on the record, Damiano David sings in a polished, flawless way, aided by an outstanding production, worthy of contemporary pop's biggest names. The problem that becomes apparent after just a few minutes is that this contemporary, international pop, all sung in English, is dangerously similar to other contemporary, international pop, all sung in English, that we already know very well: especially Harry Styles, but here and there echoes of countless hits from the last twenty years surface, along with reworkings of vintage templates that have by now been endlessly revisited. Then again, the production team has already worked on hits by Dua Lipa, Maroon 5, Demi Lovato, Justin Bieber, Imagine Dragons, Shakira, The Weeknd and many others. Not exactly ideal, for someone launching a second career.

By the end of 2025, the debut of the (former?) guitarist Thomas Raggi also arrives, "Masquerade", which serves as a calling card for a new phase of the guitarist's career: eight songs in 27 minutes, produced mainly by Tom Morello and packed with guest appearances that will whet the appetite of rock fans listening in, assuming they have that much musical nostalgia.

It is to be hoped, however, that this was simply the indulgence of a guitarist who has listened to a lot of rock and wanted to put his name to tracks with some of his idols, because as a solo debut album it proves short, predictable and unable to showcase the Måneskin guitarist, a terracotta rocker forced to travel in the company of many cast-iron rockers.

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