Italian Music Legend Tullio De Piscopo Celebrates 80th Birthday with Sanremo Return, Announces Final Tour
Sanremo, Italy – February 22, 2026 – Celebrated Italian drummer and singer Tullio De Piscopo is marking his 80th birthday with a return to the Sanremo Music Festival and the announcement of what he playfully calls his “last tour” – though he admits, “I don’t know!”
De Piscopo, a mainstay of Italian music for decades, will take the stage at the Ariston Theater on Friday as a special guest alongside rising stars LDA and AKA 7EVEN. The trio will perform a reimagined version of “Andamento Lento,” De Piscopo’s signature hit originally released in 1988.
“The song has a formidable story,” De Piscopo told ANSA, recounting how the track came together after a chance encounter with festival organizer Marco Ravera at an airport. He and producer Willy David searched for the right song, eventually landing on a piece by the Capuano brothers, Giosy and Mario, which initially lacked lyrics. Inspiration struck while stuck in Rome traffic, with a taxi driver’s observation – “Here in Rome, everything is ‘andamento lento’ (slow pace)” – providing the lyrical spark.
The Sanremo appearance coincides with the launch of “80 Tullio,” a four-vinyl box set chronicling De Piscopo’s extensive career. Having amassed 3800 recordings, De Piscopo jokes that he “hasn’t slept” – and wouldn’t want to, as he finds vacations boring.
De Piscopo’s career boasts collaborations with a who’s who of Italian music, including Mina, Lucio Dalla, Franco Battiato, and Fabrizio De Andrè. He’s also shared the stage and studio with jazz luminaries like Astor Piazzolla, Quincy Jones, Chet Baker, and Gerry Mulligan, including a historic concert with Mulligan at the Basilica of Maxentius in Rome in 1977.
A particularly poignant relationship in De Piscopo’s career was his friendship with the late Pino Daniele. Daniele encouraged De Piscopo to incorporate vocals into his drumming, leading to the creation of “Stop Bajon’ (Primavera),” a song that achieved international recognition. De Piscopo recalls Daniele telling him, “Tullio, you have to put your voice in your drums.”
Following his Sanremo performance on March 27th, De Piscopo will embark on his “80 Tullio – The Last Tour … Nun ‘o saccio!” (80 Tullio – The Last Tour… Who Knows!) tour, with dates scheduled in Castelaraimondo, Naples, Rome, Bitritto, San Severo, Palermo, Catania, Milan, and Turin.
The tour and retrospective box set celebrate a career that has redefined Italian music, blending jazz virtuosity with pop sensibilities and leaving an indelible mark on the nation’s cultural landscape.
Source: ANSA
