Overview

• Al Bano joined Iva Zanicchi on June 20 to sing their hit “Felicità” at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum before thousands of fans.
• On June 23, ex-wife Romina Power took to Instagram to dissociate herself from his decision, calling it the wrong time and place amid the Ukraine war.
• He rebuked critics as out of touch and emphasized that his concert aimed to spread a message of peace, not to endorse any government.
• In interviews on June 24, Al Bano praised Vladimir Putin as “a decent person” based on decades of meetings, reigniting debate over the concert’s political implications.
• On June 25 he said an Italian professor who has lived in Russia for 40 years invited him and reiterated his willingness to perform in Ukraine to promote harmony.