Vasco Rossi

During his concert in Rimini in May 2026, Vasco Rossi made highly aggressive on-stage comments about power and the government. Representatives of Fratelli d'Italia denounced an insulting and disrespectful attack, turning the sequence into a national political controversy.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Personally implicated

Former manager Stefano Salvati demanded 200 000 euros a year from Vasco Rossi for thirty years on the basis of what he presented as a paid confidentiality agreement. The courts found the document to be a forgery. Salvati was convicted of malicious accusation at first instance and on appeal; in 2022, the Court of Cassation declared the criminal offence time-barred but upheld the civil provisions, Rossi's entitlement to 10 000 euros and the definitive finding that the document was forged.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Protagonist is the complainant

Person targeted by the proceedings

Stefano Salvati

Role of the person profiled

Protagonist not prosecuted

A separate case concerned the sharing of cocaine in an incident dating back to 2009. In 2016, Vasco Rossi reached a patteggiamento agreement resulting in a financial penalty for violating drug legislation.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Personally implicated

In 2012, Vasco Rossi published a series of particularly disparaging messages targeting several colleagues, including Claudio Baglioni, Piero Pelù and Amedeo Minghi. The episode renewed debate over his use of social media to settle scores within the music industry.

State of the evidence

Reported by the press

Attribution

Personally implicated

Following an initial Facebook controversy whose authorship was disputed by his representatives, Vasco Rossi made a direct attack on Luciano Ligabue in an August 2011 interview, fuelling a widely publicised rivalry between the two artists.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Personally implicated

A defamation complaint filed by Vasco Rossi's representatives against the page devoted to him on the satirical website Nonciclopedia led its administrators to close the entire website temporarily, triggering a major online campaign accusing the singer of censorship. His representatives replied that he had never requested the closure, seeking only protection against content considered defamatory. The website reopened after clarification, and Rossi's spokesperson announced that the complaint would be withdrawn.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Directly implicated

In 2010, tax inspections concerning, among other things, Vasco Rossi's yacht and linked companies generated considerable controversy. A news report attributing 5,5 million euros in tax evasion to him was withdrawn as inaccurate. The Agenzia delle Entrate nevertheless confirmed that a company had accepted a tax assessment notice in 2008; Rossi explained that this concerned a 317 000-euro adjustment arising from a clerical allocation error.

In July 1988, Vasco Rossi was arrested again. Retrospective sources reported the presence of a small amount of cocaine, a baton and a gas pistol. He was quickly released.

Attribution

Personally implicated

Vasco Rossi was arrested in April 1984 following the discovery of cocaine and detained for 22 days. Retrospective legal accounts distinguish possession, for which he received a suspended sentence, from alleged trafficking or supply, which was not upheld.

State of the evidence

Established by a court

Attribution

Personally implicated

During 'Vita spericolata' at Sanremo 1983, Rossi left the stage before the final chorus had finished while the recording continued, making the use of playback obvious on air. The episode reinforced his provocative image and became an emblematic moment in his troubled relationship with the Festival.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Directly implicated

In 'Bollicine', wordplay linking Coca-Cola with drug use was altered in the released version, replacing the reference to 'se faire des poires' with wording relating to food. This further instance of censorship is separate from earlier ones because it concerns a different work, year and editorial decision.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Directly implicated

To perform 'Vado al massimo' at the Sanremo Festival, an explicit reference associated with drugs had to be altered. The episode is among the historic examples of censorship or adaptation of song lyrics at the Festival.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Directly implicated

Following an appearance on Domenica In in 1980, journalist Nantas Salvalaggio strongly attacked Vasco Rossi and RAI, describing him as drug-addicted, drunk and a bad example for young people. The controversy marked his early national career, and Rossi subsequently responded, notably through lyrics in 'Vado al massimo'.

State of the evidence

Reported by the press

Attribution

Directly implicated

At Sanremo 1982, Rossi's microphone falling dramatically to the floor was perceived as a deliberate provocation. Rossi repeatedly explained that he had actually intended to take the microphone backstage instead of returning it to its stand, but that the short cable had caused it to fall.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Directly implicated

On the album 'Siamo solo noi', the record company required the abbreviation 'Ieri ho sg. mio figlio' instead of the full title 'Ieri ho sgozzato mio figlio', which was considered too violent. The song's lyrics nevertheless remained explicit.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Directly implicated

For Festivalbar 1981, Vasco Rossi's team replaced copies of 'Siamo solo noi' in jukeboxes with 'Voglio andare al mare' while retaining the original identification, without informing organiser Vittorio Salvetti in time. The commercial manoeuvre resulted in Rossi's exclusion from that year's event.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Shared responsibility

'Colpa d'Alfredo' was kept off radio playlists upon release because of expressions considered offensive. The episode became one of Vasco Rossi's earliest public controversies concerning the limits of language in his songs.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Directly implicated

Before gaining national fame as a musician, Vasco Rossi was an administrator of Punto Radio. In 1976, the Carabinieri sealed the station, and he was reported to Escopost against the background of RAI's radio broadcasting monopoly. The case reached the magistrate in Vignola; Rossi recounts that the station was quickly released from seizure and that he was ultimately fully acquitted.

State of the evidence

Corroborated

Attribution

Directly implicated

Course of the proceedings

1. Formally charged — Formal charge before the current outcome

Rossi recounted that, after being called up for military service, he presented himself at a hospital and declared that he was drug-dependent — saying that he was taking amphetamines and other substances at the time — in order to obtain exemption and avoid losing a year. He also explained that the classification subsequently prevented him from obtaining public sector employment.

Attribution

Personally implicated