BASEL – A popular song at the Eurovision Song Contest is “Espresso Macchiato,” performed by Tommy Cash, an Estonian rapper and visual artist.
Estonia’s entry for the Eurovision Song Contest, taking place in Basel, Switzerland, features a lively dance-pop tune that incorporates various Italian stereotypes, such as mentions of spaghetti and sweating like a mafioso, leading to a catchy chorus: “Espresso macchiato, macchiato, macchiato.”
Although the song has garnered fans singing along in the streets of Basel, it has sparked controversy in Italy, where a consumer association criticized it as offensive and reported it to the European Broadcasting Union, the organizer of Eurovision.
Cash said that he’s seen media articles about a backlash, but “I see only the love.”
“Everyone coming to me is like ‘I’m from Italy, you’re a legend there and we’re so happy to have your song,’” he told The Associated Press on Friday amid rehearsals for the Eurovision final.
Cash said that if U.S. singer Sabrina Carpenter can have a hit about espresso in her Grammy Award-winning 2024 hit of that name, he too should be able to sing about coffee.
“She should be singing about Big Gulps,” he joked. As Europeans, “we’re the OGs. (Coffee) originated from Italy.
“The thing is, coffee is for the world,” he said. “Everyone can drink coffee. Americans, Europeans, and this brings us together.”
Italian themes are in vogue at Eurovision this year — another competitor is Italian DJ Gabry Ponte, representing tiny San Marino with “Tutta L’Italia.”
Many Italians have embraced the cheery catchiness of “Espresso Macchiato,” even though most would never dream of adding milk to espresso, widely considering macchiato a tourists’ drink.
“We Italians are nice and we laugh at these things,” said Francesco Malferrari, enjoying an espresso — no milk — in a Rome cafe. “Yes, there are some stereotypes, but we in Italy are used to it, so in reality we smile.
“But this year we have to root for Lucio Corsi,” the glam rocker who is Italy’s Eurovision competitor. “Because we are for Italy, so let’s root for Lucio Corsi. But let’s have an espresso and laugh it off.”
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Dario Artale contributed to this story from this Rome.
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