Zocca Town of Music Festival

A Singing Competition Born in Vasco Rossi's Hometown

The Zocca Town of Music Festival is a singing competition dedicated to emerging artists, conceived and organized by the Municipality of Zocca, a small town in the Modenese Apennines in Emilia-Romagna, in the Province of Modena. The event stems from a deep and historic connection: Zocca is the town where Vasco Rossi grew up, and it was from the collaboration between the municipal administration and the famous rocker that a project was born to focus on young music talents.

The Prize: Opening Vasco Live Concerts

What makes this festival truly special is the prize. The winners don't just receive a symbolic recognition, but the concrete opportunity to perform as the opening act in the Vasco Live tour dates, the tour that fills Italian stadiums. For an emerging artist, this means stepping onto one of the most prestigious and iconic stages in the Italian music scene, in front of tens of thousands of spectators. A rare opportunity that has made the competition a highly anticipated and followed event.

Castings and Final at the Vasco Rossi Municipal Theatre

The event is divided into several phases. After verifying the applications submitted by singers and bands, eligible artists are invited for live castings, which take place over several days at the Vasco Rossi Municipal Theatre in Zocca. Each contestant performs a live song, in Italian or a foreign language, with essential accompaniment. From the castings, a group of finalists emerges, who compete for victory in the final evening, judged by a jury of professionals from the record and broadcast industry.

National and International Appeal

In just a few editions, the festival has gained surprising popularity: thousands of applications from all over Italy and also from abroad, with artists registered from Switzerland, Great Britain, and Poland. Past editions have seen bands and singer-songwriters win who then actually opened Vasco's concerts at San Siro in Milan, at the San Nicola stadium in Bari, and at other tour stops.

Zocca, the Town of Music

For the Municipality of Zocca, the festival is much more than an event: it's a way to enhance the identity of the Modenese Apennine territory and its connection with one of Italy's most beloved artists. The event enlivens the town in May, attracting fans, families, and curious onlookers, and reinforcing Zocca's vocation as a true "town of music".