X Factor 2025 jury revealed: the star of Italian music (and Sanremo) arrives - All the news

X Factor 2025 is warming up its engines: in the fall, the episodes of the new season will be broadcast on Sky TV as always (and in streaming on Now), but the machine has already started and the Auditions will begin very soon. In the meantime, the talent show team has been made official. After the farewell of Manuel Agnelli, a historic and charismatic face of the program - which last year led one of its artists, the very young Mimì, to victory - a music star arrives to join the judges who were protagonists in the last edition. Let's see all the details.

X Factor 2025, who is the new judge: Francesco Gabbani

As expected, Francesco Gabbani will join the X Factor team, alongside Achille Lauro, Jake La Furia and Paola Iezzi. Giorgia will return to host. The official announcement from the jury in a video released today on X Factor's social media.

Francesco Gabbani is making his absolute debut not only on X Factor, but as a judge or star of a talent show: singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and multi-platinum artist, he has released six studio albums in his career, collecting 13 platinum records and 4 gold records. At the Sanremo Festival he won on two occasions: in 2016 in the New Proposals category with “Amen” (with which he also won the Mia Martini Critics' Award in his section and the Sergio Bardotti Award for best lyrics, in addition to the platinum record) and the following year among the Big with “Occidentali's Karma” (six platinum records, a single with which he broke every type of record for views and streaming and which remained at the top of the radio airplay chart for weeks), and was the first artist in the history of the Festival to win for two consecutive years first among the New Proposals and then among the Big; in 2020, he then came in second with “ Viceversa ” (3 platinum records). With his songs he has surpassed 700 million views on YouTube, he has written songs for great artists, including Mina, Celentano and Ornella Vanoni and original soundtracks. He also hosted on TV, in prime time, two editions of “Ci vuole un fiore”.

In February 2025, after his new participation in the Sanremo Festival with “Viva la vita”, he released “Dalla tua parte”, his sixth studio album which entered directly at first place in the top 20 CD, Vinyl and Cassette chart and at second place in the chart of the best-selling albums in Italy (Top of The Music FIMI/GfK chart). He is currently on tour, in the autumn he has several live dates awaiting him, including the one on October 1st at the Verona Arena.

Thus, with the start of the Auditions recordings getting closer and closer, the cast of this season of the Sky Original show produced by Fremantle is complete.

X Factor 2025, the auditions

Host Giorgia and the new table of judges of X Factor 2025 formed by Achille Lauro, Francesco Gabbani, Jake La Furia and Paola Iezzi, will be busy in a few days in the first Auditions, whose recordings will begin next week at the Allianz Cloud in Milan.

Antonella d'Errico, Executive Vice President Content Sky Italia: «The X Factor machine is ready to start again, with an exciting season behind it, which ended with the wonderful show of the final in Piazza del Plebiscito in Naples. And today we enthusiastically welcome Francesco Gabbani, two-time winner at Sanremo, who has signed hits loved by the general public as well as being an esteemed author for important artists, including Mina, Celentano and Ornella Vanoni. I am sure that Francesco, together with Lauro, Jake and Paola will be able to welcome, grow and enhance the talent of the many young artists who will bring their music and their dreams to the X Factor stage again this year. Good luck to our judges and Giorgia for this new edition. And sincere thanks to Manuel Agnelli, who with his extraordinary expertise and originality has contributed over the years to making X Factor unique».

Marco Tombolini, CEO Fremantle: «The X Factor team works all year round but it is in this period - with the start of the Auditions - that the game really comes to life: the search for talents all over Italy begins now. A journey that, through the story of a generation and musical trends, renews a historic format every year. This year, a new judge is taking part in this adventure, Francesco Gabbani who - I am sure - will be able to enrich with his musical expertise a table that is already of the highest level thanks to Paola, Lauro and Jake. A warm welcome to Francesco at X Factor. To his predecessor Manuel Agnelli, who has left an indelible mark on the history of the program, a sincere thank you and a big goodbye».