Eurovision 2020: Greek choreographer – director for Switzerland and San Marino at Eurovision 2020?

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According to what is written on a greek media website, Zappit, Greek choreographer Nikos Marianos has accepted a proposal to direct the participation of Switzerland and San Marino in the forthcoming Eurovision Song Contest in May in Rotterdam!

He has recorded his own unique path, both at the Eurovision Festival, as well as in music and theater, being one of the most successful choreographers and directors of recent years. Nikos Marianos, who is known for versatile and creative talent, having choreographed from demanding  musical such as “Evita”, “Hair” and “Grease”, up to high standard’s Mad Show, accepts another suggestion – a challenge that opens the European music scene to him.

Two countries are claiming the acclaimed Greek, seeking exclusive co-operation for the 65th Eurovision Song Contest to be held in Rotterdam in May 2020. Competition officials in Switzerland but also in San Marino have already contacted Nikos in order to take over  the choreographic performance of the songs that will be selected to represent these two countries in this year’s contest.

San Marino managed last year under his direction the best result  in Tel Aviv, while Nikos already has successful entries in both Greece and Malta. Remember, the director and choreographer has appeared on the Eurovision stage as a dancer in 2005 with Elena Paparizou on Eurovision’s 50-year show, but also in 2009 with Sakis Rouvas and “This is our night”.

Nikos Marianos has not yet given a definitive answer to the officials of the two countries. The NMDF Convention, which holds its fourth year in March 2020 and hosts the 19 most important choreographers around the world is in his high priority this period. However, it is certain that for another year Eurovision will be of particular interest to the Greeks.

Source: zappit

Cyprus: This is Sandro Nicolas! (VIDEO)

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Since Wednesday night when we revealed, through EurovisionFun that Sandro Nicolas will represent Cyprus at the 65th Eurovision Song Contest, the news toured Europe, as all the websites involved in the competition hosted extensive articles.

As mentioned in the Omega TV show “Ela na deis”  (“Come to see”) and Alexander Taramount, there are three songs that the artist and Rick have ended up with. We already know the titles:

–Mucho Calor (dance track)
–Can’t Look Away (mid tempo)
–Never Let You Down (pop modern track)

Whatever the final choice of RIK will be, we are sure that talented Sandro Nicolas will take the island of Aphrodite to the contest in 2020, continuing the good tradition that Cypriot public broadcaster has built in recent years.

Below you can see a promo video of Sandro Nicolas in various live performances:

 

Junior Eurovision 2019: How to vote for your favorite songs

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The countdown for the grand final of Junior Eurovision 2019 has begun. There are only some hours left to find out which country will be the winner of this year’s contest. After defining the order of songs appearances and analyzing this year’s Junior Eurovision favorites, it’s time to take a look at how to vote.

The vote for Junior Eurovision 2019 is open to the public. It is only enough to have an internet connection and a device to connect to the contest’s site. You can vote for your favorite songs on the contest page, but only after watching a recap of all 19 songs. This video will come from the second rehearsal on Thursday 21 and Friday 22 November.

Once the recap is complete, viewers will be able to vote for their favorite 3.4 or 5 entries. No geographical restrictions apply, so fans can vote for their own country if they so wish. In an effort to avoid duplication of voting, it is necessary to create an account at junioreurovision.tv before voting.

When do we vote?
The vote for Junior Eurovision 2019 is divided into two phases:

 -Phase 1: voting begins at 8 pm today (CET time). This round of voting will remain open throughout Saturday, closing at 15:59 on Sunday, November 24 – shortly before the show begins.
–Phase 2 :takes place during the live broadcast. The window will open after the appearance of the last country, Serbia. The second phase will last about 15 minutes.

The way to calculate the final result

Online voting will determine 100% of the public vote as voting by phone or SMS is not possible. Like in Eurovision, the public decides by 50% on the results, with the remaining 50% coming from the votes of each country’s juries. The JESC 2019 Jury will include 3 music industry professionals and 2 children aged 10 to 15 years.

Both the jury and the audience have 1102 points to share in the final songs. The allocation of points, in particular, to the public will be based on the percentage of points that each country has gained in electronic voting. If, for example, a country receives 20% of the votes then it will also receive the corresponding 20% ​​of the available points (20% of 1102 points = 220 points).

The grand final of Junior Eurovision 2019 will take place on Sunday, November 24th at 4pm CET time and you can watch it through the official YouTube channel of the contest by clicking HERE.

Junior Eurovision 2019: What are the favorites to win?

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Only some hours  left for the Junior Eurovision 2019 final. Tomorrow, November 24 in Glivice, Poland, 19 songs will compete for the victory. After defining the order of appearance of the songs, it’s time to take a look at the big favorites.

The final result of Junior Eurovision will also be determined this year by a 50% vote of the jury and 50% of the public vote. The public can continuing voting online till tomorrow at 15:59 CET time. Of the 19 songs the following 4 seem to have stood out:

  • Poland

Last year’s winner and host of this year’s Junior Eurovision has already garnered many views. The official video has 3.8 million views, and the first rehearsal video is already close to 200,000. The singer’s official channel reaches 1.3 million and TVP’s channel reaches 1.4 million! It is expected that there will be great interest in Poland for the contest, but it is a strong song anyway. If that is supported by the jury, it is possible to see a second victory in a row for Poland. In audience voting, it will probably be in the top three if not first.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=okG6yNKaS1g

 

  • France

The country that returned dynamically last year after winning the runner-up looks determined to continue the good run. The video on the singer’s official channel reached 1.3 million views, while JESC’s official channel is approaching 1 million. The first rehearsal also became quite popular with 120,000 views. France has not won the competition so far.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pWT_U6mEadQ

  • Spain

Spain have been abstaining from the competition for many years, but it seems that it wants to return dynamically this year. The video on the singer’s channel has 700,000 views, while the official JESC channel also reaches close to 700,000. The first rehearsal seems to stand out with nearly 120,000 views already. After Spain’s 2004 win, could we see its second win this year?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wRj0dVWvHBg

  • Armenia

With an uptempo song, Armenia reached 900,000 views on the official JESC channel, while its first rehearsal also went well with 80,000 views. After winning 2010, the country has been close to winning several times.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cfUKHyFIX0s

Who will the winner be?

The above countries are almost certain to be in the top ten (possibly in the top five) of the public vote. The unexpected factor is the vote of the jury. Bearing in mind the results of the last two years that the system has been the same this year, it seems that the committees pay great attention to the vocal abilities of the singers as well as to the final visual spectacle.

You can enjoy the Junior Eurovision 2019 contest through the official channel on Sunday, November 24 at 16:00CET time.

Latvia: Record of entries for Supernova 2020

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Last Wednesday, the entries deadline for the Latvian National Final,Supernova 2020 had been expired, and Latvia’s public broadcaster LTV has revealed that it has received 126 entries. This is the highest number of entries ever made in Supernova’s history. This is a sharp increase, especially if you consider that last year 83 just expressed interest to represent Latvia at the Eurovision Song Contest.

The LTV channel shared some information about the songs submitted, including the fact that more than half of the applications were filed on the last day. Supernova producer Ilze Jansone revealed that many artists have submitted two songs. He also noted that they have seen more variety this year, with many young artists and more songs in the Latvian language. LTV has received entries covering a variety of music genres, including traditional pop, schlager and metal music.

The broadcaster will now review all applications to ensure that the listings comply with Supernova 2020 rules. The 2020 rules allow foreign participants to be producers or members of a band. However, the singer of the song must be Latvian.

Supernova’s grand final has been confirmed for February 8, 2020, but the Latvian public channel has not revealed whether the process of choosing its next representative  to Rotterdam will also include semifinals. Just last month, Jansone said: “At the moment we cannot yet officially reveal how the finalists will be selected, but we know that the final of the competition will be broadcast live on February 8th”.

LTV has been running Supernova for the last five years, with a generally moderate appearance in the Contest. Aminata’s 2015 presence in Vienna (1st edition of Supernova) stands out, with the Baltic country taking 6th place, achieving its best place in the current decade. In 2019, in Tel Aviv, Latvia, was represented by Carousel with the song “That night”. For another year, however, Latvia failed to qualify for the final after finishing 15th with 50 points in the semifinal.

Source: wiwibloggs.com

Cyprus: Candidate Songs Titles| The proposal to Ivi and Ian’s nomination

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Following the announcement of essentially Cypriot representative at Eurovision 2020, Sandro Nicolas, via the exclusive EurovisionFun reportage last night, more information came to light shortly before through  the Omega TV show “Come To See”, which hosted extensive report, reffering,of course, to our website.

Three songs for Sandro Nicolas

According to what Alexander Taramountas revealed on the first inviting rates  Cypriot television show “Come To See”, RIK has ended up with three of the more than 100 songs it received for Eurovision 2020. In the following days, it will choose what Sandro Nicolas will perform on stage at the Ahoy Arena in Rotterdam in May. The show reported that the CyBC Board has already approved the representation of Sandro Nicolas at Eurovision 2020.

The titles of the three songs are as follows:

–Mucho Calor (dance track)
-Can’t Look Away (mid tempo)
-Never Let You Down (pop modern track)

All the songs based on what was said in the show are high standarts and can properly represent Cyprus in the contest. The two have been written by foreign artists, with one signed by a Greek composer. What is even more interesting is that Alexander Taramountas revealed that his favorite is Mucho Calor!

How was the proposal made to RIK?

The reportage of the show said that the proposal of RIK to Sandro Nicolas came from Elias Kokottos’s  Dream Team,the well-known project manager!

The broadcast panel was very positive about Sandro Nicolas’ selection, saying it was a very clever move by RIK for the next contest. Panik and Minos EMI are already in the process of taking over Sandro, and what has even been said is that, despite the fact that Michalis Marathyoutis has resigned, he will be the one to handle the Cypriot participation in Eurovision 2020.

Ivi’s “no” and Ian’s nomination

The sensation was triggered by the revelation that RIK had been thinking of Ivy Adamou representing Cyprus for the second time at Eurovision (she has already participated with “La La love” in 2012), but she politely declined for family and personal reasons. She gave a birth recently and did not have the time needed for such a project.

Our report was also confirmed when we wrote a few months ago that two men and one woman were targeted by RIK on Eurovision 2020. Except for Ivy and of course Sandro Nicolas, Ian Stratis was the third name. But RIK, based on the songs it had in mind, came to Sandro believing that he would better support whichever of the third songs eventually be chosen.

Andorra: Government wants the country to return to Eurovision

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Good news from Andorra, which this year marks 10 years of absence from the contest. Elnacional hosts statements by representatives of the tri-partite government of the state, expressing a desire to bring their country back to Eurovision.

Financial reasons, as well as the fact that its six entries failed to qualify for the Final, were the reasons that led Andorra’s public broadcaster to quit Eurovision 2010 and never come back since then. A spokesman for the ruling party, Blau told elnacional:

“Andorra’s public television will return to the Eurovision Song Contest after re-evaluating its costs”

Also, another representative of the Democratic Party, also one of the three ruling parties, went further, saying:

“Eurovision is a great television show that will allow us to put our country on the map”

It is not clear whether Andorra will return in 2020 (something very difficult after the list of countries already announced) or next year.

The only time Andorra came close to qualifying was in 2007 when Anonymous with “Salvem El Món” finished 12th, the toughest semifinal ever to be played with 28 countries!

Cyprus: RIK “steals” Germany’s favorite to represent it at Eurovision 2020!EXCLUSIVE

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It’s November, a month that RIK traditionally completes the selection of the artist for the Eurovision contest, at least in recent years. EurovisionFun reports that RIK is very close to a great success. To literally “steal” at the last minute the favorite artist to represent Germany, homogenous singer Sandro Nicolas.

Who is Sandro Nicolas?

You have also read about Sandro Nicolas (Alessandro Ruetten) in our previous articles. He is 23 years old and quite popular in Germany, having participated in “The Voice of Germany “in 2018, even reaching the semifinals. In the summer he competed at the New Wave Festival, the largest music festival of the Eastern countries!

He grew up with Greek education, since his mother is Greek. He speaks fluent Greek, and often visits Greece, either for vacations or for business reasons, such as recently, recording in the studio of Dimitris Kontopoulos.

RIK’s “colpo grosso”!

Germany does not host a national final this year, but preferred a concept very close to what Switzerland did this year. Digame, a production company responsible for selecting the leading candidates, is in charge of the entire event. The selected artists participated in various songwriting camps in order to write new songs for the national final. After completing this process, Digame selected the finalists and matched them with the songs to be competed. Sandro would be in the final selection stage with more than two songs, indicative of how much Digame people believe in him. This closed national final is scheduled to take place in December and the final decision will be made by a panel of about 100 people (musicians and fans).

At this critical juncture, RIK intervened, proposing Nicolas to lift the responsibility of representing Cyprus at Eurovision 2020 in Rotterdam! Although some agreement has not yet been set, the discussions appear to be moving in a very positive direction. If RIK finally succeeds in booking this talented performer for the next Eurovision Song Contest, then we will be talking about a very big success for the people of Cypriot public broadcaster, proving once again that they are planning a very attentive and methodical entry for Cyprus, always aiming at the best possible representation.

Germany: Thoughts on internal selection after ten years?

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For the first time in ten years, it looks like Germany will not air a national final in choosing its participation in the Eurovision Contest, but there will be an internal selection, reminiscent of the process Switzerland has carried out in this year’s contest.

While in previous years such a time there was information such as the date of the national final or even candidates, this year the information we have from Germany is scarce.

What is certain is that the final decision will be made by a panel of fans, as well as an international panel, but without the public verdict, as there will probably be no national television final but only one internal choice.

Already the two committees have heard different songs, performed by different artists and have come up with the best combinations. This year, the focus was on finding the right songs and then pairing them with the best performers. In this way, they avoided the various songwriting camps that took place in previous years.

If the choice is finally made internally this will be the first time since 2009 that Germany will choose to participate in Eurovision without a national television final.

The new approach came after disappointing results for another year in this year’s contest, where the S! Sters took 25th place in the Grand Final, receiving 0 points from the television audience!

Source: esc-kompakt

Australia: Two more candidates for “Eurovision: Australia Decides”

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Australia’s public broadcaster, SBS, earlier announced two more nominees for Eurovision: Australia Decides, its national final for Eurovision 2020. These are Mitch Tambo and iOTA.

Ten candidates will compete at Gold Coast on February 8 to represent Australia at Eurovision 2020. Following this year’s success of Eurovision: Australia Decides, SBS has decided to launch the same concept for 2020.

After Casey Donovan and Vanessa Amorosi it’s time for two men:

Mitch Tambo

Mitch Tambo, 29, from Melbourne, is a representative for Gamilaraay, an indigenous Australian race, hence his strange outfit. His song as he states himself will have many elements of the traditional music of his tribe.

“I am excited to be part of Eurovision: Australia Decides and to be able to find myself on the biggest stage in the world. Eurovision songs often combine elements of traditional and contemporary sounds, something that I do with my own music. Most importantly it brings different cultures all under the banner of music, which is a beautiful thing”

Mitch Tambo’s participation did not surprise anyone because, through the “Australian’s Got Talent” that participated in the previous months, reaching the final, there were few who urged him to compete in the country’s national Eurovision final.

iOTA

IOTA is a multi-talented artist, as he is both an actor, a singer and a composer! He has participated in many films and series, and has been nominated for various acting and music awards.

“I’m not the typical type of contestant, but I’m interested in the Eurovision Song Contest on color and motion, music and performance, light and shadow, creativity and self-expression, singing and performing in front of so many big audience”

Six more candidates for Eurovision: Australia Decides!

The other six candidates will be announced in the near future with Paul Clarke, executive producer Eurovision: Australia Decides promising us more surprises:

“We are thrilled to welcome Mitch and iOTA to this truly exciting line-up. Together with Casey Donovan and Vanessa Amorosi, these four artists are beginning to give fans an indication of the scale, diversity and raw creativity that will be at the heart of Eurovision – Australia Decides 2020. With six remaining contestants left, we are sure it will be an amazing show!”

This year’s Australian National Final will also be hosted by radio producer and presenter Myf Warhurst and comedian Joel Creasey, who will also be airing the contest in May 2020 on behalf of SBS.

This year, Eurovision: Australia Decides winner Kate Miller-Heidke represented Australia in Tel Aviv, finishing ninth with 285 points.