Bulgaria: Eurovisionfun met ‘Intelligent Music Project” in Thessaloniki!

We spent a beautiful afternoon with the Intelligent Music Project, who visited Thessaloniki as part of the promotion regarding their participation at Eurovision 2022.

The meeting took place at the Onoma Hotel. The Intelligent Music Project, after giving an interview to Rock Radio 104.7 returned to the hotel where, following their meeting with members of the Bulgarian community of the city, they had plenty of time to talk to us.

The rock band, which this year represents Bulgaria with their song Intention, is on a big European tour in view of their participation at 66th Eurovision Song Contest. On Tuesday, they also shot their live on tape video, where they focused the previous days with the result, according to them, justifying the team. They are looking forward to being on the Eurovision stage, as they believe that live is their strong point, something that they believe the viewers will also appreciate.

The Intelligent Music Project spoke with the warmest words about Amanda, but also about her song, since as they characteristically said, she has one of the most beautiful songs of this year’s competition.

Of course we could not leave without hearing them singing Intention live, but also performing their own version of My Number One.

 

Who are Intelligent Music Project?

Intelligent Music Project is a ‘supergroup’, consisting of local and international stars, which was formed in 2011 by Dr. Milen Vrabevski, an important figure in the Bulgarian industry. Dr. Vrabevski is known for his charity and business activities. He is the producer, composer and lyricist of the band!

With a combination of melancholic, but also hard rock sound and thoughtful lyrics containing topical messages, especially for the youth, the songs of Intelligent Music Project always make a sensation.

Throughout the years of the band’s existence, some of the biggest names in the world rock music scene have contributed to Intelligent Music Project. With its current line-up, the band’s main vocalist is Ronnie Romero, Bisser Ivanov, Slavin Slavchev (winner of Bulgaria’s X-Factor), Ivo Stefanov, Dimiter Sirakov and drummer Stoyan Yankoulov, who represented Bulgaria in 2007 and 2013 with Elitsa.

Stay tuned to Eurovisionfun for all the news regarding Bulgaria’s participation at Eurovision 2022!


Do not forget to vote in our poll! For the First Semi-final you vote HERE and for the Second Semi-final you vote HERE.

The shooting of Live On Tapes has started in Sofia!

A big production has been set up in Sofia, as for the next few days the shooting of live on tapes of eight countries will take place there! We have already seen through social media that some artists are in Sofia, with the rest arriving soon, while creative directors Marvin Dietmann, Dan Shipton and Sacha Jean Baptiste are also in the Bulgarian capital for directing and supervising the shooting of the countries that they are in charge of.

Eight delegations, in order to reduce costs, will travel in the upcoming days in Sofia for the shooting of live on tape videos of their participations. We remind you that the live on tape video is the backup live performance of the entries and is required by all delegations. This video will be used by the event only if any of the delegations fails to reach Turin in May.

The eight countries that will shoot the live on tape video in Sofia in the upcoming days are the following:

  • Greece
  • Cyprus
  • United Kingdom
  • Austria
  • Switzerland
  • Malta
  • Bulgaria
  • Armenia

Stay tuned to Eurovisionfun for all the news regarding our favourite contest!

 

Bulgaria: “A fan created this whole story”, BNT answers | EXCLUSIVE

The whole Eurovision community, of course, has been dealing with Bulgaria since the morning and what is finally going to happen on 15/3, which also has to do with Kristian Kostov. Eurovisionfun addressed the Intelligent Music Project, who were also surprised to see the developments from the morning. According to the answer given to them by the country’s public television, the confusion was created by a fan of the contest who had access to the BNT account. The tweets have been deleted and now the topic is considered over!

What happened

For everything that happened in the morning, you can read our relevant article. In short, two of today’s tweets were enough to trigger literally countless scenarios, regarding the country’s participation in this year’s competition and Kristian Kostov’s involvement in it.

All this resulted in a rise in Bulgaria in betting, which reached the third place, from 39th in the morning.

Eurovisionfun contacted a representative of the Intelligent Music Project to clarify the situation, who told us the following:

BNT’s respond is that the author of these posts is a fan and now the posts have been deleted.

Kristian Kostov’s answer

Kristian Kostov also had no knowledge on the subject, who recently tweeted, thanked all the fans of the contest for the love he received today with their messages and comments and expressed his desire to return to the stage of the contest, sometime in the future.

This is how the today’s drama in Eurovision world ended!

Stay tuned to Eurovisionfun for all the news around Bulgaria’s participation in Eurovision 2022!

Bulgaria: Enigmatic tweet from public television with Kristian Kostov!

A tweet on the official account of Bulgarian public television for the Eurovision Song Contest has sparked scenarios and rumors.

This tweet mentions some lyrics of Intention, the song with which the Intelligent Music Project will represent Bulgaria at Eurovision 2022, there is a photo of Kristian Kostov and writes soon…

BNT then posted another tweet. Probably a date: 15/03, ie March 15. Obviously then they will reveal this surprise. By the way, on March 15, Kristian Kostov has his birthday!

What makes the story more interesting is that they have deleted all the tweets related to the Intelligent Music Project, even the retweet for the band’s participation in the Eurovision pre party in Amsterdam!

We remind you that Kristian Kostov represented Bulgaria at Eurovision 2017, occupying the second place, the best place the country has ever taken in the competition.

What can the above mean? Is it just a collaboration of the Intelligent Music Project with Kristian Kostov? Will they do a cover of Intention together or is it something bigger?

We will find out soon…

Stay tuned to Eurovisionfun for all the developments regarding the participation of Bulgaria in Eurovision 2022!

Bulgaria: Intelligent Music Project give an exclusive interview to Eurovisionfun!

This year, Intelligent Music Project will represent Bulgaria, with their song “Intention“. Eurovisionfun, after the kind and honourable invitation of the band, was in Sofia a few days ago, for the first live performance of the song with which they will represent Bulgaria in Turin.

Who are Intelligent Music Project?

Intelligent Music Project is a ‘supergroup’, consisting of local and international stars, which was formed in 2011 by Dr. Milen Vrabevski, an important figure in the Bulgarian industry. Dr. Vrabevski is known for his charity and business activities. He is the producer, composer and lyricist of the band!

With a combination of melancholic, but also hard rock sound and thoughtful lyrics containing topical messages, especially for the youth, the songs of Intelligent Music Project always make a sensation.

Throughout the years of the band’s existence, some of the biggest names in the world rock music scene have contributed to Intelligent Music Project. With its current line-up, the band’s main vocalist is Ronnie Romero, Bisser Ivanov, Slavin Slavchev (winner of Bulgaria’s X-Factor), Ivo Stefanov, Dimiter Sirakov and drummer Stoyan Yankoulov, who represented Bulgaria in 2007 and 2013 with Elitsa.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HySI2igCcx4&feature=emb_title

The interview

Shortly before their live performance at Sofia Live Club, Intelligent Music Project spoke to us exclusively, about how they were selected by the Bulgarian Public Television, Intention, their plans for Turin etc.

Thank you very much for the invitation. Can you tell us some information about Intelligent Music Project? How was it created?

Dr. Vrabevski created the band. We have released several albums and have toured several countries in the last three years. Our creator and producer has found the best musicians, who now make up Intelligent Music Project. We have musicians from Bulgaria, but also from other parts of the world, like Ronnie Romero. We try to always be full of energy in everything we do. That’s how Eurovision came about, we are very grateful for that.

In a word, what is the formula for success after so many years?

The message!

Let’s go now to the Eurovision contest. You were the first artists to be announced for the next contest, as well as your song. Do you think this is positive or negative for your luck in Turin?

We are not the ones who wait to see what others will do so that we can do the same. We were ready because we had our new album ready. We don’t follow the paths that other people take, we make our own path. Even if we waited to announce our song for later it wouldn’t change anything. It would be the same song, since we had already recorded our new album.

How did you get selected by the Bulgarian public television?

There was an internal process, where different artists submitted their proposals. Intention was considered the best choice.

(Addressing Stoyan) This will be your third entry, do you feel it will be somewhat different this time?

Eurovision changes every year! It’s a traditional competition that keeps changing its form. New songs, new trends, new lights, technology etc. So that means it will be basically my first time!

Anyway, you owe us 12 points from 2007!

I remember! (Laughs)

So Ronnie, what is the message of Intention?

Intention sends an important message. Because of the difficult times we experienced during the pandemic, people want to feel optimistic that a change for the better will come, but in order for that to happen they have to have the Intention to change things.

We are from Greece, a country where we know that you have a lot of fans who follow you and you have given several concerts. Do you expect support from the Greek audience in the Eurovision contest?

We expect support from all countries. For us it’s a great opportunity to promote our music on such a big stage like Eurovision. We will do on the Torino stage what we know and love the most.

Have you seen other Eurovision 2022 participants?

We have seen some. The Italian representatives are very good. It will be a great competition!

Since we are in Italy. Would you participate in this year’s Eurovision contest if a rock band, Måneskin, didn’t win last year? Did they somehow pave the way for you?

We’ve been playing rock music a lot longer than Måneskin. That wasn’t the motivation for us. Our motivation is the opportunity that Eurovision gives us to connect with so many people and have them see our work.

What are your plans for promotion between now and May?

We’ll be doing some concerts between now and then. Thessaloniki, Brussels, Paris, Turin! We want fans of the competition to see Intelligent Music Project perform Intention live. That’s our strong point. We have a lot of work to do with rehearsals, choreography!

What would you like to say to the contest fans?

Good luck to the Greek participant! We love Greeks because we have many good friends. Greece always votes for Bulgaria and Bulgaria votes for Greece, so we hope that this year will be the same.

Thank you very much!

We thank you, we hope you enjoy the competition!

More information about the live concert of Intelligent Music Project in Thessaloniki on March 25th can be found HERE.

Stay tuned to Eurovisionfun for all the news regarding Bulgaria’s participation in Eurovision 2022!

Bulgaria: Eurovisionfun will be in Sofia for the first live performance of “Intention”!

We gladly accepted the honorary invitation of the Inteligent Music Project to attend the first live performance of Intention, the Bulgarian entry in Eurovision 2022!

On the evening of Saturday, February 5, at the Sofia Live Club, Inteligent Music Project will give a live concert for their fans in the Bulgarian capital. We will be there to bring you everything that will happen, while of course we will also host an interview of the Bulgarian representatives in the 66th Eurovision Song Contest.

So stay tuned to our website, but also to all our social media, for exclusive videos and photos from the live appearance of the Inteligent Music Project!

Who are the Inteligent Music Project?

Over the years some of the most popular rock musicians in the world have contributed to the project, including: Simon Phillips (TOTO, Protocol), Bobby Rondinelli (Rainbow, Black Sabbath), Joseph Williams (TOTO), John Payne (ex-Asia), John Lawton (Uriah Heep, Lucifer’s Friend), Carl Sentence (Nazareth), Nathan East (Eric Clapton, Michael Jackson, etc.), Todd Sucherman (Styx), and Time Pierce (Joe Cocker, Michael Jackson).

The Intelligent Music Project have performed in Greece as well, while on March 25 they will appear again in Thessaloniki!

Stay tuned to Eurovisionfun for all the news related to our favorite contest!

Eurovision 2022: Here are the results of the allocation draw!

The Semi-Final Allocation Draw for the Eurovision Song Contest 2022 took place in Palazzo Madama in Turin. Find out below in which of the 2 Semi-Finals your country will perform and vote in. The annual event was hosted by Carolina di Domenico and Mario Acampa.

The Semi-Final Allocation Draw and Host City Insignia Exchange are key milestones on the path to the Eurovision Song Contest each year.

During the ceremony, Ahmed Aboutaleb, Mayor of Rotterdam, passed on the Host City Insignia to Stefano Lo Russo, Mayor of Turin. The insignia key chain, weighing over 30 kilograms with the new addition of Rotterdam’s insignia, was handed over to Turin. The Italian city is now officially the Host City of the Eurovision Song Contest 2022.

Draw Procedure

The 36 countries competing in the semifinals were divided into six pots, based on the points they have exchanged in recent years. This is done in order to avoid, as much as possible, the alliances and bloc voting that appear every year in the voting.

Allocation Pots

Big 5

With the host Italy, directly in the final, along with the rest of the Big 5 (UK, France, Germany, Spain), the first part of the draw determined the semifinal that the direct finalists will vote.

Will vote in the 1st Semi-Final:

  • France
  • Italy

Will vote in the 2nd Semi-Final:

  • Spain
  • Germany
  • United Kingdom

Their performance in the dress rehearsal will be shown in the semifinals where the six aforementioned countries were drawn to broadcast and vote. This was done at Eurovision 2016 for the first time, for reasons of equal visibility of the countries that are directly in the final and the countries that compete in the semifinals. Essentially, viewers watch each entry twice during the shows.

Allocation Draw

The draw of the countries for the two semifinals had two parts. In the first part, the 36 countries that participate in the semifinals, were drawn in which of the two will compete. 18 countries will compete in both the first and the second semifinal.

In the second part each country found out if it will appear in the first or in the second half of the semifinal that will compete. The exact order of appearance will be determined by the EBU and the producers of the show at a later time.

First Semi-Final (10 May):

1st Half

  • Albania
  • Switzerland
  • Latvia
  • Slovenia
  • Moldova
  • Bulgaria
  • Ukraine
  • Lithuania
  • Netherlands

2nd Half

  • Norway
  • Russia
  • Portugal
  • Denmark
  • Armenia
  • Austria
  • Croatia
  • Iceland
  • Greece

Second Semi-Final (12 May):

1st Half

  • Australia
  • Georgia
  • Cyprus
  • Serbia
  • Finland
  • Azerbaijan
  • San Marino
  • Israel
  • Malta

2nd Half

  • Montenegro
  • Romania
  • Czech Republic
  • Poland
  • Belgium
  • North Macedonia
  • Sweden
  • Estonia
  • Ireland

Turin will host the 66th Eurovision Song Contest from May 10th to 14th at the Pala Alpitour. The motto of this year’s event, as chosen by the organizers, is “The Sound of Beauty”.

You can see the draw again through the following link:

 

 

 

Eurovision 2022: Pots and Participants of Semifinals Allocation Draw revealed!

The semi-finals draw will take place on Tuesday 25 January at 12:00 CET, from the Palazzo Madama e Casaforte degli Acaja in Turin. At the same time there will be a ceremony of handing over the keys of the contest or as it is widely known, the Host City Insignia from the previous hosts Rotterdam to the Italian organizers.

The allocation draw will determine whether the countries will participate in the First Semifinal (Tuesday, May 10) or the Second Semifinal (Thursday, May 12). Also, again based on the draw it will be determined if they appear in the first or second half of the semifinal. We remind you that the exact order of appearance is announced later by the organizers and after it has first been approved by the EBU.

The draw will be presented by TV presenters Carolina di Domenico and Gabriele Corsi. Rotterdam Mayor Ahmed Aboutaleb and Turin Mayor Stefano Lo Russo will be present.

Friends of the contest will be able to watch the draw on Eurovision’s YouTube channel or on Rai’s streaming service.

Semi-final draw: How does it work?

Italy, as the host country, together with the other 4 members of the so-called “Big 5” (France, Germany, Spain and the United Kingdom) do not compete in the Semifinals, but vote in one of them… so before the competing countries in Semifinals, it will be determined at random which of the Semifinals the Big 5 will be allowed to vote for.

The next part of the draw will determine in which Semifinal and in which half of the respective Semifinal the remaining 36 participating countries will appear.

The 36 countries of the semifinals are selected from 6 different pots:

Pot 1

  • Albania
  • Croatia
  • Montenegro
  • North Macedonia
  • Serbia
  • Slovenia

Pot 2

  • Denmark
  • Australia
  • Finland
  • Iceland
  • Norway
  • Sweden

Pot 3

  • Armenia
  • Azerbaijan
  • Georgia
  • Israel
  • Russia
  • Ukraine

Pot 4

  • Cyprus
  • Greece
  • Malta
  • Bulgaria
  • Portugal
  • San Marino

Pot 5

  • Estonia
  • Lithuania
  • Latvia
  • Moldova
  • Poland
  • Romania

Pot 6

  • Austria
  • Belgium
  • Switzerland
  • Czech Republic
  • Ireland
  • Netherlands

Drawing countries from different pots helps to reduce the chance of so-called neighbourly voting and increases suspense in the Semi-Finals.

Stay tuned at Eurovisionfun for all the news regarding the 66th Eurovision Song Contest!

Eurovision 2022: Semi Final Allocation Draw to take place on January 25!

One of the most important dates of the 66th Eurovision Song Contest was revealed a few hours ago, as the draw for the Eurovision 2022 semi-finals will take place on January 25th.

As revealed by the Montenegrin state radio, RTCG, in the context of the announcement of Vladana Vučinić as the representative of the Balkan country in Turin, the draw of the semi-finals will take place in exactly three weeks from today.

During the ceremony, the emblem of the event will be handed over from the city of Rotterdam to the Mayor of Turin. The draw will take place either at the Mole Antonelliana, the tallest building in Turin, or at the Palazzo Madama, which housed the first Senate of the Italian Kingdom.

The draw

The first part of the draw will determine the semi-final that will be broadcasted and voted by each of the five countries that are directly in the final (Italy, France, Germany, Spain and the United Kingdom).

The second part of the draw will determine in which semi-final and in which half the other 36 participating countries will compete. As in recent years, the exact order of appearance will be determined by the producers of the event at a later time.

The 36 countries will be distributed in five or six pots, based on historical voting patterns as calculated by the official television partner Digame. This separation is done in order to avoid the gathering of many neighboring countries in a semifinal that would significantly affect the final result.

We remind you that Eurovision 2022 will be held on May 10, 12 and 14 at the PalaOlimpico in the capital of Piedmont. Thus, Turin will become the third city in Italy where the Eurovision Song Contest will be held. The previous two were Naples in 1965 and Rome in 1991.

We remind you that the 66th Eurovision Song Contest will take place at the Pala Alpitour in Turin, on 10, 12 and 14 May 2022, with 41 participating countries.Stay tuned to Eurovisionfun for all the news related to the 66th Eurovision Song Contest!

Bulgaria: Intention’s release on December 7th!

Contrary to what we have been accustomed to in recent years, Bulgarian public television is very likely to be the first to announce its song for Eurovision 2022.

Earlier, BNT made public what was leaked months ago, that the rock band Intelligent Music Project will represent the Balkan country in Turin. With them will be Ronnie Romero as a singer, but also drummer Stoyan Yankoulov, who in 2007 and 2013 represented Bulgaria, along with Elitsa.

The changes that have taken place in the team working on the Eurovision project in Bulgaria are obvious. Apart from the different artistic approach that BNT follows this year, choosing an experienced rock band, in contrast with the young artists who represented the country in previous years, we also have a different way of presenting the song.

Through Twitter the Bulgarian public television stated that this year we will not wait long to hear their participation (which was traditionally one of the last to be released). As a Christmas present to all fans, Intention as their song is titled, will be released on December 7th, along with its video!

 

This will be the 14th participation of Bulgaria in the competition, which so far their best result is a second place, in 2017 with Kristian Kostov and Beautiful Mess. In Rotterdam, the country was represented by Victoria, with Growing Up Is Getting Old, finishing in eleventh place.

What do you think will be the fate of the Intelligent Music Project in Turin?