EXCLUSIVE: Why did ERT not hold a national final for Eurovision 2022?

/0 Comments/in , , /by

It was a keen desire of most of the fans that ERT would be holding a national final giving the public the opportunity to choose the Greek representative for Eurovision 2022. What did occur and a national final never happened? What stopped the Greek national broadcaster’s administration from fullfilling an intention they indeed had?

Procedure beggins with no chance of a national final

As you might remember we had already informed you about ERT having a national final out of their plans, at least for this year. That was the information we had at this very point and this is the reason we were so definite about it. But let’s start from the beggining.

At early September ERT initiates the call for participations, giving that way officialy the opportunity to any artist, creator, company, records label who is interested submitting their suggestion. At that time, a national final was not even a thought. The reason is simple. No one expected the interest people showed, that got translated into entries, NOR the  high quality of the songs submitted.

On October 10th the deadline for the submitions is over and ERT now has to choose between more than 40 songs. The procedure has already been announced by Dimitris Papadimitriou. The jury members would hear the songs, rate them individually and the top 5 would be moving onto the second and final phase of the selection.

Thoughts about a TV show

At this point the ERT administratives start thinking about a possible national final, as they think they have 5 songs that could fit such a concept and hold a decent show. For that reason the head of delegation gets the permission to ask all the finalists whether they would be interested in such a show. Keep in mind that this was essential as the earliest ERT’s proclamation did not refer to that at all.

After communicating with all the 5 finalists (still not publically known), the HoD received 3 negative answers, 1 positive and 1 “maybe”. The doubts of the artists, and their labels, did mostly refer to the on-screen result, the televoting transparency, and their personal style that could possibly not fit to such an event.

ERT, however, kept on trying by suggesting a national final in which the jury vote would be more powerful than televoting, as happens in Romania or Malta. They also suggested the national final taking place on Kostis Maravegias’ show (“Dynata“), which is closer to the 5 finalists musical profile but even then the objections were not avoided.

One-way decision

Under the fear of people suddenly withdrawing, ERT decided to go on with the internal selection publishing the top 5 artists. Still wanting to somehow keep the public involved, they suggested assuming the production of their tracks and releasing them through their radio in order to get a feedback from the public before the commitee gets their final decision. The finalists and their labels did not accept that either, as they insisted on keeping the songs and releasing them the way they wanted to.

More or less this was the background of the previous months and we can now, almost a month after Amanda has officialy been announced as the Greek representative, reveal it to you.

What about the future?

We, as Eurovisionfun, are wondering whether the artists this year would bother submitting their entries if they had been aware of a national final from the start. Based on the previous facts, probably not.

The decision ERT has to take for the future is exactly what type of entries do they want. This question is already being discussed in ERT’s offices, while their goal is keeping the quality high while also keeping the public and eurofans involved to the selection. However a national final is not the only way to do so, and this is exactly what the greek delegation is lately working on.

Stay tuned at Eurovisionfun for all the latest news regarding Greece’s participation in Eurovision 2022!

Malta: Listen to a few seconds of the 22 songs of MESC 2022!

/0 Comments/in , , /by

Malta’s public television, TVM, decided to broadcast a national final in order to pick the country’s representative for Eurovision 2022. That means, MESC returns for the first time since 2018.

We already know the 22 artists, as well as the songwriters of the songs competing in the semifinal of MESC 2022.

A few minutes ago, the official Instagram profile of the Maltese national final, revealed the first 20 seconds of the 22 songs that are going to compete on MESC 2022. From these 22 songs, 16 will qualify for the Final and of course the winning song will get the ticket for Eurovision Song Contest 2022 in Turin. The show will run for three nights, starting in February 17 and ending in February 19, when we will learn the country’s representative.

Listen to the 22 songs of the Maltese national final below by clicking on the songs name:

A pleasant surprise for us, is the presence Dimitris Stassos among the composers competing for the Maltese representation  at Eurovision 2022. The Greek composer, who lives and works in Sweden, was the composer of Aphrodisiac by Eleftheria Eleftheriou in Eurovision 2012 and  La Noche Es Para Mi by Soraya in Eurovision 2009, and he has also compete in national finals of various countries. Along with Dimitris Stassos we see Nektarios Tyrakis, known in the contest for being the lyricist of Shake It by Sakis Rouvas in Eurovision 2004, but also in entries of other countries.

Along the competing is Jessica Muscat who represented San Marino in Eurovision 2018. Furthermore the county’s representative for 2014, but also Malta’s representative for Junior Eurovision 2010, Nicole Azzopardi. Of course a lot of artists have a great experience in MESC, having tried a lot of times to represent the Malta in the past.

Lastly, the slogan of MESC 2022 got announced, that is “What a Feeling“.

 

This year’s representative for Malta was Destiny with the song Je me casse, finishing in seventh place with 255 points:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jbbc2yKnv0M

Stay tuned in Eurovision Fun for everything new regarding Maltas’s representation in Eurovision 2022!

Source/Photo: Eurovision Malta/TVM

Katrina Leskanich at Trump’s New Year’s concert!

/0 Comments/in /by

A news that really surprised us. The latest winner of the Eurovision Song Contest for the United Kingdom, Katrina Leskanich, took part in the New Year’s concert of Donald Trump, former US President.

Katrina Leskanich with the group Wave won Eurovision 1997 with the song Love Shine A Light, with a record number of points for that voting system. Despite the song’s universal message, Katrina did not hesitate to attend Trump’s concert, which featured mostly singers from the American country, a politician who marked his term with actions contrary to what the lyrics of Love Shine A light say.

The Netherlands rejects Armin van Buuren song for Eurovision 2022

/2 Comments/in /by

Having a well known name in the music industry is no guarantee of succeeding at the Eurovision Song Contest.  Moreover, sometimes well-established acts are not even considered by their public broadcasters.  This has been the case of Dutch DJ Armin van Buuren.

The international artist sent a song together with Jaap Reesema.  Ressema won the Dutch edition of the X Factor.  However, in an interview for Algemeen Dagblad, Reesema confirmed that their hopeful song was rejected.  The duo received a negative decision by public broadcaster AVROTROS two weeks ago.

In spite of this setback, the artists are planning to release their candidate song at some point in the future.  In fact, van Buuren and Reesema do not rule out participating again in a national final.  Commenting on their submission Reesema said in the interview:

We of course think that it is an exceptionally good song. The lyrics would have fitted in with the theme of Eurovision. Obviously, it would have been awesome to travel to Italy but it is a good sign that there is such a tough race in The Netherlands. Eurovision has become prestigious.

The Netherlands Selection Process

A panel formed by Dutch TV commentators Jan Smit and Cornald Maas as well as radio producers DJ Coen Swijnenberg and Sander Lantinga will select the Nethelands.  In a similar fashion to the internal selection for Duncan Laurence’s winning song, the focus of the panel will be on the song itself rather than the artist.

Rumours

According to the first rumours, Lakshmi would be the Dutch representative for Turin.  Lakshmi is a Dutch singer of Surinamese descent.

Nevertheless, Dutch broadcaster AVROTROS has not commented on these rumours.  The official announcement of the song is expected for early March while the name of the singer will most likely be public early next year.

Jeangu Macrooy represented the Netherlands for the Eurovision Song Contested 2021 with his song Birth Of A New Age.  He ended in 23rd place with 11 points.

Stay tuned to Eurovisionfun for more updates on the Netherlands national selection

Source: Eurovoix

Cyprus: Through a talent show the representative at Eurovision 2023!

/1 Comment/in , , /by

Literally a bomb is what was revealed by the CEO of PANIK Records, G. Arsenakos. According to what he mentions in his interview with Esquire magazine, PANIK and RIK have agreed on a new talent show, through which the representative in Eurovision 2023 will emerge!

Although we still do not have any official information about the Cypriot representation in Eurovision 2022, we recently learned the procedure that RIK will follow for the selection of the artist in Eurovision 2023!

I can say that we as Panik have talked to RIK, the state channel of Cyprus, and we will take over the representation of the country in Eurovision in 2023. So whoever wins in the new talent show, which we are preparing, will represent Cyprus in Eurovision in 2023. I consider it a very strong prize, which will bring very good entries.

PANIK’s cooperation with RIK seems to be strengthening and will continue in the contest, for at least two more years.

We are looking forward to the developments for the Cypriot participation in both Eurovision 2022 and in this ambitious new project.

Stay tuned to Eurovisionfun for all the news regarding the Cypriot participation in our favorite song contest!

Source: OK

Ireland 2022: RTÉ opens submissions for their national final

/0 Comments/in /by

Ireland is the nation with the most number of victories in Eurovision.  However, its most recent results have been far from ideal.  Irish two most recent representatives both ended last in their semifinals.  The country has thus decided to change their selection method for Eurovision 2022.  RTÉ announced Ireland will select their representative through a national final.  This will be the first time since 2015 that Ireland has a national final for Eurovision.

The announcement took place in The Late Late Show.  RTÉ has opened a submission form inviting songwriters and performers to send their tracks.  The songs have to comply with the EBU rules for the Eurovision Song Contest.  After the submission phase ends, a committee of experts will chose the national finalists.  The national final will take place in The Late Late Show.

https://twitter.com/RTELateLateShow/status/1438975949777907716

Although the application phase is open to anyone RTÉ has made it clear it prefers to have “accomplished songwriters with a proven track record of success in the music industry” in their national selection.

“Although we wish to encourage and identify promising new talent for the future, this is probably not an opportunity for beginners or people with limited or no experience of performing in public to large crowds”. RTÉ

 

Lesley Roy represented Ireland at the Eurovision Song Contest 2021 held in 2021 with the song Maps.  She failed to qualify to the Grand Final.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FY2rxbZNvZ0&ab_channel=EurovisionSongContest

Do you think a national final will change Ireland’s fate in Eurovision?

Greece: The last winner of The Voice is MINOS EMI’s proposal for Eurovision 2022! EXCLUSIVE

/0 Comments/in /by

We had statements today of the last winner of The Voice of Greece, on the camera of SKAI’s morning show, Love It. Joanne says she would be honored to represent either Greece or Cyprus in the competition. However, the exclusive news conveyed to you by Eurovisionfun is that the record company MINOS EMI will propose to ERT the 19-year-old singer, for the 66th Eurovision Song Contest.

Ioanna Georgakopoulou, who is now introduced as Joanne, a few months ago made her debut in the discography through “Twist in my Sobriety”, by Tanita Tikaram in a dance version.

The 19-year-old winner of the last cycle of The Voice of Greece stood out for her riveting voice and her unique stage presence, giving at the same time her first victory at The Voice, to Elena Paparizou.

According to our reliable information, MINOS EMI has already come to a first contact with ERT, asking for details about the process of submitting proposals for Eurovision 2022 and the Greek representation, which has started since the beginning of the month and will last until 10 October.

MINOS EMI intends to propose Joanne. It remains unknown who the creators of her song will be. However, it is worth mentioning that her new song was edited by DJ Michalis Tsousopoulos together with ARCADE, while the production management was taken over by Joanne’s coach at The Voice, Elena Paparizou, and Nektarios Kokkinos.

Check out Joanne’s statements today for Eurovision at 1.03 (in Greek):

Joanne is added to the names of Good Job Nicky, Amanda Georgiadi, Kalomira and Elias Koza, who will probably submit their proposal to ERT for Eurovision 2022!

Would you like Joanne to represent Greece at Eurovision 2022?

Netta joins Little Big in ‘Moustache’

/0 Comments/in /by

Eurovision winner 2018 Netta is joining forces with Little Big (Russia 2020) in ‘Moustache’.  The song will be available on August 6.

Little Big made this announcement on their Instagram.  They wrote: “We think you’ll like our «Moustache».  New single feat. @nettabarzi”.  In the same publication they revealed the artwork of their new single.

Netta won the Eurovision Song Contest 2018.  This marked the first victory for Israel since 1998.  Meanwhile, Little Big were due to represent Russia in the Eurovision Song Contest 2020 which was cancelled due to the covid-19 pandemic.  They performed during the 2021 Russian national final.

Are you excited to listen to Moustache by Little Big and Netta?

 

 

 

Eurovision 2021 was safe: Only 48 persons contracted Covid-19!

/0 Comments/in /by

The Eurovision Song Contest 2021 was a safe event.  According to the first number only 48 out of 29875 visitors were infected with Coronavirus.  This means that roughly 0.16% of all attendees got Covid after the shows.

These are good news for the organizers given the ongoing circumstances.  For instance, these results mean that the number of cases was 1.6 persons per thousand in average.  The number is far lower than the national average in the Netherlands during the same week.  In this period there were around 4.9 cases per thousand in the host country.

The Eurovision Song Contest 2021 became a test to assess how to carry out with large events in the midst of a pandemic without causing an outbreak.  Accordingly, only a small audience of 3,500 persons could attend each show.  Further, the Eurovision Village took place online.  Measures against the spread of the coronavirus include asking everyone to show a negative Covid test every 48 hours in order to enter the Ahoy Arena.

Incidents

Notwithstanding the great efforts of the organizers, some negative incidents took place.  For instance, before the Turquoise carpet show one member of the Polish and the Icelandic delegation tested positive.  Both delegations could not attend the inauguration event.  Moreover, the Romanian and Maltese delegations missed the carpet event as a precautionary measure.  Apart from that, the Icelandic representatives could not perform live after one of their members tested positive.  One day later, the winner of the Eurovision Song Contest 2019, Duncan Laurence tested positive.  As a consequence, Duncan did not perform in the interval act as planned.

Thus, the first overall figures after the show looked more positive than initially thought.  However, these numbers do not include the crew, volunteers, press and delegation members who tested positive.  The organizers will publish the full statistics later this month.

 

How do you feel about these results?  Are you planning to attend Eurovision in 2022?

Source: Nu.nl

Sergey Lavrov: “The EBU decision on Belarus was disgusting and pure censorship”!

/0 Comments/in , , , , /by

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov criticized the Eurovision Song Contest and EBU’s decision for banning the Belarusian entry from the upcoming contest in Rotterdam.

Organizers of the contest disqualified Belarus from the contest last week after deeming their songs too political.

Speaking in Thursday’s televised comments, Lavrov called the decision “disgusting” and “pure censorship”.

The decision to ban Belarus from the Eurovision Song Contest was really disgusting. An act of clear censorship!

Sergey Lavrov

The first song submitted to the contest called “I’ll teach you” allegedly mocked protesters who disputed the results of the Presidential elections last summer.

Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko said the country would submit another song, but the organizers said the replacement was also breaching the rules and that Belarus would be disqualified.

Armenia’s withdrawal due to the Nagorno-Karabakh war and the blockade of Belarus reduced the number of countries participating in this year’s competition from 41 to 39, while proving beyond doubt that those who believe that politics has nothing to do with the contest, are watching something different.

Listen to the song that would represent Belarus at Eurovision 2021 below:

Do you agree with Sergey Lavrov or do you consider the exclusion of Belarus fair?

Source: Associated Press