Eurovision 2024: The Jury Show of the second Semi Final – Live Commentary (UPDATED)
We are already in the middle of this year’s Eurovision week and the Jury Show of the second semi-final is about to get underway. Since tonight’s rehearsal is exclusively accessible to accredited media, Eurovisionfun is here to provide you live commentary of the show for another year. Therefore, the article will be updated on a regular basis. All you need to do to stay updated with everything that occurs during tonight’s show is click the refresh button!
What is the “Jury Show”?
In essence, the jury show serves as a dress rehearsal, where the juries cast their votes. Tonight, the 16 countries taking part in this semi-final will take the stage, along with three of the automatically qualified entries –France, Spain, and Italy-, who will perform for the first time ever in between the competing entries. Since 2023, television viewers have the final say in determining the competition’s semifinal results. However, the juries will still be able to cast their votes tonight in the event that there are technical issues with tomorrow’s voting procedure.
The show
The show starts with a recap of the 10 countries that qualified from yesterday’s semi-final. Then, we see a comedic video, which shows the two hosts singing tattoo, in solarium beds.
The competing entries
01. Malta: Sarah Bonnici – Loop
Malta’s Sarah Bonnici opens tonight’s show with her upbeat song “Loop.” Her performance feels like a 3-minute dance break, making it the perfect show-opener. Four male dancers accompany Sarah, and the LEDs are red and green in hue. There is an outstanding dance break at the end. Will the aforementioned, though, be enough to guarantee the country’s qualifying for the Final? There are undoubtedly some chances, but in my opinion, they are not very high.
02. Albania: BESA – TITAN
Besa from Albania goes on stage next. Instead of the silver outfit, she is now wearing a turquoise dress. The stage doesn’t appear empty due to the numerous people depicted on the LED screens. Despite having one of the strongest voices in this year’s competition, the staging does not work on her favour. I personally do not see Albania qualifying tomorrow.
03. Greece: Marina Satti – ZARI
Greece’s Marina Satti is the next performer. “Likes” come from the bottom right of the screen as the performance opens in a 9:16 Instagram live style. The majority of Greece’s performance is filmed on a singe shot, as is already known. First camera cut is used after the second chorus. The predominant shades of the fancy and colourful LEDs are purple, blue, and red. Greek cultural elements are blended with Greek and urban aspects. The dancing throughout the performance is powerful. All things considered, a solid and effective performance that will undoubtedly get Greece to the Grand Final on Saturday.
04. Switzerland: Nemo – The Code
We are headed to one of the favourites of the second semi-final. Nemo’s outfit differs from what we saw in the first and second rehearsals. For the most of the performance, they are standing on the moving platform that we saw in the rehearsal clip. Their vocals are very impressive, considering that the performance is not easy to execute. Overall, the staging is dark and atmospheric. Switzerland is definitely qualifying and is in the running for the victory!
05. Czechia: Aiko – Pedestal
Aiko has significantly improved her vocals since the national selection. The staging is simple, with the red and black being the dominant colours. The cubes also play an important role in the performance. During the song’s bridge, one of the cubes comes down, projecting Aiko and a man’s shadows, resembling to a retro film. There are a lot of pyros at the finale. Overall a good performance from Czechia, however I don’t think that it will be enough to bring the country to the final.
-Break-
France: Slimane – Mon amour (not competing)
Next up is Slimane from France. He uses lengthy camera angles to create an intimate performance. During certain parts of the perfromance, he lies on the floor, in which a white stripe is displayed. He follows the camera and uses a lot of hand movements. The dominant colours are white and blue. Vocally he is very impressive, which puts him among the favourites to win the jury vote in the final on Saturday.
06. Austria: Kaleen – We Will Rave
Austria’s performance appears modern and expensive due to the abundance of eye-catching lighting, lasers, and smoke. The choreography is simple yet powerful. Overall, a good performance. In my opinion, Kaleen has a great chance of qualifying.
07. Denmark: SABA – SAND
Though much darker, Denmark’s performance has similarities to the one from the national selection. Saba’s image is projected onto the LEDs as she stands on a tiny platform. Gold lighting and smoke are included. Vocally she is good. Denmark’s qualification is not certain, but she is undoubtedly vying for one of the ten spots.
08. Armenia: LADANIVA – Jako
Ladaniva from Armenia is up next. In the centre of the stage is a platform that resembles an island made of vibrantly coloured plinths, on which the members of the band perform, standing at various levels and playing their instruments. The dominant colours are those of the Armenian flag. Overall, with chickens depicted on the LED displays, the performance has a lively and authentic feel. The singer is incredibly charismatic, and the vocals are spot on as well. A safe qualification for Armenia!
-Second break-
09. Latvia: Dons – Hollow
Latvia is next. Dons first appears performing in the centre of a giant circular prop. There are numerous close-up shots featured. The primary colour of the lightning is purple. He is dressed in the same blue outfit from the rehearsal clip. Although his vocals are on point, I don’t think they will be enough to get Latvia to the final.
Spain: Nebulossa – ZORRA (not competing)
We’re moving on to the next automatic qualifier of the night. The stage performance is very similar to the one we saw in Benidorm Fest. Towards the end, the dancers take off their clothes and the stand on a couch-prop along with the members of the band. Pyros are also used.
10. San Marino: MEGARA – 11:11
Megara from San Marino will take the stage next. The two main colors of their performance are pink and black. There are loads of smoke and pyros. There is also an outfit change. All in all, it seems far more polished than what we saw in the national selection. However, I don’t think that it will be enough to bring the country to the final.
11. Georgia: Nutsa Buzaladze – Firefighter
Next up is Nutsa from Georgia. Her performance is very energetic and includes a lot of dancing. The element of fire is strong as well, with a circle of flames displayed on the LED screens and plenty of pyro at the end of the performance. Nutsa starts and ends the performance standing on a platform. In the beginning, smoke is also used, and later on, her face appears on the LED screens. Her vocals are great. Despite the song not being the strongest one, Georgia is an almost safe qualifier.
12. Belgium: Mustii – Before The Party’s Over
Belgium’s performance is essentially the same as the one we saw in “The Voice.” Wearing an all-white outfit, Mustii is positioned at the centre of a circle of microphones, on a slowly rotating platform. There are numerous cloudy graphics on the wall and floor, and parts of the music video are displayed on the LED screens. Although his vocals have improved, he still struggles to pull off the song. The last chorus also comes on a bit too slowly. Belgium is one of the evening’s unanswered questions, in my opinion. For now I’ll say he’s qualifying but I wouldn’t be surprised if he didn’t.
13. Estonia: 5MIINUST x Puuluup – (nendest) narkootikumidest ei tea me (küll) midagi
The band’s lead singer kicks off the performance while singing in between the audience. There are some funny dance moves and a lot of energy throughout the performance. The band members’ figures are displayed on the LED screens, with green and pink being the predominant colors. Estonia’s qualification will not be easy, but there are definitely some chances.
Italy: Angelina Mango – La Noia (not competing)
The last automatic qualifier of the evening is up next. Angelina is on the ground at the beginning of the performance. There are five male dancers with her. In the LEDs we see brown and gold-colored graphics, which feature floral displays. The performance is quite dynamic overall, but the standout part is the acapella one, during the song’s bridge. Overall, Italy put on a strong show, but , in my opinion, not a winning one. She will undoubtedly place in the top ten, though!
14. Israel: Eden Golan – Hurricane
Eden’s performance begins with a lot of smoke, and she is positioned in the middle of a circular prop. There are four dancers with her. Vocally she is very impressive. The LEDs include blue visuals, that resemble a hurricane. As the performance draws to a close, the lighting becomes gold, and we can see a sun slowly moving into the circular prop. Israel is one of the safe qualifiers of this semi-final.
15. Norway: Gåte – Ulveham
We’re moving on to Norway. The performance is very similar to the one we saw in the country’s national selection. The element of water is present on the visuals, while smoke is used as well. The lead singer sounds flawless vocally and is perched atop a rock prop. Overall a very impressive performance that will most likely bring Norway to Saturday’s Grand Final.
16. Netherlands: Joost Klein – Europapa
Joost is performing along with two dancers and a man wearing a blue bird costume. The LED screen features traditional food from several European countries in addition to graphics reminiscent of a video game. The performance’s high point is undoubtedly when he sends his parents a heartfelt message, at the end. While the performance is good overall, it falls short of what was anticipated. He is, nonetheless, a surefire qualifier and most likely the winner of this semifinal, but I personally don’t think he has chances of winning the whole contest.
Belgium gets to perform again, due to technical issues that occurred during Mustii’s performance. This time, the sound is improved, but Mustii’s vocals are still unstable, especially during the chorus.
Interval Acts
We now see the first recap of tonight’s 16 competing entries.
An sing-along act follows. Three legendary past winners of the contest are performing live in Malmö, while Eurovision fans from all around Europe are displayed on the screen, singing along with them. In particular, Helena Paparizou performs her winning song “My Number One” on stage. Charlotte Perelli sings “Take Me To Your Heaven” next, followed by Sertab Erener, who performs “Everyway That I Can”.
As the voting lines are about to close, television viewers will now watch the second and last recap of tonight’s competing entries.
We now see a tribute to ABBA. It was expected that the well-known band would be honoured in some way during the contest, since this year marks the 50th anniversary of ABBA’s legendary victory for Sweden in the Eurovision Song Contest. In this segment of the show, that is precisely what happens.
The evening’s final interval act features popular presenter Petra Mede. She sings about Sweden’s Eurovision history. Charlotte Perelli and Käärijä join her.
The fake announcement of the qualifiers takes place now, bringing the show to a close.
My predictions of tomorrow’s results, based on tonight’s performances:
Definitely qualifying:
- Switzerland
- Netherlands
- Israel
- Armenia
- Greece
Most likely qualifying:
- Norway
- Georgia
Borderline Qualifiers:
- Austria
- Belgium
- Estonia
Borderline Non-Qualifiers:
- Denmark
Non-Qualifiers:
- Czechia
- San Marino
- Albania
- Latvia
- Malta
Stay tuned on Eurovisionfun for all the updates regarding the 2024 Eurovision Song Contest!
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