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Spain: Rehearsals begin for Benidorm Fest 2025

The stage is set for Benidorm Fest 2025, Spain’s national selection for the Eurovision Song Contest. After ten days of work, the stage is ready, and rehearsals have officially started at the Palau d’Esports l’Illa in Benidorm.

This year’s stage design is different from previous editions. It features a triangular layout that nearly spans the width of the arena. A large LED screen, measuring 30 meters wide and 20 meters high, forms the backdrop, creating a more open and spacious feel.

Ana María Bordas, Co-Director of Benidorm Fest, explained:

“We wanted to create a stage that feels bigger and allows the audience to feel more involved.”

More than 300 people worked to complete the stage, which is now ready to host the live shows. The production includes 18 cameras and 500 lighting fixtures, ensuring every performance will be captured from the best angles.

Rehearsals have begun, with participants preparing their performances for next week’s shows.

Benidorm Fest 2025

As in previous years, Benidorm Fest will consist of two semi-finals and a Grand Final. Throughout each phase of the contest, results will be determined by a 50% expert jury, 25% demoscopic jury, and 25% public vote.

The two semi-finals will air on January 28 and January 30, featuring eight entries, with four advancing to the final from each. The Grand Final will take place on February 1, with eight songs vying for the honour of representing Spain.

The winners of last year’s Benidorm Fest and Spain’s representatives in Eurovision 2024 were Nebulossa with the song “Zorra” who ended up in 22nd place:

 

 

Stay tuned on Eurovisionfun for all the news regarding our favourite music competition!


Source: RTVE

Spain: The members of the Benidorm Fest jury unveiled!

The Spanish broadcasting union, RTVE, announced a few moments ago, the members of the jury for Benidorm Fest, the National Final for the selection of the Spanish representative for Eurovision 2022.

The members of the jury of Benidorm Fest, that will determine the 50% of the voting, are the following:

National Jury Group:

  • Natalia Calderón – Vocal Coach
  • Miryam Benedited – Director and Choreographer
  • Estefanía García – Singer, mezzo soprano at RTVE choir

International Jury Group:

  • Marvin Dietmann – Director of many Eurovision entries
  • Felix Bergsson – Icelandic Head of Delegation

Benidorm Fest: How will it work?

14 artists will be split in two finals, of 7 contestants, that will be held on the 26th and 27th of January respectively and will last 70 minutes each.

The Grand Final that will last 90 minutes, will be shown on the 29th of January, when the 8 finalists will get the chance to perform, bidding to represent Spain at this year’s 66th Eurovision Song Contest, that will be held in Turin the forthcoming May.

All the shows will be broadcast on La 1 de Televisión Española, at 22:40 CET. Benidorm Fest will take place at Palacio de Deportes L’Illa, at the Spanish city of Alicante.

The artists

The 14 artists that will compete int he hopes of becoming this year’s Spanish representative at the Eurovision Song Contest are:

First Semi Final

  1. Luna Ki – Voy a Morir
  2. Varry Brava – Raffaella
  3. Azúcar Moreno – Postureo
  4. Blanca Paloma – “Secreto del agua”
  5. Unique – Mejores
  6. Tanxugueiras – “Terra”
  7. Chanel – SloMo

Second Semi Final

  1. Xeinn – Eco
  2. Marta Sango – “Sigues en mi mente
  3. Javiera Mena – “Culpa”
  4. Gonzalo Hermida – Quién lo diría
  5. Rigoberta Bandini – Ay Mama
  6. Rayden – “Calle de la llorería”
  7. Sara Deop – Make you say

The voting system

Only 8 artists will be going through to the grand final. The result will be determined by a mixed system made up of the jury (national and international), televoting and demoscopic jury:

  • 50% of the voting will correspond to the votes of the jury consisting of five experts, three of Spanish citizenship and two internationals.
  • the rest 50% will be determined by televoting (25% through the phone calls and SMS of the audience, 25% by choice of the demoscopic jury)
  • The artists will get assigned with a phone number and when all of their performances are complete, the lines will be open and the voting will start. The voting window will last approximately 15 to 20 seconds and the presenters, AlaskaInés Hernand and Máximo Huerta, will then announce the winner that will represent Spain at the Eurovision Song Contest 2022.

Stay tuned to Eurovisionfun for all the latest developments regarding Benidorm Fest and the Spanish entry at Eurovision 2022!

Source : RTVE

Spain: How are the songs of Benidorm Fest doing on Spotify?

Two weeks after the release of the 14 competing song in Spain’s national selection, some front runners have already emerged. According to Spotify Streams, this is their current placing:

Ay Mama by Rigoberta Bandini, with its feminist message, seems to have won over fans in Spain. The European fan favorites, Tanxugueiras, are at the second place in this listing, with a big differene in streams, and at the third place comes Rayden. The veterans Azucar Moreno are only at the ninth place and most of their streams come from european listeners.

Why do we look on streams though? Well streams correctly predicted the winner of the Czech televoting in the Czech national selection! Will the same happen this time around with Spain?

Benidorm Fest: How will it work?

Benidorm Fest will take place somewhere within January (the exact date is yet to be released) and it will consist of two semi finals, each including seven performances, four of which will eventually advance to the Grand Final!

The winner will be chosen by a 50% public vote and a 50% jury vote. Two sets of juries will vote, both consisting of music professionals. However, one jury team will be Spanish (30& of the jury voting) and the other one will be of international descent (20% of the jury voting). On the contrary, as far as the public vote in concerned, 25% of it will come from televoting and 25% will come from a sample of spanish population, chosen by demographics and statistics, a criterfia used in both Sanremo and Melodifestivalen.

RTVE has chosen this process wanting to ensure that the final result will showcase in the best way the likings of the Spanish majority.

Stay tuned in Eurovision Fun for the latest news and updates on Spain’s participation in Eurovision 2022!

Image Source: Martin Fjellanger