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Czech Republic: Head of Delegation,Jan Frost Bors resigns

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The head of the Czech delegation at the Eurovision song contest, Jan Frost Bors, in a lengthy post on Facebook, announced that he is leaving the country’s public broadcaster  and hence his post.

Je tomu téměř 12 let, co jsem poprvé vstoupil na půdu České televize. Napsal svůj první scénář nebo namluvil první…

Posted by Jan Frost Bors on Wednesday, October 30, 2019

Jan Frost Bors has been the leader of the Czech Delegation for the past four years, leading the Czech Republic three times to the Grand Final, culminating of course in 2018 when, with Mikolas Josef and “Lie To Me”, he reached the sixth place for the first time!

It is unknown who will succeed Jan Frost Bors. We remind you that the Czech Public Television (ČT), with its public posting on Facebook, has revealed that eight songs will be competing in the national final for Eurovision 2020, which will take place on 25 January 2020 in Prague.

 

Sweden: Two more names for Melodifestivalen | Eric Saade thinks seriously the prospects to join with the right song!

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Two more names for Melodifestivalen 2020 are revealed by Aftonbladet, while Eric Saade, who took third place for Sweden in 2011 with “Popular”, is reportedly targeting the country’s public broadcaster , SVT.

Albin Johnsén and Suzi P ready for Melodifestivalen 2020

Albin Johnsén, 30, and Suzi P, 16, are the two new artists revealed by Aftonbladet to take part in Melodifestivalen 2020.

Albin Johnsén had a huge hit in 2014 and competed in Melodifestivalen 2016 with Mattias Andréasson, with the song “Rik”, reaching the second chance round.

Suzi P is a young up-and-coming singer, very popular at an early age, and also participated in “Summer Holiday Morning”, a children’s show on Swedish public television.

Is Eric Saade coming back?

Eric Saade, 29, was the presenter of this year’s Melodifestivalen. He has already participated three times, making sense every time, and in 2011 he was the winner of the Melodifestivalen with “Popular”.

This song was a revival of Sweden in the competition, marking the end of its poor performance in scoring and the beginning of a decade, with results that almost always ended in the top ten but also two wins (2012 and 2015). .

Sources close to the singer say a fourth entry would have been of interest to him, as long as there was a proper song. In his latest recordings, however, he himself plays songs in Swedish lyrics. If he finally says yes to SVT, he has to choose between the Swedish verse he prefers or the English that strategically helps most.

The artists who have so far confirmed for Melodifestivalen 2020

Seven contestants have so far secured a place in the Melodifestivalen 2020 semifinals:

Amanda Aasa (from P4 Nästa)
Victor Crone
Hanna Ferm
Jakob Karlberg
The Mamas
Albin Johnsén
 Suzi P.

Two names have been targeted by SVT, but have not yet confirmed their participation:

Carola
Eric Saade

Recall that 14 of the 28 participants of the Melodifestivalen result from the open invitation to SVT creators, 13 are selected through an invitation to SVT and 1 is from the P4 Nästa radio competition.

In detail the program of Melodifestivalen 2020 is as follows:
Linkoping – First Semifinal – 1 February
Gothenburg – Second Semifinal – 8 February
Lulea – Third Semifinal – February 15
Malmo – Fourth Semifinal – February 22
Eskilestone – Second Opportunity – February 29
Stockholm – Final – 7 March
David Sundin, Linnea Henriksson and Lina Hedlund will all be presenting the six nights of the show.

Source: Aftonbladet

Bulgaria: Back to Eurovision again

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This day started with a pleasant surprise for the Eurovision constitution and the Europeans all over Europe . Bulgaria is returning after this year’s absence from the contest for financial reasons, according to BNT General Manager of the country’s public broadcaster Emil Kuslokov.

One major sponsor will cover all costs of Bulgarian participation in Rotterdam

The Director General of BNT today announced that Bulgaria will be present at Eurovision 2020, having already confirmed its participation in the EBU.

A major sponsor will cover all costs (from participation fee, to travel, subsistence, stage presentation, video clip, costume, etc.). The sponsor will be present at a special press conference soon. The relevant amount is expected to be between 400,000 and 500,000 Leva.

“Many people have money, but few invest in culture. Therefore, I feel the need to thank the sponsor for what he does for the BNT. It’s not money thrown into the wind. Bulgaria had strong performances in Eurovision. so it is worth continuing this tradition, and why not pursue global productive activity”

(Emil Kuslokov, for Bulgaria’s return to Eurovision)

British production company the big sponsor

We may not yet know who is hiding behind Bulgaria’s return to the contest, but what we do know is that it is a large British production company, for which the BBC sent an hour-long video to BNT to use in its presentation.

According to Emil Kuslokov, the company has major projects and collaborations with international stars such as Beyonce.

The company will choose both the song and the artist to represent Bulgaria in Rotterdam on May 12, 14 and 16, hoping to continue the success of the country in the competition.

UPDATE

(10.35)

The news has now been confirmed by the Bulgarian public broadcaster Twitter account, the tool BTN has used for so many years to make announcements about the contest.

https://twitter.com/bg_eurovision/status/1189460222722613250?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1189460222722613250&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Feurovisionfun.com%2F2019%2F10%2F%25ce%25b2%25ce%25bf%25cf%2585%25ce%25bb%25ce%25b3%25ce%25b1%25cf%2581%25ce%25af%25ce%25b1-%25ce%25b5%25cf%2580%25ce%25b9%25cf%2583%25cf%2584%25cf%2581%25ce%25ad%25cf%2586%25ce%25b5%25ce%25b9-%25cf%2583%25cf%2584%25ce%25bf%25ce%25bd-%25ce%25b4%25ce%25b9%25ce%25b1%25ce%25b3%25cf%2589%25ce%25bd%25ce%25b9%25cf%2583%25ce%25bc%2F

 

We may have had the withdrawal of Hungary in the past few days, but today we have been informed of the return of Bulgaria, which together with Ukraine, after their absence this year, will make the event a bit  more interesting.

In 2018, Bulgaria was represented by Equinox with “Bones”, taking 14th place:

Source: 24chasa.bg

Eurovision 2020: Hosts of the event selected | Two men and one woman

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Cornal Maas, the man who is the soul of Eurovision in the Netherlands and a commentator on the country’s public broadcaster, recently revealed that the Eurovision 2020 presenters,two men and one woman are selected.

In an interview with NPO Radio 2 and Gijs Staverman, he said that he will not be among the presenters, despite what has been written lately and that presenters will be announced in the near future.

Maas is preparing a documentary on Duncan Laurence‘s victory in Tel Aviv last May, in addition to playing a key role in preparing the next contest and his usual role in the Dutch selection committee. He talks about the needs of this documentary with Edsilia Rombley, Ruth Jacott, Ilse DeLange and of course Duncan Laurence.

The 65th Eurovision Song Contest will take place in Ahoy, Rotterdam on 12, 14 and 16 May.

Source: televizier

The Netherlands: Searching for Eurovision 2020 representative begun

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In addition to preparation of the 65th Eurovision Song Contest in Rotterdam next May, Dutch public television has also begun searching for its next representative.

The Netherlands will choose its next participation by internal selection, as since 2013 with this system it manages to qualify for the final (except 2015) and is usually high on the scoreboard.

Jan Smit revealed to us through a post that the committee set up by Dutch public television to choose the next Eurovision representative held its first hearing.

https://www.instagram.com/p/B4KVqpMAfHZ/

The Committee consists of:

Coen Swijnenberg – Dj
Sander Lantinga – Dj
Joyce Hoydelmans – Member of the competition mission since 2014
Eric Van Stade – General Manager of Avrotros
Cornald Maas – Contest commentator
Jan Smit – Contest commentator

In recent days, it was announced that internationally renowned DJ Armin van Buuren rejected Avrotros’s proposal to represent the Netherlands in the 2020 Eurovision contest.

Duncan Laurence, with the song “Arcade”, managed to bring the event to the Netherlands for the first time since 1980.

Albania: Festivali i Kenges 58 final on December 22nd

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Albania’s public broadcaster, RTSH, has announced the dates of the Festivali i Kenges 58, the country’s national final for the Eurovision Song Contest.

Specifically, the two semifinals will take place on December 19th and 20th, while the Grand Final, where we will also learn Albania’s 17th Eurovision Song Contest representative, will take place on December 22nd. Alketa Vejsiu will be the host of Festivali i Kenges 58.

The 20 candidates for the Festivali i Kenges to claim the Rotterdam ticket are:

1. Albërie Hadërgjonaj
2. Aldo Bardhi
3. Arilena Ara
4. Bojken Lako
5. Devis Xherahu
6. Eli Fara & Stresi
7. Elvana Gjata
8. Era Rusi
9. Gena
10. Genc Tukiqi
11. Kanita Suma
12. Kamela Islamaj
13. Kastro Zizo
14. Olta Boka
15. Renis Gjoka
16. Robert Berisha
17. Sara Bajraktari
18. Tiri Gjoci
19. Valon Shehu
20. Wendi Mancaku

Elvana Gjata, a successful singer in her home country, Arilena Ara who has become well known in with the song  “Nentori“, as well as Olta Boka who represented her country at Eurovision 2008, occupying the 17thte place stand out among the candidates.

This year in Tel Aviv, Jonida Maliqi with “Ktheju Land”, the song she won at FiK 2018, brought Albania to the final, finishing 17th with 90 points.

Malta:Watch Destiny Chukunyere’s performance on X Factor

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17-year-old Destiny Chukunyere, who won Junior Eurovision in 2015, is a candidate on the X Factor currently airing on public broadcaster, a show which will emerge the country’s representative in Rotterdam.

In 2015 Destiny brought Malta to the forefront of Junior Eurovision, with her amazing voice and retro song, “Not My Soul”. A year later she joined Britain’s Got Talent, reaching the semifinals. This year, she participated in the vocals of the Maltese Mission to Tel Aviv, assisting on stage with Michela, who represented her country after her X Factor victory.

The young singer chose to perform Jennifer Hudson’s “Giving Myself”, gaining 4 yes from the judges, who even said what they imagined on stage in Rotterdam in May. Recall that the jury consists of Ira Losco, ESC 2002 and 2016, Howard Keith Debono, manager of Malta’s top artists, Ray Mercieca, composer and producer, and Alexandra Alden, singer.

Below you can enjoy Destiny’s appearance that looks set to bring Malta’s first Eurovision 2020 win:

Armin van Buuren: “I will not represent the Netherlands in Eurovision”

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In an interview with world-renowned DJ Armin van Buuren this morning, he revealed that he rejected the proposal to represent the Netherlands in the 2020 Eurovision Contest, while at the same time, he made clear  that he did not want to represent the country in general.

In a well-known country radio show, the famous artist explained that the organizers approached him again about the possibility of representing the country at the competition, but he can not see  himself on stage.

“I don’t think that’s the right place. Of course they approached me again and we had discussions etc etc, but no, I don’t know if I can add something as an artist”

At the same time, he says that he was suggested to create a group of Dutch DJs for the occasion, which he again rejected.

“It’s not going to work. […] What will I do there? Will I be behind a turntable with my hands in the air? I feel uncomfortable. There are many artists in the Netherlands who can do that. No, that’s not going to happen”

Armin van Buuren is one of the most recognized and acclaimed DJs on the world music scene. He has been recognized as the number one DJ by the British monthly magazine DJ Mag (DJ Magazine) five times, and in 2014 he released the song “This Is What It Feels Like”, which gave him a Grammy Award nomination – the fourth electronic music artist in history of the nominations.

Source:rtlnieuws.nl

Sweden: ‘The Mamas’ band was added to Melodifestivalen 2020 candidate list

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The female gospel band “The Mamas” looks ready to claim Swedish representation in Rotterdam through Melodifestivalen 2020, according to Aftonbladet.

The Mamas also accompanied John Lundvik this year, both on Melodifestivalen on Eurovision stage, with “Too Late For Love”. Their impeccable gospel vocals were commented on by everyone and contributed to John Lundvik’s victory at Melodifestivalen 2019 and then to fifth place in Swedish Tel Aviv.

https://youtu.be/iEEuG5XML-A

The band now consists of three members, Loulou Lamotte, Ashley Haynes and Dinah Yona Manna, after Paris Renita left The Mamas last month.

Summing up what we know so far, the artists who appear to be participating in Melodifestivalen 2020 are:

1. Amanda Aasa (from the P4 radio competition)

2. Victor Crone

3. Hanna Ferm

4. Jakob Karlberg

5. The Mamas

Eurovision 2020: Rotterdam urges Europe to “Open up”|The official slogan of this year’s Contest

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We all watched this morning on the official AVROTROS twitter account, Songfestival, a mysterious post with a video-teaser featuring Dunkan, last year’s Eurovision winner in Tel Aviv, wondering “What is about?”

Of course, most of us immediately realized that the organizers of this year’s contest were simply preparing for the official slogan of ESC 2020.

Suspicion that it was not too late to be verified as just a few hours later Rotterdam revealed the coveted slogan of this year’s event, via a new post:

https://twitter.com/songfestival/status/1187424982005104640

So,Rotterdam tells us to “Open up”…Open up to music, Open up to new ideas, Open up to reality, Open up to Eurovision!

As Dutch broadcaster’s producer,  Sietse Bakker explained later:

“We have looked for a theme and slogan that reflect what the Netherlands stands for and which the Dutch can identify with; a country with an open mind to the world, where we speak our mind, with respect for each other. We also found it important to choose a theme that reflects the spirit of our times. People are concerned about increasing polarization and freedom isn’t as self-evident for everyone as it should be. With the slogan ‘Open Up’, we warmly invite people to open up to others, to different opinions, each other’s stories and of course to each other’s music”

Jon Ola Sand, Executive Supervisor of the Eurovision Song Contest for the EBU, also, stated about the slogan:

“Open Up is the perfect slogan for the Eurovision Song Contest as it celebrates its 65th edition. In 1956, only 7 countries could watch the competition and since then we have opened up to the whole of Europe, to Australia and now, via streaming, to the whole world. The values of the Eurovision Song Contest are universality and inclusivity, and our proud tradition of celebrating diversity through music. Now we can add a new one – that of openness.”