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OGAE Poll 2023: The results of the Netherlands and North Macedonia

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The next countries to cast their votes for the OGAE annual poll are the Netherlands and North Macedonia.

The 105 members of OGAE the Netherlands voted the following countries:

  • 12 points to Finland
  • 10 points to Sweden
  • 8 points to France
  • 7 points to Austria
  • 6 points to Norway
  • 5 points to the UK
  • 4 points to Czechia
  • 3 points to Italy
  • 2 points to Spain
  • 1 point to Armenia

The 16 members of OGAE North Macedonia voted like this:

  • 12 points to Italy
  • 10 points to Finland
  • 8 points to Sweden
  • 7 points to France
  • 6 points to Norway
  • 5 points to Serbia
  • 4 points to Spain
  • 3 points to Slovenia
  • 2 points to the UK
  • 1 point to Croatia

The total results of the 19 clubs that have voted so far are the following:

It becomes evident that the margin between Sweden and Finland is gradually shrinking,whilst Croatia receives their first set of points.

Stay tuned on Eurovisionfun for all the latest news about Eurovision!

Source:Ogae International

The Netherlands: All the performances of “Eurovision in Concert 2023”!

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Eurovision in Concert 2023 took place in AFAS Live in Amsterdam, last night, with 29 of this year’s entrants performing live.

The concert was hosted by Cornald Maas and Hila Noorzai. Cornald has been the Dutch Eurovision commentator since 2006. Hila is a radio DJ and member of the committee that selected this year’s Dutch representatives (Mia Nicolai & Dion Cooper). She also hosted the Eurovision 2021 press conference in Rotterdam.

The artists that performed last night were the following:

Albania – Albina & Kelmendi Familija

Balcan sounds and consistent vocals is what we got from Albina and the Kelmendi Family! Might be the suprise entry of this year.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6UKBP_v3BPY

Armenia – Brunette

Brunette singing about her Future Lover with ethereal vocals and the crowds singing along. Beautiful performance!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KspC8I7MXl0

Australia – Voyager

Voyager give what they promise! Rock and electronic sounds, so 2025! What is concerning though, is that even though their song is supposed to be very uplifting, the crowd was too static. Also falsetto was not always on point.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cx73Q68eWwU

Austria – Teya & Salena

That’s not a song where you can show off some unreal vocals, however it’s the song that will definitely make you dance! And Teya & Salena deliver, solid vocals and much much fun! One of my personal favourites and if you ask me, a finalist and highly likely a Top5 entry!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zdh6cFfcfKo

Azerbaijan – TuralTuranX

TuralTuranX “tell us more” about their entry this year, however I’m still not getting it. A song that I could listen to the radio without complaining, but wouldn’t catch my eye/ear at the contest.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2XiT0RvJPn0

Belgium – Gustaph

The queerest entry of the year! His vocals are as good as the studio version! He is a fun guy! This is the kind of entries that I would like to qualify, even though that’s not the style of songs that I normally listen to!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jgx-CPHRx5A

Czechia – Vesna

I can only comment on their vocals. They were okay. However, this entry started off as a potential winner, but I’m not getting that vibe, at least not yet. But hey! It’s just a party performance! Let’s wait for their contest rehearsals!

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

Denmark – Reiley

Danish heart-throb Reiley, had his best performance to date. Some minor vocal issues, but overall a nice performance!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nuT–QEIyag

Estonia – Alika

Nice song and great vocals! But for me, it’s no more than just that. I wouldn’t be surprised if Estonia got disqualified.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2UKYFFFWjgU

Finland – Käärijä

Normally, that’s a song that I can’t stand listening to for more than 10 seconds. Strangely, combined to his eccentric looks and his super nice personality, I could now handle listening to his entire Amsterdam performance! Personal opinion aside, I can totally see why this is a contender for the win.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xd0n_sNDiAo

France – La Zarra

Unfortunately, after a statement in her personal Twitter account, La Zarra announced that she has to cancel her appearance in Amsterdam, due to personal circumstances.

Germany – Lord of the Lost

I can’t be objective, I don’t like this style of music. I can only be objective about their vocal abilities, which are on point I must admit!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AmPSRnNpd0A

Iceland – Diljá

That’s a song that I would add to my daily playlist, however, this song lacks something that I still don’t know what it is! Diljá’s voice is great admitedly!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EjjsWy1R93k

Ireland – Wild Youth

“Every Teardrop Is a Waterfall” x “Ritmo De La Noche” x “We Are One” would be a great mashup! I low-key like this song and I loved their Amsterdam performance. But something tells me that they will struggle to qualify this year. Let’s see what happens!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2NY6OODALZU

Latvia – Sudden Lights

Another performance that sounds exactly like the recorded version of their song! I didn’t see the love from the AFAS Live crowd.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_1qFm5Wtkgg

Lithuania – Monika Linkytė

Monika definitely sounds even better than the studio version of the song. She will try to claim a high placement in the rankings of the jury voting in this year’s contest! In the beginning I didn’t quite like “Stay“, I can now say that I love her vocals on this track!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JSO-3m9J1js

Malta – The Busker

They were not bad, not at all sounding bad live, but were they as good as it needs to be to qualify to the final show of Eurovision Song Contest? Song-wise I think not.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZIswu3YrrfU

Moldova – Pasha Parfeni

Despite the technical issues with his Madrid performance, Pasha, the Moldovan 2012 representative and returning artist of this year’s Eurovision Song Contest, managed to pull off his performance. Great vocals and energy overall!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B7LsW-dA_0U

Netherlands – Mia Nicolai & Dion Cooper

It’s really sad to see my 2nd place to perform questionably in their own country’s party concert. Their vocals sound a bit off at times and as a duo their vocals don’t seem to connect on their live performance. I hope they fix it till their semi-final, I don’t want to see them become the shocking non-qualifier of the year.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=toUGDak3o1Y

Norway – Alessandra

Very much improved vocally, Alessandra, gets carried away by the strength of her song and her fans are absolutely loving it! The whistle note was so-so. She will improve, I am sure!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F97_a4eMpK0

Romania – Theodor Andrei

Theodor has a nice voice, but this song is totally “Off and On” so one would either like it or not. I don’t.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gyin57pzpcc

San Marino – Piqued Jacks

Their are very very good vocally. Their lead vocalist sounds like Klaus Meine, frontman of Scorpions band. Their song is not at all bad after all.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pqne0dGawhQ

Slovenia – Joker Out

I simply love this band and this song! One of my favourites! I love how they sound in each and every appearance they make before the contest. I hope they continue delivering up until the Eurovision finals!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7brJYVqqgZc

Spain – Blanca Paloma

A blend of flamenco and modern sounds, bringing Spanish tradition to 2023. Her vocals are absolutely amazing. I just don’t get the hype around this entry, it is a great entry for Spain, but definitely not a top 3 entry as many fans are claiming over at social media!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0ycUxy4l00M

Sweden – Loreen

Her vocals are out of this world! Another amazing performance of the former Eurovision 2012 winner and potential 2023 winner! And for those that claim that she sings with the assistance of an Auto-Tune device, I can assure you that even when she rehearsed in the corridors of Malmö Arena or Friends Arena during the Melodifestivalen season, she sounded exactly the same, or even better than the studio version! My winner for sure!

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

Switzerland – Remo Forrer

I absolutely love his Amsterdam (and every single one of his) live performance! I can’t wait to see this song complete and staged and Remo joined by his four dancers! I think he will qualify! But let’s wait and see!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tGsRTZ5sPcA

Ukraine – TVORCHI

I love TVORCHI and their song and their Amsterdam performance. They sounded really really good, I am a fan of their style of music, but I don’t see this entry winning. Let’s see another country winning this year!

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

United Kingdom – Mae Muller

Come on, she doesn’t sound as atrocious as most of the Twitter people claim. And at least she enjoys it and the crowd loves her! I hope she will do much better in Liverpool!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4EMepsNxZUU

 

Stay tuned to Eurovisionfun for all the news about the Eurovision Song Contest 2023 in Liverpool!

Photo: EurovisionInConcert

Netherlands: Eurovision in Concert 2023 takes place tonight in Amsterdam!

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Eurovision in Concert 2023 takes place in The Netherlands tonight , with 29 of this year’s entrants performing live.

The concert will be hosted by Cornald Maas and Hila Noorzai. Cornald has been the Dutch Eurovision commentator since 2006. Hila is a radio DJ and member of the committee that selected this year’s Dutch representatives (Mia Nicolai & Dion Cooper). She also hosted the Eurovision 2021 press conference in Rotterdam.

The full line-up is as follows:

  1. Albania – Albina & Kelmendi Familija
  2. Armenia – Brunette
  3. Australia – Voyager
  4. Austria – Teya & Salena
  5. Azerbaijan – TuralTuranX
  6. Belgium – Gustaph
  7. Czechia – Vesna
  8. Denmark – Reiley
  9. Estonia – Alika
  10. Finland – Käärijä
  11. France – La Zarra
  12. Germany – Lord of the Lost
  13. Iceland – Diljá
  14. Ireland – Wild Youth
  15. Latvia – Sudden Lights
  16. Lithuania – Monika Linkytė
  17. Malta – The Busker
  18. Moldova – Pasha Parfeni
  19. The Netherlands – Mia Nicolai & Dion Cooper
  20. Norway – Alessandra
  21. Romania – Theodor Andrei
  22. San Marino – Piqued Jacks
  23. Slovenia – Joker Out
  24. Spain – Blanca Paloma
  25. Sweden – Loreen
  26. Switzerland – Remo Forrer
  27. Ukraine – TVORCHI
  28. United Kingdom – Mae Muller

In addition, Katrina Leskanich (Eurovision 1997, UK, winner, “Love Shine a Light“) will  appear as a special guest.

Stay tuned to Eurovisionfun for all the news about the Eurovision Song Contest 2023 in Liverpool!

The Netherlands:Commentator Cornald Maas is hesitant towards a national final possibility

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The experienced Dutch commentator of Eurovision, Cornald Maas, voiced on Twitter his negative attitude towards the possibility of hosting a national final for the selection of the future representatives of the Netherlands.

In response to Dutch sociologist Sjors Joosten’s article, published in NRC Handelsblad, arguing that the Netherlands should follow Sweden’s example and organize a Melodifestivalen-style national final, Cornald Maas stated:

Hear hear? I would say: think think. Leaving out the upcoming competition: All (Dutch) national finals since 2004 have resulted in only a single qualification to the final. From 2013 onwards (internal selection), we are always in the final. Or maybe you just want an orange national celebration?

In a subsequent tweet, after having being asked why the selection method is not democratic anymore,he commented the following:

It doesn’t work at the moment if we want to guarantee quality. The music industry is not willing to participate in a national final in the Netherlands, unlike in Sweden. Even “in the background”, big/good names with good songs do not want to compete here, as it has been proven more than once.

In spite of the fact that holding a Dutch national final does not seem likely in the near future, Cornald Maas did not rule out seeking for alternative,more democratic selection processes such as plebiscites.

The Netherlands is a country that has established themselves as a force to be reckoned with in the competition,with a considerable amount of remarkable entries that gave them various top-10 placements,including a 9th, a 2nd and even a top position in the scoreboard ever since the reintroduction of the internal selection process.

The Greek cooperating broadcaster ERT may find themselves at the crossroads between the internal selection and the national final on account of the fact that ever since the implementation of a selection process similar to the Dutch one (submission of proposals by interested artists and selection by an artistic committee), they have returned to the final (2019) and to the top 10 subsequently (2021,2022).

 

Do you think a Melodifestivalen type national final could be successfully held in Greece? Would it capture the interest of well-known/respectable artists and record companies? Would the Greek public make the right choice?

 

Write us in the comments and stay tuned in Eurovisionfun for more things about Eurovision!

The Netherlands: Eurovisionfun Reacts to Eurovision 2023 Entry “Burning Daylight”!

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The Netherlands’ public broadcaster AVROTROS revealed in early November that Mia Nicolai and Dion Cooper will represent their country at the Eurovision Song Contest 2023 in Liverpool.

The song is titled “Burning Daylight” and is in English. It was written by Mia Nicolai and Dion Cooper, dutch Eurovision 2019 winner Duncan Laurence, as well as Jordan Garfield and LUKAZ.

The Eurovisionfun team once again watched and reacted to the official music video of the country’s entry for the upcoming Eurovision contest! Enjoy Apostolos, George and our special guests Justin & Juri from ESCXPERTS in a Reaction video with detailed commentary on the Netherlands’ participation in 2023!

(Video Editing: @xristosrpk)

Listen to this year entry of The Νetherlands in Eurovision 2023:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UOf-oKDlO6A

Don’t forget to subscribe to our YouTube channel to be the first to enjoy interviews, reaction videos and Live streams for our favorite contest!

What do you think about the entry of The Netherlands for Eurovision 2023? Tell us in the comments!

The Netherlands: During November the song selection for Eurovision 2023!

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After S10’s remarkable result at the last year’s Eurovision Song Contest, the Dutch national broadcaster AVROTROS has already completed the song submission process for Eurovision 2023.

As previously announced, August 31st was the deadline for Dutch artists to submit their proposals in order to represent the country this year.

Cornald Maas, a member from the Dutch representative selection committee, at some of his statements highlighted the importance Eurovision currently holds for The Netherlands. He also mentioned that November will most probably be the month that their participation will be selected.

More specifically, he said:

“In the last years, Eurovision’s prestige has drastically changed in The Netherlands if someone takes into account that four Eurovision 2022 songs charted at the Dutch Top 40 for the first time since 1983.

Many young artists feel they have a chance and that is what I like the most. That unknown talents don’t feel restricted – they submit their song and think: wait, this stage is also there for me.

The participation will most probably be selected during November.“

Maas believes that this year’s submissions won’t surpass those of 2022, although AVROTROS has never announced the number of last year’s submissions.

The members of the selection committee are:

  • Carolien Borgers – DJ and music expert
  • Hila Noorzai – Eurovision expert
  • Eric van Stade – Direct General of AVROTROS
  • Cornald Maas – Commentator and Eurovision expert
  • Jan Smit – Commentator and presenter
  • Sander Lantinga – Radio DJ

The rules that submissions must meet are:

  • The song is convincingly distinctive and meets the above description
  • A maximum of three songs can be submitted
  • The song cannot have been commercially released before September 1st 2022
  • The song cannot exceed 3 minutes in length

Last year, The Netherlands has achieved finishing at 11th place at the Grand Final and at second place at the First Semi-Final, with “De Diepte” by S10.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sgOnu7ux2-k

Source: Eurovoix

Netherlands: Willing to cooperate in order to organize Eurovision 2023!

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With Ukraine’s victory during last Saturday’s Grand Final still fresh in our minds, many wonder what Kalush Orchestra’s win would mean for next year’s Eurovision. Soon after the Grand Final, the EBU released a statement saying that they will begin planning Eurovision 2023 with the winning broadcaster UA:PBC.

Of course, due to the ongoing war in Ukraine after being invaded by Russia, unique challenges will lie ahead in organizing a safe and free event for all. In the unfortunate case Ukraine won’t be able to host Eurovision in their own country next year, the EBU will look for another possible host country. The Spanish broadcaster RTVE has already confirmed they would be prepared to host Eurovision and support Ukraine regarding the organization.

According to Sietse Bakker, executive producer of the Eurovision Song Contest, while speaking with EditieNL, it would make sense for the EBU to look at possible host countries that have had the honor of hosting recently in the past. Since the Netherlands only hosted the contest last year in Rotterdam, they are known to be up for the task of hosting such a big event like Eurovision.

Dutch broadcasters AVROTROS and NPO have commented on this news as well, saying that it is too early to say anything about a possible new edition in the Netherlands. If the EBU approaches them to organize the event once again, they will take that into consideration with all involved parties.

Stay tuned on Eurovisionfun for all the news regarding the Eurovision Song Contest 2023!

Source: escxtra.com

Eurovision in Concert: The big concert returns!

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Eurovision in Concert is the biggest preparty event for Eurovision taking place every year in Amsterdam. After two continuous cancellations, in 2020 and in 2021, the concert will take place in the capital of the Netherlands on April 9, 2022.

The concert’s official Facebook account made a post today announcing that the previously announced date is now official and that the tickets bought for the 2020 concert are valid for entrance in this year’s concert.

EBU releases Eurovision 2021 new branding!!

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At the end of 2020, EBU revealed Eurovision 2021 new logo. Now EBU releases the fully new branding design for the next contest in Rotterdam, alongside with the relevant design patterns that will decorate Rotterdam in the upcoming May.

The colour palette used, is based on the flags colours of the participating countries, mostly primary colours. They are also combined with additional colours like pink, purple, light green which EBU says emphasise the festivity.

 

 

Moreover, the branding incorporates six patterns which include features of the Netherlands: landscapes, water, bridges, fields, creativity and resilience. Worth to be mentioned is the fact that there is not a single windmill. Those symbols where chosen so that people outside the Netherlands can be familiar with them as well.

 

The Branding of Eurovision 2021 will include The Track.

The aforementioned patterns will be used in backgrounds as well as in an additional part of the 2021 branding which is called the Track.

The Track takes its cue from the rays of the logo. It is made up of a number of triangular shapes which together form a long pathway type of design. The EBU says it’s based on the “symbol and perspective” of the Rotterdam stage design.

 

Source: Wiwibloggs

Netherlands: Proposal to Edsilia Rombley to present Eurovision 2020

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Following “Game Of Thrones” star Michiel Huisman, Dutch media claim that the country’s representative at Eurovision 1998 and 2007, Edsilia Rombley, has accepted a proposal to present the 65th Eurovision Song Contest, which will take place May 12,14 and 16 in Rotterdam. .

In 1998 Edsilia Rombley took fourth place in the competition then held in Birmingham, with the song “Hemel en aarde”. In 2007, she represented the country for the second time, with the song “On Top Of The World”, but failed to qualify for the final of the event.

The news was broadcast by RTL television. Edsilia Rombley will also be one of the presenters of Eurovision In Concert, the biggest annual promo event, held before the contest.