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Eurovision 2023: Ukraine’s second rehearsal!

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Time for last year’s winning country Ukraine to take the stage. TVORCHI are ready to have their second rehearsal at the M&S Bank Arena stage!

Who are TVORCHI?

Formed in 2018 by the producer Andrii Hutsuliak and the vocalist Jimoh Ausustus Kehinde,TVORCHI is a electonic music male duo from Ukraine. They met while studying at at the Faculty of Pharmacy of Ternopil National Medical University and have managed to become a well-known name in the music industry of Ukraine. After many attempts, TVORCHI won Vidbir 2023 and therefore represent the country in this years contest which is held in Liverpool, on behalf of Ukraine.

The rehearsal

Unfortunately this year, accredited journalists don’t get the chance to watch the first and second rehearsals, so we only get the information and content that the organizers officially release to the public through eurovision.tv and the official social media accounts of the contest.

Chloe Hashemi / EBU

The song is an R&B powerful track that speaks for those who are unbreakable no matter what they face in life. Four led boxes are on the stage while Andrii and Jimoh are accompanied by two dancers. The song has had a revamp, with strings being added at the last part of the song. During this section, flames are added in the stage performance. Only change after the first rehearsal is regarding outfit, with Andrii wearing a a black trouser suit with silver detailing on the top half, instead of the giant metallic coat he wore in the first. Overall it is a very dynamic and polished performance.

Sarah Louisse Bennett / EBU

Tonight, after the completion of all the second rehearsals of the Big 6, a recap video will be released with 30-second snippets of the performances, giving us a glimpse of how the acts will look on stage.

Follow us on all our social media, so that you’ll not lose a thing of what’s happening in Liverpool:

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

Eurovision 2023: Ukraine’s First Rehearsal!

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Today is the fifth day of rehearsals in Liverpool and the first rehearsals of the BIG 5 countries are going to be held today! Next up on stage for their first rehearsal is Ukraine and TVORCHI with the R&B song “Heart Of Steel”.

Who are TVORCHI?

TVORCHI is a electonic music male duo from Ukraine. They formed in 2018 by the producer Andrii Hutsuliak and the vocalist Jimoh Ausustus Kehinde. The duo met when they were students at the Faculty of Pharmacy of Ternopil National Medical University. The duo is known in the Ukrainian society since they have gained many views from their debut. TVORCHI tried to represent Ukraine in the contest many times. In December, they entered the Ukrainian National Selection Vidbir 2023 and won coming second in the jury vote and first in the public.

The Rehearsal

Unfortunately this year, accredited journalists don’t get the chance to watch the first and second rehearsals, so we only get the information and content that the organizers officaly release to the public.

The song speaks about bravery and how someone with his personality can be unbreakable. With that info, the duo is using the LED wall and the lightning to give a powerful effect, including four boxes with LED backdrops too on stage. They are accompanied by two black-chad dancers. The new revamp with the orchestral – soaring strings, church organ-style keyboard effects, thumping bass with the vocals of the singer gives extra drama to the performance comes everything together in a perfect combination.

Sarah Louise Bennet / EBU

Sarah Louise Bennet / EBU

Andrii wears a silver overcoat with a black turtleneck inside it and Jimoh wears a glided black shirt that looks like it forms a sun. It’s confirmed that there will be flame jets during the string section at the end.

Corinne Cumming / EBU

Below you can watch a small clip from the Ukrainian first rehearsal on TikTok, once it’s published on TikTok:

https://www.tiktok.com/@eurovision/video/7229414321082600731?is_from_webapp=1&sender_device=pc&web_id=7227990472449377818

The second rehearsal for Ukraine will be held on the 6th of May, when we will know how things will appear on screen for the Ukrainian entry.

Follow us on all social media, so you do not miss a moment of what will happen in Liverpool:

Stay tuned at EurovisionFun for all the latest developments regarding Ukraine’s entry in Eurovision 2023!

Source: eurovision.tv

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.

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!

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.

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.

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!

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!

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!

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!

Ukraine: Voting has begun for the selection of jury members in Eurovision 2023!

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Ukraine’s public television is conducting online voting to select the country’s jury members for the 67th Eurovision Song Contest!

Voting for the selection of jury members was also held by Ukrainian public television for its national final.

Through the Diia application, Ukrainian users are invited until April 5 to choose from among ten nominations, the five that will be invited to vote in the Eurovision 2023 final. The candidates are:

  • ROXOLANA (2022 NF)
  • Olena Hrebenyuk (opera singer)
  • Mykhailo Klymenko (JESC songwriter, KRUTЬ’s sound producer)
  • Amador Lopez (singer and choreographer)
  • Tonya Matvienko (2016 NF)
  • Oleksandr “Fozzy” Sydorenko (singer, frontman of the band Tanok na Maidani Kongo – the most succesful Ukrainian hip-hop group)
  • Oleh Sobchuk (frontman of the band SKAI – 2017 NF)
  • Svitlana Tarabarova (2016 NF)
  • Evgeny Khmara (composer and pianist)
  • Olena Shoptenko (dancer and choreographer)

Ukraine, as the winner of last year’s contest, participates directly in the final. The country is represented by TVORCHI with the song Heart of Steel.

Stay tuned on Eurovisionfun for all the updates!

Ukraine: Listen to the revamped version of “Heart of Steel”!

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Ukraine’s representative at the 2023 Eurovision Song Contest, TVORCHI have released a revamped version of their entry “Heart of Steel”.

The first country to choose a song for Eurovision 2023 was Ukraine. Since December 17, through their national final “Vidbir“, Ukrainians have chosen TVORCHI and “Heart Of Steel” to represent them in the Eurovision contest.  TVORCHI want to show us that they have been working all this time because Ukraine’s goal is to win again. So they prepared a revamp for “Heart Of Steel”, and they present it to us tonight.

There are no huge differences in the song, except the addition of some Ukrainian lyrics and a dynamic orchestration, that has been added which tops the song. It certainly looks like they worked hard to present the best version of the song in Liverpool and claim the victory for Ukraine.

Listen to the Eurovision Version of “Heart of Steel”:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=neIscK1hNxs

TVORCHI will compete in the Grand Final of Eurovision 2023 on May 13. Despite not being able to host the contest, Ukraine automatically qualifies for the final as the reigning champions.

Did you like the revamped version of the Ukrainian entry for Eurovision 2023?

Stay tuned on Eurovision Fun for all the updates around the 2023 Eurovision Song Contest!

Ukraine: KRUTb appeals against TVORCHI! | Selection of “Heart of Steel” is still valid, Suspline confirms!!

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Last Saturday, 17th of December, the Ukrainian national selection for Eurovision 2023 took place, crowning as the winners of this year’s Vidbir the band TVORCHI with the song “Heart of Steel”.

We’re a couple of days away from the Ukrainian national selection finals and just yesterday, Monday, the Ukrainian organizing commitee had to take the appeal of finalist KRUTb, against the winning act TVORCHI, into consideration!

According to KRUTb, the main vocal part during the performance of TVORCHI seemed to be a lead dub, something that is against the rules of the Ukrainian national selection.

The organizing committee heard the assessment of the music producer of the Ukrainian national selection Dmytro Shurov, who noted that only after he watched the live broadcast of the final show, during the performance of TVORCHI, at the indicated seconds of the song, a voice double can be heard. However, this was such a subtle detail that only sound and music professionals could observe. That said, such a tiny non-compliance to the rules of the national selection cannot cause the disqualification of TVORCHI as the country’s representatives next year.

The organizing committee also took into account that a lot of finalists committed a number of minor violations during the National Selection, but none of them was a sufficient reason to disqualify any of the participants. The organizing committee of course had to take into cosnideration the special conditions of this year’s selection both for the rehearsals of the artists and for the work that the music producer, the team of organizers and producers of the television version all had to do.

KRUTЬ doubted the validity of the selection of TVORCHI by mentioning that their distribution company called “Beliebe” continues to operate on the territory of the aggressor country. However, “Believe” is a French company engaged in music distribution in Europe and Asia. The distribution of finalists’ songs by this company is not a violation of the rules of the National Selection. Five out of ten finalists of the National Selection published their competition songs through the same distributor, being the distribution company “Believe”.

The Eurovision Organizing Committee decided that the appeal of the finalist KRUTЬ is not a valid reason to disqualify TVORCHI’s participation in the National Selection, therefore, their selection as Ukraine’s representatives for the Eurovision Song Contest next year. In addition, as Dmytro Shurov suggested, the organizing committee decided to improve the organization of the selection in the future to involve an additional specialist who will monitor the compliance of the broadcast sound of the participants’ performances with the rules during rehearsals and live broadcasting.

Stay tuned to Eurovisionfun for all news regarding Ukraine’s participation in Eurovision 2023!

Source: corp.suspilne.media

Ukraine: Country’s head of delegation states that they’re aiming to win Eurovision 2023!

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Last Saturday, the Ukrainian national final for the Eurovision Song Contest 2023 took place, in which TVORCHI were crowned the winners with their song “Heart of Steel”.

After the completion of the national final, the head of the country’s delegation to the contest, Oksana Skybinska, spoke about TVORCHI’s victory, but also about Eurovision 2023.

Specifically, she stated that everyone worked hard for the realization of Vidbir 2023, under harsh war conditions, and that she is completely satisfied with the final result.

In addition, she stated that she’s happy about the fact that Ukraine will be represented by a song of western sound, different to the country’s ethnic recipe of the last years.

“The important thing is that the song is original, of high quality and reflects the current state of the Ukrainian music scene.”

According to the head of the Ukrainian delegation, the next stage will be the signing of the contract with the winners, while preparations for the group’s appearance on the stage of Eurovision 2023 are due to begin soon.

Finally, she commented on the fact that Ukraine is, for the second year in a row, in the first place of betting odds, saying:

“Of course, going into the competition, we want to win. We’re fighting for the first place, because there is always a new artist who passes new messages, showcases their work, their hopes on the song. Therefore, it cannot be said that because Ukraine won last year, we can’t do it again.

However, this is a competition and it is still too early to talk about betting odds. Of course, the goal is the highest result.

Eurovision 2023 will be very special and unique. There has never been such a contest, a country running the contest on behalf of another. Therefore, we are actively working on the presence and visibility of Ukraine in various aspects of the competition.”

Below you can watch the Eurovisionfun team commenting on the participation of TVORCHI with the song “Heart of Steel”.

Stay tuned to Eurovisionfun for all news regarding Ukraine’s participation in Eurovision 2023!

Source: corp.suspilne.media

Ukraine: With TVORCHI and “Heart of Steel” in Eurovision 2023!

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The winning country of Eurovision 2022 Ukraine becomes the first country to have officially chosen a representative for Eurovision 2023, as the results of Vidbir 2023 have just come in.

The show took place from 16:00 to 20:00 CET and was hosted by Timur Miroshnychenko, Kateryna Pavlenko and Zlata Ognevich.

The participants

Ten artists competed in the final of Vidbir 2023, attempting to win the ticket to Liverpool.

The 10 participants who claimed the representation of Ukraine in Eurovision 2023 were the following:

  1. Moisei – «I’m Not Alone» 
  2. OY Sound System – «Ой, тужу»
  3. DEMCHUK – «Alive» 
  4. Jerry Heil – «WHEN GOD SHUT THE DOOR»
  5. FIINKA – «Довбуш»
  6. KRUTЬ – «Колискова»
  7. Tember Blanche – «Я вдома»
  8. Angelina – «Stronger» 
  9. 2TONE – «Квітка»
  10. TVORCHI – «Heart Of Steel»

The results

The final result was determined 50% by the preference of the ukrainian viewers and 50% by the preference of the jury, consisting of Taras Topola, Jamala and Yulia Sanina.

The jury voted as follows:

After the televote was added in, the final results were formed as follows:

TVORCHI were, therefore, crowned the winners and will be representing Ukraine in Eurovision 2023 with the song “Heart of Steel”.

Do you think Ukraine made the right choice? Let us know in the comments and stay tuned to Eurovisionfun for all news regarding Eurovision 2023!