Eurovision Season 2020: January Update
We're back and we're raring to go! I will admit, it can sometimes take a bit of time to feel entirely re-adjusted to the new Eurovision season and to be raring to go but yesterday's allocation draw really tipped the scales on my levels of excitement towards full mania. Eurovision is back and this year it is in the very capable hands of the Dutch broadcasters who have already begun demonstrating their capability to host an event of this size and magnitude with the right balance of accessible humour and intelligence. I love our two hosts, I love what the team are doing with the styling of the logo and how it looks through the screen, I loved the little pieces on winners' running order positions and Jon Ola Sand which were beyond the needs of a Semi-Final allocation draw but were nonetheless really appreciated. As somebody who has pretty much already wiped Israel from the memory, I am really looking forward to a new Eurovision Song Contest to get excited about and let's kick off with some chat about the draw itself
Semi Final One
I punched the air in excitement as the draw got made for this one. Even though the UK cannot vote in this one, it still stands to be an action-packed celebration of music. Australia, Sweden, Russia, Ukraine, Norway and Azerbaijan will all pretty much be expected to sail through leaving four slots (three of which you would say Romania, Malta and Belgium are good shouts for) and a hell of a knife-fight for the last place. The disclaimer here is obviously that we don't know the songs yet but if history is anything to go by, this is set to be an utter corker of a Semi Final and the perfect way to kick off the Rotterdam festivities.
Semi Final Two
There's plenty to get excited about here too. For one, the Czech entry which is set to be the second national final winner will compete here as will the first in Albania. Denmark and Bulgaria should be fairly confident coming into this Semi of their progression. Beyond that, qualification is anybody's game and it will offer confidence to many of the competitors that it will come down to live performance on the night. Who knows? We could very easily hear the winner in this Semi!
And with the draw analysis out of the way, let's move on to the entries we have!
Albania
So I like 'Shaj'. Even though it is very classic FiK fare, it feels like she has charisma to deliver the song with strong vocals and an engaging performance. I am as yet curious to see if any of the song will be translated into English and what they do with the performance on the Rotterdam stage. In any case, this has all the ingredients to put Albania back in the Grand Final for a third successive year and credit where credit is due to the broadcasters for tweaking the FiK format just enough to spark more hope of a stronger result come the Eurovision finals. Did I mention that those Balkan strings on the bridge are just utterly gorgeous?
Spain
This is also not a bad Spanish effort but it is also nothing entirely special. When the Spanish broadcaster decided to get rid of Operacion Triunfo as the method of finding the Spanish Eurovision act, one would assume that it was because they were going down a bold new route. Instead, they have picked a song performed by a decent-established singer in Blas Canto with a decent-established beat which will feel familiar both to Eurovision audiences and fans of Spanish pop and to forgive the pun, it is universal but it's not going to win. I would rate the song itself at about a 6 and its Grand Final placing at about 14th to 20th depending on how it gets staged.
And now for the upcoming selections:
Czech Republic
The Czech songs being available through the app is becoming an annual tradition now and I'm not going to lie, I quite like it. We are beginning to get attached to the evolution of certain artists (namely Barbara Mochowa) and it's nice as international Eurovision fans to be able to poke our nose into a country's national selection process which isn't our own (thinking of Germany from several years ago as a good example). I'm curious to see how Elis Mraz and Cis T get on as the two resident Slovaks in the fight but whichever of the five takes the Czech ticket, I feel sure that they will do their country proud and put in a strong performance.
Australia
By contrast, this really isn't a year to get excited about Australia. Should they select an entry that is considered by the fanbase to be underwhelming, it will be interesting to see if that ultimately translates into their bookies odds or to the wider opinions around them qualifying out of what we just described as a tricky Semi Final. Isaiah's 'Don't Come Easy' in 2017 represented the poorest performance by an Australian act in a Semi-Final and he still came 6th. What would potentially need to happen for the Aussies to not qualify?
Italy
It's difficult to talk about Sanremo as obviously none of us have heard any of the songs yet. It is perhaps worth highlighting though that there is a lot of pressure this year for the Italians to get it right. Francesco Gabbani and Raphael Gualazzi are both in the mix this year but neither of those are even in the top 3 of the bookies odds which are currently Anastasio, Achille Lauro and Alberto Urso. This follows 2017 when RAI held the winning lottery ticket and lost it on the way to cashing it in, 2018 when they accidentally managed 5th with a song that had no business coming even close and last year when 'Soldi' was well worth its very credible 2nd place. The Italians are back in love with Eurovision but how many years will RAI spend pushing for this victory and at what cost? I think that if it's going to happen for the Italians, it needs to come in the next 2-3 years but it definitely seems like the stars are currently aligning to brings us back to Italia for 2021. Now, it's over to the Italian public to see what they go for.
Latvia
Latvia have qualified twice since 2008. Both times, the song was written by Aminata and it looks like Samanta Tina is going to win this year's Supernova with a song that was also co-written by Aminata. This fills me with absolutely 0 excitement but what surprises me was there were songs that got cut out at an earlier stage which would have at least provoked more excitement at the grand final (looking at you MADARA). Whether Samanta does or does not win will probably make little difference in the context of what happens in May but it is a shame for LTV, the national broadcaster for a country with a fantastic musical history.
This year, I will be headed to Copenhagen for the 50th edition of Dansk Melodi Grand Prix so I have a vested interest in the Danish race and am looking forward to seeing who they select. I have also been enjoying the Norwegian race with its regional mini-semis. Plus of course, from tomorrow, we should hear the first acts in the race for the Swedish ticket which will add its own levels of fun and excitement. You can follow all the songs that I have been enjoying from this year's contest in the order I enjoy them in from best to like but not love at my Eurovision: Class of 2020 playlist which will be updated as the weeks go on (https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLWyN8ISpszhCjXxVthssEwNDwWZN6o4TM). Until then, let's just sit back and enjoy what is about to unfold, Eurovision Season 2020 is upon us about much like the first flowers on the trees in Spring, its good to have it back!
Semi Final One
I punched the air in excitement as the draw got made for this one. Even though the UK cannot vote in this one, it still stands to be an action-packed celebration of music. Australia, Sweden, Russia, Ukraine, Norway and Azerbaijan will all pretty much be expected to sail through leaving four slots (three of which you would say Romania, Malta and Belgium are good shouts for) and a hell of a knife-fight for the last place. The disclaimer here is obviously that we don't know the songs yet but if history is anything to go by, this is set to be an utter corker of a Semi Final and the perfect way to kick off the Rotterdam festivities.
Semi Final Two
There's plenty to get excited about here too. For one, the Czech entry which is set to be the second national final winner will compete here as will the first in Albania. Denmark and Bulgaria should be fairly confident coming into this Semi of their progression. Beyond that, qualification is anybody's game and it will offer confidence to many of the competitors that it will come down to live performance on the night. Who knows? We could very easily hear the winner in this Semi!
And with the draw analysis out of the way, let's move on to the entries we have!
Albania
So I like 'Shaj'. Even though it is very classic FiK fare, it feels like she has charisma to deliver the song with strong vocals and an engaging performance. I am as yet curious to see if any of the song will be translated into English and what they do with the performance on the Rotterdam stage. In any case, this has all the ingredients to put Albania back in the Grand Final for a third successive year and credit where credit is due to the broadcasters for tweaking the FiK format just enough to spark more hope of a stronger result come the Eurovision finals. Did I mention that those Balkan strings on the bridge are just utterly gorgeous?
Spain
This is also not a bad Spanish effort but it is also nothing entirely special. When the Spanish broadcaster decided to get rid of Operacion Triunfo as the method of finding the Spanish Eurovision act, one would assume that it was because they were going down a bold new route. Instead, they have picked a song performed by a decent-established singer in Blas Canto with a decent-established beat which will feel familiar both to Eurovision audiences and fans of Spanish pop and to forgive the pun, it is universal but it's not going to win. I would rate the song itself at about a 6 and its Grand Final placing at about 14th to 20th depending on how it gets staged.
And now for the upcoming selections:
Czech Republic
The Czech songs being available through the app is becoming an annual tradition now and I'm not going to lie, I quite like it. We are beginning to get attached to the evolution of certain artists (namely Barbara Mochowa) and it's nice as international Eurovision fans to be able to poke our nose into a country's national selection process which isn't our own (thinking of Germany from several years ago as a good example). I'm curious to see how Elis Mraz and Cis T get on as the two resident Slovaks in the fight but whichever of the five takes the Czech ticket, I feel sure that they will do their country proud and put in a strong performance.
Australia
By contrast, this really isn't a year to get excited about Australia. Should they select an entry that is considered by the fanbase to be underwhelming, it will be interesting to see if that ultimately translates into their bookies odds or to the wider opinions around them qualifying out of what we just described as a tricky Semi Final. Isaiah's 'Don't Come Easy' in 2017 represented the poorest performance by an Australian act in a Semi-Final and he still came 6th. What would potentially need to happen for the Aussies to not qualify?
Italy
It's difficult to talk about Sanremo as obviously none of us have heard any of the songs yet. It is perhaps worth highlighting though that there is a lot of pressure this year for the Italians to get it right. Francesco Gabbani and Raphael Gualazzi are both in the mix this year but neither of those are even in the top 3 of the bookies odds which are currently Anastasio, Achille Lauro and Alberto Urso. This follows 2017 when RAI held the winning lottery ticket and lost it on the way to cashing it in, 2018 when they accidentally managed 5th with a song that had no business coming even close and last year when 'Soldi' was well worth its very credible 2nd place. The Italians are back in love with Eurovision but how many years will RAI spend pushing for this victory and at what cost? I think that if it's going to happen for the Italians, it needs to come in the next 2-3 years but it definitely seems like the stars are currently aligning to brings us back to Italia for 2021. Now, it's over to the Italian public to see what they go for.
Latvia
Latvia have qualified twice since 2008. Both times, the song was written by Aminata and it looks like Samanta Tina is going to win this year's Supernova with a song that was also co-written by Aminata. This fills me with absolutely 0 excitement but what surprises me was there were songs that got cut out at an earlier stage which would have at least provoked more excitement at the grand final (looking at you MADARA). Whether Samanta does or does not win will probably make little difference in the context of what happens in May but it is a shame for LTV, the national broadcaster for a country with a fantastic musical history.
This year, I will be headed to Copenhagen for the 50th edition of Dansk Melodi Grand Prix so I have a vested interest in the Danish race and am looking forward to seeing who they select. I have also been enjoying the Norwegian race with its regional mini-semis. Plus of course, from tomorrow, we should hear the first acts in the race for the Swedish ticket which will add its own levels of fun and excitement. You can follow all the songs that I have been enjoying from this year's contest in the order I enjoy them in from best to like but not love at my Eurovision: Class of 2020 playlist which will be updated as the weeks go on (https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLWyN8ISpszhCjXxVthssEwNDwWZN6o4TM). Until then, let's just sit back and enjoy what is about to unfold, Eurovision Season 2020 is upon us about much like the first flowers on the trees in Spring, its good to have it back!
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