Author Archives: Samantha Ross
A voice for Russia: Dina Garipova
Russia, like over forty other nations from around the globe, has been swept up by the popularity of “The Voice”. Originally shown in The Netherlands, the format has taken hold worldwide, from Chile to Vietnam to the United States and back again. Over in Russia, one of the four coaches who both guides and judges the aspiring stars was none other than ESC champion Dima Bilan, who hinted all the way back in November that the winner of Golos would be prepped for Eurovision. Read the rest of this entry
Cheers, Eurofans! “Alcohol is Free” for Greece
On Monday, Greek music channel MAD TV, in conjunction with national broadcaster ERT, hosted Eurosong 2013, the country’s selection show for Malmö. Featuring appearances by a half-dozen Eurovision champions, 2013 Cypriot performer Despina Olympiou, 2012 representatives Eleftheria Eleftheriou and Ivi Adamou, and a number of Greek National Finalists from years past, the four songs in competition had a lot to live up to. Read the rest of this entry
X-Factor, Sanremo, and now Eurovision…Marco Mengoni for Italy
This weekend marked the culmination of the 63rd annual Sanremo Music Festival, one of the most enduring traditions in Italian pop music (and generally accepted to be the inspiration for Eurovision as we know it today). For five nights, fourteen established artists (with two songs apiece) and eight fresh faces took the stage at the Ariston Theatre, all hoping to strike it big with the Italian public. And, for one, a special jury would award the chance to move on to Eurovision. Read the rest of this entry
Latvia has chosen: it’s PeR!
At least once a year, an act finally makes it to Eurovision after years of failed attempts. Donny Montell, Litesound, and Pasha Parfeny all made it to the show in Baku after years and years of swinging and missing. This year, Latvian pop duo PeR (short for Please Explain the Rhythm) finally grabbed the ticket to the ESC with their fifth submission to the National Finals. Ralfs and Edmunds will take the stage in Malmö with “Here We Go”: Read the rest of this entry
Natália Kelly to “Shine” for Austria
Friday, February 15th brought us “Österreich rockt den Song Contest”, as Austria selected the successor to the Trackshittaz. With five singers performing two songs apiece (one Eurovision classic and their potential song for Malmö), the country gave fans plenty to mull over.
Taking the victory in Vienna was the contest’s youngest participant, 18-year-old Natália Kelly, with “Shine“:
Cyprus: Despina Olympiou’s “An Me Thimase” Released
The third entry to be revealed on February 14th was from Cyprus, as Despina Olympiou and her team at broadcaster CyBC released “An Me Thimase (Αν Με Θυμάσαι)“, or “If You Remember Me”, written by Andreas Giorgallis and Zenon Zindilis. How appropriate that this love ballad was released on Valentine’s Day? Read the rest of this entry
Slovenia: Hannah Mancini’s “Straight Into Love” released
Contributing to the maelstrom of Eurovision news released on Valentine’s Day, Slovenia released their highly-anticipated song for Sweden, the dubstep-influenced house number “Straight Into Love“, performed by American-born Hannah Mancini. Even though Slovenia has been competing at Eurovision since 1993, this is the country’s very first purely internal selection. Let’s see what they came up with: Read the rest of this entry
A “Glorious” Choice in Germany
Valentine’s Night brought us a plethora of Eurovision news, none more exciting than Germany’s National Selection show, “Unser Star für Malmö”. A dozen songs ranging in genre from swinging-60’s to brash brass band to Gregorian chant to electropop took the stage in Hanover, leaving themselves to the mercy of a professional jury, a public televote, and feedback from radio stations from all over Germany. Read the rest of this entry
Preview: Österreich rockt den Song Contest
Choosing their singer for Malmö only a day after their neighbors in Germany, Austria will bear down and choose a successor for the popo-wokiing Trackshittaz. “Österreich rockt den Song Contest” will air on ORF and Eurovision.tv this Friday, February 15th. Read the rest of this entry
Preview: Germany’s “Unser Song für Malmö”
For the past few years, Germany has been in a state of refining its formula for selecting an artist and song for Eurovision. A 2009 internal selection was followed by “Unser Star für Oslo”, which introduced the world to a then-unknown schoolgirl from Hanover named Lena Meyer-Landrut. When she returned to Eurovision as a champion the next year, the format was tweaked to find the perfect follow-up song for her. Following the successes of “Satellite” and “Taken By A Stranger“, “Unser Star für Baku” found another new talent, Roman Lob, who gave Germany its third Top-Ten placement in a row with “Standing Still“. Read the rest of this entry
The ESC Insider 