Category Archives: 2012
Lithuania has decided: it’s Donny Montell!
Saturday marked the Finals of Lithuania’s search for their Eurovision performer for Baku. Fourteen hopefuls took the stage for their shot at a ticket to Azerbaijan, but (of course) only one could win. After those performances (as well as a three-contestant Superfinal), it was 24-year old Donny Montell (real name: Donatas Montvydas) who swept the jury vote and dominated the televote, and we’ll be hearing “Love is Blind” at the Crystal Arena. Read the rest of this entry
Estonia has decided: it’s Ott Lepland!
The hotly-anticipated Final of this year’s Eesti Laul brought ten strong acts from all over the musical spectrum, from synth-pop to R&B to melodramatic indie and back again. But after the dust settled, only one act could represent Estonia in Baku. After the first round of voting, it came down to a pair of Estonian-language ballads: one by Lenna Kuurma (former lead singer of Vanilla Ninja and 2010 Eesti Laul runner-up) and Ott Lepland (the first winner of Eesti otsib superstaari, Estonia’s version of “Idol”). Read the rest of this entry
The Weekend Preview: March 3
This weekend beings us one of the last hectic Saturdays of the preseason, with three National Finals (Estonia, Lithuania, and Spain) and Sweden’s Second Chance round. Let’s take a look at what we can expect from this busy day:
Kaliopi unveils “Crno i belo”
On Wednesday, as Bulgaria went through the process of selecting their song for Baku, neighboring (FYR) Macedonia revealed “Crno i belo”, the song that the internally-selected Kaliopi would be taking to Azerbaijan. Composed by her ex-husband and regular collaborator Romeo Grill, and with lyrics by Kaliopi herself, here’s a look at the dramatic rock ballad:
Engelbert Humperdinck for the United Kingdom!
As we approach the end of the Eurovision Preseason, the BBC had been eerily silent on their process for Baku. As other countries held national finals, made internal picks, or at the very least announced plans, the United Kingdom put itself on complete informational lockdown. Rumors floated about, ranging from Adele to Right Said Fred to the Spice Girls, and just about everyone in between. Jaws dropped today, however, when it was announced that veteran crooner Engelbert Humperdinck would be taking the stage in Baku. Read the rest of this entry
Bulgaria has decided: it’s Sofi Marinova!
Bulgaria hosted their National Final in a midweek program, and a dozen songs competed for the right to represent the country in Baku. The nation has only passed through the semifinals once (with 2007’s “Voda“), and only missed out on last year’s Final by a slim, six-point margin. Who would succeed the fantastic Poli Genova in Bulgaria? Read the rest of this entry
Slovenia has decided: it’s Eva Boto!
Since their return to the Eurovision Final last year with Maja Keuc’s “No One”, Slovenia seems to have taken a renewed interest in Eurovision. This year, national broadcaster RTV Slovenia set up an open casting call, “Misija Evrovizija”, in order to find their star for Azerbaijan. Ongoing since way back in October, we finally have a result: sixteen-year-old Eva Boto will sing “Verjamem” in Baku:
The Netherlands have decided: it’s Joan Franka!
This past Sunday, the Netherlands held their first open National Final in years, where six performers (most of whom were alums of “The Voice”) competed for the right to represent their country in Baku and hopefully bring the Dutch back into the Finals for the first time since 2004. After three head-to-head duels and a superfinal, one song stood above the rest: Joan Franka’s “You and Me”.
Finland has decided: it’s Pernilla Karlsson!
After a long, sometimes confusing National Final process, Finland has picked the winner of this year’s “Uuden Musiikin Kilpailu”. A six-song final and three-song superfinal were held, and the winner was finally crowned: 21-year-old Pernilla Karlsson, with her heartfelt ballad, “När jag blundar”: Read the rest of this entry
Austria has decided: it’s the Trackshittaz!
Austra held their National Final, “Österreich rockt den Song Contest”, this Friday, and ten songs fought it out for the right to represent the country in Baku this May. Acts ranged from pop to rock to ballads to jazz, but, of course, only one could win out.
After a two-song Superfinal, Mühlviertel-based party-rap group Trackshittaz won the night with their ode to bootyshaking, “Woki mit deim Popo”: Read the rest of this entry
The ESC Insider 