Wishlist #1: Claudia Faniello!

There are several artists throughout Europe which I adore but have never participated in ESC - so I've decided to share my thoughts on them with you all. I'll be doing this every week throughout the summer and I hope you all enjoy reading these posts. Let's go...

To start this series, I'm gonna look at Claudia Faniello. She's participated in the Maltese national final for years and years now but has never won. Claudia would be a perfect choice in my opinion for Malta - she has that distinctive husky voice and is very beautiful. I was gutted when they didn't select her this year but she does promise she will keep returning until she wins. Claudia is normally the publics favourite in Malta, but the juries seem to rank her low. Why? Maybe because there hasn't been the perfect song for her yet. I think Pure is the best song she's provided, and so do the Maltese, as that's been her most successful attempt so far - she came 2nd. Let's look at ALL of her attempts...

Most fans think the best song from her was Samsara  - I disagree. I think it's a cheap song and I'm pleased she didn't make it in 2010. I think she's much better than that. A year later, she offered as rock entry entitled  Movie in My Mind which was fantastic. Another year where she should have walked the national final but didn't. What is it with Malta, why can't they send her? Your European friends wanna see her in Eurovision!

The entry in which Claudia made her name was Caravaggio, in 2008, a pretty decent dance track but then again I believe she can give us something better. Faniello had no chance in 2009, as it was clear Chiara was gonna win, but  Blue Sonata is still a lovely song and I listen to it regularly. In 2007, Claudia sung a rather strange but stunning song in 2007 - L-Imhabba Ghamja and that contained some of the Maltese language. Another thing I wanna see in ESC! It was 2006 when she made her debut to the Maltese selection, with High Alert , a nice song but nothing more. She seems to get better with age - like a good wine. This year, she entered When It's Time but it wasn't her time. I pray it'll Claudia's time some year.

If you support her, like her on Facebook! Malta will be represented by this talented lady one year, Claudia's not gonna give up and one year she's gonna blow everyone out of the water with a fantastic song! Take a look at the entry she almost broke her losing spell with...

She's even sung with Anggun...

Photograph from Claudia's official Facebook page! <3

Israel: Dana International releases a new video!

I am a massive fan of Dana's and I love her latest single. She's released this new single only to days ago and has already clocked 18,000 views on Youtube!

The song is called Loca, which fits with the song... And also fits with the lady herself.  This video-clip has been released ahead of the annual Tel Aviv Gay Pride. How can I describe the video? It's complete and utter madness but also quite fabulous! Dana International won the contest many years ago and tried again in 2011 to see if she could do it again, however didn't make the final - the ironic thing is that Israel have failed to qualify ever since...

Here it is! Enjoy my friends...

Malmo 2013: The EBU releases the split results!

The split results have been released. They were released last week actually and they do hold a few surprises, some negative and some positive...

Without the use off juries Switzerland, Bulgaria, Croatia and Montenegro would've qualified - and I would've loved to have seen Bulgaria and Montenegro in the final but the jury let them down. Gutted. If it was only up to the juries we would've seen Austria, Israel and San Marino in the final. I was praying San Marino would make it but thanks to the televote she came 11th in the semi. I can't understand why the jury ranked Bulgaria last. In the final, Denmark won both the jury and televote. Something ironic is that Romania came 7th with the televote but the jury ranked them 24th. Spain came last with both jury and televote but luckily for them, managed to come 25th all together somehow. Ireland came 14th with the final - so how the hell did they come last? Interesting...

The UK came 22nd with the televote - pretty disappointing. You can see a full breakdown of the results here!

Czech Republic: No return for 2014!

Unfortunately it's been confirmed at there will be no Czech entry in next years contest. There were some rumours around the web stating that the broadcaster was interested in a return but it's proven to be false.

Česká Televize stated...

We really do not plan on participating in the Eurovision Song Contest.

The Czech Republic are one of the least successful countries in ESC, they only managed to score 10 points in three attempts. In 2009, they got the dreaded nil points. But I would love to see them back and redeem themselves. They just have no interest in the contest and I can't see a future for them unless Slovakia come back and win. Taking of Slovakia, don't hold your breath for their return either...

UK: Ruth Lorenzo - "I'd like to represent UK in Eurovision!"

I'd love her to represent the UK in Eurovision, too! La beautiful Ruth Lorenzo has been speaking to the Daily Express and she told them that participation in Europe's favourite TV show is something she would love to do.

She told them that she's been asked in the past to represent Spain but didn't feel like it was the right time... Will 2014 be the right time? Maybe! But if she does participate, it will be for the UK and not her native Spain. She's fantastic and has always said she's had a soft spot for ESC. This could be what the UK has been waiting for. Ruth is awesome, she came forth in The X Factor 2008 and Simon Cowell is even one of her biggest fans. This is what she said...

I have been asked. I guess I'm just waiting for the right time. I wouldn't say no. I'd love to do it for the UK

Here is her new single which has already reached number 16 in the official Spanish charts and that's with no promotion! You can enjoy some of her covers here, here and here!

Italy: Jalisse set to return?

After a very respectable 4th position in the 1997 contest, Jalisse are setting their sights on participation in Denmark next year. The duo have said they'd love to make a return next year, weather it be for Italy or San Marino...

In 2008, when San Marino debuted, Jalisse sent an entry to SMRTV however their offer was not accepted. Unless RAI changes the rules, Jalisse will have to compete in Sanremo, and even then it's not a certainty that the "expert jury" will select them for Eurovision. Maybe the Italian broadcaster will accept their offer internally. I wouldn't mind - Fiumi di parole is one of my favourite songs ever! It's gonna be very interesting to see how this one pans out. Take a look here for more information on their possible return.

A Facebook page has been created to support the duo's bid. Will Italy send them? Spero che vengano selezionati per Eurovision! <3

UK: Simon Cowell wants to find a suitable act for Eurovision!

Mr Nasty, as we call him here in the UK, has stated through Twitter that he would be more than happy to find the right artist to represent the UK in Denmark next year.

He'll be great for us I think - sending a decent artist with a big following and a chart topping song would be perfect. Will the BBC take him up on his offer? He said...

"I was thinking that maybe I could work to find the right artist to represent us. If they would let me."  

Rumours are already circulating that if Simon was appointed, he would internally select One Direction to represent the UK next year. Lets remember Little Boots has already announced her interest in the contest... Come on BBC - let's show Europe we are serious about this damn contest!

Serbia: Moje 3 wins the Barbara Dex award and announce their split!

The Barbara Dex award has been given to Moje 3, it's staying with the Balkans are Rona Nishlui won last year...

A total of  967 votes were cast in favour of Moje 3. Cezar from Romania came second, I think he should have won, and Moran Mazor from Israel came third. I liked their outfit in the national final, thought that was fun and it worked well, but it didn't work at all in Malmo - sorry girls! And they have also announced that they'll be splitting up, hopefully winning this award has nothing to do with that. Here's a full breakdown of this years results, I have no idea why Russia is there... ^^

1. Serbia - 967 Votes
2. Romania - 544 Votes
3. Israel - 296 Votes
4. Albania - 150 Votes
5. Montenegro - 110 Votes
6. Latvia - 79 Votes
7. Macedonia - 65 Votes
8. Sweden - 49 Votes
9. Belarus - 45 Votes
10. Russia - 41 Votes

I'll admit it, I voted for Cezar! 

Finland: Krista Siegfrids's new video is here!

Amen! If you thought Marry Me was mad then you've seen nothing yet - Krista proves she's not a "one hit wonder" as she releases a new song which I can see all over the European charts!!! Krista's released a new video-clip this week, and it's certainly unique. She's wearing chains and underwear on the street... ^^

I believe she's got a long career ahead of her. It's a fantastic song, maybe this would've done better in the contest. She's awesome and has a really great talent and I wanna hear more and more from her. I think that the first international Finnish pop star has been born. I'm listening to Amen and it's so catchy! Krista ROCKS! Enjoy it here!

Hungary: Kati Wolf releases a new song!

Kati Wolf is one of my favourite Hungarian artists so I'm thrilled she's released a new song. It's entitled  Hívjuk elő - which means Call up in English.

I have no idea what she's singing about but I love the song... It was only released this morning. Nobert Szűcs and Péter Geszt are the guys behind the song, with Kati herself. She's a fantastic singer and I wouldn't mind her seeing her in ESC again for Hungary - she did say she'd do it again when the times right.

Enjoy it here... I do think this is the best song from Mrs Wolf! <3

Denmark 2014: FOUR cites in the running to host the contest!

Yep, it was originally just Copenhagen and Herning but now Fredericia and Aalborg have also joined the race to host Eurovision 2014. Copenhagen is the front runner, but we all thought Stockholm was last year and if the EBU wanna keep the contest "scaled down", maybe we could be going somewhere else instead...

This years Danish national final was held in Herning, so maybe DR will consider that? But what are transport links like... I can't see Fredericia and Aalborg getting it but what the heck do I know! The arena capacity in Herning is 12,000 people, not much difference to Malmo, whereas Copenhagen's capacity is 50,00 - if Copenhagen did host it next May then we would be going to the Parken Stadium, which is a football stadium opened in 1992.

I have no idea when we will know where the contest will head next year but it's likely to be around the autumn area. Personally, I would choose Herning - they did a fine job with the Danish national final in January.

Finland: UMK will be back for 2014!

Finland will select their entry for next years edition in exactly the same way as they did this year. YLE, the Finnish broadcaster, has announced UMK will be back...

YAY! It gave us some fantastic songs this year, I'm pleased it'll return - Eurovision was very popular in Finland this year with a total of 1.128.000 Finns tuning in for the final last Saturday. This is possibly due to Krista's publicity and the lesbian kiss but now the contest seems to have a bigger image in Finland - plus it also helped that the country actually qualified this year. 12 songs will be released in December then 8 songs will make it through to the big final which is set for February 2014. 

I hope Mikael comes back... <3

Sweden: Here's a new video-clip from the fantastic Loreen!

Loreen has the power to provide us with masterpieces time and time again. The latest video-clip from this beautiful lady is We Got The Power, which she performed during the Eurovision final in Malmo, last week. It was released only this morning.

This music video was directed by Loreen herself. And this is what she said about it...

”I always have a clear picture of what I want to convey in my artistry and feel a great responsibility for the things I release. Moving images, for me, creates an extra dimension to the music. In addition, we need more female directors in the industry. More women who dare to take place, just like the video for ‘We Got The Power’ is doing“.

Enjoy! <3

UK: Bonnie Tyler - "I did the best I could"!

Unfortunately the United Kingdom only came 19th this year, which is kinda disappointing, but Bonnie Tyler has told the BBC that she isn't disappointed by the result in the slightest.

Bonnie Tyler said this to the BBC...

"I'm sure a lot of people will be disappointed on my behalf but I have really enjoyed my Eurovision experience. I did the best that I could do with a great song. I don't feel down."

The legendary singer also said that the songs which were at the top of the table deserved to be there - I agree, with Greece being the exception. All other songs in the top ten I was more than happy with. It was a really good year and the viewing figures reflect that. Roughly 7.7 million Brits watched the final last week and the show evened peacked at 9.2 million.

Bonnie gave a fantastic performance last Saturday... ENJOY! <3

Estonia: EER are planning to participate next year!

Mart Normet, head of the Estonian delegation, has told escdaily.com that Estonia are planning on returning to the contest next year.

I was never worried the Estonians would withdraw but it is marvellous to hear that they are planning on participation already. The selection process is likely to be Eesti Laul once again, the country has qualified for the final on four occasions out of five through this awesome selection which hardly ever disappoints  This is what Mart said to escdaily.com...

At the moment our attitude is we will attend. Since introducing the new local selection “Eesti Laul”, we have had great success at Eurovision: out of 5 entries 4 have made it to the final.

They didn't do very well as Birgit came a rather disappointing 20th last week, but I thought she was fab and the black and white effects were lovely. It was a pretty song. I want Winney Puhh back next year even though the word pretty doesn't spring to mind... ^^

France: Disappointing viewing figures, again!

Amandine Bourgeois opened this years grand finale, and that could be the reason why viewing figures slumped by 1.3 million compared to last years edition!

2.7 million people watched the final last Saturday - which is a big dip compared to recent years. Eurovision did have tough competition though because another popular TV show was held that night - The Voice on TF1. Maybe that was the reason why figures were so poor, or maybe the French are just loosing interest.

A disappointing 23rd was the place France achieved this year. I was gutted for Amandine, she deserved top ten IMO. There was some technical problems at the start - and I felt she didn't quite go for it at the end. Still a fantastic performance which deserved than 14 points...

Note - I hope y'all like the new design! 

Malta: Participation for next year confirmed!

YAY! The latest country to confirm for next years edition is Malta. The pretty little Mediterranean island will be represent in Denmark next year, Isn't that fantastic? <3

The selection process be revealed very soon. Hopefully they will internally select Claudia Faniello - she would be great. Her husky voice reminds me a little of Bonnie Tyler's, and with a song like Pure I reckon Malta could win the contest for the first time ever... The Maltese broadcaster have apparently stated that if they were to win, they would hold ESC outside. The security would be even stricter than Baku - imagine that!!! I guess Malta will go for a their selection process, and Claudia will compete, and then again be underrated... Let's hope they send her!

Here's the sweet song they send to Malmo, I didn't really like it but now I think it's one of the best Maltese entries ever...

UK: Little Boots would represent the UK, if asked...

Little Boots has announced through Twitter that she would happily represent the UK, in Denmark next year, if she were asked. I didn't know who the hell she was either until I looked at some of her songs, then I remembered her - and she is pretty good actually...

Little Boots (real name is Victoria Christina Hesketh) would be a fantastic choice for us next year! She's young, compared to out last two entrants, and has some really nice songs under her belt which would be prefect for ESC. Then after she tweeted, the hashtag #littlebootsforeurovision was trending worldwide!!!  Graham Norton then replied to her saying...

you will get the call!

I'm already excited! Take a look at her latest single, it's fantastic...

San Marino: Confirmed participation for 2014 - Valentina to return again?

Uh-oh! Everybody loves you so... San Marino are not giving up! Carlo Romeo, general director of SMRTV, has confirmed his country will participate in next years contest. He also said that Valentina could represent San Marino again if she wanted...

I'm so pleased they won't give up, I really thought they would call it a day after another disappointing result last week. Carlo Romeo commented...

If Valentina Monetta agrees, it is not a problem for us to have her for next year [...] For us, Valentina won, she was great and she could have not done much more. Her staff has done a great job and we would be happy to have her again.

So the small Italian principality will be represented in 2014. Fantastic. Will Valentina give it another shot? Maybe... but if she does, give her a JAZZ song!!!

Right now I am not ready to say yes or no to a third time, I will calmly evaluate the different proposals. For the time being I can only say that my team and I have won because we have done the best we could and the comments on our performance were more than positive

I'd personally love to see Valentina in Copenhagen, or Herning...

Slovenia: Hannah reacts to her disappointing result!

Hannah came last in her semi final for Slovenia, which was a surprise for me, and now she's released a statement on her Facebook page following these results after they were released after Saturday's grand final.

Here's what she said...

Ouch, I won’t lie – those results hurt. but it is what it is. I still had an AMAZING time through this whole process and fully stand behind our song 100%. The people who worked with me, the support here and abroad was truly inspiring. I appreciate this whole experience with all my heart and always will. Those who know me and what I’m capable of might agree i wasn’t up to my full potential, but i truly worked hard and gave it my all and I honestly believe that didn’t affect much the final result for reasons not worth getting into.. WE had a great performance and I want to thank Maestro Crew for their phenomenal job! And thank you all again for the love and support! In the end what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger. My life still has plenty of blank pages ahead, and that means room to write and epic ending! 

This DIDN'T deserve last...

The Netherlands: Video-clip released earlier this week!

You've gotta watch it a few times to really appreciate it. Anouk released the official music video of Birds this week and it fits the song superbly. Haunting, beautiful...

I'm so happy for The Netherlands this year - they finally got a decent position with a decent song. And we here in the UK think we have it hard. I did want Anouk to win, for me I was torn between Italy and Holland but I think I favour Birds now after seeing the live performances.

I won't say what happens - you'll have to watch it!

Finland: Krista Siegfrids - "We made history"!

One of the highlights of last nights contest was the lesbian kiss between Krista and one of her backing singers, to help equal marriage rights across Europe, but she's not disappointing about the final outcome. Krist'a been hitting headlines all week across the world because of the kiss.

I was actually quite shocked this didn't do better, thought she was going to make top ten to be honest but people didn't pick the phones up. Or maybe the jury was busy being bribed to vote for Azerbaijan - so they didn't have enough votes left for Krista. She's done her bit though and I applaud her for that!She wanted to make a statement and boy did she do that. Turkey didn't show the contest though because of the kiss. :-( This is what Krista said...

I'm happy I managed to help the equal marraige rights campaign and sexual equality in general. It is much more important than winning Eurovision. We made history!  The lesbian kiss may have cost us some votes but I don't regret it! I know some countries are much more conservative than we are"

#DINGDONG!

Azerbaijan: Vote rigging proven by a Lithuanian journalist!

Farid came second for Azerbaijan last night, with only Emmelie beating him, but this position wasn't because the song deserved it... more because the Azeri's brought votes.

More controversy coming from that side of the world, eh? It's not exactly shocking though as some countries have awarded them high marks year after year. Malta has "voted" for Azerbaijan loads of times over recent years. I've always thought there was a rat. A Lithuanian journalist recorded a meeting with persons offering just €20 to vote for a certain someone... It's all in Russian though. Will the EBU take action? Sadly I think that's very unlikely, look at the drama we had back in 2009... This could start more stuff emerging from countries such as Russia and Bulgaria - watch this space!

Here is the video.

Malmo 2013: Results from the semi-finals announced!

I love looking at these! Every year there are also some big surprises and the biggest surprise for me this year is that Slovenia came last in the semi final. Serbia and San Marinio came 11th in their semi finals. Apparently the Serbian press took the results the wrong way.

Several countries are calling for withdraw including Israel, San Marino and Bulgaria to name a few. Latvia came last in it's semi final, and rightly so! Here they are...

Semi-Final One!

1. Denmark – 167
2. Russia – 156
3. Ukraine – 140
4. Moldova – 95
5. Belgium – 75
6. Netherlands – 75
7. Belarus – 64
8. Ireland – 54
9. Lithuania – 53
10. Estonia – 52
11. Serbia – 46
12. Montenegro – 41
13. Croatia – 38
14. Austria – 27
15. Cyprus – 11
16. Slovenia – 8

Semi-Final Two!

1. Azerbaijan – 139
2. Greece – 121
3. Norway – 120
4. Malta – 118
5. Romania – 83
6. Iceland – 72
7. Armenia – 69
8. Hungary – 66
9. Finland – 64
10. Georgia – 63
11. San Marino – 47
12. Bulgaria – 45
13. Switzerland – 41
14. Israel – 40
15. Albania – 31
16. FYR Macedonia – 28
17. Latvia – 13

Enjoy!

DENMARK WINS THE EUROVISION SONG CONTEST 2013!

Last night, SVT treated us to a fantastic show and the winner was Denmark - as predicted by fans and bookmakers. I loved every minute of last nights show, OK maybe not the Romanian performance but everything else was of such a high standard.

Azerbaijan came 2nd, which was a surprise - didn't think it would do that well - and then Ukraine came into 3rd position. I can't help thinking that the giant ruined Ukraine, it was just not needed and looked kinda stupid. Bonnie Tyler came 19th, better than I thought she would do, and I'm quite pleased with that placing. Ireland took the last place, closely followed by Spain. And the Finish "gimmick" flopped too coming 24th. A fantastic year - here's the full results.

1 Denmark 
2 Azerbaijan 
3 Ukraine 
4 Norway 
5 Russia 
6 Greece 
7 Italy 
8 Malta 
9 The Netherlands 
10 Hungary 
11 Moldova 
12 Belgium 
13 Romania 
14 Sweden 
15 Georgia 
16 Belarus 
17 Iceland 
18 Armenia 
19 United Kingdom 
20 Estonia 
21 Germany 
22 Lithuania 
23 France 
24 Finland 
25 Spain 
26 Ireland 

Congratulations Denmark! <3 See y'all in Denmark!!! 

Malmo 2013: Looking back at the semi finals!

I have had an awesome time in Rome and now I've arrived home last night, I've been looking through all the semi final performances this morning. And there have been a few surprises! Both shows looked visually fantastic, and the best is yet to come with the grand final tomorrow. I will keep this updated daily now, thanks for sticking with me guys! <3

Let's talk about the non-qualifiers:

• Austria - Gosh! She was a sure qualifier beforehand but the performance wasn't good. Her vocals were strained and I won't miss it in the final.
• Slovenia - She wasn't fantastic vocally but I would've liked to have seen it in the final. I didn't think this would've made it though, a shame.
• Montenegro - I really thought this would've been the first Montenegrin entry to of made the final. Astronauts were awful, Nina (whatever the hell she was supposed to be dressed as) was awesome though.
• Croatia - Boring! I did think the juries would've helped it through though. 
• Serbia - This was a shock! They had a fantastic draw, "friends" in that semi final but still failed to make it. Not that I'm complaining...
• Cyprus - Gutted this didn't make it. But I thought the Estonian entry would overthrow it.
• Latvia - This was horrible! 
• San Marino - I had a feeling this was going to flop and it did... Withdrawal rumours already coming in!
• FYR Macedonia - A complete and utter mess. Esma will remain one of the highlights in this years edition though. I was disappointed with Lozano.
• Bulgaria - One of my favourites! Gutted they didn't make the final, it was fantastic! <3
• Albania - Not a shame this one failed. It did look really good visually, rumours about Albania withdrawing are also ripe.
• Switzerland - I still think there was better in that national final, among them being Carrousell, Chiara and Melissa. 
• Israel - Probably the biggest shock. Everything was perfect, a real shame...

The lesbian kiss happened with Finland... I don't think Hungary or Belarus should have qualified but I can understand the appeal. The Netherlands qualified, Anouk done it - I'm so pleased. Could Anouk win? I wouldn't complain if she did. Loreen performed in the first semi final - she was amazing AND will performing her new single in tomorrow's grand final. I can barley wait. The draw was also announced last year, the final will be opened by France and closed by Ireland - here's the list...

1. France
2. Lithuania
3. Moldova
4. Finland
5. Spain
6. Belgium
7. Estonia
8. Belarus
9. Malta
10. Russia
11. Germany
12. Armenia
13. The Netherlands
14. Romania
15. United Kingdom
16. Sweden
17. Hungary
18. Denmark
19. Iceland
20. Azerbaijan
21. Greece
22. Ukraine
23. Italy
24. Norway
25. Georgia
26. Ireland

Let me predict the winner - DENMARK, GEORGIA OR GERMANY! The best song which didn't make the final...

Malmo 2013: Here we go!

I'm not quoting the horrible Latvian entry! I will be away until the weekend but ESC will officially start on Tuesday with the first semi final then the second semi final on Thursday, I hope everyone enjoys the shows/performances! It's gonna be a fantastic week - I can feel it. <3 Ciao! I leave you with this beautiful photograph...

I will be back for the grand final!

FYR Macedonia: Macedonian? English? Macedonian?

Lozano was initially going to sing Pred da se razdeni in Macedonian but an English version was released a few weeks ago and it was announced that that would be the version he takes to Malmo. Esma's part remains in the Gypsey language, so nothing changes with her!

The first rehearsal he sung in English (until the final chorus) however now it seems that he could change it again back into Macedonian for all of Lozano's parts. I don't know what they will do and it doesn't really matter as both versions are fantastic, but I must admit I prefer the Macedonian version. It looks great on stage too.

Here's the trilingual version...

Switzerland: Lys Assia's on the mend!

I'm so pleased to read this. Lys Assia has been in hospital all week and so some evil trolls decided to create some nasty rumours... but today Lys Assia's  management confirmed that the singer is on the mend and will attend Eurovision next week!

She's been in a bad state all week but now she's getting better. She won't attend the "Meet & Greets" but at least she'll be there in Malmo. I wish Lys good health and it will be great to see her in Malmo... I hope she gets a special mention in the grand final. That would be awesome - she's a legend, maybe a duet with Carola and Loreen? Three different yet fantastic ladies. This was said on her official Facebook page...

We can now make it officialy: Our Grande Dame Lys Asisia has made a good recovery and WILL VISIT MALMO! She'll arrive this Tuesday!

Maybe she should perform this? :-)

Moldova: Press conference cancelled - delegation unhappy!

The first semi finalists rehearsed today for the second time, and therefore press conferences have been held throughout the day however the Moldovan delegation cancelled theirs as they are unhappy with SVT.

They say the stage performance doesn't work as they planned and that they are really disappointed. Pasha Parfeny said...

We have many questions that need to be answered. If we would attend the press conference we would be asked questions which we couldn’t give answers to, 

What's the fuss? Their performance looked great IMO. I wonder if the EBU will take further action...

Malmo 2013: Carola will entertain us during the final!

It's all about the final for me this year as I won't be around for the semis and it's been announced today that Carola will be this years interval act. Fantastic!

She was great in Melodifestivalen, apparently she was already appointed the role before her performance in Melodifestivalen so she knew all along. I thought Carola would have something to do with ESC this year... Loreen will open the final, naturally  And some two people I've never heard off will be the interval act for semi final two. Carola won't just sing - she'll dance and act too!

Mr Christer Björkman said...

"She is part of an intermission where she will sing, dance and be funny. It’s based on humor, and she is part of a larger context. It’s all about Sweden and Swedish culture.”

Looking forward to this! Here she is in action... 

Introducing 2013: The Netherlands!

I have decided to take a look at each entry this year, in a lead-up to the contest! There are 39 countries participating this year, all aiming to win in Malmo (well, some don't wanna win!) Turkey, Portugal, Slovakia and Bosnia & Herzegovina decided to withdraw this year, which was a shame, so lets hope they'll decide to return for 2014! I have drawn all the countries randomly and today it's The Netherlands's turn and the last day...

Anouk - Birds!

After years of not qualifying, The Netherlands is sending one of their most successful artists to the contest. Anouk was the first act to be confirmed for the 2013 edition. The singer has shown interest towards participating in Eurovision before and now she gets her chance! The Netherlands has sent some pretty decent entries over the fast few years however they haven't made the final since 2004. One of the poorest scoring countries in recent years. Hopefully Anouk will change this. Birds is a fantastic ballad, quite haunting, and it has heartfelt lyrics...

If The Netherlands fail to qualify, I'd be gutted ! One of my favourites this year, if not the favourite for me! Anouk's vocal are always superb, everything she's produced is awesome. Unfortunately, the rock singer doesn't have a great draw - she'll perform between Ukraine and Montenegro... Amsterdam 2014? JA!

If being myself is what I do wrong Then I would rather not be right...

Here's the Dutch entry...

Anouk rehearsing on Monday...

Lost...

Three Days in a Row...

A brilliant cover!

Another one of Anouk's masterpieces...

My introductory series has now come to an end - thank you all for joining me! Now I will give my opinions on the rehearsals, then that's it... EUROVISION WILL BE HERE!

The Netherlands: Participation confirmed for 2014!

It's been confirmed today that The Netherlands will compete next year! I'm really pleased.

There was several rumours indicating that the country would pull out if Anouk failed to make the final - however these rumours have been put to bed! TROS, the current Dutch Eurovision broadcaster, and AVRO, the Junior Eurovision broadcaster, will merge as the Dutch government stated the country needed bigger TV stations, and fewer. So several broadcasters have merged to become bigger and better - and TROS and AVRO will have the responsibility of selecting and funding the 2014 Dutch entry. I hope this makes sense... ^^

It's possible the country will opt for a big national selection but nothings confirmed! Belgium have also announced they will participate next year. Here's there fantastic entry this year!

Introducing 2013: Ukraine!

I have decided to take a look at each entry this year, in a lead-up to the contest! There are 39 countries participating this year, all aiming to win in Malmo (well, some don't wanna win!) Turkey, Portugal, Slovakia and Bosnia & Herzegovina decided to withdraw this year, which was a shame, so lets hope they'll decide to return for 2014! I have drawn all the countries randomly and today it's Ukraine's turn...

Zlata Ognevich - Gravity!

The Ukrainian national final took place on 23rd December, the morning after Albania, and the fabulous Zlata Ognevich won. She is no stranger to the Ukrainian selections - she tried in 2010, 2011 and 2012. All her efforts were great! I do prefer Gravity - her entry last year makes a close second, but everyone else prefers Kukooo. When she won the NF, it was announced that the song would be revamped and that there will be some lyrical changes. The final version was released in March, with a high tech video-clip...

Ukraine will do very well this year. I'm going to predict top five. Zlata is a fantastic vocalist, and she looks so beautiful too... Plus the Ukrainian "gimmick" this year is a giant. He will join Zlata on stage - and he is the tallest man living in America, but he is originally Ukrainian... I hope the performance will be powerful. The performance in Amsterdam was very underwhelming, and quite boring too... I hope nerves won't get to Zlata on the night. I think they did in Amsterdam. Could Ukraine win this? Maybeeee! They will get a decent position for sure...

Nothing comes from pride but pride Mmh… my way is clear Dancing on the edge tonight...

Here it is...

The NF performance, and original version...

In Amsterdam...

The entry she submitted in 2011, which was a big favourite along with Smile and Action...

I loved this too!

She does have awesome vocals, just listen... <3

TOMORROW'S HINT - THREE DAYS IN A ROW... THE LAST ONE! 

Denmark: Here's an acoustic version of "Only Teardrops"!

Emmelie de Forest continues to get better and better. Her vocals in the NF were good, in London they was OK and here I think they are amazing. I'm blown away by this. She gives a fantastic acoustic version of Only Teardrops, which is the favourite to win this years edition.

And I think she could do it! Here she's just sitting on the floor, with her friends playing the flute and guitar, but she's been working on her voice and it's really lovely to listen too. Of-course she is dividing people's opinion - didn't Loreen last year? But I do think Denmark could win, it all depends how she copes live. She wasn't on top form in the national final (even though I thought she was still more than OK) but she will be performing infront of 120 million viewers next week - could this stop her filling her full potential? The answer will lie with us soon. Good luck Emmelie!

Here it is...

Belgium: Kate Ryan has a new single out!

The woman which shocked everyone in 2006, when she didn't qualify for the grand final in Athens, returns with a new single...

She has a new song out every month it seems but I like this one so I thought I'd share it with you guys. I reckon she should return for Belgium, but she must have full control (the Belgian broadcaster had a big say in her 2006 performance). Anouk has full control of everything this year, for The Netherlands - including the performance, so if she bombs and doesn't make the final DON'T blame the broadcaster for giving her a rubbish performance - like everyone did with Kate in 2006. ^^

And here it is! But this is still the best track ever from Kate... <3

Introducing 2013: Serbia!

I have decided to take a look at each entry this year, in a lead-up to the contest! There are 39 countries participating this year, all aiming to win in Malmo (well, some don't wanna win!) Turkey, Portugal, Slovakia and Bosnia & Herzegovina decided to withdraw this year, which was a shame, so lets hope they'll decide to return for 2014! I have drawn all the countries randomly and today it's Serbia's turn...

Moje 3 - Ljubav je svuda!

This year the ever so popular Beosong returned - after a one year break. It was a two night ordeal, it was a bloody tough ordeal too - many awful songs and I think one of the best, from the bunch, won. I wasn't a fan when the girls won but now after hearing it several times I do like it and it really does deserve it's place in the competition. Serbia selected their entry on 3rd March - same day as the Bulgarian national final. The Moje 3 girls are vocally perfect, well they was in Amsterdam but not in the NF...

Will Serbia qualify? Hell yeah - they will and with ease! They are drawn last in the first semi and Serbia normally gets loads of votes anyway... Doubt the jury will like it though but maybe the jury will appreciate the girls vocals, if they are good on the night that is. Belgium will perform before Serbia, another uptempo song but I think that one will be unnoticed. Let me say this - the rehearsals start tomorrow but will be behind closed doors, which kinda sucks, anyway I've said I won't be around when the contest is being held but you can look at the websites/blogs above this. I'm sorry for this :( I will be back for the final though which I'm pleased about. I have no two more "introductions" to introduce and then its done - thank you everyone for joining me here, it warms my heart <3 OK, back to Serbia! They perform in the native tongue, again...

Da ljubav je svuda Malo volim, malo ne volim Probala bih svašta sa njim...

Here it is...

The English version...

The girls in Amsterdam, no jokes please ;)

Let's remember this masterpiece... <3

TOMORROW'S HINT - TWO COUNTRIES LEFT, IT'S GONNA BE ONE OF THEM... ^^