Georgia: Fans ask YOU to support Nina!

Georgian Eurofans are asking you to vote for Nina Sublatti in Vienna. But do you support the Georgian warrior? It's a sweet video - enjoy below...

REVIEWING THE CLASS OF 2015: GEORGIA!

Nina Sublatti will close the first semi final with a dark and mysterious song. Warrior. Will Georgia qualify or will Nina's song stay in the semis? Here's what we think about the Georgian entry!

Ana: Nina’s voice is really powerful and she looks like a real warrior but this song is too dark and even scary. I try to enjoy it but I’m not able to do it. 3/10

Ilkar: The new version has improved the song, cutting off some useless elements. It still has the risk of becoming very shouty live on stage, and a bit too aggressive. She will surely have a visual image to match and to remember, at first sight and this beats most of the screamy midtempo female songs this year. 8/10

Jack: In a year of two Warriors, I think the Georgian one is superior however I do love both. Nina's style (her tattoos etc) is fantastic and I think they can create something rather remarkable on stage. So much better than last years effort from Georgia although I did kinda like that too! Nina's also drawn to close the 1st semi final, so she is an almost certain qualifier. Overall another strong entry from Georgia! 9.5/10

Jess: The first time I heard this song I was not a fan, however after the revamp it has grown on me slightly. I think it will work well live. 5/10

John: In a year when Warriors and Heroes abound, Georgia unfortunately fails to live up to the sentiment inferred by the title of its entry. A very ordinary song, I just get the feeling I've heard it too many times before. Nevertheless I wish only the best to Georgia in 2015. 3/10

OUR VERDICT - 28.5/50
OVERALL SCORE - 5.7/10

Georgia: Nina's 'Warrior' video-clip presented!

The official video-clip of the Georgian entry, Warrior, has been revealed today. The song has also undergone a revamp. Enjoy!!

Georgia: Sacha Jean-Baptiste and Thomas G:son. to work with Nina Sublatti!

Eurovision legend Thomas G:son. and Swedish choreographer Sacha Jean-Baptiste will work with the Georgian representative, Nina Sublatti, to make an amazing song and a memorable performance for Vienna. Nina's Warrior is among the favourites already to win the contest - and with G;son onside, her chances could improve even more. Sacha has previously worked with the likes of Alcazar, Zara Larsson and Eric Saade. Thomas G:son is a name very familiar with Eurovision fans. He has composed several songs in the past, including Euphoria. He has also composed the Spanish entry - Amanecer - and has a song in the upcoming Danish national final too. Mi Amore.

 

NINA SUBLATTI TO REPRESENT GEORGIA!

As expected, Nina Sublatti won in Georgia. Nina's Warrior was clearly the best of a bad bunch so I'm thrilled. It is probably to early to make predictions but I'm positive we will see Georgia back in the final. In 2013, she won the Georgian version of Idol. Her debut album, Be Nina Sublatti, became a best-selling album in Georgia following her win on Georgian Idol. Enjoy the Georgian entry below:

Georgia: Representative to be decided today!

The Georgian entry for Vienna will be decided today. At 14:00 CET, a special show will be held where a jury will vote. The Georgian public have had two weeks to vote for their favourites already. A total of five participants are hoping to represent Georgia although Nina Sublatti is the big favourite. Niutone wouldn't be too disastrous either - their song has been growing on me You can watch the show here and read my personal review of the finalists here. Will Nina win, as predicted? Or could we be in for a surprise?

• Edward Meison – We Are Free
• Eteri Beriashvili – If Someone
• Misha Sulukhia – One And Only
• Nina Sublatti – Warrior
• Niutone – Run Away

Georgia: National final details revealed!

On Wednesday, Georgia will pick their song for Vienna and some details regarding the selection show has been revealed. ESCToday reports that the Georgian national final will take place at 14:00 CET and will last for approximately 40 minutes. You will be able to watch the it on eurovision.tv. Eteri Beriashvili, NiUTONE, Misha Sulukhia, Nina Sublatti and Edward Meison are all in the running. Nina Sublatti seems to be the hot favourite and rightly so, her song rocks. I was lucky enough to interview her and you can read that here.

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW WITH NINA SUBLATTI!

Nina Sublatti is the big favourite to take the crown in Georgia and represent her country in Vienna. I was fortunate enough to speak with her about her latest projects. Enjoy!

Jack - Firstly, I'd like to say a massive thank you for agreeing to do this interview. I'm a big fan! 

Nina - Thank you too for being that cute! 

Jack - Why did you decide to enter the Georgian selection? 

Nina - Taking part in the Eurovision is very important thing for Georgia. I’ll try to explain why: Georgia is very small country, there are many talented people here who’s trying hard to go out and work in Europe. So I think that project is great chance for Georgian artists to show their work to the world. To be honest I was not interested to take part in the national final, I was working on my second album but my fans asked me to write some song for Eurovision. They were asking me to do that about 6 months, so I did that.. After several years of watching the Eurovision, I have developed an opinion about how to present Georgia so I hope that people will give me a chance to do that.

Jack - Can you tell us some information about your song? Did you compose it especially for Eurovision?

Nina - I wrote the song about me and generally about Georgian women. If we look at the history of Georgia, we see that women have always been important figures. They simply sought to be good women, good mothers, good teachers. The Georgian woman has to be able to control her temper and raise her child as a warrior. So, she became a warrior. In Georgian I chose the title “Mother Man”. Unfortunately, this word does not exist in other languages, and because of this I called it “Warrior”. I created the song ”Warrior” — the text, music and everything else belongs to me. I had to submit several versions for the competition, but none were satisfying. They didn’t have enough salt. At 4 o’clock at night, when I thought that all hope of writing the song was gone, I decided to write the last one. And if I didn’t like that one I would not take a part in a competition. I started to meditade. I gethered all my energy and I sang a melody with its lyrics. I liked it. I spent approximately 30 minutes on its structure. At last I sat down and by 7 o’clock I had finished it. I spent a few days thinking about the song, because the Eurovision format is different from my genre, which is ambient, psychedelic and alternative. So it took me a little time to rearrange it as pop music.

Jack - Your song is the clear favourite to win the Georgian selection, what does it mean for you to have so much support from people across Europe and the whole world? 

Nina - Well, let's see. National final results will be published on 14th January. As I said it's very hard to go out and work in Europe for Georgians. We work hard, we try hard but there's still huge distance between me and you... For me, as an artist the main thing is to make people listen my music. I was born to share my creature. That's why I decided to take part in national selection of Eurovision. I really would like to go out in Europe and take new experience.

Jack - If you do win the Georgian national final, can you reveal any details about your performance in Vienna?

Nina - Let's just wait and see what will happen 

Jack - What would it mean for you to represent your country in Eurovision? 

Nina - Oh, that would be taking responsibility to show your best without any budget. That's very very hard! 

Jack - Are you a fan of Eurovision? Did you watch the 2014 contest?

Nina - I started watching Eurovision from the first Georgian singers performance, don't really remember the date. So i did watch 2014 contest. I will watch 2015's too.

Jack - Could you tell us something about yourself that people won't necessarily know? 

Nina - Oh well, there's too many things to tell. My latest news is that I'm working on my second album and preparing to open my own fashion clothes and accessories line. Besides that I'm a vocal coach and imagemaker. I was studying in art school, than in Tbilisi state academy of art, now I'm in Tbilisi State Conservatoire, learning music technologies.. No really! There's too many things! 

Jack - It's been an absolute pleasure, Nina! I wish you the best of luck! Thank you so much..

Nina - Thank you very much! for the interview and for warm wishes! Good luck!

The Georgian representative will be chosen on 14th January. Enjoy Nina's song below:

Review 2015: Georgia's National Selection!

Ahead of the Georgian national final, I decided to review the competing entries. Can't say it's a great year for Georgia...

Eter Beriashvili - If Someone
If Someone isn't a bad song, but it's hardly going to be a worldwide hit either. Eter Beriashvili is a great singer but the song lets her down. I wouldn't be thrilled if she won but Georgia do have worse on offer.... 4/12

Edvard Meison - We Are Freeee
Edvard Meison is the 2nd favourite to represent Georgia. This blogger isn't a massive fan of We Are Freeee but I can see its appeal. He has a decent voice. If he did win, the song would need some work before the contest. Nothing more to say I'm afraid. 5/12

Niutone - Run Away
Meanwhile, Run Away is the song Niutone are aiming to represent the country with. Not to be confused with the Sweet Brain's Run Away which was in the Belarusian selection although that was equally as awful. I'm not impressed here. It's a shame because I actually expected something awesome from Niutone. I would be very surprised if Georgia selected this song. Some people like it, though. It gets three points on weirdness alone. 3/12

Misha Sulukhia - One and Only
Misha Sulukhia's song is probably my least favourite, and damn that's saying something here! One and Only is boring but he does have a good voice and I somehow wish he had a stronger song. Will he win? I'd be massively suprised and underwhelmed if he did.. 2/12

Nina Sublatti - Warrior
Nina Sublatti is the hot favourite, and my favourite, to represent Georgia with Warrior. She looks fantastic and her voice really suits the song. I adore it. Obviously, the song title is identical to Amber's Eurovision entry and therefore people are comparing the songs. I love them both - and really hope we will get to see another Warrior in Vienna. Good luck, Nina! 10/12

The Georgian entry will be chosen on 14th January! For me, it simply has to be Nina!! But who do you want to win? Please leave me a comment!

Georgia: Songs revealed, voting now open!

The five Georgian hopefuls revealed their songs last night. A pretty decent line-up by all accounts. I listened to the songs briefly and Nina Sublatti is my favourite. Love her song. The Georgian public now have until 14th January to vote for their favourite song. The jury will cast their votes during the national final in two weeks time. Listen to the songs below, just click on the links and enjoy:

• Edward Meison – We Are Free
• Eteri Beriashvili – If Someone
• Misha Sulukhia – One And Only
• Nina Sublatti – Warrior
• Niutone – Run Away

Photograph - Nina Sublatti's Facebook page

Georgia: Five acts presented, songs out next week!

Niutone

The participants for Georgia's upcoming national selection were revealed some days ago. Five acts are in the running and they are:

• Misha Sulukhia
• Nina Sublati
• Eter Beriashvili
• “Niutone”
• Edvard Meison

The songs will be revealed on New Years Eve. Voting will open the following day and the Georgian public will have two weeks to select their favourite song. The juries votes will be revealed during the national final on 14th January and then we'll have a winner! This blogger hopes Georgia gets their act together next year after such a poor result in Copenhagen....

Georgia: National final set for 14th January!

Georgia will hold a national final on 14th January, to select their representative for Vienna. Anyone interested in competing has until 20th December to send in their songs. More details will be revealed later.

Georgia: Artist announcement in September?

It is confirmed that Georgia will send a representative to Austria! Rumours had been circulated since the contest that Georgia may face a three year ban from Eurovision. However it appears the Georgians won't be disqualified. Their jury vote was very suspicious and declared invalid - because all jury members had voted exactly the same from 3 point up to 12 points. Therefore, only Georgian televote was used in the final. This raises the question - are juries really necessary anyway? This isn't the first controversial issue with the jury vote. The Georgian act will apparently be reveled next month. I wonder who will get the honour?

Introducing 2014: Georgia!

The Shin and Mariko were internally selected to fly the Georgian flag in Copenhagen. Mariko Ebralidze is an experienced jazz singer and The Shin are a fusion jazz band that were formed in 1998. Three Minutes To Earth was released in mid-March. The song has received tons of criticism although I think it has charm - I do kinda like it... I'm defiantly in the minority though. The video-clip itself is very bizarre. I wonder if their performance in May will consist of mannequins.

Regarding Copenhagen, it's hard to say where this will finish. I don't think it will appeal to many people... although I'm confident the jury will appreciate it. Maybe they'll make the final? Semi-final two is incredibly hard to call, I think everyone stands a strong chance of qualify, and that includes Georgia.

Georgia: "Three Minutes to Earth" released!

Mariko and The Shin have presented their Eurovision entry. It's a very interesting piece of music to say the least but it does have its charm and I really like it. A very unique song! However, it isn't very "contest friendly" and I think Georgia will struggle to qualify. Listen here...

Copenhagen 2014: Three songs to be presented tomorrow!

Georgia: The Shin and Mariko to sing "Three Minutes To Earth"!

(EBU)

It's been announced The Shin and Mariko will sing "Three Minutes To Earth" in Copenhagen. The song is composed by Zaza Miminoshvili and penned by Eugen Eliu - and they are recording it in Germany.

They spoke to eurovision.tv and this is what they had to say regarding their entry:

"The song is about feelings and thoughts you have when you return, and it also tries to answer the question how the earth sounds at the moment",

It's due to be released in a couple of weeks. A video-clip will be recorded in the Georgian capital, Tbilisi! I'm excited about this one.

Georgia: The Shin & Mariko Ebralidze to Copenhagen!

This is a very interesting choice! The Georgian broadcaster has announced The Shin & Mariko Ebralidze will represent the country in Eurovision. The Shin were formed in Germany, in 1998, and are among Georgia's most respected bands. The specialise in jazz and fusion. They'll be joined on stage by Mariko Ebralidze - who is a popular jazz singer. Some jazz from Georgia this year then? That would be awesome!

No information regarding the song yet. I think this is a fantastic choice - hopefully the song will meet my expectations.

Georgia: Artist to be revealed tomorrow!

Who's going to fly the Georgian flag this year? Well, tomorrow we will find out! GPB will announce the act at 12:00 CET. Stay tuned my friends! :-)

Georgia: Representative to be chosen internally!

It has been announced that GPB, the Georgian broadcaster, will select their representative for Copenhagen internally. The lucky artist will be revealed in February.

However it isn't yet known how the song itself will be selected. Will there be a national final to decide the Georgian entry? Or will the song itself be selected internally too? I guess we'll find out pretty soon!