EBJ UPDATE | Where I’ve been, where I’m going + where we’re at with ESC and JESC
I’M BACK!! In case you hadn’t noticed (which, let’s face it, you probably hadn’t) I’ve been doing things other than rambling about Eurovision here for a few weeks now. Oops. As usual, life’s hectic tendencies and my general slowpokery are to blame, although I have been away on holiday too (during which time I made it my mission to detach from technology, meaning I checked Facebook ten times a day instead of twenty. Mission accomplished).
Unsurprisingly, a heap of stuff has happened on Planet Eurovision while I’ve been otherwise occupied, and that stuff is what I’m here to discuss with y’all today. Waiting for you below is some Stockholm news that may or may not blow your mind; my thoughts on the artists chosen by the Netherlands, Montenegro and Armenia for 2016; Melodifestivalen musings to…well, muse over; and, of course *sounds alarm to forewarn JESC boycotters* several Junior Eurovision topics of conversation. We are, after all, speeding closer and closer to the Sofia show, and I refuse to rein in my excitement re: that!
So while I’m doing a celebratory crab dance that Loreen would be proud of, you can read on. If you want to. Which you should.
Stockholm Twenty-Sixteen: Finalised flights, country confirmations and selected singers
News item numero uno? It’s official – I’m STOCKHOLM-BOUND, BABY!
As tickets and accreditation and all that jazz aren’t available to be snapped up yet, the fact that I’ve booked my flights to Sweden’s capital and have secured a backup hotel room there (I’ll be sourcing self-contained digs ASAP) makes my impending pilgrimage to Eurovision as official as possible at this point. I’m still in shock – both at having finally booked the trip, and at my bank balance now that I’ve forked out to fly across the globe, til Globen.
If you’re also gallivanting off to the big golf ball next May, let me know so we can pencil in some plans to party it up in the IKEA cafeteria or something (where Swedish meatballs will rain down on us like Emmelie de Forest’s fire curtain). I’m already booked in to hit up the ABBA Museum and strut around Gamla Stan, and I’m not leaving Sweden without a handcrafted Dala horse stuffed into my suitcase. All that, plus the prospect of seeing Eurovision (and my beloved Måns Zelmerlöw) in the flesh for the first time, convinces me that this trip will be an epic one. I cannot WAIT.
Möt mig i Globen??
But wait I – and everyone else – must, because it’s only October. Even so, Stockholm 2016 is taking shape, with countries confirming their participation left, right and centre. Bulgaria and Ukraine are both set to make comebacks, and if we assume that Serbia and Romania will be on board, that takes the participant tally up to 40. Portugal is, sadly, out, with Bosnia & Herzegovina, Croatia and Turkey still searching for financial backing/making their minds up. But, with those last three countries not giving us a firm, Michele Perniola-esque ‘No!’ yet – and permanency for Australia still a possibility – it’s likely we’ll push past the big 4-0, even if just by one. Not that I’m über concerned about there being over forty countries in Sweden. Eurovision is about quality, not quantity. One freaking amazing entry matters more than ten crap ones.
So, will we get something amazing or something that should be flushed down the toilet from the three acts in the 2016 line-up already? The Netherlands, Montenegro and Armenia aren’t messing around: they’ve decided to send Douwe Bob, Highway and Iveta Mukuchyan to Sweden respectively.
The first faces for Stockholm 2016. Aren’t they pretty?
Having conducted a bit of research on the boys (I was already familiar with Iveta, and I’m pumped that she’s repping Armenia) it seems we should expect the unexpected where the Dutch and Montenegrin acts are concerned. That’s always exciting, so watch this and all of the other Eurovisual spaces to find out what a mod-folk singer-songwriter and an X Factor Adria man-band have in store for us.
Melodifestivalen 2016: A made-over motif + finding out who might follow in Måns’ footsteps
Next on the agenda is host country talk. I feel like it’s close enough to Melodifestivalen time for me to discuss my favourite NF of all time without instigating a worldwide wave of eye-rolling.
The dates and locations for the six-week extravaganza are set in stone as SVT prepares to find a host entry that will outdo Austria’s (not hard); tickets that I will sadly not be buying have gone on sale; and the whole shebang has a shiny new logo to replace the one that wasn’t even stale yet. But hey, the newie is nice.
Give us a Eurovision logo of this standard, SVT, and the compliments will be rolling in.
A fresh logo doesn’t necessarily bring with it fresh names, and if Melfest-act-predicting machine Aftonbladet is as on the money as usual, the 2016 show will be packed with artists having a second, third or seventy-fifth shot at representing Sweden. So far, Aftonbladet has pegged Ace Wilder, Oscar Zia and Samir & Viktor as definite returnees. Still waiting on SVT to say yay or nay, apparently, are Isa, Molly Pettersson Hammar, Dinah Nah and Dolly Style, plus earlier participants Ola Svensson, Sean Banan, Panetoz, David Lindgren, and most excitingly, Timoteij. Someone who’s set to give Melfest a go without having done so before is reigning Idol champ Lisa Ajax, who entered Lilla Melodifestivalen in 2012, eventually losing to Lova Sönnerbo. Perhaps Lisa will get her chance to compete in a Eurovision event after all?
It seems that after two years of musos winning Melfest after multiple attempts, many artists are thinking that 2016 could be their time, at long last. On that note, I’d love to see Darin, Agnes, Josef Johansson, Danny Saucedo and Molly Sandén (Danny and Molly as soloists or as a duet in their capacity as THE CUTEST COUPLE EVER) back again…but I won’t hold my breath. As for further newcomers to Melfest who’d be high on my wish-list – well, the one name that comes to mind is Zara Larsson, who’s a pop princess and a half. She gave the world an awesome summer anthem not too long ago, and would totally do Sweden proud on home ground. Plus, I’d get to see her perform live, which is never going to happen otherwise. If you’re listening, universe, make it happen!
Let me know what you think of Aftonbladet’s list down below, and don’t forget to tell me who you’d like to see take another dip in the Melfest waters…or dive in for their first.
JESC 2015: Just three (and a bit) weeks to go!
DISCLAIMER: San Marino chose the moment after I’d published this post to drop their entry *shakes fist in their general direction* so please take that into account when you’re reading the following. I’ll tell you what I think of Kamilla Ismailova’s Mirror in my upcoming JESC reviews.
You can skip straight ahead to the outro now if you’re not JESC-inclined – but to those of you who are, I say ARE YOU EXCITED YET, OR WHAT?!?!? Bulgaria will be bringing us the 13th edition of Junior Eurovision in just over three weeks’ time, with ESC alumni Poli Genova at the hosting helm. At least she’ll get to attend one final in her lifetime.
The final tally of competitors is seventeen, with Ireland and San Marino still deciding which of the child singers at their disposal can pull in the most points (well, San Marino may have decided, but they haven’t dropped a singer or song name yet). Ireland won’t make their choice until November 8th, leaving their pint-sized performer just over a week of pre-JESC prep time. Is that a smart idea? Only time – and the scoreboard – will tell.
The seventeen-strong field also includes Australia, as you’ll be well aware of by now. Yep, we’re back! If that isn’t a massive placard with ‘WE WANT AN INVITATION TO STOCKHOLM!’ plastered on it, then I don’t know what is, and I suspect we’ll get what we’re asking for. I’ve discussed all the details of Australia’s JESC participation and rated Bella Paige’s chances over on ESC Insight, if you want to check that out. Here’s a preview: I can understand opposition to our presence, but I’m still psyched to support Bella on the 21st…and pathetically hopeful that I’ll have a fellow countryman/woman to wave an Aussie flag for in Stockholm. I can’t help it. If you’re Australian, you’ll probably understand.
Bella’s first big stage has nothing on the one she’ll be stepping on in Bulgaria.
JESC 2015 has laid almost all of its cards on the table, with hosts Bulgaria, Montenegro and Malta being the latest competitors to reveal their entries. Collectively, they haven’t lifted the standard of a lacklustre year by much – but Malta, at least, is bringing some fun and funk in the form of Destiny Chukunyere’s Not My Soul. My favourites are still the ballads from Belarus and Ukraine, and sophisticated Slovenia, but are they douze-worthy and do I think any of them can win? You’ll find out when my 2015 Junior Eurovision reviews begin next week. I’m currently in the process of recruiting an EBJJJ (a.k.a. a Eurovision By Jaz Junior Jury) to judge and score all seventeen songs in order to come up with a pre-show ranking. Who will come out on top? Will I burst into tears if anyone criticises Bella’s My Girls? Both of these questions, and many others (including, most likely, why are you still reading this ridiculous blog?) will be answered in the very near future.
I hope you JESC fans will drop by for the Junior coverage. The power of Vincenzo Cantiello compels you!
I’ve said my piece(s) now, so the last thing I’ll say is adios amigos. I’m off to tackle some less Eurovisiony, more boring tasks, but I’ll be back in a few days – after I’ve watched enough horror movies to satisfy my Halloween-weekend cravings (I’m not sure enough have been produced, but we’ll see).
Until then, stay suitably fabulous, peeps!
NEXT TIME No, JESC isn’t for everyone, but some seriously stellar talents have stood on the contest’s stage since its 2003 inception. This weekend, I’ll be counting down the top 10 most incredible singers in Junior Eurovision history – all of whom have voices even the haters should hear.
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