Ever since my friend Maggie Szabo took second place in Eurovision 2022 – she co-wrote “SloMo” with Spain’s Channel – I have been following the wild, wacky, wonderful world of Eurovision.
If you are an American or a Mexican, you might not pay attention to the Eurovision Song Contest, the largest and most watched musical celebration in the world (an audience of 1 billion), since neither country can submit an entry.
Eurovision is an internationally televised music competition organized by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) in which each participating country selects a song and artist, either through national competitions or an internal selection, to represent them on stage. The contest typically consists of two semi-finals and a grand finale, with the so-called “Big Five” (France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and the United Kingdom) and the previous year’s winner automatically qualifying for the final. In addition, another 20 or so songs make it to the finale, based on their scores. The winner is determined through a combination of jury and public votes, including online voting from audiences worldwide.
And it is wild. This year’s finals included Finland’s entry, Erika Vikman singing “Ich Komme” (I’m Coming) while flying offstage on a giant fire-breathing microphone, Sweden’s entry “Bara Bada Bastu” about the joys of saunas done in a on-stage fake sauna with backup singers in towels, Italy’s entry “Volevo Essere” mocked Italians and their coffee habit (many Italians were not happy), Israel’s “New Day Will Rise,” (which won second place) written by Keren Peles performed by Yuval Raphael despite shouted protests and whistles, and a 24-year old opera singer called JJ singing the pop song “Wasted Love” for Austria. He blew the audience away singing in countertenor while escaping from a swamped raft in a raging storm (special effects) and won the top prize.
The semifinals were even wilder. Malta’s Miriana Conte wowed viewers with her song “Serving,” performing inside a giant pair of shiny red lips and concluding the act with dancers bouncing on enormous red exercise balls, Ireland’s EMMY delivered a whimsical tribute to Laika, the Soviet space dog, complete with a giant illuminated dog prop. The UK’s Remember Monday, although not competing in the semi-finals as part of the “Big Five,” paid homage to the 80’s British pop group Bucks Fizz with a dramatic skirt-rip moment, earning praise for their stage presence and vocal performance
The 69th Eurovision Song Contest was hosted in Basel, Switzerland, at St. Jakobshalle, an indoor/outdoor venue for 8,000 – 12,000 people, with semi-finals on May 13 and 15, followed by the grand final on May 17. Thirty-seven countries participated, and the grand final featured 26 acts, including the “Big Five,” Switzerland, and the top 20 qualifiers from the semi-finals.
I love Eurovision because of the no-holds-barred creativity and the very high caliber of talent. Despite the wacky costumes and props and lyrics that range from the ridiculous to the near obscene, the artists are very, very good. Plus, the combination of judges and popular voting means that creativity and audience pleasing produce some unusual winners, widening everyone’s taste (I preferred Spain’s entry, but I am only one vote). But most of all, I like it because it is fun, fun, fun.
Take at look at the Eurovision highlights on YouTube.
