This week, the BBC drew the usual mixed reactions with the unveiling of the UK hopefuls for Eurovision 2017, with local press focusing more on the fact that all six candidates were former X Factor ‘rejects’ than on the songs themselves.
Details of upcoming National Selections in Denmark and Iceland were also unveiled, while Lithuania rallied behind one of the first truly viral-friendly potentials of this season.
With selection season approaching full steam, I asked the rest of the ESC Insight team to nominate the format that they feel represents the best approach to choosing a Eurovision competitor. Here’s what they came up with…
Ellie Chalkley
I’m a big fan of Songvakeppnin (Iceland). It’s a wonderful combination of the slickness of Nordic pop entertainment with the intimate vibe of an obscure indie music venue. Keeping the semi-finals in Icelandic and only allowing alternate language versions in the final creates a bit of magic.
John Egan
I’ll be the outlier here: the internal artist selection with a several song national final. It lets great artists–Pastora, Helena, Sertab–workshop different sorts of songs with the public. It’s not often a winning formula, but it means the audience gets to see them at their best.
Ben Robertson
Full credit should go to how Estonia rebranded their competition to be about their own music rather than looking for Europe. Now, the production team model the best bits of Melodifestivalen with innovations galore of their own. The little details like the extra week to make visual performances in a big arena and the exciting drip of jury results make it the production I’d point all broadcasters towards who might be daunted by Friends Arena.
Samantha Ross
I know I’m being stereotypical here, and it’s not even my favourite National Final, but if the object of a country’s selection is to:
1) Drum up major support for a song, both domestically and for an international fanbase,
2) Provide a medium for a song to be tested in battle, giving choreography, staging, and gimmicks the same opportunity to be piloted as the singer themselves,
3) Deliver massive ratings to a broadcaster,
4) Serve up some genuinely solid and varied songs,
…then it’s really hard to argue against the prestige and polish that Melodifestivalen (Sweden) gives us. While musically, I’d reach for Eesti Laul (Estonia) any day of the week, I can’t deny the clout of the Grande Dame of National Finals.
Ewan Spence
No super finals, heats, or gimmicks. No experts telling you what to think after every song. If you are serious about winning Eurovision, your National Final must replicate Eurovision. 50/50 voting, 45 seconds between songs, no reality TV soap opera. Sing like you fight, fight like you sing. So… Georgia 2017 it is then.
Sharleen Wright
Not based on the songs themselves but format alone, I will say UMK (Finland) has a place – it has record company buy in, the music selected comes from a wide selection of genres and the channel invests in all the artists with the production of a high quality clip and regular airplay across its TV and radio channels. It doesn’t have to always be about winning and heading to Eurovision, but giving acts a good start with exposure to build a lasting local career.
Make sure you check out the full newsletter for more on the road to Kyiv 2017, including a weekly national selection roundup, weekly features and the usual dose of highly subjective opinion and analysis. Until next week!