Eurovision 2012: Semifinal Voting Thoughts

So here's some initial thoughts on the semi-finals.  Obviously there will be more, as well as thoughts on the finals.  However, so far, we've had a few good performers, songs, or acts that for whatever reason don't succeed.  Some highlights (or lowlights):

Joan Franka - "You and Me" (Netherlands)

The song grew on me over the past few weeks.  It's kind of sweet, and girl with guitar can go over really well (see, eg, Soluna Samay).  But Eurovision is about 3 minute presentations and most people were probably scratching their head at the bad 1980's-Cher head dress and didn't vote for her.  It probably didn't help that the closest neighbors and traditional supporters were all in the other semifinal either.  And that's kind of a shame.

Max Jason Mai - "Don't Close Your Eyes" (Slovakia)

This was the only true rock song, and one of the better entries in my opinion.  So what happened?  Slovakia was in the semi-final with a lot of former Yugoslav and Soviet states.  Whether it was all bloc voting or just a few guitar solos too much for older voters, it just couldn't get the support it needed.  It might have fared a little better in the first semi-final, which featured more of its neighbors.

Nina Badric - "Nebo" (Croatia)

Croatia was exactly where it wanted to be:  A good song, great performer, and in a semifinal with 4 other former-Yugoslav states.  I figured three of them would get in, and I was right.  Unfortunately, when it came down to it, Croatia and Slovenia were on the outs with FYR Macedonia sneaking in.  Bloc voting giveth, and bloc voting taketh away.

Filipa Sousa - Vida Minha (Portugal)

This was the complete opposite boat than Croatia.  A nice song with great traditional overtones, in a semi-final of Eastern European countries.  Neighbor Spain voted in the other semi-final, which probably didn't help Portugal break up the eastern blocs.

Pernilla Karlsson - "När jag blundar" (Finland)

A rather pretty little song from Finland (we've come a long way from Lordi) that against just didn't get the support it needed.  While Greece and Iceland have given Finland a lot of points over the years, it probably didn't help that Sweden, Norway, and Estonia (other traditional supporters) were in the other semi-final.  Also am I the only one who thought the first semi-final was pretty stacked?

Valentina Monetta - "The Social Network Song" (San Marino)

Again, my bias is showing, but I loved this song.  It was fun, cheeky, upbeat, and satirical, and Monetta was great to watch in the lead up.  Obviously the voters just didn't get it.  Europe's loss.

I'm sure we can analyze the voting until the cows come home.  What are your thoughts?

Eurovision 2012: Pastora Soler and Father Ted

In her bitter breakup song, "Superhero," Ani Difranco laments, "Art may imitate life, but life imitates tv."  Nowhere is that as apparent as the Eurovison song contest, especially this year.

Earlier today, the Spanish EBU affiliate (jokingly?) told Pastora Soler not to win Eurovision because the country can't afford to host the competition.  Soler herself made similar comments, saying it wouldn't be in the best interests of Spain or the Spanish people for her to win.

Now, I'm going to lay my bias out on the table here and say that I think Spain's entry is one of the better ones this year, and I would love to see a neck and neck race between her and Nina Zilli (Italy).  But what does any of this have to do with tv?

In the episode "A Song for Europe," from British comedy "Father Ted," the main characters catch Eurosong fever, and decide to enter the fictional Eurovision-esque competition.  They write a terrible song called "My Lovely Horse" and enter it into the Irish selection competition.

So what happens?  They win and head to Eurosong?  Why...because Ireland had won for five years running and simply couldn't afford to host it again, so the competition was rigged to send the worst song imaginable.  The plan worked, as the episode ends with everyone giving our heroes nul points.

The saddest part?  "My Lovely Horse" is better than some of the actual songs that have been up on stage over the years...

Eurovision 2012: Semifinal 2 Predictions

Well, I was 10 for 10 yesterday.  Let's see if I can do it again.  Here are my predictions, based solely on history, what I like, buzz, and betting odds for semifinal 2:

1. Serbia
2. Portugal
3. Ukraine
4. Slovenia
5. Sweden
6. Norway
7. Estonia
8. Slovakia
9. Bosnia
10. Croatia

That's basically it.  Belarus may find a way to sneak in as might FYR Macedonia (since the former Yugoslav and Soviet countries are voting tonight).  Outside chance for Turkey since Germany is voting in this semi-final.

Eurovision 2012: Semifinal 1 Predictions

So tonight's the night, cats and kittens!  The first semi-final will take place in Baku, and 10 of the following songs will move on to the Grand Final this Saturday.

Here's your running order:

1. Montenegro: Rambo Amadeus - Euro Neuro
2. Iceland: Greta Salóme & Jónsi - Never Forget
3. Greece: Eleftheria Eleftheriou - Aphrodisiac
4. Latvia: Anmary - Beautiful Song
5. Albania: Rona Nishliu - Suus
6. Romania: Mandinga - Zaleilah
7. Switzerland: Sinplus - Unbreakable
8. Belgium: Iris - Would You
9. Finland: Pernilla - När Jag Blundar
10. Israel: Izabo - Time
11. San Marino: Valentina Monetta - The Social Network Song (Oh Oh - Uh - Oh Oh)
12. Cyprus: Ivi Adamou - La La Love
13. Denmark: Soluna Samay - Should've Known Better
14. Russia: Buranovskiye Babushki - Party For Everybody
15. Hungary: Compact Disco - Sound Of Our Hearts
16. Austria: Trackshittaz - Woki Mit Deim Popo
17. Moldova: Pasha Parfeny - Lăutar
18. Ireland: Jedward - Waterline

So who can we expect to move on?  My vaguely expert predictions, based solely on internet chatter, betting odds, and stuff I just frankly like

1. Iceland
2. Greece
3. Albania
4. Romania
5. Cyrpus
6. Denmark
7. Russia
8. Hungary
9. Moldova
10. Ireland

San Marino (one of my personal favorites) probably won't get through, which really is a shame!  Possible dark horses may be Finland, Israel, and Switzerland.

What are your thoughts?  Will you be watching?

2012 Betting Odds - One Month Out

So we're just a few short weeks away from Eurovision and the betting odds are more or less holding steady.

The predicted top 10, based on the current odds:

1.  Sweden
2.  Italy
3.  Russia
4.  Serbia
5.  UK
6.  Denmark
7.  Spain
8.  Ireland
9.  Iceland
10.  Germany

I'm happy that Italy and Spain are doing as well as they are.  Russia's high place is a bit surprising, although whether its due to sentimentality, bloc voting, or something else I'm not sure.  Expect to see Ireland move up over the coming weeks (Jedward shot up right before the finals last year).  I personally wouldn't mind seeing San Marino crack the Top 10, but that's just me, although a move into the Top 10 by perennial underdog Cyprus might not be that unheard of.  The big question though is still whether Loreen can hold on to the top spot.

Your thoughts?

Eurovision 2012 Acoustic Style

I love acoustic music, and quite frankly who doesn't.  Heck, back when MTV actually showed music, "Unplugged" was one of my favorite shows.  So when a few of the contestants put out acoustic versions, I jumped all over that.

First of is Sabina Babayeva (Azerbaijan) who gives "When the Music Dies" a little flamenco flair.  It doesn't have the same power notes as the official version, but her voice is just gorgeous.

Iris (Belgium) also shines in "Would You."  I really think it suits her voice a lot better, and the entire song seems a bit sweeter and less generic pop.

Roman Lob (Germany) gives yet another swoon-worthy performance of "Standing Still."  I swear, if this song played on American radio, people would think it was the new single by The Fray.

And as a bonus, here's the acoustic version of last year's winner, Ell & Nikki's "Running Scared" (Azerbaijan).  There's harmony in that song I never knew existed before!

The Politics of Eurovision: Ukraine and Racism in 2012

While I love Eurovision (and perhaps I would even consider myself a Eurovision geek), that's not the only thing I love.  I love good young adult fiction and dystopian stories.  Hence, my love for Suzanne Collins' amazing trilogy, The Hunger Games.

Recently, Jezebel.com ran several articles discussing race as it relates to The Hunger Games.  The most shocking, in my opinion, was an article about angry racist tweets.  Without spoiling the books, the tweets questioned why black actors were cast as certain characters (the characters are described by the author as being black) and one even said that she was no longer saddened by a character's death when she found out the character was actually black.

With this in the back of my head, I should not have been shocked by the racist comments directed against 2012 Ukrainian competitor Gaitana.

Gaitana, one of the pioneers of R&B music in Eastern Europe, is of Congolese and Ukrainian descent.  She was born in Kiev, but spent the next four years in the Republic of the Congo before returning to Ukraine with her mother.  She sings in three languages and knows two more, and writes and composes all of her own songs.  She plays the saxophone.  The Kyiv Post called her unpretentious and discussed how she likes to cook and wants to have children.

However, as as Armenia and Azerbaijan have already shown us, an international singing competition is the best place for complex demographic and political issues to be addressed.  As the Kyiv Post reported, Yuriy Syrotyuk, a senior member of the Svoboda party (an extremist right wing party that, among other things, seeks to include nationality on Ukrainian passports and ban adoption of Ukranian children by non-Ukrainians), criticized Gaitana's selection, stating “Gaitana is not an organic representative of the Ukrainian culture” and that, since Gaitaiana is biracial, Ukraine will be “associated with a different continent.”  He further stated, "As we want to be accepted to the European Union, it could be our opportunity to show the Europeans that we are also a European nation. We need to show our originality."

Let's take a look at that statement again.  Gaitana does not deserve to represent Ukraine because she's not white enough.  Despite being born in Kiev, having lived most of her life in Kiev, and being a pioneer of Ukrainian music, in the eyes of some, the simple fact that she is biracial somehow makes her not a true representative of Ukrainian culture (never mind that there a hell of a lot of originality in the song itself).

Does she need a birth certificate?  Would that make you happy?

Syrotyuk later tried to backtrack, claiming he was merely criticizing the Ukrainian selection process, and did not make any comment about Gaitana's race or skin color.  Really?  REALLY?!  The concern that was Gaitana, a biracial woman, would make people associate Ukraine with Africa.  If that's not a comment about skin color, I don't know what is.  And, to be sure, I'm certain that the true representatives of Ukrainian culture are white performers such as Verka Serduchka and Svetlana Loboda who sing in English.  Ukraine:  Come for the glitter, stay for the drag queens.

Now I wish I could write this whole thing off as someone who really truly misspoke (at best) or a racist with a microphone (at worst).  After all, in 2012, a biracial singer couldn't really cause that much of a stir outside of Tea Party-esque circles.  Boy, was I wrong.  These are all comments copied directly from the official "Be My Guest" youtube video:

I didn't write this to imply that Ukrainians are any more racist than anyone else, or than race relations are more problematic in Ukraine than here in the United States or elsewhere in world.  Rather, it's to show that no matter how far we think we've come, there's still a long way to go.  What shocks me isn't that there are people who have these thoughts, and we can't police thoughts.  But rather, what shocks me is how blunt they are in saying it.

Claiming Gaitana is somehow unfit to represent Ukraine because of her race says the wrong thing not just about Ukraine, but about humanity.  Whether you love or hate the song, she has worked hard to be able to get up onto that stage, and the color of her skin should have no bearing on whether or not she's "Ukrainian enough" (whatever that means).

Maybe in the end, we should just take what Gaitana herself says to heart.  It's not about politics or demographics or xenophobia.  It's simply life.   “Of course I am Ukrainian! I live here, I work here, I sing here, I fall in love here.”