From witchcraft to power ballad!
Yesterday it was finally time for the first semi-final of the Eurovision Song Contest. Fifteen candidates were allowed to put their best foot forward in the hope of qualifying for the grand final. Led by hostesses Petra Mede and Malin Ã…kerman, another dazzling show was put on!
Eurovision party
It’s happening in May: every year the crème de la crème of Europe’s musical world can show what they have to offer. Or not – because not every performance is equally successful, of course.
The first semi-final that took place last night was no exception. We saw flawless vocal performances from, for example, Iolanda, who represents Portugal this year, and the Croatian act Baby Lasagna had the entire arena in Malmö with its infectious Rim Tim Tagi Dim. However, interval act Johnny Logan, a bit of Eurovision royalty, was unable to get through a ballad performance of Loreen’s Euphoria unscathed.
Winners and losers
After a dazzling show full of fireworks, barely there outfits and complicated choreographies, the moment of truth had finally arrived. Of the fifteen candidates, only ten would qualify for the grand final.
Ultimately, Australia, Azerbaijan, Moldova, Iceland and Poland dropped out. The list of countries that did qualify looks like this:
- Cyprus
- Serbia
- Lithuania
- Ireland
- Ukraine
- Croatia
- Slovenia
- Finland
- Portugal
- Luxembourg
Curious what they sound like? The organization has created a flashy montage, in which you get a good idea of ​​what each act showed on stage.
And Joost?
The second semi-final will take place tomorrow evening, in which our Joost Klein can also show what he has to offer. In any case, we do not expect any problems with the placement for the grand final. Of all the candidates who have to take office tomorrow, Joost has the greatest chance of qualifying, the bookmakers believe.
If he does indeed succeed, he can show his skills again on Saturday in the Malmö Arena. Here he will compete against the above list of countries, plus the nine acts that managed to qualify next to him from the second semi-final. The so-called ‘Big Five’ (the five largest financial backers of the music festival, Germany, France, Spain, Italy and the United Kingdom) and host country Sweden, which have automatically qualified for the final, are also present.
We already can’t wait!
Source: Eurovision World | Image: Alma Bengtsson / EBU
