Strongly benefited Sweden and Poland, and another eight countries, advance to the Eurovision Grand Final
Sweden and Poland, both among the favorites to win this year Eurovision Song Contest, went with eight other countries that advanced to the grand final on Saturday (May 14) in Turin, Italy.
Finland, Serbia, Azerbaijan, Australia, Estonia, Romania, Belgium and the Czech Republic also advanced after the second semi-final on Thursday.
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Israel, Georgia, Malta, San Marino, Cyprus, Ireland, Northern Macedonia and Montenegro failed the grade.
The latest reports from bookmakers betting on who will win Eurovision each year show that Ukraine has a 57% chance of winning, followed by the UK with an 11% chance, based on an average of the odds from 13 different companies.
It shows a high view for Sam Ryders “Space Man”, which would be a reversal of happiness for Britain, which placed last in 2021 with zero points. The UK has not had a top-10 record since 2009, then Jade Ewens “It’s My Time,” written by Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber and Diane Warren, finished fifth. Britain has not won since 1997, then Katrina & the waves won with “Love Shine A Light”.
If Ukraine wins on Saturday, as expected, it will be the country’s third championship after that Ruslanas “Wild Dances” 2004 and Jamalas “1944” 2016.
The “big five” countries – Spain, Italy, Germany, France and the United Kingdom – did not make it to the semi-finals. Because they contribute the most to the production budget, they do not need to qualify and are always represented in the competition.
Thursday’s 10 new additions range from deeply personal and intimate songs to straight forward rock and country pop. Finland started Thursday’s semifinal with a rock performance by Rasmusen, a Finnish veteran band formed in 1994 when the members were in the eighth grade. They had four straight number 1 albums on the Finnish charts and five number 1 singles. Their contribution to Eurovision, “Jezebel”, co-written and produced by Desmond Childtopped this year as number 4.
Australian Sheldon Riley, who was diagnosed with Asperger’s syndrome at the age of six, struggled with his sexual identity when he was growing up until he came out as gay. He told Australian SBS Radio that the feeling of being separated from other children made “growing up a little harder.” That was the inspiration for his very personal Eurovision contribution, “Not the Same.”
After the broadcast, Riley was asked by journalists about the status of LGBTQ + rights in Australia. “There is still a lot to do, but I am happy with the progress that is being made,” he said.
Represents Estonia is Stefan, son of Armenian immigrants, who has released music since 2017. In 2020, he won the first season of the Estonian version of The Masked Singer. An outspoken fan of Johnny Cash and the late film composer Ennio Morriconehis contribution “Hope” begins as a country song and grows into a cinematic power song.
The six-time Eurovision winner Sweden makes some Eurovision history this year with Cornelia Jakob’s “Hold Me Closer”, written by Isa Molin. This is Molin’s first time at Eurovision, but her father, Bobby Ljunggren, has composed six Eurovision entries, five for Sweden and one for Lithuania. As of this year, he has had 50 songs to compete in the Melodifestivalen, Sweden’s national final in Eurovision.
This seems to be the first time a father and daughter have written separate Eurovision songs. 1996, Anna Mjöll from Iceland and her father Ólafur Gaukur Þórhallsson wrote his jazz piece, “Sjúbídú.”
“I’ve been playing music my whole life and it’s been great to have it with my dad,” says Molin. Bulletin board. “It feels so good to have my parents here and my brother also came today, all the way from Singapore.”
The 10 countries that advance from the second semifinal join the 10 nations that advanced after Tuesday’s first semifinal: Ukraine, Armenia, Greece, Iceland, Lithuania, Moldova, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal and Switzerland.
Additional reporting by Silvia Danielli from Billboard Italia