April 7, 2024

🇫🇷 Road to Malmö: France

photo: EBU We can not wait for the Eurovision Song Contest in Malmö. Therefore, we have a closer look at one of the contestants every day. Today: France. Slimane Slimane Nebchi, widely known as Slimane, is a celebrated French-Algerian singer and songwriter. Born on October 13, 1989, in Chelles, Seine-et-Marne, Slimane’s music is deeply enriched by his Algerian roots, blending diverse cultural influences. He gained fame through his participation in music competitions, notably winning “The Voice: la plus belle voix” in 2016 with 33% of the public vote at age 26. Before this triumph, Slimane had been sharing his compositions online, including notable pieces like “Toi et moi” and the duet “Amour Impossible” with Princesse Sofia. Post-“The Voice,” he released his debut album and several singles, quickly becoming a key figure in the French music scene. Besides his recording achievements, Slimane has taken on roles in musicals, including “Marie-Antoinette et le Chevalier de Maison-Rouge.” His career reached a new milestone when he was chosen to represent France at the Eurovision Song Contest with the song “Mon Amour” in November 2023. A French winner…. or not? France won the contest in 1991, and yet they did not. France and Sweden ended up with a tie. Even the amount of twelves was the same. Sweden won because of a higher amount of tens. Amina Annabi, often just called Amina, is a famous singer from Tunisia who also grew up in France. She sings, acts, and has been making music for a long time. Amina is special because she mixes music from Tunisia with music from France and other places, making her songs interesting and different. Her Eurovision song became the most famous of her songs: “Le Dernier qui a parlé” which means “The Last One to Speak.” The song “Le Dernier qui a parlé” is really catchy and talks about how important it is to talk and understand each other to make peace. Amina’s beautiful singing and the mix of traditional and modern music made this song stand out. It did really well in the competition and almost won, coming in second place by just one point. The song became a hit single in various countries. France in the Eurovision Song Contest As said, France almost won in 1991. That would have been the 6th victory. The row of French victories started in 1958, when André Claveau won with the song “Dors mon amour”. Two years later, the trophy went to France again, this time thanks to Jacqueline Boyer and her “Tom Pillibi”. Again two years later, Isabelle Aubret did the job singing “Un premier amour”. In 1969, Frida Boccara‘s “Un jour un enfant” was one of the four winners. The last time so far France won was in 1977, with Marie Myriam holding the trophy thanks to her “L’oiseau et l’enfant”. In the last few years France is less succesful, except a few highlights. We have to mention Barbara Pravi in this; she was the runner up in 2021, but her “Voila” became a hit and a Eurovision classic. Marie Myriam The Bookmakers As France will be placed directly in the final, there are no betting odds about reaching the final. In the odds to win the contest, France is currently 7th. That would mean one of the better scores for France in the last few years. The song And this is the song:

🇨🇿 Road to Malmö: Czechia

photo: CT We can not wait for the Eurovision Song Contest in Malmö. Therefore, we have a closer look at one of the contestants every day. Today: Czechia. Aiko Alena Shirmanova, better known as Aiko, is a singer from Karlovy Vary, Czech Republic, born on December 26, 1999. She became famous on a show called “Česko Slovenská SuperStar.” Aiko released her first music album, named after herself, in 2018. Her song “Hunt” from her 2020 album “Expiration Date” got a lot of attention. She made history twice: once when her picture was shown on a big screen in New York’s Times Square and again when she joined a special Spotify music campaign. Aiko has performed at big music events and opened shows for famous musicians like Alice Merton. Her songs have been played on TV shows like “Teen Mom” and “Love Island.” In 2023, Aiko released an album called “Fortune’s Child.” She also won a competition with her song “Pedestal,” which means she will represent the Czech Republic at the Eurovision Song Contest 2024. Aiko now lives in Brighton, England, and is getting ready for Eurovision, where she’ll sing in front of lots of people. ESCZ 2024 Czechia had a national final this year. Seven songs were presented on the internet. They were put online on 28 November 2023. A week later they were presented again in a show, hosted by Adam Mišík en César Sampson. In that show, Czech and international televoters chose a winner. While the Czech audience preferred Elly, the international audience chose Aiko. The latter won. Czechia in the Eurovision Song Contest Czechia debuted in the Eurovision Song Contest in 2007 with rock band Kabát and their song “Malá dáma”. It was not a success: 1 point in the semifinal. Two years later, Gypsy.cz even got no points at all. Czechia quit after that failure, to return in 2015. The best score so far was for Mikolas Josef in 2018. He became 6th. Mikolas Josef, EBU/Thomas Hanses The bookmakers Currently, the odds predict a 34th place for Czechia to win the contest. To reach the semifinal, they even predict a last place. However, still anything can happen, so we stay positive. The song This is the song: