Bye bye backings? Martin Österdahl reveals change!

Today, an interview with Eurovision Song Contest executive producer Martin Österdahl appeared. He explained that the EBU is working on some rule changes, in order to make sure that the contest never has to be cancelled again like it happened last year.

Österdahl revealed one specific rule: next year, it is allowed to have backing vocals on tape during the live broadcast. That means the delegations of the different countries can be smaller than we are used to. There was always a limit of six performers on stage, for recorded backing vocals there is no limit. A choir of twenty people is also allowed.

Boggie (Eurovision 2015) and her backing vocals. Will this be history from now on? Photo: Eurovisionary.com

Österdahl also mentioned that taped backing vocals are optional. If countries want to have live backing vocals, it’s allowed. This rule only counts for one year and will be evaluated afterwards.

It is the first time in Eurovision history voices on tape will be allowed. In 1999, Croatia even faced a penalty by using dubbed voices on tape in their performance. Only a part of the country’s points counted when it had to be found out which countries would degrade in 2000.

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October 25, 2024 No Comments

General

They will rock you!

It is often said: Rock music… that doesn’t belong in the Eurovision Song Contest. But why not? And who decides? That is the counter-question. The answer is simple; If we look at the rules of the EBU, there are rules about length, publication, originality, but not about the genre.So…. Rock music at Eurovision: Sure thing! The early years For the very first Rock entry, we’re going all the way back to…..1956! An entry in the very first year of Eurovision, which would not be out of place for Elvis (regardless of the language). The Austrian Freddy Quin was one of the German representatives; his song was called was “So geht das jede Nacht”. As with every entry in the Eurovision Song Contest of 1956, apart from the winner, the placement is unknown. Varying degrees of success and the lowest ranking Rock songs were submitted with varying degrees of success in the years that followed. In 1982 a Rock-bottom was reached: Finland’s Kojo with “Nuku pommiin”, took the very last place with 0 points. Was it really that bad, or was Europe not ready for it? Judge for yourself: Rock Win It took quite some time before Rock really made a difference at Eurovision, but in 2006 the time had come: Lordi for Finland with “Hardrock Hallelujah” won the contest with 292 points. Rock is part of it After that, Rock as a type of music at Eurovision was taken a lot more seriously. Bigger successes were achieved, and in 2018 even a Hungarian hard metal band managed to reach the finals. That AWS with “Viszlát Nyár” finished last in the grand final, doesn’t matter… They made it to the finals. The icing on the Rockcake was, of course, Måneskin in 2021. France was the big favorite (Barbara Pravi), but with 524 points, Italy left France behind. The conclusion may be that Rock definitely belongs at Eurovision, although opinions will always be divided on this. 2024 was a year without Rock. We are curious to see what 2025 will bring. Share

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October 25, 2024 No Comments