Quite possibly the least surprising selection of Eurovision 2017, O’G3NE will be representing The Netherlands in Kyiv. Beaten to the punch by Cyprus as to being first to announce their artist for the Contest next year, the proclamation of the all-sister group as the Dutch internal selection was still a big deal, at least to me as I really didn't know a huge amount about them. Trawling through the numerous ESC news sites, it all became clearer...
Vol by name, mum's blood group is O and G3NE is a stylised way of writing 'gene' due to them being sisters. These attractive young women better get used to telling people what their name is all about as I suspect that might be THE most obvious journo question going! Next most common question will be about winning The Voice of Holland in 2014 and then how does their experience in Kyiv compare with their JESC experience in Rotterdam in 2007. I'm already thinking of something unique to ask them if I am lucky enough to meet them in the runup to May next year!
Amy (redhead), Shelley (brunette) and Lisa (blonde)
or
(as they tend to be placed on stage, "Ant and Dec stylee") - Amy, Lisa and Shelley
Vol by name, mum's blood group is O and G3NE is a stylised way of writing 'gene' due to them being sisters. These attractive young women better get used to telling people what their name is all about as I suspect that might be THE most obvious journo question going! Next most common question will be about winning The Voice of Holland in 2014 and then how does their experience in Kyiv compare with their JESC experience in Rotterdam in 2007. I'm already thinking of something unique to ask them if I am lucky enough to meet them in the runup to May next year!
The most important aspect of whether they can continue The Netherlands' recent good run of form at Eurovision is undoubtedly their music and singing. Having not heard them at all, I have watched a lot of their previous material online and listened to their songs on The Voice and their album "We Got This". To say that I am hugely impressed by their vocal talents as far as compatibility and harmonies are concerned is a given - each of the girls has their speciality, each can hold their own when required and when singing together they sound absolutely amazing. An example of this is when the trio dressed in civvies for a performance on a radio show:
O'G3NE's strength is this type of singing, involving everyone with no singer really taking over, and definitely not with the uptempo "Take The Money And Run", which sounded too generic a product, too like every other girl group on the planet, to be successful. If a top notch song can be written for them that suits their singing strengths, I could see that these sisters could be a contender in Kyiv, not just for Final qualification but for being there or thereabouts come the Final on May 13. The sisters already are aiming high, talking about winning Eurovision, being mentally prepared for that possibility and that fate has determined they would sing in Kyiv ten years after singing in the JESC:
I suspect they will have no problems with charming the Eurovision and general media press pack...De zussen van O'G3NE zijn zelfverzekerd: "Het wordt tijd dat Nederland wint, we zien het als een missie."https://t.co/FQb9jErhm5pic.twitter.com/leHzva4Uux— NOS (@NOS) October 29, 2016
What a lot we've got! 43 Nations confirmed for Kyiv...
Jon Ola said it all really! I'm pleased to see Portugal and Romania back into the fold but it is a shame about Bosnia & Herzegovina. The change in the "T&Cs" about associate members means that the EBU now can say that Australia participating each year is 'within the rules' but it does mean that they have to okay the Aussies entry each year. No mention of any other nation being in this year but this tweaking of the regulations does allow invitations to 'newbies' to happen in future - maybe if Kazakhstan or China keep showing the Contest, they might get a 'Jessica Mauboy guest spot' one day. What 43 nations does mean is that there will be VERY competitive SFs and quite a lot of disappointed nations who won't be singing on Saturday...
Armenia's judges start picking their teams...
There has been two shows so far where the 37 artists who made it through the audition stage are now singing for one of the four slots each judge has to take them forward in the Armenian selection process, Depi Evratesil. You still not watching the only Eurovision action going on at the moment? Here's the first two 'days' for you to view:
Anyone catch your eye? Interesting way of selecting their artists too - wait for the last ten seconds of the song and then try to press your button quickest (or in the case of Iveta, shout "Hands Off!" to anyone else who might want the singer she's after) to secure the artist for your team. If the act is fortunate, it will be the judge they really wanted to work with - if not, at least they are through to the next round! You just know I'm going to tell you my favourites, don't you?
Day 1:
- Lucy - second on, I loved her on-stage attitude and she pitched the interaction with camera and crowd just right. Superbly effortless vocals too - not a surprise to see at least half the judges pound their buttons to try to 'claim' her;
- Opera Viva - I had pondered as to whether there was enough classical material for them to wow us with but I had forgotten about "Nessun Dorma"! This song allowed the guys more facetime but the brunette lady totally smashed her section 'out of the park' again with amazing top notes, although that did show off that she had a green tongue (a sweet pre-show, perhaps?);
- Saro Gevorgyan - those of you who follow my other blog "Eurovision Beauty" will know that Armenia is home to a lot of very attractive female singers, three of whom are on the jury! It seems as though the men don't really get much of a look-in because of this but Saro was one of the standouts in this show. Superb voice, great facial delivery and top interaction with the camera all would have impressed many viewers, along with his looks and manner.
Day 2:
- Vahe Aleksanyan - first up meant he had to make an impact and going 'all street' helped with that, as did getting the party started by singing "Tonight Again" by Guy Sebatien, leading to Iveta and Essaï dancing along. Great vocals but he did change the lyrics a bit (easier for him to sing?) and that put me off slightly. Iveta was convinced though and almost pushed her button through the desk to ensure she beat the others to this guy;
- JuJo - the one dressed as a Native American Indian. We know how well that worked for Joan Franka, don't we? I suppose there are some physical similarities between the two of them but at least JuJo was singing "Virtual Reality" by Jamiroquai and singing it really well. A solid stage show too and she deserved to be picked just for having the courage to wear what she did;
- Artsvik - she stood out in the audition stage and she did so again here. She is an amazing vocalist and has oddles of stage charisma, even when singing a different style as she did here, a straightforward ballad. For me, Artsvik is one of the best prospects here and I would have chosen her like a shot - Essaï was quickest on the button and he stated that he could imagine her already on stage in Kyiv, just needing the right song, as far as he was concerned.
We're halfway through the second round - two more 'days' to come...
Estonia live streams packets dropped into a tupperware box...
Malta goes all public with only one show...
Some familiar faces will be at FiK...
When I hear that music played about Christmas time, I really know that Eurovision 2017 has started! They really need to get those singers together and see if THEY could qualify, as this often beats most of the acts at FiK hands down. This year's twenty-four entries were announced this week and there are some former contestants back for more, two of which I felt could have gone all the way in the past - Rezarta Smaja is becoming the 'Sanna Nielsen' of FiK, having missed out on winning three years in a row, last year with Klodian Kaçani in a memorable duet:
There is also this amazing female soloist who really had a great entry for Europop in general but not so for the more refined arena of FiK:
I'm really, really looking forward to what Lindita has to offer, especially if she's dressed in a similar way! Only seven weeks to go to Christmas...
Ukraine keeps on voting...
Now if this online vote was a football league, the bookies would already be paying out on anyone who bet on the above song to win! They are storming ahead of everyone else - almost 82000 votes against their name, about 43000 more than their nearest challengers, AGHIAZMA with "Zombie Dogs":
It's almost like next generation Mumford & Sons against the offspring of Marilyn Manson! I suspect that both groups have all their fans in Ukraine voting daily - it will be interesting to see if Kuznetsov keeps up this apparently unassailable lead. That tidied up the last fortnight of Eurovision for me but one thought did spring into my head:
Imagine AGHIAZMA and O'G3NE at Eurovision...
now THAT would be a mighty clash of musical genres!