The most scandalous Eurovision in 70 years: How politics finally defeated music

This year, Eurovision risks going down in history not because of the songs, but because of the unprecedented level of political tension. Music experts call the current competition the most scandalous in the last seven decades. The number of participating countries has decreased to a minimum over the past 23 years: this year there are only about 35-37 of them. The main topic of discussion was not vocals, but geopolitics, which this time dominates everything else.

The Israeli case: boycotts and the struggle for votes

The central topic of discussion was the participation of Israel. This is no longer just a musical issue, but a "separate game" that has been going on for more than a year. The situation this time escalated to the limit: a record number of countries called for a boycott of the Israeli representative.

A unique situation has developed around Israeli participation:

The Israeli government actively encourages supporters around the world to vote for its member (Nama Beton) as many times as possible.

Due to aggressive campaigns to cheat votes (similar incidents with bots were previously recorded in other countries, for example, in Bulgaria), the organizers were forced to reduce the voting limit from 20 to 10 times from one device.

Experts believe that, despite the strong support of the audience, professional national juries are likely not to allow Israel to win prizes due to political ideology and the existing system of summing up points.

Who is the favorite and why does it sound familiar?

Despite the political storms, bookmakers continue to make predictions. At the moment, Finland is the leader by a wide margin. However, music critics are skeptical: the number presented by the Finnish duo is called "banal" and reminiscent of the aesthetics of Russian clips of past years using fans and flying sand.

Moreover, there is a strange similarity: the melody of the Finnish favorite song reminds many of the composition of Yulia Savicheva, with whom she represented Russia at Eurovision in 2004. Nevertheless, for the European audience, such a mixture of irony and familiar clichés still works flawlessly.

"Eurotrash", pipe synthesizers and British tricks

Eurovision has always been a playground for eccentric performances, and this year is no exception.

United Kingdom

The country is represented by an electronics engineer under a pseudonym Look Mom No Computer. He is known for assembling synthesizers from car parts and iron pipes from a junkyard. His song "Alright" is an ironic response to the "Euro-trash" format.

San Marino

The small state resorted to a trick, inviting a world star to backing vocals Boya George. This is regarded as a way to attract the votes of British fans who cannot vote for their official representative, but will gladly support the idol through the delegation of another country.

Australia

It is presented by the famous singer Delta Goodrem, whose number is performed in the classic "Swedish-Greek" format, which is considered ideal for this competition.

Greece

Geopolitics without Russia and Belarus

Geopolitical changes directly affected the composition of the participants. The European Broadcasting Union (EBU) has excluded Russian and Belarusian broadcasters, so their representatives can no longer qualify for participation in the competition. If earlier the Russian presence was considered an important factor for the audience and image of the competition, now The main intrigue shifted towards other conflicts and their impact on the final table.

What's next?

Despite all the internal crises, the format continues to expand. Sources mention that a launch is planned for this year Asian version of Eurovision. The competition remains a "chic tribune" for state PR, and, according to experts, after the stage of musical discussions, we will have a final, where "there will be one politics."

The final of the competition will be held on Saturday. In the absence of official Russian commentators, music journalists such as Boris Barabanov are planning alternative broadcasts for those who want to follow the show with professional analysis.