London – Ukraine, one of the favorites of 2022 Eurovision, which is considered as the biggest music competition in the world, had not only the quality of music representing the country, a modern and busy hip hop, but also their solidarity as a trump card. Those who act as they see the effects of Russia’s invasion of the country every day.
The combination worked in the final, which was held Saturday night (14) in Turin, Italy, and was watched by 200 million viewers. With Ukrainian band Kalush Orchestra won the Eurovision trophy with the highest popular vote ever recorded in all 66 editions of the festival, with at least 439 points out of 480 points they achieved in popular votes in 40 countries, sparking demonstrations of support from the political community. leaders..
In less than 24 hours, “Stefania” became the anthem of the war with Russia, and the fighters posted videos singing the winning song even from inside a bunker.
Ukraine beat the United Kingdom, which was voted best by the Eurovision jury
Considered one of the most watched non-sports events in the world, according to the rules of Eurovision, the winner is chosen based on the sum of the expert judges’ votes and a popular vote via the internet or text message, both with the same weight. .
The winner for the jury was British Sam Ryder, who became famous on TikTok by releasing songs during the Covid-19 quarantine. Kalush Orchestra finished in ninth place with 192 points.
But once his popular vote was announced, the charismatic Ryder’s popularity wasn’t enough to keep him in office.
After the resounding public vote, the Ukrainians rose to 631 points, finishing nearly 200 ahead of the second-placed Briton – the best position England has had since 1998.
A video released by Eurovision shows the moment the victory was announced.
To reach the historic spot, the winning song “Stefania” from Ukraine was among the three top-rated songs by Eurovision audiences in all 40 participating countries, but lagging lower outside of Serbia, where it was rated. .
The result reflects not only artistic recognition, but also political recognition of support for the country occupied by Russia, which, incidentally, was suspended from this issue of Eurovision.
The song was composed just before the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Letter He talks about the beautiful memories of the mother of one of the members, which evokes a nostalgic past and is aware of the difficulties that the narrator must overcome in order to care for her.
Originally thought of as a message to the mother, the words gained additional strength after the start of the war, expanded to the motherland and continued with the following lines:
“Even if all roads are destroyed, I will always find my way home.”
Over 3 million views in nine hours.
The next day, soldiers fighting in Ukraine posted frontal videos of Stefania’s comments.
Some of them didn’t even have instruments, they just used their voices from the darkness of the bunker to sing the new anthem of war.
Eurovision 2023 will be in Ukraine
This is Ukraine’s third time to win Eurovision. And it’s also the first hip-hop song to hit the top spot. To perform this, the Kalush Orchestra used two typical Ukrainian wind instruments, the sopilka and the telenka.
President Volodymyr Zelensky celebrated the victory on social media. said:
“Our courage affects the world, our music conquers Europe. Next year Ukraine will host Eurovision for the third time in its history.
And I believe it will not be the last.” “We will do our best to host Eurovision participants and their guests in Mariupol one day. Free, peaceful, rebuilt”.
The final took place in Italy after the victory of the Italian rock band Måneskin in the 2021 edition.As a result, Ukraine won the right to host the festival in 2023, and President Zelensky has already announced his intention to hold it in Mariupol.
After Ukraine and the United Kingdom, Spain, Sweden and Serbia completed the podium of the top five – the latter, with a strong song of irony and social criticism, again reaching the top of the popular vote.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson was one of those who praised the talents of Ukrainian musicians, as well as their support for the right to freedom.
Demand for the liberation of attacked cities in Ukraine at Eurovision
“Please help Ukraine, Mariupol. Help Azovstal now.” This this was the defense of the champion group leader Oleh PsiJuk as he wrapped up his show in the grand finale. Hence the difficulty of separating the weight of artistic recognition from political support in the atheist plebiscite.
One of the winners was Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission. “Europe is with you,” she said on social media.
Kalush Orchestra was founded in 2021 and focuses on hip hop with elements of folk motifs and traditional Ukrainian music. Returning to the stage to claim the trophy, PsiJuk dedicated the victory to all Ukrainians.
At a press conference after the celebration, the group leader explained that the temporary visa the group had received forced them to leave the country within two days. And if necessary they will return to Ukraine ready to fight:
“Like every Ukrainian, we are ready to fight to the end.”
And it doesn’t all seem like rhetoric: one of the members of the group, Vlad Kurochka (aka MC KylymMen), joined the Regional Defense Forces around the capital Kyiv.
The victory gave new life to the occupied country, and Ukrainians felt supported by the rest of Europe. In a post featuring all the votes cast by other countries, the message praises the image of a United Europe in favor of Ukraine.
— Ukrainian Memesforces (@uamemesforces) May 15, 2022
The group represented Ukraine in the first classified retreat.
At Eurovision, each of the 40 countries chooses their representatives at national festivals, and Ukraine was no different.
Only the Kalusch Orchestra took second place, losing to Alina Pash in the final of the “Vidbir 2022” national selection held on February 12.
But the war changed the course of history. Pash has been involved in a controversy since 2014 that he violated regulations that barred contestants performing in Russia or visiting Crimea. Therefore, on February 22, he gave up the vacant position inherited by the Kalusch Orchestra.
Eurovision takes inspiration from San Remo festival
Eurovision has been held annually since 1956 and is inspired by the San Remo Festival, which has been held since 1951. It was only held in 2020 due to the pandemic and 52 countries participated at least once.
All representatives will compete in one of the two semi-finals, with ten places each. At the age of twenty, representatives of the “Big Five” (France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom) and the host country (which also became one of the Big Five this year) qualify for the grand finale.
This year’s turnout was one of the largest in history – a record 43 attendees. This year’s edition represented the return of the festival arena to full capacity, despite the requirement to wear masks. In 2021, the final was held in Rotterdam at half capacity and there were no events in 2020.
The biggest winner in festival history is Ireland, with seven wins, and the only country to win three times in a row from 1992 to 1994.
see also
‘Kyiv Calling’: Ukrainian band turns British punk classic into an anthem of resistance against Russia; to watch
Eurovision revealed several international stars
Eurovision gives artists a career boost locally and in some cases opens the door to international success.
Some of the world’s best-selling music artists have competed in past editions, including ABBA, Celine Dion, Julio Iglesias, Cliff Richard, and Olivia Newton-John. Some hit made their first international appearance on the bestseller competition scene.
Italian group Måneskin has enjoyed international success after last year’s victory.
The outcome of this year brings great opportunities on two fronts: for Ukraine in its struggle for recognition of the Kalush Orchestra’s talent and for greater international support.
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source: Noticias
