MLT Club Member Christomir Rackov
MLT Club MemberForum Replies Created
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And yes, of course, Lisa did present a very compelling case highlighting a lot of what could go wrong with trying to get into the ESC; but it was specifically about Austria, and those first hand accounts that Rudi learned of personally were by former participants for Austria… right? And yes, I trust 100% Rudi’s inside knowledge there, and I too am now convinced that MLT should never submit a song to represent Austria in particular, as things there seem to me simply awful in that respect. 🙁 And frankly, I am not surprised, since I myself can’t remember ever having liked a song representing Austria in the ESC. Also, there was a reason why MLT left Austria 5 years ago, and things are interconnected here too. 😉
However, fortunately, Austria is just one of the 40+ countries sending songs to the ESC every year, and it is NOT the same everywhere. As I already explained multiple times, many other countries allow for the hypothetical scenario I described to actually happen, and for a real honest artist to represent them with their own authentic music, without being pressured to write a song in a certain stupid stereotypical style, or present it in a certain stupid way, or give up any creative freedom or rights over anything at all. I can confirm that that happens sometimes, because I have seen and heard such artists and such songs in the ESC every year! And countries don’t HAVE to send a song, performed only by their own citizens… 😉
So, please, don’t generalize, and don’t assume that, just because Austria always does something stupid, it necessarily means that everyone else does the same stupid thing too.
And don’t assume that, just because many Eurovision fans are the stupid Eurovision junkies I described, it means that all of us are like that. We are not!
I am a fan of Eurovision not for that majority of bland stereotypical “ESC style” songs that countries like Austria send every year – I am a fan because of that small portion of great and genuine songs and artists I discover by watching it every year; and which I might have never known about at all, if they hadn’t gone to the big stage of the ESC to represent some country.
And again – I don’t even care about the final standings and all that ridiculous voting shenanigans. And I am sure many other fans are like me. And, even if we are a small minority of the millions of viewers, that’s still millions (or at least hundreds of thousands) of people, who will pay attention to an actual good song by a genuinely talented singer-songwriter or band, without caring whether it finishes in 2nd or in last place!
So, that article that Lisa shared has nothing to with anything of what I said – I already clearly explained that the standings or the voting wouldn’t matter at all, for a genuine artist/band like MLT, who would just go there to present THEIR song (on THEIR own terms) to millions of new viewers/listeners, and wouldn’t care the least bit whether they finish 3rd, or 10th, or last; as I said, they all get the same amount of exposure and publicity. Artists like MLT are clever and reasonable enough to not allow such things to “get to their head”… So I don’t understand why Lisa brought it up at all, and why you, Jung, thought it strengthened the case for NEVER applying to go to the ESC, under any terms, to represent any country :/
BTW, that article wasn’t so illuminating at all for me, because I have known those things about the “neighbor voting” since forever. It’s indeed ridiculous and stupid; but I have long ago learned to not care or get angry about it, as I simply realized that the final standings don’t matter that much, so all that fuss about the voting to form them is a waste of time.
So, please, let’s not waste our time bringing it up here again, and using it as an argument for anything. All that matters in my recommendation to MLT is the opportunity to bring their music to millions more ears. That is it. NOT what place they would finish in, in the standings, or the idiotic voting system for determining that place 😐 That’s irrelevant.
(And, if Howard is reading this – yes, I know there is also your point of “Do they want that at all?” – to reach millions of ears with their music. 🙂 But that’s a whole other conversation…)
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LOL @ this – “She sang the stunningly staged number while wearing a seven-tiered, eye-popping skirt while a dancer in black swayed and swirled on a high pole. Pure Eurovision!”
Yuck! >_<
I don’t know whether to laugh or to cry at this absurdity! I think we all agree it’s a disgrace.
And yeah, we already established, and all of us agreed in this thread, that this DOES happen quite often in the national selections of some of the countries, and many ridiculously stupid songs and performers like this do get sent to “grace” the big stage of the ESC every year. 🙁
But what most of you guys in this thread refuse to understand and acknowledge, despite how I assured you in it 100 times, is that not ALL of the countries do it like that, and not ALL of the songs at the ESC are like that! No, no, no! They are not. There is real music too!
But OK, let’s just assume that I am a liar, and I have been telling you that some diversity does exist in the music at that big festival – maybe because I am somehow biased? – while the truth is that ALL of the songs at each year’s edition of the ESC are the same stupid ones, like this, and ALL of the artists presenting them are robots, doing exactly the same thing… :/
Seriously?
Can’t you see that this only strengthens my case, of what I dream about for MLT? Because THIS is exactly why I wish so much that MLT could one day “trick” the national TV station of some country into selecting a song, recorded by them, and sending it to the ESC! (And no, they shouldn’t really have to *trick* them, because, considering how great MLT’s music is, and despite it being “dated”, surely there’s a person with power and influence somewhere in Europe – though, apparently, not in Austria, or in your lovely non-European country – who is not a complete brainwashed idiot and can recognize actual genuine good music!) Because if that happens, and their song gets selected and they go to the ESC, they would be very likely to follow and/or precede on the big stage of the Grand Final exactly THIS kind of a ridiculous “song” with a stupid circus act! Because, while not all of them are like this, they are indeed a majority – I never denied that fact. 😉 And by being heard exactly next to a monstrosity like this, MLT’s brilliant and genuine music, presented in a serious, classy way, with no stage antics and stupidities, would be even more striking in comparison, and would shine even more with its light of true talent and creativity, as a opposed to THIS absurdity.
And that very contrast would make it even more appealing to that portion of ESC viewers, like me, who care about the actual music, and have enough brains in their heads to not pay attention to the circus acts, and don’t enjoy the tereotypical “ESC style” songs. And, even if those viewers are a small portion of them, there are still million(s) of them, many of whom would love MLT’s song for what it is, and many of those, who loved it, will become fans!
Or do you also assume that ALL the millions of ESC viewers are brainwashed zombies and idiots, who fall for stupidities like THIS song and its absurd presentation, and who only care about the silly competition and the voting? Or do you even suspect that I am one of those idiots, and I’m trying to trick you into liking THIS, and MLT into becoming like THIS? :/
Come on, Howard, give me a bit more credit than that. 🙂 And give at least a million or so, out of the tens of millions of ESC viewers around the world, credit for not being such idiots.
Have a nice day! Athough I am sure you will want to have the last word again… Mike Triba was right – you are just like that, and you can’t help it. 🙁 Apparently, I am too. Doh.
But, before you do it (have the last word), please try to, at last, get into the essence of what I have written and understand not only what I say, but also WHY I say it – what my passion is.
Sorry, Howard, I seriously should stop wasting hours and days of my life and my sleep, for trying to explain things to people, who refuse to listen and understand what I am saying. 🙁
I’m finally bowing out of this ridiculous thread. (And I wish it were on a more positive note)
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Mike R., please read my other posts, and you will see that what you just said is completely wrong – no, in the ESC there is no loss of artistic control, and the artists are not restricted in what they can do with their own song! Because it is THEIR own song, and once the respective TV station has chosen THAT song to represent their country, there is no loss of artistic control that can occur after that – the song is already written, recorded, and selected to represent that country. So it can’t be changed.
Now, judging by what Lisa said about Rudi’s inside information about past Austrian entries for the ESC, apparently there are awful things going on there in the selection process every year, and artists/ songwriters, who hope for their song to be selected, are indeed pressured into writing songs in a certain “format” (style, genre, etc.), and present them in a certain way; and maybe they are blackmailed into signing brutal contracts about their song (probably even before it is written at all), if they want to it have a chance to be selected. 🙁 But that is just Austria. As I already explained, it is NOT like that in every other country, and it is not SUPPOSED be like that!
And, anyway, the disgusting ways in which Austria handles its national selections has nothing to do with what I was talking about in this thread, at all! The entire scenario, under which I ardently recommend that MLT should try to go to the ESC and bring their great music (in particular – one of their great songs) to the ears of millions of new listeners, is based on the premise that some country’s national TV (obviously – not Austria’s ORF; yuck) would somehow select one of their great songs, which would have already been written and recorded, though not yet released, to represent that country at the ESC. Please, Mike, understand, that all I have been arguing here in all of my replies to Howard, Jung, and Lisa, is based entirely on that premise.
So no, sorry, but what you just said, makes no sense – after a song is selected to represent a country, from that point on there is no way for the songwriters and/or performers of that song to lose any creative control over it; the song has already been selected for what it is, so apparently, someone in charge of the selections in that country liked it the way it is, to choose it in the first place. Why try to change it then?
So no, the one “similarity”, which you claim there is between the ESC and those TV shows you were talking about, does not exist (at least – not for most countries sending songs to the ESC)… On the contrary – it is exactly what makes it very different from those shows, and it is exactly what could give the MLT an unique opportunity to share their music with millions more people, without having to compromise any of their principles, or artistic freedom! And that is exactly why I so passionately defend here in this thread my suggestion that they should at least try it one day, despite how slim the chances might be of one of their (already written and recorded) songs getting selected like that, by some participating country… to the point that Howard mistook that passion for me being a big fan of the ESC in general…LOL No, I am not a big fan of ESC (at least not of most songs on it) – I am just passionate about MLT’s music, and about how great it would sound performed by them on the big stage of the Grand Final of the ESC, in contrast with some stupid stereotypical songs before and/or after it (sent by countries like Austria)… and how that performance would bring the song, and the existence of a genius songwriting duo named “MonaLisa Twins”, to the attention of millions of people, who would never even hear of them otherwise – that is a dream of mine! Because, unlike Howard (though hopefully – not MLT themselves), I don’t want us to selfishly keep MLT’s music to just us, the several thousand MLT fans – I want the entire world to hear it and enjoy it ^_^
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Dave, I too apologize, if I sounded like I was attacking you for your opinion – that was not my intention. 🙂
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And yes, LOL, “Itso” is simply the traditional (and only one that I know of) short form for the Bulgarian names Christo and Christomir (also spelt “Hristo” and “Hristomir”).
It works as a short form (hypocorism) for either one of those two full names 🙂
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Hello, Mike R. 🙂 I hope that at least now I have been able to let you know that the Eurovision Song Contest is nothing like those music reality TV shows you were thinking about – AGT, Idol and X-factor, and it has a completely different concept, and a completely different way of handling the songs, the artists, and the winners 😉
Basically, those TV shows are for singers doing covers, while the ESC is a Europe-wide festival for new original songs, representing entire countries, which happens to be spiced up with that competitive element (which all of us here seem to unanimously hate, and rightly so…LOL), to make it more interesting for the more naive and immature among the viewers.
I also hope that, unlike some others in this conversation, I have managed to convince you that, despite the many negative things about it (many of which we discussed here at length), it also has *some* positive sides, which could allow a unique opportunity to a brilliant team of musicians and songwriters like MLT (rather than the aspiring teenagers with little to no songwriting talent that usually compete in those aforementioned TV shows) to try and make their music much more famous, as it deserves to be, by showing it to millions of viewers.
And yes, lest the others here decide to point it out yet again, I do admit that that unique opportunity is entirely dependent on a lot of luck for it to happen, and the chances are very slim. But at least they are more than 0%. But they would indeed be exactly 0%, if Team MLT decided to never do anything about it, in any of the European countries – that’s for sure.
Anyways, I am sure we will all agree to two things – that MLT’s brilliant original music deserves to be heard by much more people than have heard it so far. And that, if some day one of their great new songs was performed by them at the Grand Final of the ESC (let’s say – via some magic), it would strikingly stand out among all of the other songs on that stage 😉
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My “dream scenario” would be exactly 0 (zero) bother of them trying, as it also includes the premise that applying would take no time, effort or money (I am repeating this for the umpteenth, and hopefully last time) – the idea is that they would be able to apply by simply submitting their song for consideration, and it either gets picked or not. If the system for selection requires anything more, then they are out, and it is no longer the “dream scenario”.
And yes, I can guarantee to you that there ARE indeed such countries (or certain years in some countries) – where songs that are already recorded, get submitted, and considered.
And yes, in theory it IS absolutely possible for them (or any other artist and songwriter) to enter via ANY of the 40+ foreign countries – the rules of the ESC allow that, no problem!
It doesn’t HAVE to be the UK, or Asutria, or even Australia, at all.
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As for my “dream scenario” being very unlikely – yes, it is, and I admitted that from the very beginning, so I am not sure why we are still discussing it… ?
As I said several times already, “very unlikely” is till much better than “impossible”. Like… a 0.05% chance is an infinity times bigger chance than a 0% chance, I’m sure you know that. 😉 And I do believe it’s not 0% – I even mentioned in replies to you and Howard a couple of ways that it *could* happen: 1) them being lucky enough that some influential person at the BBC happens to suddenly like a song MLT have submitted, despite most people being narrow-minded, and completely dismissing retro music, or 2) MLT submitting their song to the TV station of a 3rd country, where there should be many more people in charge that are open-minded to “un-ESC-like” and retro music like theirs (the fact that I have heard other countries get represented by such songs clearly proves that it’s a real possibility).
There are probably further possible ways for it happen, besides those two.
But one thing is for sure – if they never try anything (even when it cost nothing to try), the chance will remain at 0%. And, to me, that would be a pity.
Because that might mean Lisa and the other Wagners seriously assume that the entire ESC is stupid, ALL of the 40+songs entering it every year are awful and stupid, ALL of the people selecting them from the various countries’ TV stations are narrow-minded and stupid, and all of the music fans viewing and listening to the ESC (and any of the songs in the run-up to it) are stupid Eurovision junkies, who can’t recognize good music even if it hits them in the face… :/ Well, I know that the Wagners are intelligent people, so they wouldn’t resort to thinking with such gross generalizations and stereotypes. 😐
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What panel? :/ Once their song is selected, they are guaranteed to go and perform THAT song on that big stage, for millions of people. That’s it. At that point, why would they have to care about any panels, or televotes? And why do you think they would? And what does it have to do with their artistic values? :/ Sorry, but that doesn’t make any sense. That would all be in their minds… and I know they are intelligent and mature enough to free their minds of all that. 🙂
The entire purpose would be to just give a great live performance (as they are capable of) of that song, on that big stage, and present it to those millions of viewers, and gain many new fans. It has nothing to do with panels, or televotes, or all that shenanigans with the politics, etc. They’ll only care and get involved with that, if they decide to. And they’ll decide not to. 😉
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Thank you for this great comment – I absolutely agree!
And, unlike Howard, I don’t believe that would be such a problem for them, or would scare them that much – Mona and Lisa in particular are genius songwriters and musicians, NOT businesswomen, so it doesn’t make sense for them to be worried about having to leave the bussiness and logistics side of things entirely to others! I hope they become insanely famous 8|
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Wait, why are we still talking about televoting, competing and non competing viewers, and about winning the ESC? :/ I thought I already explained several times to you, and to Jung, and to everyone here that that has NOTHING to do with what I am talking about and what I am suggesting! How many times do I need to explain this for you guys to understand? In the scenario, which I described, and which is the ONLY possible one for a song by MLT to go to the ESC, they would NOT care about the voting, or the final standings, or the win! Because they are not stupid. They would be doing it with the sole purpose of promotion and exposure of the song, and of themselves as songwriters and artists – that’s it! Period.
So, what you claim are Lisa’s final words – “Can you imagine Bob Dylan or the Beatles following a two hours ESC televoting to see if they won.” – actually has NOTHING to do with what I was talking about, because yes – I too can’t imagine Bob Dylan or the Beatles following a two hours ESC televoting to see if they won, AND certainly I can’t imagine MLT doing it either – they would just be waiting for it to finish, so they can go home, and tell their fans (and newly earned fans) the truth – that they do NOT care about the placing, and they are just happy they were able to share their music with so many people, and that they made many new fans as a result. That’s it. Absolutely nothing to do with the results and voting!
And yes, them admitting they didn’t care about winning would probably anger the TV station that selected their song to represent the country and sponsored its pre-ESC promotion, but really, what could they do about it? It would be all over, and MLT would simply go back to what they typically do as a indie band/project. It’s not like they need to suck up to that TV station, or to anyone else in the music industry, in the hopes of another song by them getting selected in some following year – that never really happens anyway, especially in the bigger countries (while a smaller country like Bulgaria could sometimes sends 2 songs by the same artist in the span of a few years… but even that happens very rarely) – they choose songs by different new artists each year anyway!
And yes, I too am perfectly aware that the songs that MLT write would almost certainly be deemed not acceptable and not “suitable” for ESC, by some station like the BBC! I am not naive, and I admitted this many times here. And that is because of obvious reasons, which I discussed at length above here, so I am not going to repeat them yet again. But I don’t know why you mentioned “requiring them to write something that fits into the ESC cliche”, when I already explained that I would NOT in any way suggest that they should do anything like that – of course they should only write what they feel like writing and never cater to anyone else’s wishes or “requests” in that respect! Duh.
But again – “almost certainly be deemed not acceptable” is not the same as “100% certain to be deemed not acceptable”! You know – there are many different people in this world, with many different music tastes and ideas in their head; so, as I said earlier, what if, in my dream scenario, some influential person in the BBC (or in the TV station of another country… probably not Austria), who is in charge of those decisions and song selections, happens to like one of MLT’s songs, and suddenly decides to push for its selection as that country’s song for that year… and then it gets chosen? Seems unlikely and miraculous to you? Yes, it is – I already admitted it is… but it is not impossible! But for it to have even that tiny chance to happen in the first place, they need to submit their songs for that person to hear them! If they never submit any, then yeah – they won’t be heard and it won’t happen.
And no, I did NOT suggest even for a minute that in order to submit an entry through the UK, they should spend substantial (or any) time lobbying and appeasing the appropriate power brokers – no! They should absolutely not to that! So I don’t understand why you are bringing up things like that at all, since the very premise I had set for the whole idea precludes that from the very beginning – I said “no time, effort or money spent”, period.
And sorry, Howard, but it also didn’t make any sense that my suggestion that they would just “go there and show these people what real honest music is” was addressed by Lisa’s comment: “They know they have to write and perform a song that fits into the ESC cliche to have a chance to win that is often very different to the original style of the artist.” and “Every country wants to win and therefore politics takes over and tells you what’s appropriate and what not.” Again, seriously, why are we still talking about WINNING, when I told you several times already that that is not the point at all? :/ And MLT would know it, and wouldn’t care about it! So yes, if they get lucky, and their song gets miraculously chosen the way I suggested (by the UK… and maybe not so miraculously – by a third country), from that point on that is literally all they would be required to do – go there and show the song they have written to the entire Europe and the world, i.e. – show to all of those people what real, honest music is… because that is what every song by MLT is. And THAT song by MLT would surely be like that too, and there would be no way for anyone else to influence how it is written and arranged, and what it sounds like. Again, and for the last time – that would be because it would be selected AFTER they have already written and recorded it, so THAT will be the song that is selected; period. No way to change it after it is selected – that doesn’t make sense at all. There is a deadline for national selections, so once that deadline passes, MLT and their song are firmly in the ESC, and no one can tell them what to do with their song. If the people at the TV station change their mind for some reason, they can probably withdraw their country completely from the ESC, but they can’t change the song.
And yes, you are wrong, if you can’t imagine ANY country accepting a submission that doesn’t fit the infamous “appropriate formula to be a winner in that particular year”. You forget (or maybe didn’t read carefully when I said it) that that stupid formula, resulting in the boring and formulaic music we already discussed, and which all of us here dislike, is NOT really the criteria that EVERY country in Europe deploys for it! I told you: there is diversity – different countries, with different criteria for what songs they want to send to the ESC, and it even varies within one country for the different years! Please, don’t just assume that everyone in charge at those TV stations in those 40+ countries is as narrow-minded and set in their ways, as the people at the Austrian ORF seem to be! Have more faith in the good in people, and in their common sense, please. And, yeah, I already told you – I have seen many such songs that go “against the trend” representing different countries over the years. So it is not only possible – it actually happens quite often. 😉 Just not in Austria, and maybe (most of the time) not in the UK…
You are also wrong that I “have a passion for the ESC”. No, I don’t – at least not for that aforementioned majority of the songs that are stupid, boring and formulaic, and try too hard to be “current” and “trendy”. And definitely – not for those political agendas, or the voting shenanigans. I only have a passion for discovering those new great songs and artists – those gems among the dirt I was talking about, which shine among all that mediocrity, and which I might have never heard, or known of their existence, if they hadn’t gone to represent some country at the ESC. Exactly like most of Europe and the world hasn’t heard of MLT and doesn’t know of their existence. 🙁 And I really wish they could become one of those gems that would shine among the dirt – actually, the most brilliant gem – if one of their songs could ever be performed at that big stage for those millions of viewers. Despite how unlikely that scenario is, and how much luck they would need. But if they never try (not even when it costs them nothing), then yeah – in that case, it will definitely never happen. 🙁
So yeah, that is what I really have a passion for – not for the ESC itself (at least not the prevailing bad side of it), but rather – for the possibility (however remote it is) that MLT could use the ESC for sharing their music with Europe and the world, and become part of that good portion of the ESC I was talking about – the songs and artists that go against the trends and cliches… and they would likely be the most talented artist EVER in that good portion. That is what I have a passion for – my dream of sharing MLT’s great music with millions of other people, not just a few thousands, as it is now!
And no, I don’t have a preference between Christomir and Itso – one is my full name, and the other is the only possible short form (hypocorism) for it. Just don’t invent anything else 😛
As for “Miss Lisa”, I call her that here jokingly – I thought that was obvious…LOL I’ve met her in person, 5 years ago, and I wouldn’t really call her “Miss”, if I talked to her in person; I am not THAT silly 😛 It just came to me that way here in the forum – sorry, if it bothers you. 😐 I even know to pronounce “Lisa” correctly, as it was originally in German. 😉 All of you English speaking people (and even she herself these days) pronounce it the English way. 😛
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Howard, I understood your spefidic concern, so I wasn’t asking about it 🙂
I have my own point of view there too, but I won’t go into a discussion about it – let’s just say it makes absolute sense from your point of view (and maybe from MLT’s too), and I respect that.
But in my comment/question I was referring to Jung (and his concerns, which I thought I had made it clear were eliminated by default in my assumed scenario), not to you. 🙂
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Jung, I’m just curious:
How exactly do you think they would risk their artistic integrity at all, in the VERY specific scenario I described, which is the only way I would recommend them to apply with a song for a ESC – i.e., if their song is somehow selected AFTER it is already written, and no one asks them to change it even 1 %, or to change the way they present it… or give up any rights, or money… ?
And yes, I admitted that scenario is unlikely, but that’s not the point here (though I do believe that it’s not 100% impossible for the UK in the future, let alone for some other countries…)
I keep explaining that scenario, and yet you all keep raising concerns that it already excludes :/
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Dave, I think I very clearly explained in all of my posts above (and especially – in my last reply to Lisa) that it IS actually possible to stick to your principles AND at the same time go to the ESC and get huge publicity for your song! (and by YOUR song I mean exactly the kind of song YOU want to write and how YOU want to write and present it – not catering to any mass trends or that “Eurovision style” that a herd of narrow-minded people expects to hear)
Whether it is probable, or even possible, in a country like the UK or Austria, is another matter. 🙁 But I can guarantee you that every year there are some other countries, who get represented by actual good songs, by honest artists, who do what they believe in, and not what they are told to do! (i.e. – exactly like the MLT; just – much less talented LOL)
So I think it is a bit unfair of you to assumme that ALL songs in the ESC are written and presented to fit the stupid cliche! And I am starting to get a bit irritated by some of you people in this thread calling the entire ESC “tacky” and believing that it’s all awful… while some of you haven’t even listened to any of the songs in it, to make up your own mind. :/
I assure you, like with most things in this world, there is actual diversity there too. And just because Austria sends tacky songs every year, that doesn’t mean that ALL countries do it! And, e.g., just because Bulgaria sent tacky and bland electro-pop songs the last two times, that doesn’t mean it ALWAYS sends songs like that.
Yes, I already admitted that usually at least 75% of ESC is like that. But you can’t just equate that to 100% and put the actual good songs in the same pot. :/ Even if less than 25%, or even if just 2 or 3 songs at a certain edition of the ESC are different-sounding ones that I happen to like or love, to me it is still worth it for them to go there, and get all that publicity!
And I can guarantee you that many other music fans are like me and discover a few songs and artists each year at the ESC (and just ignore the bland and cliche-sounding majority, without caring in which place each song will finish)… So yeah, just like with the songs, please don’t generalize about the fans either – not ALL of us are idiots and ECS junkies!
Always remember that gems can be found even among all the dirt, and don’t dismiss so easily the chance to find them. Or the chance of those gems to shine among all the dirt 😉
Have you thought about it that way, guys? Have you thought how much even greater an MLT song would sound among the 75% dirt and mediocrity? 😉 And how awesome it would be in comparison? 🙂 And how, even if just 5% of the millions of viewers have enough brain in their head to notice it and appreciate it, that would mean it becomes 200 times more better known than it is now?! And MLT’s great music is suddenly not the best kept secret.
So, please, try not to generalize so much, and think that, just because something like the ESC has a reputation of being “tacky”, or just because from a certain country’s perspective it is, that makes ALL of it tacky – no, it doesn’t! There are 40+ countries sending songs to the ESC every year, and some of them are very different to what you would expect. Please, don’t just assume they all sound the same, and they are all tacky. Especially if you haven’t heard them.
Thank you, and have a good evening.
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Thank you, Lisa, that was enlightening. 🙂 Especially the detailed info you just gave us about contracts, etc. – that is something I obviously didn’t know the details of how it works in those two particular countries… and I am sure it works differently in the different countries; and, unfortunately, it seems Austria is one of the worse ones in this respect… 🙁 Oh well.
Just a last note from me, about two of your points (which are actually the same point):
– “They know they have to write and perform a song that fits into the ESC cliche to have a chance to win that is often very different to the original style of the artist.”
and
– “They run the risk of losing their often hard earned fan base (like some artists actually did) because of appearing hypocritical and inauthentic.”
Everything I said, advocating that you should give it a chance one day, was assuming that the system of selection for a given country for a given year would allow you to apply with a song that you have ALREADY written, and that is 100% in your own style, and absolutely does NOT fit the stupid “ESC cliche”, which I talked about too, and you can see I hate it too!
On the contrary – the idea is that you would do that exactly as a form of rebellion AGAINST that cliche and the narrow-mindedness of those “Eurovision junkies” I was talking about, who always expect to hear only that type of music, and it always has to sound “trendy” and “current” – basically, to go there and show these people what real, honest music is! ^_^
And, since I watch and listen every year, I can guarantee you that there have been quite a few songs like that, in genres and styles completely different to the stereotypical “ESC song”, entered by various countries. True, they are not a majority, but they do get presented on the big stage of the ESC, and I am always happy to see and hear them 😀
And I can guarantee you that those artists don’t compromise anything, and don’t lose any of their fan base – they simply show to more people who they are, and what their music is. 🙂
They don’t change who they are, or what music they write, just to cater to the trends and ESC cliches, or to try to win. They don’t care about winning – they just present their art.
And yes, some countries do indeed select such songs to represent them from time to time. I can’t remember the UK or (especially) Austria having done it in recent years, unfortunately.
So, of course, my assumption, under which I was talking this entire time, includes a the pretty unrealistic scenario that the BBC or the ORF will one day go against “the tide” and somehow miraculously pick such a song written by you, in your own style, and retro-sounding, to represent them (e.g., maybe because someone with influence in one of those stations happens to like the particular song that you have submitted). Or that some day you would be willing to apply to represent a third country, where the people at the national TV station are not narrow-minded chumps, like those “in power” in the UK and Austria… 😉
So, indeed, it is highly improbable…LOL But improbable is not the same as impossible 😉
But yeah – if not for that assumption, and if a TV station choosing you to represent them would really ask you to write a new song in such a way, or arrange/present it in a way that fits some stupid ESC cliche or “modern” style (basically – tell you how to write and/or persent your own music… seriously?!), then it’s glaringly obvious that you should NOT do that! And you should even laugh in their faces for even suggesting it…LOL
So, please, don’t misunderstand my suggestion, and what exactly I am advocating here. 🙂
Thanks again, Miss Lisa 🙂
