Portugal returns to the Eurovision Song Contest with "Quero Ser Tua" ("I Want to Be Yours") by Suzy. Did the country use the year off to revamp its strategy to try to get its first win?
Country: Portugal
Song Title: "Quero Ser Tua" ("I Want to Be Yours")
Artist: Suzy
Semi-Final: First, Position 13
Last year's entry: Did Not Compete
I was relieved last year when Portugal decided to opt out of the Eurovision Song Contest. The country has had a rather bumpy experience in their 50 year relationship with the Contest. Though it has one of the longest tenures, Portugal has yet to win, scoring its best finish (6th place) in 1996. Since the semi-final format was introduced, Portugal has only advanced three times, the last occasion in 2010. After 2012's unimpressive entry, it was in Portugal's best interest to step back and re-evaluate their approach. Here's what they came up with—"Quero Ser Tua" ("I Want to Be Yours") by Suzy:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VzaLRBFnNNo
Portugal may need some more thinking time. Part of the difficulty is the country's stubbornness toward adapting to the changing structure of the Contest. All 46 of its entries have been in Portuguese, a language that probably is not wide-spread in Eastern Europe. Like Belgium's entry this year, the music style tends to harken back to when traditional songs and classic styling were valued more than pop accessibility. Though Suzy tries to bring the party with this track, the somber drum beat generates mirthless dancing at best. It reminds me of Super Mario Sunshine, when you are far enough in the game that you just want to finish but those stupid pineapple people will NOT STOP WALKING INTO GOO.
If this entry belonged to another country, it would still be a tough sell. Even when the Contest happens in late May, it's too early to be a "Song of the Summer" competition. That makes tracks like this one a challenge to appreciate, especially since they first debut in the middle-to-end of winter. The producers were kind enough to not bury Suzy in the running order, though "Quero Ser Tua" would have paired better with Ukraine's entry than with either San Marino's or the Netherlands'.
I'm not optimistic about the stage performance. The official video currently listed on Eurovision's YouTube page is from the Portuguese national final. Mirthless. I would be shocked if Suzy advanced.