Ireland's Nicky Byrne hasn't tweaked "Sunlight" since it debuted -- could that be a strategic misstep in this year's Eurovision Song Contest?
Country: Ireland
Song Title: "Sunlight"
Artist: Nicky Byrne
Second Semi-Final: Position #7
Last year's entry: "Playing with Numbers" - Molly Sterling (DNQ - 12th Place, SF2)
Not much has changed with Ireland's entry since I last wrote about it. Seriously: we have the same video of "Sunlight" by Nicky Byrne with what appears to be zero revamping:
The only thing that has changed for Ireland's entry is knowing that it landed in the first half of the second semi-final and the other entries it will compete with on May 12. Unfortunately, the luck of the Irish did not extend to this semi-final allocation. In terms of song genre, Nicky Byrne will be battling against Denmark's boyband (whose entry I find similarly bland) and Lithuania's own heartfelt heartthrob anthem. Slovenia's entry also shares some similarities in terms of style and tempo, which means there could be a lot of vote splitting within what I suspect may be a smaller audience within the Eurovision populace.
Ireland's other problem: there are a lot of heavy hitters in this semi-final. Serbia and Ukraine are practically guaranteed to advance, Romania has never missed a final, and Australia and Bulgaria have great songs and the appeal of being newish participants.((Bulgaria is back from a two-year hiatus.)) Belgium and Poland also look to be in good shape, which would mean there are only three spots left if those seven advance. That's not a lot of wiggle room on the bubble.
There are entries that, while maybe not better songs, have the potential to be more interesting than a guy singing with a band behind him. Although Nicky Byrne did work the national final circuit and seems like a nice, polite gentleman, I just don't see that translating to overwhelming support from juries or televoters. Right now his biggest advantage is that Australia and the United Kingdom vote in this semi-final, but that may only save Ireland from a last place finish.