Is Romania playing with fire by sending Paula Seling and Ovi to the Eurovision Song Contest again?
Romania is one of five countries to have a perfect run of qualifying for the Grand Final of the Eurovision Song Contest since the semi-final format was introduced in 2004. The country is looking to keep that streak alive by sending Eurovision veterans Paula Seling and Ovi to Copenhagen. The duo tied their country's best ranking of third place in 2010 and hope to improve on that standing with the song "Miracle":
What I like about Seling and Ovi is that they understand the performance is just as important as the song that is being performed. Their 2010 entry "Playing with Fire" is a good (not fantastic) song, but what sold it in Oslo was the creative use of pyrotechnics mixed with impressive vocals from both performers. "Miracle" is not a fantastic song either, but the elements of performance are already part of the equation the duo is working with. The video screens add some interesting effects, but it's Seling's 18-second key change that elevates the quality of this entry.
There's no point in addressing the lyrics of the song: they probably won't be changed and the theme of the tune would go from beige to bright beige at best. Instead, I would advise the singers to work on their harmonies and blending while working out the kinks of the stage performance. The stage-prop video screens, while interesting, look terrible on TV ((See also: UK 2011 and Ukraine 2012)), so hopefully those will be replaced in some way. I'm eager to see what the final product will look like—Romania tends to make good choices.