The EuroWhat? Podcast: Eurovision News & Reviews - Episodes Tagged with “Malta”

Episode 289: Rough

The EuroWhat? Podcast — Tue, 27 Jan 2026 00:00:00 -0600

Bulgaria returns to Eurovision following a three-year absence. We take a look at the country's history at the Contest: a rough start in its initial tenure, a renaissance after its first hiatus, and looking ahead to how Bulgaria's next tenure may go.

Rough Summary

Selection Season So Far: Moldova, Malta, Luxembourg, Georgia, Israel, Switzerland (0:40)
Join the EuroWhat? AV Club (4:29)
Bulgaria's History at Eurovision (6:30)
How is Bulgaria selecting for 2026? (28:32)

The EuroWhat? Podcast is available wherever you get your podcasts. Find your podcast app to subscribe here.

Comments, questions, and episode topic suggestions are always welcome. You can shoot us an email or reach out on Bluesky @eurowhat.bsky.social.

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previews of upcoming episodes,
North America tour dates for Eurovision alumni
National Selection dates
Tidbits we can't get to on the main show

We also have the EuroWhat? AV Club Podcast, a monthly bonus episode for paid members exploring Eurovision-adjacent TV, movies, books, and more. And if there is a season 2 of the American Song Contest... well... :::monkey's paw intensifies:::

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Episode 287: Folklore & Rock & Roll

The EuroWhat? Podcast — Tue, 13 Jan 2026 00:00:00 -0600

Moldova has returned to Eurovision after a one-year break and has selected 16 songs to compete for a trip to Vienna in May. Malta has also streamlined their process a bit and will select their entrant from among 18 hopefuls. We’ll take a look at the history of these two countries and preview the selections that will be taking place on Saturday, January 17.

Folklore & Rock & Roll Summary

End of 2025 News (1:19)
Moldova at Eurovision (4:46)
EuroWhat? AV Club (Patreon) (30:26)
Malta at Eurovision (32:23)

The EuroWhat? Podcast is available wherever you get your podcasts. Find your podcast app to subscribe here.

Comments, questions, and episode topic suggestions are always welcome. You can shoot us an email or reach out on Bluesky @eurowhat.bsky.social.

Join the EuroWhat AV Club!

If you want even more EuroWhat? in your life, join the EuroWhat? AV Club on Patreon! You can join for free to get virtual high fives and a monthly newsletter featuring:

previews of upcoming episodes,
North America tour dates for Eurovision alumni
National Selection dates
Tidbits we can't get to on the main show

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Episode 99: Merry FiKmas

Episode 280: Weird Little Dudes

The EuroWhat? Podcast — Tue, 07 Oct 2025 00:00:00 -0500

Käärijä, Joost, Baby Lasagana, Tommy Cash... we've used the term "Weird Little Dudes" to describe these contestants from the last few editions of Eurovision. Something else they have in common: all were favorites to win and did extremely well in the televote. We attempt to define the term and try to identify what other Eurovision contestants may fall into this category.

Weird Little Dudes Summary

Where did the term "Weird Little Dude" come from? (1:20)
Pop Quiz: Is this act a Weird Little Dude? (3:06)
Dude (5:45)
Little (9:37)
Weird (18:16)
Are "Weird Little Dudes" actually a thing? (33:22)
Which countries are more likely to have WLDs at Eurovision? (38:28)

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Episode 277: Nice

The EuroWhat? Podcast — Tue, 26 Aug 2025 00:00:00 -0500

As we wrap up our 8th season and Eurovision's 69th (nice) edition, we take a rapid fire tour of the Contest up to this point while trying to find something nice or interesting to say about each year. Content warning: goofiness.

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Comments, questions, and episode topic suggestions are always welcome. You can shoot us an email or reach out on Bluesky @eurowhat.bsky.social.

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Eurovision Podcast Podcrawl

What is the Eurovision Podcrawl? It's where the Eurovision podcast community picks a topic ("a year when a country first hosted Eurovision") and we all publish our episodes in our own styles. At the end of an episode, we'll point to the podcast with the next episode, and so on, through the summer! Here's the crawl:

ESC Insight: France 1959
Wind Machine Podcast: Austria 1967
The EuroWhat? Podcast: Yugoslavia 1990
Niall Points: Latvia 2003
12 Points from America: Belgium 1987
That Eurovision Site: Denmark 1964
Douze Points: Azerbaijan 2012 (week of September 8)

Support The EuroWhat? Podcast: Eurovision News & Reviews

Episode 270: Bird Noises

The EuroWhat? Podcast — Tue, 20 May 2025 00:00:00 -0500

We have a winner! Eurovision Song Contest 2025 held its Grand Final in Basel, Switzerland and named a champion after tense rounds of juries and televoting. We discuss the show, the results, and what's in store for Eurovision 2026…

Bird Noises Summary

Austria wins the 2025 Eurovision Song Contest (1:18)
What did you think of the Grand Final? (5:23)
How were the Interval Acts? (12:20)
What does Eurovision (and the EBU) look like for 2026? (15:43)
Eurowhat Off-Season Mode (18:55)

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Comments, questions, and episode topic suggestions are always welcome. You can shoot us an email or reach out on Bluesky @eurowhat.bsky.social.

Basel 2025

Keep up with Eurovision selection season on our Basel 2025 page! We have a calendar with links to livestreams, details about entries as their selected, plus our Spotify playlists with every song we can find that is trying to get the Eurovision stage.

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Episode 269: Eurovision 2025 Grand Final Preview

The EuroWhat? Podcast — Fri, 16 May 2025 00:30:00 -0500

Twenty songs have emerged from the Eurovision 2025 Semifinals and will join six auto-qualifiers on Saturday. We recap the shows from Tuesday and Thursday and get ready for the Grand Final.

Eurovision 2025 Grand Final Preview Summary

Turquoise Carpet (0:48)
Semi-Final 1 Results (3:58)
Semi-Final 2 Results (10:33)
Grand Final Preview (19:14)

The EuroWhat? Podcast is available wherever you get your podcasts. Find your podcast app to subscribe here.

Comments, questions, and episode topic suggestions are always welcome. You can shoot us an email or reach out on Bluesky @eurowhat.bsky.social.

Basel 2025

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Episode 268: Eurovision 2025 Semi-Final Preview

The EuroWhat? Podcast — Mon, 12 May 2025 00:00:00 -0500

Eurovision Week for 2025 is upon us as well as the 37 artists gathered in Basel. We get caught up on the news leading up to this week before discussing the rehearsals and our predictions for who will advance to Saturday's Grand Final.

Eurovision 2025 Semi-Final Preview Summary

Lumo stuns in Basel debut (0:48)
Eurovision Artist Support Measures (2:38)
Ongoing Issues: Flag Policy 2025 and Israel's Participation (6:01)
Semi-Final Format Changes (10:48)
Where to watch Eurovision 2025 (16:13)
Eurovision Semi-Final 1 Predictions (POTENTIAL SPOILERS) (18:27)
Eurovision Semi-Final 2 Predictions (POTENTIAL SPOILERS) (32:24)

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Comments, questions, and episode topic suggestions are always welcome. You can shoot us an email or reach out on Bluesky @eurowhat.bsky.social.

Basel 2025

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Episode 265: Do Re Mi

The EuroWhat? Podcast — Tue, 22 Apr 2025 00:00:00 -0500

Critic and educator Maura Johnston joins us again to chat about the Eurovision entries from Finland, Latvia, Malta, Lithuania, and Armenia.

Maura Johnston

Maura Johnston is a writer and editor who teaches at Boston College. She lives in Allston Rock City with her cat, Nuno. Her favorite Eurovision song of recent years is Margaret Berger's "I Feed You My Love."

Do Re Mi Summary

Finland - Erika Vikman - "Ich Komme" (1:17)
Latvia - Tautumeitas - "Bur man laimi" (8:18)
Malta - Miriana Conte - "Serving" ("KANT") (14:59)
Lithuania - Katarsis - "Tavo akys" (23:13)
Armenia - PARG - "Survivor" (30:41)
Final Thoughts (37:53)

The EuroWhat? Podcast is available wherever you get your podcasts. Find your podcast app to subscribe here.

Comments, questions, and episode topic suggestions are always welcome. You can shoot us an email or reach out on Bluesky @eurowhat.bsky.social.

Basel 2025

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Special Guest: Maura Johnston.

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Episode 259: Choose Chaos

The EuroWhat? Podcast — Tue, 11 Mar 2025 00:00:00 -0500

After addressing some KANTroversy, we discuss the Eurovision selections from Austria, United Kingdom, Sweden, San Marino, and Portugal.

Choose Chaos Summary

KANTroversy: EBU Rejects Current form of Malta's Entry (1:07)
Austria's JJ sings of "Wasted Love" (4:57)
The United Kingdom's Remember Monday asks "What the Hell Just Happened" (8:35)
Reminder: Revamps and Videos on the Way (14:21)
KAJ wins Melfest with "Bara Bada Bastu" (15:06)
Gabry Ponte wins the San Marino Song Contest with "Tutta L'Italia" (25:25)
NAPA wins Festival da Canção with "Deslocado" (30:05)

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Comments, questions, and episode topic suggestions are always welcome. You can shoot us an email or reach out on Bluesky @eurowhat.bsky.social.

Basel 2025

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Episode 255: ('Singing')

The EuroWhat? Podcast — Tue, 11 Feb 2025 00:00:00 -0600

It's the biggest weekend of Eurovision 2025 so far with Ireland, Ukraine, Finland, Latvia, and Malta making picks while several other countries' processes continued. Do-re-mi-fa-serving exhausted, but we shall persevere!

('Singing') Summary

Mid-week drops: Azerbaijan's Mamagama and Czechia's "Kiss Kiss Goodbye" (2:25)
Ireland accepts invitation to Emmy's "Laika Party" (6:15)
Erika Vikman wins Finland's UMK with "Ich Komme" (15:43)
Ziferblat's "Bird of Pray" will represent Ukraine (21:44)
Latvia's Supernova names "Bur man laimi" by Tautumeitas (25:47)
Malta will be serving "KANT" by Miriana Conte (27:58)
Denmark's DMGP and Armenia's Depi Evratesil announce contestants (34:42)
Qualifying starts in Iceland, continues in Sweden and Lithuania (36:36)
Coming up: Italy's Sanremo, Poland, Germany, Estonia, and the biggest weekend of 2025 (47:17)

The EuroWhat? Podcast is available wherever you get your podcasts. Find your podcast app to subscribe here.

Comments, questions, and episode topic suggestions are always welcome. You can shoot us an email or reach out on Bluesky @eurowhat.bsky.social.

Basel 2025

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Episode 254: Super

The EuroWhat? Podcast — Tue, 04 Feb 2025 00:00:00 -0600

Eurovision started to get structure this week thanks to the semi-final allocation draw, the first wave of ticket sales, and selections from Greece, Slovenia, Belgium, and Spain. Sweden kicked off Melfest, Lithuania got competitive, and Latvia picked finalists. This was the easy Super Saturday...

Super Summary

Eurovision Semi-Final Allocation and Ticket Sales (1:18)
Artist Announcements: Austria's JJ and France's Louane (8:45)
Klavdia's "Asteromata" wins Greece's national final (11:16)
Slovenia: Klemen wins EMA with "How Much Time Do We Have Left?" (15:50)
Red Sebastian and "Strobe Lights" win Belgium's Eurosong (21:57)
"Esa Diva": Melody wins Spain's Benidorm Fest (25:04)
Sweden's Melfest 2025 Begins (30:04)
Latvia's Supernova Semi-Final (35:44)
Lithuania's Eurovizija.LT Heat 4 (40:45)
San Marino Names ALLLL the Semi-Finalists (43:57)
Coming up: Super Saturday 2 (46:03)

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Comments, questions, and episode topic suggestions are always welcome. You can shoot us an email or reach out on Bluesky @eurowhat.bsky.social.

Basel 2025

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Recreating ALL Eurovision Winners (2000-2025) | The Ultimate Eurovision Challenge by Klemen Slakonja - YouTube

Episode 251: Wading

The EuroWhat? Podcast — Tue, 14 Jan 2025 00:00:00 -0600

We ease into the waters of the Eurovision TV season, thanks to the first heat of Lithuania's Eurovizija.LT. We also check in on the candidate song drops for the processes happening in Finland, Malta, Croatia, and Greece.

Wading Summary

Finland Announces 7 Acts for UMK (2:05)
Malta, Croatia, and Greece Drop Their National Final Songs (6:46)
Lithuania's Eurovizija.LT Begins (12:56)
This week: Moldova Auditions; Acts from Poland, Norway, Iceland; Belgium TV; Eurovision Hosts (21:27)

The EuroWhat? Podcast is available wherever you get your podcasts. Find your podcast app to subscribe here.

Comments, questions, and episode topic suggestions are always welcome. You can shoot us an email or reach out on Bluesky @eurowhat.bsky.social.

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Episode 249: Pew Pew Pew

The EuroWhat? Podcast — Mon, 30 Dec 2024 00:00:00 -0600

As we head into 2025, we jump back 25 years to watch the 2000 Eurovision Song Contest. How has the competition, fashion, and pop music changed in the last quarter-century(!)?

Pew Pew Pew Summary

🗓️ In the Year 2000... (3:17)
⛳️ Part I: Israel, Netherlands, United Kingdom, Estonia, France, Romania (7:07)
🎤 Part II: Malta, Norway, Russia, Belgium, Cyprus, Iceland (17:30)
🪽 Part III: Spain, Denmark, Germany, Switzerland, Croatia, Sweden, FYR Macedonia (27:49)
🌟 Part IV: Finland, Latvia, Turkey, Ireland, Austria (41:34)
🔢 Part V: The Results (51:12)

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Comments, questions, and episode topic suggestions are always welcome. You can shoot us an email or reach out on Bluesky @eurowhat.bsky.social.

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Episode 248: Three-Card Montesong

The EuroWhat? Podcast — Tue, 17 Dec 2024 00:00:00 -0600

As we rush to get out of 2024 we're getting details from just about every country participating in Eurovision 2025. We recap last month's Montesong from Montenegro, learn a bit about Czechia's artist, and start adding all the dates to our calendar.

Three-Card Montesong Summary

😾 Is anyone still mad at the EBU? (1:30)
🇲🇪 Montenegro returns with Montesong... and shenanigans (7:48)
🇨🇿 Czechia selects ANDONXS for Basxl (17:34)
🇪🇺 What's Happening in the EU (Eurowhat Universe) (20:00)
🌊 All the National Selections (22:34)
🎅🏼 Through the holidays: Albania's Festivali i Kenges and the ESC250 (44:25)

The EuroWhat? Podcast is available wherever you get your podcasts. Find your podcast app to subscribe here.

Comments, questions, and episode topic suggestions are always welcome. You can shoot us an email or reach out on Bluesky @eurowhat.bsky.social.

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Episode 245: Avalanche

The EuroWhat? Podcast — Tue, 05 Nov 2024 00:00:00 -0600

It's been a couple months since we last checked in on Eurovision news… hoo boy there's a lot to get caught up on. We have elections, new heads of delegations, and info about way too many national selections.

Avalanche Summary

💊 Exotic Switzerland: Funding Referendum, Novartis Sponsorship (1:41)
🇳🇱 Is Everyone (Netherlands?) Still Mad at the EBU? (6:31)
🔴 Coming up on the podcast: Iceland Airwaves and Rockin' the Kremlin (12:16)
🎓 New Heads of Delegations for 2025 (14:42)
📆 National Selection Updates (Vague) (21:50)
🏆 National Final Updates (Specific) (25:47)
⏳ Who are we waiting on? (34:36)

The EuroWhat? Podcast is available wherever you get your podcasts. Find your podcast app to subscribe here.

Comments, questions, and episode topic suggestions are always welcome. You can shoot us an email or reach out on Bluesky @eurowhat.bsky.social.

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Episode 230: Designated Perceived Nudity Corner

The EuroWhat? Podcast — Mon, 06 May 2024 00:00:00 -0500

It's Eurovision Week! After we get caught up on Contest news, we make our predictions on which acts will advance to Saturday's Grand Final. Will there be heartbreak in Malmö?

Designated Perceived Nudity Corner Summary

Eurovision News: Peacock, Producer's Choice, Flags (1:19)
Eurovision Semi-Final 1 Predictions (13:01)
Eurovision Semi-Final 2 Predictions (25:52)

The EuroWhat? Podcast is available wherever you get your podcasts. Find your podcast app to subscribe here.

Comments, questions, and episode topic suggestions are always welcome. You can shoot us an email or reach out on Bluesky @eurowhat.bsky.social.

Malmö 2024

Stay up to date on everything happening in the leadup to the Eurovision Song Contest on our page dedicated to Malmö 2024. You can keep tabs on the countries, artists, and songs, set your laundry folding schedule with our EuroWhat's On calendar, and futz with your Spotify algorithm with our Selection Season playlist!

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Episode 226: Oops! All Revamps

The EuroWhat? Podcast — Tue, 09 Apr 2024 00:00:00 -0500

First-time guest Katie Proctor joins us to kick off our coverage of Eurovision 2024 Semi Final 2! We explore the full range of revamps with this week's set, including lyrics tweaks, remastering, and translation. Were the changes made by Czechia, Albania, Norway, Malta, and Latvia successful?

Oops! All Revamps Summary

Welcome, Katie Proctor! (0:42)
🇨🇿 Czechia - Aiko - "Pedestal" 🗽 (3:12)
🇦🇱 Albania - Besa - "TiTAN" 💪 (8:56)
🇳🇴 Norway - Gåte - "Ulveham" 🐺 (17:32)
🇲🇹 Malta - Sarah Bonnici - "Loop" 🔄 (24:32)
🇱🇻 Latvia - Dons - "Hollow" 🙏 (31:59)
Final Thoughts (40:51)

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Malmö 2024

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Special Guest: Katie Proctor.

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Eurovision 2024 Semi Final 1 Megamix | Patreon

Episode 217: Technical Difficulties

The EuroWhat? Podcast — Tue, 06 Feb 2024 00:00:00 -0600

It was a Saturday so Super it stretched into Sunday... not by choice, but Ukraine loves drama. Norway, Spain, and Malta also made their Eurovision picks, Latvia and Sweden kicked off their processes, and Lithuania is almost done with their heats. Oh, and The Draw added some structure to the 2024 Contest.

Technical Difficulties Summary

The Draw handles the Semi-Final Allocation (0:27)
VidBir (eventually) selects alyona alyona & Jerry Heil & "Maria & Teresa" (4:08)
Gåte wins NRK MGP with "Ulveham" (11:05)
Nebulossa conquers Spain's Benidorm Fest with "Zorra" (14:23)
Malta has Sarah Bonnici on "Loop" (19:43)
Il Senso and Monika Marija advance in Lithuania (25:21)
Latvia's Supernova Semi-Final (28:29)
Sweden kicks off Melodifestivalen 2024 (33:01)
This week: Italy's Sanremo, Germany's Wildcard, Finland's UMK (38:59)

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Malmö 2024

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Episode 216: Squiggle Line Mouth Face

The EuroWhat? Podcast — Tue, 30 Jan 2024 00:00:00 -0600

Eurovision season clicks into second gear this week with Ireland and Luxembourg making selections, Norway setting its final field, Lithuania's holding its third heat, and Malta, Spain, and Ukraine getting ready to decide. How will The Draw shake up things in Malmö?

Squiggle Line Mouth Face Summary

Romania won't be part of The Draw (1:15)
Ireland chooses Bambie Thug's "Doomsday Blue" (3:17)
Tali will be Luxembourg's "Fighter" in Malmö (10:56)
Iceland announces its intentions (20:44)
Norway sets its final field for NRK MGP (24:47)
Lithuania's Third Heat for Eurovizija.LT (31:45)
This week: Malta, Spain's Benidorm Fest, Ukraine's VidBir (34:57)

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Comments, questions, and episode topic suggestions are always welcome. You can shoot us an email or reach out on Bluesky @eurowhat.bsky.social.

Malmö 2024

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The CA of SRTv did not approve the participation in Eurovision 2024 | TVR.RO

Episode 215: That's SLO Raiven

The EuroWhat? Podcast — Tue, 23 Jan 2024 00:00:00 -0600

Eurovision calmed down a bit this week with qualifying heats from Lithuania and Norway plus the semi-final for Estonia's Eesti Laul. Slovenia turned up the drama with Raiven's "Veronika" and Austria announced their artist for Malmö. Be warned: this is the last bit of calm until March...

That's SLO Raiven Summary

Raiven's "Veronika" debuts for Slovenia (1:02)
Austria announces Kaleen for Malmö (3:40)
Portugal and Germany release National Final details (5:29)
Eesti Laul Semi-final (9:16)
NRK MGP Heat 2 (12:05)
Eurovizija.lt Heat 2 (20:49)
This week: Romania, Denmark, Serbia, Ireland, Luxembourg, Malta, and The Draw (25:34)

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Comments, questions, and episode topic suggestions are always welcome. You can shoot us an email or reach out on Bluesky @eurowhat.bsky.social.

Malmö 2024

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Episode 211: Allons-y!

The EuroWhat? Podcast — Tue, 05 Dec 2023 00:00:00 -0600

FRANCE has jumped the gun and released their song for Eurovision 2024. Greece has announced their artist, a handful of countries have named their contestants for their national finals, and tickets were already on sale... it's barely December? Join us as we peruse Eurovision Song Contest headlines.

Allons-y! Summary

🇫🇷 France surprise announces Slimane and "Mon Amour" (0:53)
🇬🇷 Greece will send Marina Satti to Malmo (6:15)
💚 United by Music Forever (8:45)
🎫 Tickets Wave 1 Happened (10:00)
🗳️ ESC Top 250 Voting Opens (13:33)
📲 Bluesky and Patreon (16:17)
🌍 Contestant Lists: Malta, Estonia, Spain, Sweden, Azerbaijan, Ukraine (18:10)
📝 Alumni Notes: Tumblr Trends (26:42

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Episode 208: Calendaring

The EuroWhat? Podcast — Tue, 24 Oct 2023 00:00:00 -0500

As we continue to wait for the full guest list for Eurovision 2024,: Cyprus announces their artist, a bunch of selection processes release start dates (FRIDAY?!), end dates, and a few name changes (EEK!), plus we start filling out this winter's TV calendar.

Calendaring Summary

Cyprus internally selects Silia Kapsis for Malmo (1:22)
35 Countries Confirmed So Far (3:24)
Malmo Budgets and Planning (5:16)
Eurowhat AV Club (6:50)
National Selections 2023: Malta, Estonia, Albania (7:30)
National Selections 2024: Norway, Sweden, Finland, Germany, Iceland, San Marino (10:51)
Changing Methods: Slovenia, Lithuania, Denmark (15:15)

The EuroWhat? Podcast is available wherever you get your podcasts. Find your podcast app to subscribe here.

Comments, questions, and episode topic suggestions are always welcome. You can shoot us an email or reach out on Bluesky @eurowhat.bsky.social.

Join the EuroWhat AV Club!

If you would like to help financially support the show, we are hosting the EuroWhat AV Club over on Patreon! We have a slew of bonus episodes with deep dives on Eurovision-adjacent topics. Our next episode will be about Scopitone.

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Episode 205: Efficiency

The EuroWhat? Podcast — Tue, 12 Sep 2023 00:00:00 -0500

We get caught up on September 2023 Eurovision Headlines, of which there are a surprising amount. We already have an artist, details on multiple selection processes, and more than 2 dozen countries ready to party in Malmö, Sweden.

Efficiency Summary

Belgium selects Mustii (1:02)
Christer Bjorkman and Per Blankens join the production team (3:07)
The EBU debates AI (6:53)
Show Business: Patreon and the Great American Pop Culture Quiz (9:16)
National Selections: United Kingdom, Switzerland, Malta, Cyprus, Ukraine, Germany (10:21)
2023 Streaming Stats (18:12)
Cosa sta facendo Maneskin: VMA Bingo Edition (20:26)

Photo by Mattias Diesel on Unsplash

The EuroWhat? Podcast is available wherever you get your podcasts. Find your podcast app to subscribe here.

Comments, questions, and episode topic suggestions are always welcome. You can shoot us an email or reach out on Twitter @eurowhat.

Join the EuroWhat AV Club!

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Episode 194: Internet People

The EuroWhat? Podcast — Mon, 08 May 2023 00:00:00 -0500

Ben and Mike met up in person to make their picks on what they think will qualify from the Eurovision 2023 semi-finals. Then we saw rehearsals. Experience both the before and after as we make our best guesses for Tuesday and Thursday.

Internet People Summary

Making predictions: pre-rehearsals (2:00)
Semi-Final 1 Predictions (4:57)
Semi-Final 2 Predictions (10:57)
SPOILER WARNING: Making Adjustments (20:34)
Semi-Final 1 Prediction Adjustments (20:49)
Semi-Final 2 Prediction Adjustments (28:14)

The EuroWhat? Podcast is available wherever you get your podcasts. Find your podcast app to subscribe here.

Keep tabs on everything happening with Eurovision 2023 on our website at eurowhat.com/2023

Comments, questions, and episode topic suggestions are always welcome. You can shoot us an email, reach out on Twitter @eurowhat, or give us a toot on Mastodon.

Over on Patreon, we have a slew of bonus episodes featuring the Eurowhat AV Club and deep dives on Eurovision-adjacent topics. Thank you for your support!

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Episode 187: Nostradamus Type Whatever

The EuroWhat? Podcast — Tue, 21 Mar 2023 00:00:00 -0500

We welcome back Justin Ladia as we begin our Eurovision 2023 review series. Starting in the first half of the first semi-final, we discuss Croatia, Ireland, Latvia, Malta, and Norway. Spoiler: it gets weird almost instantly.

Nostradamus Type Whatever Summary

Croatia - Let 3 - "Mama ŠČ" (1:44)
Ireland - Wild Youth - "We Are One" (11:05)
Latvia - Sudden Lights - "Aijā" (17:44)
Malta - The Busker - "Dance (Our Own Party)" (24:20)
Norway - Alessandra Mele - "Queen of Kings" (31:17)

The EuroWhat? Podcast is available wherever you get your podcasts. Find your podcast app to subscribe here.

Keep tabs on everything happening with Eurovision 2023 on our website at eurowhat.com/2023

Comments, questions, and episode topic suggestions are always welcome. You can shoot us an email, reach out on Twitter @eurowhat, or give us a toot on Mastodon.

Over on Patreon, we have a slew of bonus episodes featuring the Eurowhat AV Club and deep dives on Eurovision-adjacent topics. Thank you for your support!

Special Guest: Justin Ladia.

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Episode 182: Everything Everywhere All at Once

The EuroWhat? Podcast — Tue, 14 Feb 2023 00:00:00 -0600

We are all googly-eyed after a Saturday with more than 50 hours of Eurovision programming. The good news: we now have 8 more songs heading to Liverpool.

Everything Everywhere All at Once Summary

Vesna wins ESCZ with "My Sister's Crown" (1:40)
Alika will represent Estonia with "Bridges" (4:37)
Theodor Andrei's "D.G.T. (Off and On)" wins Romania's Selectia Nationala (7:37)
"Breaking My Heart" by Reiley will represent Denmark (13:32)
Let 3 dominates Croatia's Dora with "Mama ŠČ!" (17:45)
Sudden Lights wins Latvia's Supernova with "Aijā" (22:44)
Malta selects "Dance (Our Own Party)" by The Busker for Liverpool (24:22)
Marco Mangoni will represent Italy again with "Due Vite" (27:27)
Sweden's Melfest Heat 2 (32:52)
Lithuania sets the Pabandom is Nuajo Final Field (36:31)

The EuroWhat? Podcast is available wherever you get your podcasts. Find your podcast app to subscribe here.

Keep tabs on everything happening with selection season for Eurovision 2023 including a calendar and playlists on our website at eurowhat.com/2023

Comments, questions, and episode topic suggestions are always welcome. You can shoot us an email, reach out on Twitter @eurowhat, or give us a toot on Mastodon.

Over on Patreon, we have a slew of bonus episodes featuring the American Song Contest, the Eurovision AV Club, and deep dives on Eurovision-adjacent topics. Thank you for your support!

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DORA 2023 Opening Performance | YouTube

Episode 181: Peanut Butter Yelly Time

The EuroWhat? Podcast — Tue, 07 Feb 2023 00:00:00 -0600

This weekend was a practice run for Eurovision Super Saturday as Ireland, Norway, and Spain made their selections and Slovenia shared their song. Sweden and Latvia also kicked off their processes as we get ready for a deluge of entries for Liverpool.

Peanut Butter Yelly Time Summary

Semi-Final Allocation (1:08)
Wild Youth wins Ireland's Eurosong with "We Are One" (4:44)
Slovenia's Joker Out debuts "Carpe Diem" (13:15)
Alessandra will represent Norway with "Queen of Kings" (15:23)
Blanca Paloma's "EAEA" wins Benidorm Fest (20:22)
Czech Republic held its first live TV final in 15 years (25:49)
Artist Selctions from Greece, Austria, Armenia, and Georgia (27:48)
Malta moves forward in MESC (33:42)
Lithuania's Pabandom is Naujo goes into Semi Finals (36:18)
Latvia's Supernova begins (39:47)
Sweden's Melfest 2023 Begins (43:29)
Super Saturday 2023: Italy, Estonia, Croatia, Denmark, Romania (47:47)

The EuroWhat? Podcast is available wherever you get your podcasts. Find your podcast app to subscribe here.

Keep tabs on everything happening with selection season for Eurovision 2023 including a calendar and playlists on our website at eurowhat.com/2023

Comments, questions, and episode topic suggestions are always welcome. You can shoot us an email, reach out on Twitter @eurowhat, or give us a toot on Mastodon.

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Episode 180: Click... Click... Click...

The EuroWhat? Podcast — Tue, 31 Jan 2023 00:00:00 -0600

After recapping the last (not so) quiet weekend of Eurovision Selection Season, we set our sights on finals, semi-finals, and song reveals all over Europe next weekend. Strap in: It's February, y'all.

Click... Click... Click... Summary

Germany announces acts for Unser Lied für Liverpool (1:22)
Moldova holds auditions for Etapa Nationala (2:42)
Norway finalizes the MGP lineup (5:36)
Lithuania's Pabandom is Naujo wraps its quarter finals (11:34)
Song drops: Portugal and Iceland (14:53)
Tuesday: Semi-final Allocation and Spain's Benidorm Festival (17:22)
Thursday: Serbia Song Drop and the Voice of Georgia (20:20)
Friday: Malta's continued MESC-ness, Ireland Chooses its Eurosong (22:21)
Saturday: Slovenia reveals "Carpe Diem", Sweden's Melfest, Latvia's Supernova (26:30)
Cosa Sta Facendo Maneskin: Grammy Awards Edition (28:39)
We Didn't Forget About the Czech Republic (30:10)

Cover art image by Paul Brennan from Pixabay

The EuroWhat? Podcast is available wherever you get your podcasts. Find your podcast app to subscribe here.

Keep tabs on everything happening with selection season for Eurovision 2023 including a calendar and playlists on our website at eurowhat.com/2023

Comments, questions, and episode topic suggestions are always welcome. You can shoot us an email, reach out on Twitter @eurowhat, or give us a toot on Mastodon.

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Episode 178: Eurosongs

The EuroWhat? Podcast — Tue, 17 Jan 2023 00:00:00 -0600

Ryan Brazell stops by to discuss the first big weekend of Eurovision 2023 selection season. Belgium makes its pick, France announced their artist, and many processes have started to take shape.

Eurosongs Summary

Belgium's Eurosong picks Gustaph's "Because of You" (3:48)
France Goes Internal and Chooses La Zarra (11:12)
Johnny Rotten Could Represent Ireland (13:12)
Estonia's Eesti Laul Semi-Finals (15:56)
Malta's MESC Has Begun (18:13)
Norway's MGP Holds its First Semi-Final (21:27)
Coming Up: Finland's UMK Entries, Denmark and Portugal Song Drops, Lithuania's Pabandom is Naujo (27:14)

The EuroWhat? Podcast is available wherever you get your podcasts. Find your podcast app to subscribe here.

Keep tabs on everything happening with selection season for Eurovision 2023 including a calendar and playlists on our website at eurowhat.com/2023

Comments, questions, and episode topic suggestions are always welcome. You can shoot us an email, reach out on Twitter @eurowhat, or give us a toot on Mastodon.

Over on Patreon, we have a slew of bonus episodes featuring the American Song Contest, the Eurovision AV Club, and deep dives on Eurovision-adjacent topics. Thank you for your support!

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Episode 177: Amuse-Bouche

The EuroWhat? Podcast — Tue, 10 Jan 2023 00:00:00 -0600

The Eurovision menu includes a buffet of options as more countries drop tracks and announce their selection season plans. We take one last taste test of the appetizers as we await the start of heats and semi-finals.

Amuse-Bouche Summary

Latvia announces Supernova 2023 details (1:22)
This week in TV: Estonia's Eesti Laul, Malta's MESC, Belgium's Eurosong, Norway's NRK MGP (2:55)
"Will Israel Be at Eurovision?" 2023 Edition (14:01)
Yellow Studio will do the Eurovision Stage Design (16:28)

Cover image by NoName_13 from Pixabay

The EuroWhat? Podcast is available wherever you get your podcasts. Find your podcast app to subscribe here.

Keep tabs on everything happening with selection season for Eurovision 2023 including a calendar and playlists on our website at eurowhat.com/2023

Comments, questions, and episode topic suggestions are always welcome. You can shoot us an email, reach out on Twitter @eurowhat, or give us a toot on Mastodon.

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Episode 173: Stiff Upper Lip

The EuroWhat? Podcast — Tue, 29 Nov 2022 00:00:00 -0600

The United Kingdom has had a very rough couple of decades at the Eurovision Song Contest. Now that they're back in the driver's seat, we try to figure out what went wrong.

Stiff Upper Lip Summary

Eurovision Voting Overhaul (0:55)
National Finals: Australia Decides, Malta ESC, Ukraine's VidBir, Estonia's Eesti Laul, Albania's FiK (6:51)
Cosa Sta Facendo Maneskin: Grammy Nominations Edition (8:59)
The United Kingom at Eurovision Part 2 (11:51)
Nul Points (18:21)
2010s Go Internal (35:07)

The EuroWhat? Podcast is available wherever you get your podcasts. Find your podcast app to subscribe here.

Comments, questions, and episode topic suggestions are always welcome. You can shoot us an email, reach out on Twitter @eurowhat, or give us a toot on Mastodon.

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Episode 156: Bubblicious - Eurovision 2022 Semi-Final Preview

The EuroWhat? Podcast — Sun, 08 May 2022 00:00:00 -0500

We make our picks for who we think will advance from this week's Eurovision Semi-Finals. These predictions were made before rehearsals, but surely they're still accurate?

Bubblicious Summary

Eurovision Week 2022 (1:42)
Our Semi-Final 1 Picks (6:55)
Our Semi-Final 2 Picks (19:56)

Eurovision 2022 Review Series

The EuroWhat? Podcast is available wherever you get your podcasts. When you subscribe, please rate and review us. We welcome your feedback and the ratings will help other Eurovision fans find us.

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Episode 152: Subversive

The EuroWhat? Podcast — Tue, 12 Apr 2022 00:00:00 -0500

Justin Ladia joins us to start our coverage of the second semi-final for Eurovision 2022, with Finland, Israel, Serbia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Malta on the docket this week.

Subversive Summary

Finland - The Rasmus - "Jezebel" (2:23)
Israel - Michael Ben David - "I.M" (8:30)
Serbia - Konstrakta - "In Corpore Sano" (16:17)
Azerbaijan - Nadir Rüstəmli - "Fade to Black" (25:22)
Georgia - Circus Mircus - "Lock Me In" (33:03)
Malta - Emma Muscat - "I Am What I Am" (44:16)

Eurovision 2022 Review Series

The EuroWhat? Podcast is available wherever you get your podcasts. When you subscribe, please rate and review us. We welcome your feedback and the ratings will help other Eurovision fans find us.

Comments, questions, and episode topic suggestions are always welcome. You can shoot us an email or find us on Twitter @eurowhat.

Special Guest: Justin Ladia.

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Episode 148: One More Google

The EuroWhat? Podcast — Tue, 15 Mar 2022 00:00:00 -0500

In the last week of Eurovision Selection Season, we have a manageable number of internal selections to process and ease into the sunset with chill vibes from three national finals.

One More Google Summary

Tuesday: Switzerland (2:02)
Wednesday: Georgia and Cyprus (4:52)
Thursday: Belgium, United Kingdom, and Greece (10:44)
Friday: Austria (22:57)
Saturday: Sweden's Melfest, Iceland's Songvakeppnin, and Portugal's Festival da Cancao (27:18)
Coming up this week: Israel, Malta, Azerbaijan, Armenia (40:41)

Spotify Playlists

The EuroWhat? Podcast is available wherever you get your podcasts. When you subscribe, please rate and review us. We welcome your feedback and the ratings will help other Eurovision fans find us.

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Episode 145: Quante voci? In questa economia?

The EuroWhat? Podcast — Tue, 22 Feb 2022 00:00:00 -0600

In the biggest Saturday for Eurovision 2022 selection season, 6 songs were chosen for Turin. We travel to Norway, Slovenia, Croatia, Poland, San Marino, and Malta and examine a variety of TV formats along the way.

Quante voci? In questa economia? Summary

News: Kelly Clarkson, Snoop Dogg to Host American Song Contest; Ukraine Update (1:25)
Azerbaijan announces Nadir Rüstəmli (4:32)
Norway Gives That Subwoolfer a Ticket to Turin (6:19)
Slovenia hits the "Disko" with LPS (13:07)
Croatia Gives in to Mia Dimšić's "Guilty Pleasure" (15:35)
Poland crosses the "River" with Ochman (18:25)
Malta Thinks Emma Muscat is "Out of Sight" (21:48)
Achille Lauro's "Stripper" is Una Voce per San Marino (27:24)
Cosa Sta Facendo Maneskin: Vibe Rate Edition (32:53)
This week: Australia Decides, Finland's UMK, Iceland's Songvakeppnin, Melfest Heat 4 (34:08)

Spotify Playlists

The EuroWhat? Podcast is available wherever you get your podcasts. When you subscribe, please rate and review us. We welcome your feedback and the ratings will help other Eurovision fans find us.

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Episode 144: HyperRoop

The EuroWhat? Podcast — Tue, 15 Feb 2022 00:00:00 -0600

It was another busy week for Eurovision as Ukraine, Estonia, Lithuania, and Latvia made their picks for Turin. We get caught up and look ahead to the next Super Saturday in this week's episode.

HyperRoop Summary

Austria selects Lum!x and Pia Maria to perform "Halo" (1:25)
Ukraine's VidBir chooses Alina Pash's "Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors" (3:49)
Estonia puts all its "Hope" in STEFAN (9:23)
Monika Lui wins Lithuania's Pabandom is Naujo with "Sentimentai" (14:36)
Citi Zeni's "Eat Your Salad" wins Latvia's Supernova (19:02)
Cosa Sta Facendo Maneskin: BRIT Awards Edition (23:42)
Romania's Selectia Nationala holds a semi-final (25:22)
This week: San Marino, France, Malta, Poland, Croatia, Slovenia (27:44)
Nordic Process Check-in: NRKMGP and Melfest (30:33)

Spotify Playlists

The EuroWhat? Podcast is available wherever you get your podcasts. When you subscribe, please rate and review us. We welcome your feedback and the ratings will help other Eurovision fans find us.

Comments, questions, and episode topic suggestions are always welcome. You can shoot us an email or find us on Twitter @eurowhat.

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Episode 140: Pivot

The EuroWhat? Podcast — Tue, 18 Jan 2022 00:00:00 -0600

Dave Steeves returns to the program to discuss Norway's Melodi Grand Prix, a casual approach to Eurovision Selection Season, and the pivoting that is happening in response to the pandemic.

Pivot Summary

Last week in Eurovision (2:51)
- Malta snippets drop
- Finland UMK announces acts and songs
- Poland switches to a national final
- Omicron disrupts Melfest and Songvakeppnin
Cosa sta facendo Måneskin? Coachella edition (8:27)
Norway's Melodi Grand Prix begins (10:57)
Coming up this week (18:43)

Spotify Playlists

The EuroWhat? Podcast is available wherever you get your podcasts. When you subscribe, please rate and review us. We welcome your feedback and the ratings will help other Eurovision fans find us.

Comments, questions, and episode topic suggestions are always welcome. You can shoot us an email or find us on Twitter @eurowhat.

Special Guest: Dave Steeves.

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Episode 133: Metaverse

The EuroWhat? Podcast — Tue, 26 Oct 2021 00:00:00 -0500

Does breaking the fourth wall work at Eurovision? Ben takes us through a collection of songs that try to go meta.

Metaverse Summary

News (1:16)
Eurovision Again: 2012 (10:23)
When Eurovision Goes Meta (15:16)

The EuroWhat? Podcast is available wherever you get your podcasts. When you subscribe, please rate and review us. We welcome your feedback and the ratings will help other Eurovision fans find us.

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Episode 123: Live on Tape

The EuroWhat? Podcast — Tue, 08 Jun 2021 11:00:00 -0500

Bre Booker joins us to discuss the pre-recorded Live on Tape performances from the 2021 Eurovision Song Celebration YouTube specials.

Live on Tape Summary

News Desk (2:48)
Welcome, Bre Booker! (8:14)
American Song Contest Submissions Open (11:10)
Eurovision Song Celebration Live on Tape Performances (14:11)
Would Eurovision Plan D have worked? (34:07)

Episode 122: Revised Head Canon

The EuroWhat? Podcast — Tue, 25 May 2021 11:00:00 -0500

Ryan's back! We help to provide a revised head canon to fill the gap between 2018 and 2021 and review this year's Eurovision Song Contest.

Revised Head Canon Summary

Welcome back, Ryan!
Grand Final Thoughts and Stats (8:12)
Semi-Final 1 Stats (16:42)
Semi-Final 2 Stats (23:58)
Final Thoughts (35:37)

Episode 121: Eurovision 2021 Grand Final Preview

The EuroWhat? Podcast — Fri, 21 May 2021 09:00:00 -0500

33 songs competed on the Eurovision stage Tuesday and Thursday but only 20 advanced to the 2021 Grand Final. Who will win the Eurovision Song Contest in Rotterdam?

Eurovision 2021 Grand Final Preview Summary

Discovering Peacock will be carrying Eurovision
Where Can I Watch the Eurovision Song Contest in the US?
First Semi-Final (3:22)
Second Semi-Final (7:23)
Grand Final Thoughts (13:38)

Episode 120: Eurovision 2021 Semi-Final Preview

The EuroWhat? Podcast — Sun, 16 May 2021 23:00:00 -0500

The Eurovision 2021 Semi-Final Spectacular is here! We make our picks for the 20 songs we think will qualify for the Grand Final in Rotterdam.

Eurovision 2021 Semi-Final Preview Summary

News
- The American Song Contest
- Where Can I Watch the Eurovision Song Contest in the US?
- Rehearsals: Covid Incidents (No Spoilers)
Semi-Final 1 Predictions (6:36)
Semi-Final 2 Predictions (15:25)

Episode 115: Will It Play in Winnipeg?

The EuroWhat? Podcast — Tue, 13 Apr 2021 11:00:00 -0500

Graphic designer Justin Ladia joins us from Winnipeg to help us close out the first semi-final of the 2021 Eurovision Song Contest. North America has opinions!

Will It Play in Winnipeg? Summary

Welcome back, Justin Ladia!
- Twitter | Instagram | Website

Semi-Final 1 Part 3:
- Israel - Eden Alene - "Set Me Free" (2:28)
  - Trijntje Oosterhuis (Netherlands 2015) "Walk Along"
- Romania - Roxen - "Amnesia" (10:03)
  - Movies on Freeform
- Azerbaijan - Efendi - "Mata Hari" (16:39)
  - "Cleopatra" "Live" "Performance"
- Ukraine - Go_A - "SHUM" (22:50)
  - Internet Encyclopedia of Ukraine: Winnipeg
- Malta - Destiny - "Je Me Casse" (30:41)
  - Every Stefon Ever

Episode 112: A Whole Thing

The EuroWhat? Podcast — Tue, 23 Mar 2021 11:00:00 -0500

All Eurovision 2021 songs are in! (Except Belarus... that's a whole thing...) We discuss the latest entries and think about promo season.

A Whole Thing Summary

Selection season is over! (1:48)
- Azerbaijan salutes(?) "Mata Hari"
- Georgia's Tornike sings to "You"
- Is Malta #DestinedForGreatness with "Je Me Casse"?

Controversies (it's a whole thing...): North Macedonia, Russia, Belarus (11:40)

What does Eurovision promo season look like for 2021? (16:22)

Announcement: We've launched a Patreon! (22:59)

Episode 94: Double Trouble

The EuroWhat? Podcast — Tue, 15 Sep 2020 11:00:00 -0500

Ben flies solo again with another audio essay, this time looking into performers who made double, triple, and even quadruple visits to the Eurovision stage.

Double Trouble Summary

Eurovision, Again? (0:55)

Defining a "Lead Artist" (2:00)

Golden Boy (3:17)

The Four-Timers Club (4:25)

Three is a Magic Number (9:04)

CAROLA (11:00)

Close Close Close, but No Cigar (13:07)

Second Time's the Charm (15:36)

Glow-Ups (17:33)

The Direct Opposite of a Glow-Up (20:50)

Failure to Launch (24:58)

Keep That Same Energy (25:56)

What's Another Year? (26:50)

Episode 85: Eurovision Again

The EuroWhat? Podcast — Tue, 05 May 2020 11:00:00 -0500

#EurovisionAgain impresario Rob Holley speaks with us about the Eurovision Twitter time machine extravaganza.

#EurovisionAgain Summary

News Desk (1:58)
- Eurostream 2020 Voting | Facebook | Twitter | YouTube
- Alternate Programming for Eurovision Week ESCXtra Guide
- Netflix Updates

#EurovisionAgain with Rob Holley (11:30)

Episode 81: WHY ARE WE YELLING?

The EuroWhat? Podcast — Tue, 17 Mar 2020 11:00:00 -0500

We finish up our initial evaluations of the 2020 Eurovision Song Contest entries with the last nine songs to drop in March.

WHY ARE WE YELLING? Summary

Coronavirus vs. Eurovision (1:44)
Does Austria's song make us feel "Alive"? (6:22)
Ireland's "Story of My Life" splits opinions (10:21)
Are we "Running" to or from Cyprus? Or the mall? (15:13)
Should Bulgaria's "Tears Getting Sober" be the favorite? (19:09)
What do "YOU" think of North Macedonia's entry? (22:54)
Guess which of us is "FREAKY!" over San Marino's entry (27:03)
Does Malta get "All of My Love"? Some? Any? (35:36)
Does Azerbaijan say gay rights with "Cleopatra"? (40:07)
Russia continues to Russia with "UNO" 44:23

Episode 76: Sanremo LXX (Long, Xtra Xtra)

The EuroWhat? Podcast — Tue, 11 Feb 2020 17:00:00 -0600

Saturday proved to be a marathon as Australia, Latvia, and Italy chose their Eurovision entries and a whole bunch of other countries made progress.

Sanremo LXX (Long, Xtra Xtra) Summary

Eurovision in the Wild: Oscars 2020 Edition (1:43)
Israel selects Eden Alene (7:00)
Australia Decides on Montaigne (8:36)
Latvia chooses Samanta Tina (13:47)
Malta's X Factor belongs to Destiny (21:06)
Italy's Sanremo 70 ends with Diodato win (23:00)
Other checkins: Lithuania, Sweden, Iceland, Ukraine, Norway (30:46)

Episode 75: Austvia Superdecides

The EuroWhat? Podcast — Tue, 04 Feb 2020 17:00:00 -0600

It's time to update your Eurovision Top 2 videos as Czech Republic makes their choice and Australia, Italy, and Latvia get ready to make theirs.

Austvia Superdecides Summary

Semi-Final Allocation for Realsies This Time (1:40)
Eurovision Ticket Sales (5:15)
Spain releases Blas Cantó's "Universo" (8:28)
Czech Republic chooses Benny Cristo's "Kemama" (10:12)
Greece selects Stefania (14:16)
Weekend Recaps: Lithuania, Norway, Sweden (15:58)
Italy's Sanremo Festival Begins (33:27)
Our picks: Australia Decides (35:35)
Our picks: Latvia's Supernova (44:49)
Coming up this weekend: Malta, Ukraine, Iceland, Poland,

Episode 64: Win Win Win Win

The EuroWhat? Podcast — Tue, 22 Oct 2019 18:00:00 -0500

We jump back 50 years to that time Eurovision had a four-way tie for first place... and no way to break it.

Win Win Win Win Summary

How many countries are in Europe? (1:44)
Are you the next Jon Ola Sand? (9:05)
Update: What WAS that Germany postcard? (12:17)
Eurovision 1969: The Big Tie (14:16)
Netherlands - Lenny Kuhr - "De Troubadour" (19:35)
Spain - Salomé - "Vivo Contando" (22:00)
United Kingdom - Lulu - "Boom Bang A Bang" (24:04)
France - Frida Boccara - "Un Jour, Un Enfant" (27:40)

Episode 52: Eurovision 2019 Grand Final Preview

The EuroWhat? Podcast — Fri, 17 May 2019 10:00:00 -0500

This is it. The Eurovision 2019 Semi-Finals are done and we know what 26 countries will compete in Saturday's Grand Final. We add our own wild speculation to the mix.

We break down the results from the semi-finals and how accurate our predictions were (Hint: hoo boy...) and what we think of Israel's presentation of the Contest so far. After checking in with the auto-qualifiers rehearsals, we make our picks for who will win the 2019 Eurovision Song Contest. Will Iceland's "Hatrid mun sigra" sigra? Could Australia's "Zero Gravity" rise to the top? Is Netherlands' "Arcade" playing a winning game? Or will France's "Roi" reign supreme?

Eurovision 2019 Grand Final Preview Summary

SPOILER WARNING: We know not everyone watches the semi-finals and some folks may still be avoiding any information about the auto-qualifiers’ rehearsals. If you want to remain unspoiled, you may want to save this episode until after Saturday’s Grand Final. Who knows, we could be hilariously wrong in everything, so you may have that to look forward to.

How was the first semi-final? (4:15)
How was the second semi-final? (18:08)
Eurovision Grand Final preview (36:26)
Our predictions (44:42)

Episode 48: Eurovision 2019 Semi-Final 2 Part 2: These Are Six Songs

The EuroWhat? Podcast — Tue, 23 Apr 2019 17:00:00 -0500

The second semi-final of the 2019 Eurovision Song Contest will include Denmark, Sweden, Austria, Croatia, Malta, and Lithuania. We can confirm these are songs.

Eurovision 2019 Semi-Final 2 Part 2: These Are Six Songs Summary

News: Interval acts, Netta on the charts, Madrid Pre-Party, Ticket$ (3:04)
Denmark - Leonora - "Love is Forever" (15:57)
Sweden - John Lundvik - "Too Late for Love" (20:15)
Austria - PAENDA - "Limits" (25:33)
Croatia - Roko Blažević - "The Dream" (30:08)
Malta - Michela - "Chameleon" (35:48)
Lithuania - Jurijus - "Run with the Lions" (40:21)
Final Thoughts (45:48)

Episode 42: Madness!

The EuroWhat? Podcast — Tue, 12 Mar 2019 18:00:00 -0500

The madness of Eurovision Selection Season has come to an end. With 16 songs to discuss, we change up the format to get into competition mode.

Madness! Summary

We Stan Hatari: Öskudagur edition (2:01)
Eurovision Madness Bracket! (4:11)
Round of 16 (6:59)
Round of 8 (20:18)
Final Four (30:22)
The Grand Final (35:06)
VOTE in our Twitter poll

Episode 36: Logistics!

The EuroWhat? Podcast — Tue, 29 Jan 2019 17:00:00 -0600

We have Eurovision semi-final logistics! Hosting logistics! France and Czechia selection logistics! It's the most wonderful time of year!

First, we do what little extrapolation we can based on how this year's Semi-Final Allocation draw shook out. Spoiler: a random draw created a random assortment. Now that we know how the field has divvied up, we can speculate on how hosting duties will be split among the four presenters. Oh no, four presenters again? Hmmm. We also learned that FYR Macedonia will be renamed North Macedonia eventually, Eurovision hasn't caught up with the news quite yet.

Going over this past weekend's selections, we do a deep dive into the exciting conclusion of France's Destination Eurovision. We have some opinions about some of the design choices made by eventual winner ~~Waluigi~~ Bilal Hassani, 36% of Frenchmen can't be wrong, right? As for the Czech Republic, we're not so sure the televoters got it right, as they broke the jury tie by awarding Lake Malawi the ticket to Tel Aviv. Over in Malta, The X Factor wrapped with Michela Pace winning the chance to represent her country at Eurovision.

Finally, after trying to get an accurate headcount of folks still competing in Lithuania, we take a look at the week ahead. Estonia's Eesti Laul, Sweden's Melodifestivalen, plus songs from Iceland, Denmark, Norway, and last year's winner Netta are on our calendar. Things are ramping up quick—trust the process!

Logistics! Summary

Semi-Final Allocation (1:41)
Eurovision 2019 Hosts (4:17)
North Macedonia (6:37)
Destination Eurovision Final (France) (7:29)
Czechia Selection (16:25)
Michela Pace wins Malta X Factor (19:58)
How many people are still in the Lithuania Marathon? (21:56)
This Week in Eurovision (24:54)

Links

Eesti Laul (Estonia) 2019 Playlist (Spotify)
Grace Jones Citroën ad

Support The EuroWhat? Podcast: Eurovision News & Reviews

Episode 33: Welcome to 2019

The EuroWhat? Podcast — Wed, 09 Jan 2019 01:00:00 -0600

Happy new year! Now that we can begin 2019 in earnest, we have our first Eurovision entry up for discussion.

This week's episode starts with some Eurovision in the Wild. Ben rocked a Swedish pop music quiz while Mike spotted Englebert Humperdinck (ESC 2012) on the way to Detroit. We also discuss the ESC 250 countdown and some of the surprises in this year's edition.

We also have some updates on how preparations for Tel Aviv 2019 are moving along. Florian Wieder's stage concept has been announced and the outdoor cats among us may be interested in some new accommodations that will be available for this year's Contest. We also confirm that Mike and Ben are not outdoor cats.

The main event is Albania's selection for Eurovision 2019. Although the selection process could have used some tightening up from a production standpoint (sorry, @ESCAlbania), we're optimistic about "Ktheju tokës" by Jonida Maliqi.

We're also optimistic about Cyprus, Spain, and San Marino's selections—unless the Human Ken Doll comes out to play. Selection season is upon us, and we are ready for the shows this weekend!

Eurovision in the Wild (1:17)
ESC250 (6:12)
Tel Aviv 2019 Updates (8:44)
Albania chooses "Ktheju tokës" by Jonida Maliqi (11:57)
Cyprus Update (21:19)
San Marino Trolls the Internet (23:46)
Spain Chooses 10 Finalists (27:46) Editor's note: Spain's final will be January 20
This weekend's calendar (29:08)

Links

Support The EuroWhat? Podcast: Eurovision News & Reviews

Episode 28: The Aftermarket

The EuroWhat? Podcast — Wed, 24 Oct 2018 06:00:00 -0500

Eurovision provides an aftermarket for winners of singing competitions. Why don't we have that in America? Andy Dehnart from Reality Blurred joins us to discuss.

First up, we check in with the soon-to-be-final tally of countries participating in Eurovision 2019. We were at 40 once Armenia confirmed, but Bulgaria announced their withdrawal due to budget concerns. Speaking of budget concerns: Ukraine is still in the mix and will have a national final in February. Also having a national final: Australia! Fingers crossed for Aboriginal trip hop making its debut in Tel Aviv?

For our main topic, we discuss the tangled relationship between European singing competitions and Eurovision. The Voice and the X Factor have been viable feeder systems the last few years, with the United Kingdom's version of the latter becoming an end goal for some Eurovision alumni.((Brendan Murray is currently on the X Factor UK live shows.)) You could say that Eurovision works as a tournament of champions or an All-Stars edition of all the singing shows. But... why doesn't that exist in the US?

We lean on Andy Denhart's reality show expertise to help us answer some of these questions, as well as expose some of the more bizarre factoids we've all squirreled away. Sinbad on Star Search? Battle of the Reality Network Stars? Murder and sex scandals destroying franchises? This episode has it all!

The Aftermarket Summary

Andy Dehnart / @realityblurred (1:00)
Country count (3:21)
The European Singing Competition Industrial Complex Aftermarket (6:48)

Episode 22: World Cup Song Contest

The EuroWhat? Podcast — Wed, 18 Jul 2018 05:00:00 -0500

Is there anything more EuroWhat? than the World Cup? How about World Cup songs performed by Eurovision Song Contest alumni? Yeah, that oughta do it...

This week, Ben and Mike take a listen to a handful of songs from 2018 that were created for the sole purpose of ~~cashing in~~ celebrating the quadrennial ~~soccer~~ futbol extravaganza that is the FIFA World Cup. Did you know that there is an official World Cup anthem as well as an official song? AND an official Coca-Cola song?

The music doesn't stop there. Countries that weren't even in the tournament added tracks to the playlist, with Eurovision alumni from Malta and Azerbaijan leading the charge. Host country Russia brought back their famous Grannies as well as the stellar voice of Polina Gagarina. Iceland's last act to qualify for a Eurovision final—2014's Pollapönk—rocks out to celebrate their homeland qualifying for the tournament for the first time. And a remix from one of 1979's most famous acts also promotes Moscow.

There's controversy, international intrigue, and a whole lotta flopping in this installment of the EuroWhat? podcast!((Oh, and congrats, France. We recorded this well before the Final.))

World Cup Song Contest Summary

Jason Derulo featuring(?) Ira Losco - "Colors" (4:46)
Arash, Pitbull, Blanco, Nyusha - "Goalie Goalie" (9:21)
Russia's Gonna Russia (13:07)
Pollapönk - "Boltann í punginn" (17:21)
Dschinghis Khan - "Moskau Moskau Moskau Moskau" (19:54)

World Cup Playlist

Episode 14: Eurovision 2018 Semi-Final 2 Hodgepodge

The EuroWhat? Podcast — Wed, 25 Apr 2018 05:00:00 -0500

The second half of the second semi-final of the 2018 Eurovision Song Contest is a European hodgepodge of pop, rock, dance, ethno-jazz, and... whatever it is Montenegro's doing (never change). We break down the last nine semi-finalists in this week's podcast.

Eurovision 2018 Semi-Final 2 Hodgepodge Summary

Listener Feedback (3:03)
Eurovision: The Board Game (5:37)
Avicii (8:24)
LogoTV's Plan (10:02)
Traveling to Eurovision (11:22)

Second Semi-Final Second Half Running Order

Georgia - Ethno-Jazz Band Iriao - "For You" (16:16)
Poland - Gromee featuring Lukas Meijer - "Light Me Up" (23:04)
Malta - Christabelle - "Taboo" (28:46)
Hungary - AWS - "Viszlát Nyár" (35:46)
Latvia - Laura Rizzotto - "Funny Girl" (41:48)
Sweden - Benjamin Ingrosso - "Dance You Off" (49:11)
Montenegro - Vanja Radovanović - "Inje" (56:14)
Slovenia - Lea Sirk - "Hvala, Ne!" (1:02:51)
Ukraine - Melovin - "Under the Ladder" (1:08:00)

Episode 4: The Who? and the What? Now!

The EuroWhat? Podcast — Wed, 14 Feb 2018 05:00:00 -0600

Lindsey Weber from the Who Weekly podcast stops by to chat about how the Olympics are the perfect world event to prep for Eurovision before getting into the songs selected for Malta, Switzerland, the UK, Denmark, and Italy.

The Who? and the What? Now! Summary

Olympics and Eurovision (1:06)
Questions from Lindsey Weber (9:49)
Malta: Christabelle Borg "Taboo" (19:04)
Switzerland: ZiBBZ "Stones" (27:41)
United Kingdom: SuRie "Storms" (31:10)
Denmark: Rasmussen "Higher Ground" (38:03)
Italy: Ermal Meta and Fabrizio Moro "Non mi avete fatto niente" (41:31)
Upcoming Selections (47:55)

Links

Special Guest: Lindsey Weber.

You ‘kay?

The EuroWhat? Podcast — Tue, 06 Feb 2018 08:00:00 -0600

This week, Ben and Mike do a deep dive into the United Kingdom's Eurovision selection process and take a look at why the country has struggled for so long at the Contest. Plus, a roundup of headlines from the last week.

Links

Ryan O'Shaughnessy's US Tour — https://ryanosmusic.com/pages/show-dates

Malta's entry: "Taboo" by Christabelle — https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oyrC8jJ8eb8

Switzerland's entry: "Stones" by ZiBBZ — https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jXOlPGnkZFY

The United Kingdom's contestants:

Gwenno "Tir Ha Mor" — https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-rCeygWexyA

CHVRCHES "Get Out" — https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LHUKKrcXfJs

Support The EuroWhat? Podcast: Eurovision News & Reviews

The EuroWhat? Podcast: Eurovision News & Reviews - Episodes Tagged with “Malta”

Episode 289: Rough

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Episode 287: Folklore & Rock & Roll

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Episode 280: Weird Little Dudes

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Episode 277: Nice

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Eurovision Podcast Podcrawl

Episode 270: Bird Noises

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Episode 269: Eurovision 2025 Grand Final Preview

Eurovision 2025 Grand Final Preview Summary

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Episode 268: Eurovision 2025 Semi-Final Preview

Eurovision 2025 Semi-Final Preview Summary

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Episode 265: Do Re Mi

Maura Johnston

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Episode 259: Choose Chaos

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Episode 255: ('Singing')

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Episode 254: Super

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Episode 251: Wading

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Episode 249: Pew Pew Pew

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Episode 248: Three-Card Montesong

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Episode 245: Avalanche

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Episode 230: Designated Perceived Nudity Corner

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Episode 226: Oops! All Revamps

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Episode 217: Technical Difficulties