#at this point Loreen and joker out >>>>> Käärijä

[deuces-ninth-live]

Me after I abandoned the Käärijä fandom and blacklisted the tags and moved to the BSD, joker out and Loreen fandom: ^_^

[kurooscoffee]

Käärijä made it into Slovenian media today!

ENG Translation: The Finn who made Slovenians go crazy impressed with his Slovenian knowledge #video

Source: Siol.net

The Finn, who was considered the favourite in this year's Eurovision Song Contest, was second overall. Photo: @paidatonriehuja/ Instagram

The Finnish Eurovision representative Käärijä, who was considered the favourite at this year's contest and finished second overall, shared a video on his Instagram profile in which he thanked all his Slovenian fans for their support and impressed them with his excellent knowledge of Slovenian.

Käärijä, whose real name is Jere Pöyhönen, addressed his fans in a unique way. In different languages, including Slovenian, he thanked everyone for coming to his concerts and for all the support he has received after Eurovision.

See what he had to say to his Slovenian fans in the video below: (video)

In addition to Slovenian, he also tried out his knowledge of Spanish, German, Polish, Swedish, Estonian, French, Israeli, Icelandic, Norwegian, Italian, Ukrainian, Dutch, Greek, Turkish and even Japanese.

Friendship with the frontman of Joker Out

The Finn, who was considered the favourite in this year's Eurovision Song Contest, came in second place with 526 points, 57 points behind the winner Loreen.

He has become a favourite among Slovenians thanks to his friendship with Bojan Cvjetićanin, the lead singer of Joker Out. After Eurovision, Cvjetićanin visited Käärijä in Helsinki, where they performed together at one of his concerts. Their friendship has been described by many as "the best friendship in Eurovision history".

[Tweet embed]

[mitamicah]

Its actually funny for me to see that so many asexual people are Käärijä fans now 😆

I'm ace too

you're right: we are interestingly many aces that has fallen head over heals for him x'D I mean how could we not yet it is still quite interesting and something that could be fun researching a bit further why we gravitate towards him 🤔

Writing this I actually got a few theories in my head (I can only speak for myself of course so take this with as much salt you find nesescary)

For me Käärijä represents an authenticity that is outside of that linked to sexual attraction - he is just fully his own goofy self and that makes people love him. I think he also might be one of the most loved contestant BY the other contestants this year but I could be biased having mostly seen preparty and backstage clips relating to Käärijä and Joker Out.

That is the other thing I really love seeing as an aroace person: that Käärijä just got to be friends with everybody and created very strong bonds with pretty much everybody to the point that half the contestants went to him when the winner was announced instead of congratulating Loreen (no shade on her).

I love that Käärijä shows how important and pure platonic relationships can be and that not everything in the world has to be about romantic chemistry or sex appeal (those two things to me are more of a bonus so I am so not saying that he doesn't have or deserve to have either).

As a sidenote I adore that Käärijä seemingly got adopted by the Joker Out guys from the moment he and Bojan bonded and to me at least the relationship the guys have read very queerplatonic, which again is very ace coded if you ask me.

It doesn't help either that his outfit is very aro coded and the fact he has stated he doesn't really enjoy writing love songs (and has only written 2 himself) 🤣💚

So in short- he is just out here being his authentic self and I love that for him 🥺💚

Also hi fellow ace person, you seem so cool 🤗

(Sorry this reply got so long x'D)

[samkuchingdraws]

A final post to cap off the Eurovision season, with a painting of my top two fave acts, Teya & Salena and Käärijä.

Got to experience the full show for the first time via YouTube Live and was really fun. Admittedly disappointed that some of my favourite acts (even those I come to discover and love during the Finals itself because they were great) didn't get more points than I thought they ought to.

Regardless, it was a fun experience and I won't mind rationing my sleep to watch it at 3am again! Plus loads of new artists for me to discover (currently having a blast with Joker Out's discography). Biggest congratulations to Loreen for her second win! And to all of the artists who participated and the team running the show, well done!

[esc-is-holding-me-hostage]

Final thoughts/rant/whatever

- Yeah, Greece giving Cyprus meager 4 points meant that it's all doomed

- The real crimes of the juries were putting Israel 2nd and Estonia 5th

- My tweet asking Ukrainians not to vote for Poland got a surprising 1000+ likes and retweets. And guess what? IT DIDN'T FUCKING MATTER, 'CAUSE WE GAVE 12 POINTS TO POLAND ANYWAY сукакурванахуйблядь I hate it here

- Slovenia in the 21st place is makes me wanna put on Joker (hehe) makeup

- Germany putting in effort and still being dead last is just sad

And now for the big thing

Do I think that the show was "rigged" in Loreen's favor? No.

But I'm still upset and the difference of 163 points between her and jury's second place is absolutely fucking baffling.

The jury vote system is designed in such a way that huge point gaps are less likely to occur AND YET. May I remind you that in 2019 correcting the votes of one (1) country changed the jury winner.

I'm sure they will try to change the system somehow next year. After all, we've got the current system after Sweden won as a jury 1st, televote 3rd place.

That said. Oh my god, can you guys fucking chill? Stop with these ridiculous conspiracy theories. "It's because of ABBA's win anniversary", "Melfest was purposely made bad so she could win" - jeeeesus.

Loreen was second in the televote, she got points from literally every country except for Finland (obviously), it's not like she was pushed to the winning spot from out of the top 10. People, a lot of people, voted for her. She did have the whole package with a good song, great vocals and great staging. It's not like the juries handed Bridges a win.

Do you all have the memory of a goldfish and don't remember KEiiNO? Who also won the televote but not the whole thing? This is not the first time this is happenned, come on, shit like this is bound to occur sometimes.

"The juries were put in place because of the anti Eastern-European sentiment, we don't need them anymore". Yes, and also because the contest was filled with shit-tier joke entries fighting for the televotes.

"The televoters know what's best!" After 5 points (last place) to Blanca and 81 points (8th) to Blanka? After 16 points to Austria? Really?

Look. I am also upset at the result. I turned off my TV before the winner's repriese, for fuck's sake. I expected Loreen to fight for that 1st jury spot. I expected Käärijä to get between 60 and 100 jury points so I could give up my hopes before they even started announcing the televote results. But he was in the 4th spot, and I thought that maybe, just maybe he can still win. And that's why you should never get your expectations up, kids.

tl;dr: Käärijä deserved to win, but making up fucking conspiracy theories to justify your fave not winning is stupid and you all should chill and stream Cha Cha Cha or something. Give the green man those 0.003 dollars.

[halipula-aika]

Alright last night was wild. I've slept and am not drunk anymore, so, Eurovision thoughts:

I'm not actually that upset that Loreen won. She's an amazing singer. As a Finn I obviously wish Käärijä had won, but losing to Loreen isn't a bad thing. This is the second best result Finland has ever had, and if anyone deserves to win twice, it's Loreen, on pure skill alone.

What kinda pisses me off is how calculated Loreen's win was. Next year is infact ABBA's 50 year anniversary! What a coincidence Sweden gets to host it!

I also wish they would have marketed Loreen as a flex. She is genuinely an amazing singer. She clearly knows it. Yet when the hosts interviewed her she was all "oh, I'm so overwhelmed, I don't know what to think" which comes off super weird from someone who has won previously. Wouldn't it have been more fun to see her be confident in her ability? Her voice is amazing. Market the fact that she's a returning champion!

But the thing that I want more people to be upset about with me? The swedish Eurovision hit factory. Fun fact, the team behind Loreen's song also wrote the entry for Cyprus this year!

This year wasn't even particularly outrageous, as only two entries were made by swedish professionals, but the previous years have had so many more entries written by the same circle of, at this point, Eurovision professionals, whose entire industry is churning out songs for Eurovision.

I see a lot of people saying we should ban previous winners, and I completely disagree. Loreen's voice alone makes her deserve this win. It's a singing competition, and having an op icon return is a good and fun move.

But I 100% think the EBU should ban songwriters from working on multiple entries in the same year.

I especially want to talk about one person in this year's team, Jimmy "Joker" Thörnfeldt.

Thörnfeldt wrote two of the entries this year, Sweden and Cyprus'. He also wrote three entries in 2021, those of Sweden, Cyprus and San Marino. He was behind 6 entries in this AND last year's Melodifest (the swedish national selection) and five entries in 2021.

Jimmy Jansson and Thomas G:son are also prolific members of this team, but their Wikipedia pages are more confusing, and frankly, I don't want to spend my time focusing on them so much. Their discography is listed as which songs they sent to various national finals, which, in my humble opinion, is something they should not... be... doing? I know countries like Cyprus and San Marino kinda have to buy their songs from outside, that's not the issue, it's the fact that these professionals are competing against themselves in Eurovision.

Don't allow the swedish Eurovision hit factory to do this, EBU. Restrict them to only submitting one entry per year.

Of course, the executive supervisor of Eurovision, Martin Österdahl, is a Swedish television producer, so the chances of doing anything that might harm the swedish entertainment industry are slim.

[because-its-eurovision]

Finland is number one in Poland's Viral 50 💚. Slovenia is second by the way. And also Croatia, Austria, Switzerland, Cyprus, Armenia, Moldova, France and Czechia are all trending above Sweden and fit in top15. Which I think kind of shows how middle of the road their song is (I'm not going to say it's bad, because Loreen is a good singer, but it really kind of goes is one ear and out the other without leaving a trace), and that people want something more memorable and crazy from Eurovision.

It is kind of interesting that after watching both semis and the grand finale, I was able to kind of accurately predict who would be a qualifier, but the finale voting was one big mystery to me 😅. Why didn't Slovenia, Austria and Czechia get more points? Why was Germany lower than Poland? What is even happening in the heads of the juries?

But Finland is definitely going to be remembered. And I think Swedish commentators know that, and it really bothers them it's your country that captivated people hearts, and they turn offensive out of some wounded pride.

This new made me really happy ❤ Not only that Cha Cha Cha is number one, but in general that Eurovision is so relevant nowadays that it is able to make the competing songs (other than the winner and the country’s own entry) go viral. Tattoo was ofc viral in many, many countries even before the contest which is really not surprising seeing how it embraces the pop hit pattern and is ridiculously catchy, but seeing non-English songs even higher really warms my heart.

There are always going to be surprising results, but the running order and competition in the same genre do have an effect. Obviously I do not have the answers, and this is speculation only.

Slovenia qualified and 78 points is not a bad result at all, considering they also got points from 14 different countries. The withdrawing of North Macedonia and Montenegro likely had an impact on their total score. Before the grand final Slovenia was 23rd in the odds which is in line with their result of 21st place. In my view Slovenia was since the beginning always more of a fan favourite than a real contender. I once read a take saying that only diaspora and fans vote in Eurovision, which is supported by the fact that Joker Out got their highest points in the final from Croatia, Serbia and Finland (got to support Käärijä’s boyfriend 🥰)

Austria was hurt by the running order in the grand final perhaps more than anyone. It has been shown that the running order doesn’t affect the juries as much as the televoters, perhaps because the juries are required to watch the whole show from the beginning to the end while the regular viewers might miss the first few songs. Juries did raise Austria to the 8th place which is once again a great result in my opinion, for a country that usually doesn’t enjoy that much of neighbour support. In general despite the country it is really hard to place higher than around 15th place when opening the grand final – Belgium came 10th in 2016 but was only 16th in the televote. Other reasons for Austria's low televote score might have been the quality difference between first and second semi final, and the voters all gathering to support Finland when it became clear they were the only ones who could challenge Sweden.

Czechia got their second ever top 10 result, second best result ever and best result since Mikolas Josef’s 6th place in 2018, so I wouldn’t be disappointed at all. Perhaps they suffered having to perform between Finland and Australia, which is something I expected could happen.

Germany is one of the Central European countries that cannot trust their neighbours to support them, as we have unfortunately seen many times. In general, succeeding with a rock/metal entry in Eurovision is very difficult and rare, although there are a couple of exception which I probably don’t even have to mention. In March I got this ask and made a prediction based on how well rock/heavy entries similar to Blood and Glitter usually have succeeded in Eurovision (21st-24th place), so I’m not that shocked by their result. Sad of course, but not surprised. (I expected UK be last, but I guess they got some support points for being the host). My guess is Germany also once again suffered from being a direct qualifier (not having the same bond with viewers as semi-finalists do) and competing against Australia and especially Finland, who have similar-ish target audience.

As for Poland I need to remind that they have a huge diaspora – their highest points came from Ukraine, Ireland, Lithuania and United Kingdom. Most people who knew and cared about the infamous NF result were Polish viewers themselves and Eurovision fans, and neither of those groups can give negative votes. To Blanka’s credit we must admit that the performance improved massively since the NF and Solo as a light and campy female pop didn’t really have any genre competition, and it isn’t as divisive as metal or heavy rock is.

Juries are asked to focus their vote on 4 main sets of criteria: Vocal capacity of the artist(s) Performance on stage Composition and originality of the song Overall impression of the act

Regardless of how angry I am of the ridiculously high jury points to Sweden this year – and almost every year, really – I think they were pretty consistent with their ranking this year. We can argue about Cha Cha Cha being more original than Tattoo, but we can’t argue about Käärijä being weaker singer than Loreen or Marco. Juries always put more emphasis on the vocal capacity and singing skills than televote does. That is also why what the fans call “boring ballads” tend to be higher than campy uptempos and ethnic bops, because the latter rarely require expectional vocal techniques. My hot take is that juries are necessary to evaluate objectively the actual technical skills of the performers and prevent us from having to sit through another year like 2008 with Leto Svet, Baila El Chiki Chiki, Dustin the Turkey and Wolves of the Sea kind of atrocities.

I love the last chapter 🥺 Käärijä is the people’s princess 💗 I think @suspiciouslandlady put it best in this post. Sweden cannot take that all the attention and love is not directed at them. They cannot take that we are celebrated instead of them. They cannot take that their "former Eastern part of the kingdom" is acknowledged at its own right and not just as the lesser neighbour country. We are so used to being forgotten between Sweden and Russia, the weird Nordic that has their own strange language none of the others understand, always the oppressed, the underdog in contests and sports. We might have lost once again, but this time the world is on our side and the spotlight is on Finland. And that is hard for our neighbours to swallow.

[transparentgentlemenmarker]

Eurovision 2023

Loreen - Tattoo! 🇸🇪 Sweden The winner

01. Suède : la chanteuse Loreen avec « Tattoo »

02. Finlande : le chanteur Käärijä avec « Cha Cha Cha »

03. Israël : la chanteuse Noa Kirel avec « Unicorn »

04. Italie : le chanteur Marco Mengoni avec « Due vite »

05. Norvège : la chanteuse Alessandra avec « Queen of Kings »

06. Ukraine : le duo Tvorchi avec « Heart of Steel »

07. Belgique : le chanteur Gustaph avec « Because of You »

08. Estonie : le chanteuse Alika avec « Bridges »

09. Australie : le groupe masculin Voyager avec « Promise »

10. Tchéquie : le groupe féminin Vesna avec « My Sister’s Crown »

11. Lituanie : le chanteuse Monika Linkytė avec « Stay »

12. Chypre : le chanteur Andrew Lambrou avec « Break a Broken Heart »

13. Croatie : le groupe masculin Let 3 avec « Mama ŠČ ! »

14. Arménie : le chanteuse Brunette avec « Future Lover »

15. Autriche : le duo féminin Teya & Salena avec « Who the Hell is Edgar ? »

16. France : la chanteuse La Zarra avec « Évidemment »

Et pour ceux qui savent pas, le signe qu’à fait La Zarra c’est un Maalich puis Toz. En français "C’est pas grave allez vous faire foutre"

17. Espagne : la chanteuse Blanca Paloma avec « Eaea »

18. Moldavie : le chanteur Pasha Parfeny avec « Soarele și luna »

19. Pologne : le chanteuse Blanka avec « Solo »

20. Suisse : le chanteur Remo Forrer avec « Watergun »

21. Slovénie : le groupe masculin Joker Out avec « Carpe Diem »

22. Albanie : le groupe Albina & Familja Kelmendi avec « Duje »

23. Portugal : la chanteuse Mimicat avec « Ai coração »

24. Serbie : le chanteur Luke Black avec « Samo mi se spava »

25. Royaume-Uni : la chanteuse Mae Muller avec « I Wrote a Song »

26. Allemagne : le groupe masculin Lord of the Lost avec « Blood & Glitter »

Total des points attribués à chaque pays

1 Sweden, Loreen – Tattoo 583

2 Finland – Käärijä – Cha Cha Cha 526

3 Israel, Noa Kirel – Unicorn 362

4 Italy – Marco Mengoni – Due Vite 350

5 Norway – Alessandra – Queen of Kings 268

6 Ukraine – TVORCHI – Heart of Steel 243

7 Belgium – Gustaph – Because of You 182

8 Estonia, Alika – Bridges 168

9 Australia – Voyager – Promise 151

10 Czechia – Vesna – My Sister's Crown 129

11 Lithuania, Monika Linkytė – Stay 127

12 Cyprus – Andrew Lambrou – Break a Broken Heart 126

13 Croatia – Let 3 – Mama ŠČ 123

14 Armenia – Brunette – Future Lover 122

15 Austria – Teya & Salena – Who The Hell is Edgar? 120

16 France – La Zarra – Évidemment 104

17 Spain – Blanca Paloma – Eaea 100

18 Moldova – Pasha Parfeni – Soarele si Luna 96

19 Poland – Blanka – Solo 93

20 Switzerland – Remo Forrer – Watergun 92

21 Slovenia – Joker Out – Carpe Diem 78

22 Albania – Albina & Familja Kelmendi – Duje 76

23 Portugal – Mimicat – Ai Coração 59

24 Serbia – Luke Black – Samo Mi Se Spava 30

25 United Kingdom – Mae Muller – I Wrote A Song 24

26 Germany – Lord of the Lost – Blood & Glitter 18

[crystal-methionine]

It’s time for my annual post about Eurovision and then disappearing from here for another year. So behold my rankings for the 2023 edition:

1. Finland 🇫🇮 - Cha Cha Cha by Käärijä

Oh Finland. So close to winning but a deserved 🥈. I wholly think that this song was a bit more original and stands out compared to Tattoo, but we all knew once Loreen was chosen by Sweden the the queen of Eurovision would take the crown.

2. Spain 🇪🇸 - EAEA by Blanca Paloma

5 pts. BITCH SERIOUSLY???!!! This was a masterclass of vocal performance with a touch of tradition, modernity, and ethnic music. Blanca killed it and the performance was so encapturing. I did not look away once. And then Europe have her only 5 pts (last place). I’m usually anti-jury but they at least put her 9th (could have been higher but better than fuckin last)

3. Sweden 🇸🇪 - Tattoo by Loreen

Way deserved 🥇. I listen to this and belt in the car. It was my #1 a good bit constantly switching between it and Finland. I remember thinking in the semi, what the point of even having the contest was bc she already won after performing. I do hate pulling the it’s Loreen card, but honestly when has she ever done wrong?? Perfectly fine with her winning it all.

4. Armenia 🇦🇲 - Future Lover by Brunette

Underrated imo. Also the dance break. I had to pick my jaw up off the floor in the semi. Vocally flawless both times. Amazing staging to boot. I understand this wasn’t everybody’s cup of tea. However, I think merit should have been awarded more.

5. Iceland 🇮🇸 - Power by Diljá

As already shown with Spain, we can’t have all the nice things can we, Europe? Vocal perfection. Rich gritty vocals and delicate. Is the song the best song lyrically, no. But the amount of performance prowess Diljá performed and stayed on point vocally was literally mind blowing. I knew she wasn’t going to qualify, but I so wanted her to. She deserved it more over some other countries *cough Poland*. The good news was she didn’t seem to care much and had a good time from what I was seeing.

6. Serbia 🇷🇸 - Samo Mi Se Spava by Luke Black

Like Armenia, I fully understand this isn’t everyone’s cup of tea. This is one of my personal favorites that I may repeat once or twice if it comes on my playlist. The last minute of the song is my hype jam. The performance was good. I’ll agree to that there were better performers, but I have to rank the song this high given my replay count.

7. Israel 🇮🇱 - Unicorn by Noa Kirel

Is it my favorite, no. Do I hate the lyrics at times? Yes. It makes me think it’s supposed to be a track for a My Little Pony movie or something. Did the performance slap? Yes. She killed it, and I have to give props when they are due. Definitely ok with it in top 5.

8. Italy 🇮🇹 - Due Vite by Marco Mengoni

Is it a regular ye ole classic male ballad from Italy? Yes. Do I care? No. Did I love the performance? Yes? Would I break up with my partner and move to Italy and be with him? Absolutely (sorry babe, he’s so hot and if you had watched, you’d understand). Marco like in 2013 was vocally amazing and we had emotion. Idk what the trampoline people in the back were for, but tbh I didn’t pay them attention bc I was watching Marco.

9. Australia 🇦🇺 - Promise by Voyager

This song when it came out was my #1 until Cha Cha Cha and Tattoo came out. So happy they got a good result. They deserved it. Could have done better televote, but this year I agreed more with juries for the majority of the songs.

10. Slovenia 🇸🇮 - Carpe Diem by Joker Out

Oh you silly boys. You are the Miss Congeniality for sure. And on top of that, you should have been top 10. The performance was so fun and genuinely enjoyable. Vocally, they did well. I just fear that Slovenia always gets overlooked by everyone and that was why they stayed right side of the board this year.

11. Lithuania 🇱🇹 - Stay by Monika Linkyte

Lyrically felt and amazing voice. Glad she got her solo moment and just out of top 10. Loved the performance and she was so silly behind Finland all evening. Made me like her more.

12. Norway 🇳🇴 - Queen of Kings by Alessandra

Juries wtf? Why was this so low? She always did fairly well (maybe some whistle tones iffy). Glad she got a lot of televote points. Deserved top 10. I think for me it’s just I have heard it so many times that it’s not as impactful anymore.

13. Czechia 🇨🇿 - My Sister’s Crown by Vesna

I wasn’t sure vocally about this watching before the show concerts. However, they pulled it together though and the semi performance had me going. Deserved top 10. Well done ladies.

14. France 🇫🇷 - Évidemment by La Zarra

Vocally good. Performance was captivating. Idk why it was so low. It was quintessentially French, and I enjoyed it thoroughly.

15. Austria 🇦🇹 - Who the Hell is Edgar? by Salena and Teya

I thought this was too weird off the bat, but it grew on me. Hearing the crowd do the Poes was fun and glad they seemed to enjoy themselves. I get what the song is about, but idk if others missed it. Maybe that’s why it was low on televote??

16. Portugal 🇵🇹 - Ai Coraçao by Mimicat

Yes yes yes. Portugal did everything they should have always, which is authenticity. Mimicat was a joy to watch sashay around the stage in her feather skirt. Stole my heart for sure.

17. Latvia 🇱🇻 - Aīja by Sudden Lights

Oh Latvia. I’m so sorry you were in the semi of death. I think you’d have qualified otherwise. Very nice song and good performance. Definitely was brought to life more live than studio cut. Keep going this direction please.

18. UK 🇬🇧 - I Wrote a Song by Mae Muller

Song is good but I think vocals let it down slightly. Glad UK is in a good direction given the last 2 years. Keep it up.

19. Estonia 🇪🇪 - Bridges by Alika

I can’t dock this song for anything besides just personal opinion. It’s not that I was bored with it but I just liked others more. But live, she nailed everything and so I understand top 10 for her. Good job Estonia.

20. Germany 🇩🇪 - Blood and Glitter by Lord of the Lost

Look at me putting Germany in a non-last 5 overall position. What is this universe? Tbh it wasn’t high on my list until tonight. They killed it on the stage and rocked it out. Idk why it was last but at least it wasn’t 0 points again so hey improvements???

21. Albania 🇦🇱 - Duje by Albina and Fam

Just like Portugal, authentic. I’m a sucker for ethnic songs and while it wasn’t on my radar until the live shows, I’m glad it did after. Happy they qualified.

22. Georgia 🇬🇪 - Echo by Iru

NQ? Really?? This was so impactful vocally, visually. I don’t get it but truth be told, I still have no idea what the lyrics are. Idk if it was accent or what. But I don’t really care. So beautiful and passionate. Georgia, keep this up even if it was a NQ this time.

23. Belgium 🇧🇪 - Because of You by Gustaph

So this song is ok. I like the beat and the vogueing. I like the nod to ballroom. I think the lyrics are cliche and it sets something off in my brain where I can’t enjoy it like other people do. Idk what it is but glad they’re happy with the result.

24. Cyprus 🇨🇾 - Break a Broken Heart by Andrew Lambrou

Basic. Good but basic. Vocal iffy sometimes but a qualifier for sure.

25. Ukraine 🇺🇦 - Heart of Steel by Tvorchi

Glad they made it but the song is just ok. Elevated slightly by adding Ukrainian verse, but I would have liked more tbh. For a year celebrating Ukraine, I felt that the show did more than song in doing that imo. Czechia even did more tbh.

26. Moldova 🇲🇩 - Soarele si Luna by Pasha Parfeni

I prefer his 2012 song to this. Idk what is with the tribal influence, but I was so confused at the performance and the vocal was ok. At least it was enjoyable.

27. Netherlands 🇳🇱 - Burning Daylight by Mia and Dion

The studio was my #2 forever. It was so promising. Until I heard it live first. It was so bad. They fixed it, but I think they were kinda dead in the water already given how little their own people cared or wanted to promote them or the song, which is sad bc lyrically it was so relatable and felt by me.

28. Switzerland 🇨🇭- Waterguns by Reno Forrer

There’s nothing wrong with this song or him or his voice or the performance. I just was bored of it from the get go. I will merit his voice. It’s outstanding, but the song does nothing much for me. Would rather have had Latvia.

29. Denmark 🇩🇰 - Breaking My Heart by Reiley

I rather like this song. But only studio. The love was a struggle. Couldn’t seem to find the key for very long before losing it. May have simply been too high for his register. Either way, I enjoy it when on the playlist. Reminds me of the tracks for Heartstopper on Netflix.

30. Malta 🇲🇹 - Dance by The Busker

Is it bad? No. Is it good? No. Kinda middle ground. Would I dance to it? Yeah. Wasn’t too upset with the song. Just there.

31. Greece 🇬🇷 - What They Say by Victor Vernicos

Greece. We need to talk. I get wanting to fish for diaspora votes, but you have to qualify first. I don’t have anything against the song or the artist, but this was not putting the best foot forward. It gave Shawn Mendes wannabe and not Greek productions like we’ve seen in the recent years. It wasn’t broke. Put it back.

32. Ireland 🇮🇪 - We Are One by Wild Youth

You remember how U2 forced an album on us? This sounded like it was from that. I have nothing against the song bc I like Coldplay and U2, but come on Ireland. Surely you can do better than play it safe. Give us JR Eurovision level of taste. Give us Irish language and make a girl belt like a syren banshee.

33. Croatia 🇭🇷 - Mama ŠČ by Let 3

I am only putting this this high. I don’t get the hype or the reasoning. It’s weird in a not pleasant way. Parts are catchy so this is what I can give it.

34. Azerbaijan 🇦🇿 - Tell Me More by TuralTuranX

See Greece but Beatles instead of Shawn. Put it back. NOW.

35. San Marino 🇸🇲 - Like an Animal by Piqued Jacks

Take the lyrics away and the screaming at the end and it’s not bad music. Kinda reminds me of 1970-80s rock like Queen for a bit but bring back Achille.

36. Poland 🇵🇱 - Solo by Blanka

Just no. There I was minding my business and then all of a sudden, I hear this grating, irritating Bejba. I really didn’t like the song or her. Liking posts hating on fellow contestants in your national final. Immediate bottom even if you have a good song (see Armenia 2014).

37. Romania 🇷🇴 - DGT by Theodor Andrei

There weren’t many options for Romania this year tbh. Just unfortunately picked one where the song was just bad. Theodor can sing tho so give him a new song and act and would be higher on this list.

[ailidh08]

My Eurovision 2023 Finals Top 10 As Someone Who Has Never Watched Eurovision Before

10. Cyprus

I don't have strong opinions on this one, it's just a decent song. I almost swapped this one out for Isreal because I appreciate the girlboss energy of that one and I like Noa's performance more but I think this song is just more to my taste.

9. Moldova

I was kind of baffled the first time I saw this one but it's grown on me, especially since it's my best friend's favourite. I'm 90% sure they're attempting to summon a demon with that performance and I'm digging it. That guy absolutely goes OFF on that flute.

8. Switzerland

okay look I know everyone hates this one and I get it. It does feel a little cheap and pandering but I just like the vague Arcade vibes. At this point I think I'm just loyal to it because it was the one of the first songs this year that I began to recognise. The irony of the guy from Switzerland singing that he doesn't want to go to war is not lost on me.

7. Slovenia

I don't think I need to say much about this one, everyone loves Joker Out. Bojan can hmu if he decides he's over Käärijä.

6. Finland

Speaking of Käärijä, I did NOT like this song at all when I first heard it but I succumbed to Stockholm syndrome and it's now a certified banger in my books. I was drawn in by Käärijä interviews and I can't help but like him now. CHA CHA CHA-CHA-CHA-CHA CHA

5. Australia

Australia absolutely popped off with this one. Their staging is absolutely fantastic too. Showing up in a fucking car in the best act at the end of semi 2 was such a powermove. My inner Australian patriotism jumps out whenever someone mentions Voyager. I kind of want them to win because the idea of Australia winning Eurovision is so fucking funny to me and they have definitely earned it this year.

4. Sweden

I feel like everyone either loves or hates this one. I am definitely in the former camp. Loreen is an extremely talented performer, she's absolutely ate every performance so far and Tatoo has some of the most eye-catching staging. That being said, I do think this song is slightly overrated as one of the favourites to win and given that Loreen has already won Eurovision I absolutely do NOT want this one to be the winner.

The top 3 can be completely interchangeable, there's a chance that I could vote for any of these tonight.

3. Czechia

This song. I absolutely adore the message of female solidarity and sisterhood in this song but the song itself is just fucking epic. It sounds like it should be the theme behind the climactic battle in a movie or something. I don't know how to explain it but the chorus almost moves me to tears every time. I don't think this one is going to win but I would be very happy if it did.

2. Ukraine

This was the first song from this year that caught my attention. It's probably the closest in style to my actual taste in music and it's been on my playlist for months so I definitely feel some kind of loyalty to it. You can just feel the defiance and resilience in this song and it feels very genuine and raw. I only found out recently that Heart of Steel references a real world event where the Ukrainian army defended the Azovstal Iron and Steel Works against Russian forces. The rehearsal they showed for Heart of Steel has me slightly worried that the Finals performance won't live up to my expectations but I think the message could be enough to get them the public favour.

1. Norway

I have been listening to Queen of Kings non-stop over this past week. Norway has been on my radar since I started listening to this year's lineup but Alessandra's performance in that first semi-final really blew me away. The raw power and girlboss energy of this song is just so -ugh. I think I might be in love with that girl. I also do think she has a good shot at winning it all and I hope she does.

Thank you for coming to my Ted Talk.

[elisjourneyxs]

In honour of the First Semi-Final of esc 2023 happening tonight, I decided to finally finish my rankings, but I'm also really indecisive so a lot of the ones in the middle are just there and change ranks on a day-to-day basis so these are just my top 10 :) 1. Slovenia 🇸🇮 - Carpe Diem - Joker Out (12 points) 2. Finland 🇫🇮 - Cha Cha Cha - Käärijä (10 points) 3. Serbia 🇷🇸 - Samo Mi Se Spava - Luke Black (8 points) 4. France 🇫🇷 - Évidemment - La Zarra (7 points) 5. Sweden 🇸🇪 - Tattoo - Loreen (6 points) 6. Malta 🇲🇹 - Dance (Our Own Party) - The Busker (5 points) 7. Norway 🇳🇴 - Queen of Kings - Alessandra (4 points) 8. Austria 🇦🇹 - Who The Hell is Edgar? - TEYA & SALENA (3 points) 9. Romania 🇷🇴 - D.G.T. (Off and On) - Theodor Andrei (2 points) 10. Australia 🇦🇺 - Promise - Voyager (1 point)