Dima Bilan will appear on RTÉ (Irish broadcaster) programme The Late Late Show hosted by Pat Kenny tomorrow night.
Before that however, Dima will be on RTÉ.ie for a webchat on Friday May 30th between 14:30 to 15:30 CET (13:30 to 14:30 local time) to answer fan's questions.
You can submit all your questions here.
source:esctoday.com;RTE
Ani Lorak - Shady Lady - live in 2008 Eurovision Song Contest Final -2nd place
Kalomoira live in 2008 Eurovision Song Contest Final - 3rd place
Well done Kalomoira!!
Dima Bilan won the 2008 Euovision Song Contest for Russia with his song Believe. He won ahead of the entries from Ukraine and Greece.
Watch Dima's performance together with Evgheny Pluschenko and Edvin Marton:
Congratulations Dima Bilan!
Eurovision 2008 - Croatia LIVE 2nd Semi Final
Kraljevi Ulice and 75 Cents "Romanca"
After the Second Semi-Final of the 2008 Eurovision Song Contest had finished, representatives of the ten qualifying countries gathered for the official winners press conference.
At the same time, their starting positions in the Final of the 2008 Eurovision Song Contest on Saturday were decided by drawing lots.
The winners press conference took the same format as that of the First Semi-Final on Tuesday. The winners made the journey back from the Beogradska Arena to the press conference hall. Upon arrival photographers were allowed two minutes for quick photographs. The conference then began and each country was allowed to answer two questions.
Read more here
Ukraine was drawn 18th in the final
Croatia was drawn 9th in the final
Albania was drawn 3rd in the final.
Iceland was drawn 11th in the final.
Denmark was drawn 16th in the final.
Sweden was drawn 15th in the final, the same position Charlotte won from in Jerusalem.
Latvia was drawn 14th in the final
Turkey was drawn 12th in the final.
Portugal was drawn 13th in the final.
EUROVISION 2008 FINAL DRAW
from oikotimes.com
The representatives of nineteen countries have presented their songs tonight in the Second Semi-Final of the 2008 Eurovision Song Contest.
Watch the reactions after perfomance below:
The following countries have qualified for the Final of the 2008 Eurovision Song Contest (in order of announcement):
Ukraine
Croatia
Albania
Iceland
Georgia
Denmark
Sweden
Latvia
Turkey
Portugal
eurovision.tv reports:
Verka Serduchka has come to Belgrade to support Ani Lorak, who takes part in the 2008 Eurovision Song Contest. She presented her new song Do Re Mi at the Ukrainian party on 17 May. After the show she had a short chat with Eurovision.tv in the hotel lobby.
Miss Serduchka, not just Ukraine but the whole Europe are dealing with the same global problem: why are you still single? You are such a beautiful woman, but we only see you around alone.
Serduchka: "I am not really single! I'm married… with art. Have I hit the target? Is it a bull's eye?"
Why do you always travel with your mama only? Where is your father?
Serduchka: "You should ask my mother about this thing!
read more...
Isis Gee performed the song "For Life" in the 1st Semi Final and she has qualified for the Eurovision Song Contest 2008 Final.
Poland was drawn 10th in the Final.
Maria performed "Hold on be strong" in the 1st Semi Final for the Eurovision Song Contest 2008 and she has qualified for the final.
Norway was drawn 25th in the Final.
Sirusho performed "Qele Qele" in the 1st Semi Final for the Eurovision Song Contest 2008 and she has qualified for the final.
Armenia was drawn 5th in the Final.
Elnur and Samir performed "Day after day" in the 1st Semi Final and they were qualified for the Eurovision Song Contest 2008 Final.
Azerbaijan was drawn 20th in the Final.
Boaz performed "The fire in your eyes" in the 1st Semi Final for the Eurovision Song Contest 2008 and he has qualified for the final.
Israel was drawn 7th in the Final.
Dima Bilan performed toghether with Evgheny Pluschenko and Edvin Marton the song "Believe" and he has qualified for the Eurovision Song Contest 2008 Final.
Russia was drawn 24th in the Final.
Teräsbetoni with "Missä miehet ratsastaa" has qualified for the Eurovision Song Contest 2008 Final.
Finland was drawn 8th in the Final.
Bosnia & Herzegovina has qualified with Laka - "Pokusaj" for the Eurovision Song Contest 2008 Final
Bosnia and Herzegovina was drawn 6th in the Final.
Romanian representatives, Nico and Vlad performed "Pe o margine de lume" in the 1st Semi Final for the Eurovision Song Contest 2008 and they were qualified for the final.
Romania was drawn 1st in the Final.
Kalomoira performed "Secret Combination" in the 1st Semi Final for the Eurovision Song Contest 2008 and she has qualified for the final.
Greece was drawn 21st in the Final.
After the first Semi-Final of the 2008 Eurovision Song Contest had finished, representatives of the ten qualifying countries gathered for the official winners press conference. During the same occasion, their starting positions in the Final of the 2008 Eurovision Song Contest on Saturday were decided by drawing lots.
When all of the delegations had arrived from the Belgrade Arena back to the press centre, the winners press conference started. All the representatives of the qualifying countries got the opportunity to answer two questions for the press.
Read more here
Greece was drawn 21st in the Final
Romania was drawn 1st in the Final.
Bosnia and Herzegovina was drawn 6th in the Final.
Finland was drawn 8th in the Final.
Russia was drawn 24th in the Final.
Israel was drawn 7th in the Final.
Azerbaijan was drawn 20th in the Final.
Armenia was drawn 5th in the Final.
Poland was drawn 10th in the Final
Norway was drawn 25th in the Final.
The representatives of nineteen countries have presented their songs tonight in the First Semi-Final of the 2008 Eurovision Song Contest.
After all songs had been presented, televoting started in all the participating countries as well as in Spain and Germany, who are already qualified for the Final, but were drawn to vote in the First Semi-Final.
Nine of the qualifying countries were decided by televoting. Furthermore, the highest placed song in the result of the national backup juries which was not yet qualified through televoting got a place in the Final as well. However, the TV public will only find out which country it was after the Final of the 2008 Eurovision Song Contest on Saturday.
The following countries have qualified for the Final of the 2008 Eurovision Song Contest (in order of announcement):
Greece - video
Romania - video
Bosnia and Herzegovina - video
Finland - video
Russia - video
Israel - video
Azerbaijan - video
Armenia - video
Poland - video
Norway - video
eurovision.tv has an exclusive video with the reactions af all semi finalists right after their performance in front of the Eurovision.tv camera crew.
esctoday.com reports:
A potential staging problem has emerged after the stage production team realised that the props for the performances of Russia and Greece were too large and complex to switch in the 30 second gap between performances. After a round of heated debate, both sides are working against the clock to make changes to their props.
A spokesperson for the Greek delegation confirmed that there would be no movement of the commercial break to faciliate the movement of the two countries props. Neither country was prepared to accept the possibility. The problem seems to be that both performances have large and heavy props, and there is only one door to the stage for prop changes, as opposed to two or more in recent years. As a result, the switch-over between the two countries is taking longer than the time allowed.
The Greek delegation have adapted the giant book that turns into a heart, adding wheels to speed the movement of it to and from the stage. They are also looking to make the prop lighter in order to make sure everything is done during the alloted time period.
So far, we are informed that the Russians have agreed to look at changes to their props, but that no changes have been offered. They rejected the request to remove the ladder prop and are said to be very unhappy at the situation, although it has been strongly denied by both countries and the EBU that they threatened at any point to withdraw from the competition.
Vânia Fernandes has everything what is needed to succeed in the contest nowadays: a touching, melancholic song performed with utter professionalism! The charismatic Portuguese singer gave several faultless performances today, using the gigantic stage to great effect with dark-blue and green projections on the LED-screen.
Press conference
In her press conference Vânia expressed her happiness about being in Belgrade. When asked about the lyrics of the song, the composer, Carlos Coelho, explained that it's funded upon a historical poem and Vânia added that it is a very emotional song for her and that it is about her native country, Portugal. The Portuguese team explained that they went on promotional tour to Bulgaria and Malta. When asked if Vânia has plans for an album, she asked that she would like to start working on one.
sources: eurovision.tv; esckaz.com
Tamara, Vrčak, and Adrijan are young, talented, and very popular performers in FYR Macedonia.
During rehearsals, the team were trying one of two ideas they have for the stage performance in the Eurovision Song Contest Semi-Final. The first idea involved a wall on stage, divided in to three parts, the left and right sides with photographs and the middle one being a gate. Tamara emerges through the gate at the start of the song, and there are two male dancers on stage and one female backing vocalist to support the trio.
Press conference
Head of Delegation Milanka Rasic introduced the team at the press conference. The first question came from a British journalist who was interested in finding out how the idea of three singers, who had enjoyed successful solo careers came together for the Eurovision Song Contest project. Vrčak replies "It was my idea, we were all close friends beforehand, I was the complete author of the song. I knew the others voices, so it was a natural choice really, we have the same energy."
Press conference part I
Press conference part II
Press conference part III
sources: eurovision.tv ; esckaz.com
Evdokia Kadi, the singer representing Cyprus in the Second Semi-Final of the 2008 Eurovision Song Contest, amazed everyone with her performance.
Evdokia performs on and around a black dining table together with four backing dancers: She steps onto the table and leaves it again through "human" stairs, built by the backing dancers. Towards the end, the table is being popped up, revealing a red tablecloth, on which Evdokia takes a seat while the backing singers lift the table and carry it around.
Press conference
In the press conference, Evdokia was asked if she had ever considered singing Femme Fatale in any other language than Greek in the 2008 Eurovision Song Contest. She answered that they had tried out French and English version, but decided to stick to the original lyrics instead.
When the Head of Delegation was asked if Cyprus was ready to host the 2009 Eurovision Song Contest, she reminded everyone that Cyprus will be the host of the 2008 Junior Eurovision Song Contest, and that therefore, the country would of course be able to host the Eurovision Song Contest, too.
source:eurovision.tv
Morena is backed by a female vocal and four male dancers. The dancers choreography is up-tempo and tailored for the song which indeed will not be boring for the audience at the second Semi-Final on 22th of May. The four male dancers all wore black sunglasses, and Morena wore high-heeled, long boots decorated with small mirrors. The outfits for the live performance was revealed, and the theme is black with silver and black glitter.
Press conference
At the press conference after Morena's rehearsal, she told the fans and the accredited press that participating in the Eurovision Song Contest "is a dream come true". Moreover, the Maltese delegation elaborated on the meaning of the song, which is about Morena being a spy in a Russian setting where vodka is a secret code.
sources:eurovision.tv; esctoday.com
Hungarian singer Csézy had a stunning first rehearsal of her 2008 Eurovision Song Contest entry Candlelight. The classy ballad, beautifully performed by the pretty singer was well-received by the present media and fans.
Csézy is accompanied by a piano-player and four backing vocals. Vocally, there was no doubt that the attractive Hungarian can carry the song and the excellent backing vocals give the song some more depth.
Press conference
In the press conference, fans and media were treated with a short version of Csézy's song in Hungarian as well as an acapella version of the Hungarian song in the 1997 Eurovision Song Contest. Csézy revealed that there were five different outfits for her preview video offered to her, and she chose the Japanese-styled clothes as she liked them best.
source:eurovision.tv
Diana Gurtskaya, the Georgian representative in the Second Semi-Final of the 2008 Eurovision Song Contest performed in front of a stage scenery that looked like a flowering meadow.
On stage, she was supported by five backing dancers, who all finished the stage act standing behind Diana.
Press conference
Diana Gurtskaya started her press conference by singing her song for the 2008 Eurovision Song Contest, Peace Will Come, a cappella, and she did the same with the Hebrew song Jerusalem Of Gold, which she had previously recorded as well. When Diana was asked if she believed in the message of her song, she responded that, in fact, she was convinced that peace will come sooner or later. Talking about that, she also referred to her home region in Georgia, which is still in state of war today.
sources: eurovision.tv; esckaz.com
Simon Mathew's performance is simple, though energetic, and together with his band, they perform All Night Long very impressively.
Besides Simon, the band consists of two male guitar players, a keyboard player, a drummer and a female backing singer.
Press conference
At the press conference after the rehearsal, the Danish delegation expressed their satisfaction with the rehearsal and the whole arrangement at the venue. In regards to the actual rehearsal, Simon Mathew said it went "excellent" and he was very excited about being in Belgrade, representing Denmark.
sources: eurovision.tv; esckaz.com
Tereza Kerndlová was brilliant throughout her rehearsal. In addition to Tereza, there are four female dancers on stage. The choreography of the dancers fits the song well because it brings out the feeling of being happy, having fun and being in a discotheque - just as the title of the song implies.
Press conference
sources: eurovision.tv; esctoday.com
Swiss Paolo Meneguzzi entered the stage with a piano-player and four additional backing vocals.
Vocally, Paolo gave a solid rendering of his Era Stupendo which is very popular with Eurovision Song Contest fans.
Press conference
Paolo revealed in his press conference that his second passion besides music is soccer. He has frequently participated in charity soccer games with other singers, like Eros Ramazzotti, trying to raise money for children in need. When asked how he would feel entering the Eurovision Song Contest, he answered that he is used to taking part in music competitions as he has participated a lot of times in the Italian San Remo festival.
sources: eurovision.tv; esctoday.com
The Latvian group Pirates Of The Sea consists of three lead singers Aleksandra Kurusova, Jānis Vaišļa and Roberto Meloni.
During the rehearsal it seemed that not all of the props were in place, and the final visual aspects of the performance will not be clear until the dress rehearsals.
The Pirates are joined by three other backing singers.Amongst the items used on stage are antique weapons and swords, with skull and cross bones flags being waved. Rumour has it that the Pirates could be using an authentic ship steering wheel and this has been held up in customs but will be available for the next rehearsals.
Press conference
The pirates arrived in full costumes to the press conference with Pirates of The Sea playing in the background. With regards to the staging, the obvious question of what happened with the other props was raised, to which Roberto answered "Well, they considered us pirates very dangerous at the airport so we couldn't bring the items straight away!".
sources:eurovision.tv; esckaz.com; estoday.com
The singer Ruslan Alehno showed a lively performance together with four female dancers - he even climbed on one of the shining baubles placed on the stage floor.
Overall, the performance was very lively and elaborate. There were no problems with his vocals and everything looked very convincing on the screens.
Press conference
At the press conference, Ruslan Alehno was asked if there are also Russian and Belarusian versions of Hasta La Vista. He said that a Russian version was recorded and is already on heavy rotation at several radio channels in Moscow.
source: eurovision. tv
The Albanian representative Olta Boka, who is only 16 years old, managed to convince everyone with a heartwarming and professional performance in her first rehearsal.
Even if one could see that Olta was very nervous in the beginning of the rehearsal, she coped with that very well and showed a vocally impressive presentation of her ballad Zemrën E Lamë Peng.
The stage is rather dark during the performance, with a spot on Olta, who is reaching out for the camera with her hand towards the camera towards the end of the song. Olta was accompanied on stage by two guitar players and a drum kit player.
Press conference
In the Albanian press conference, Olta Boka apologized for being nervous on stage during her rehearsal. She explained that it was her first time to perform in front of an international public, and that she hoped to improve her stage act during the second rehearsal.
source: eurovision.tv
Lithuanian representative Jeronimas Milius perfomed his beautiful ballad Nomads In The Night very convincingly.
Jeronimas performs alone on the stage which is shrouded in dark blue colours and smoke. Moreover a bright-shining moon on the huge LED screen is enhancing the ambience of the song.
Press conference
At the press conference after the rehearsal, Jeronimas seemed satisfied with todays rehearsal. Moreover he talked about what kind of music has inspired him. He emphasized that he always have listened to rock music from early childhood. An example of this is Metallica. Jeronima and the Lithuanian delegation expressed their content with being in Belgrade, and they were looking forward to exploring more of the city.
source: eurovision.tv
Ukrainian representative Ani Lorak delivered a polished and slick performance of her Eurovision Song Contest entry Shady Lady during her first rehearsal.
At the beginning of the song the four male backing dancers are revealed one by one as the individual sections of the wall light up. The dancers then emerge on stage to join Ani. Towards the end of the song, Ani climbs to the top of the wall and is helped back down by the dancers. It seems that we will get more surprises within the performance during the full dress rehearsals.
Press conference
Ani Lorak has worked with composer and former Eurovision Song Contest singer/songwriter Philip Kirkorov for over six years, and a question was raised as to how the Shady Lady project was born. Philip replies "When I heard that Ani Lorak was representing Ukraine I called her and said I had an idea for a song. I had wanted to work with Ani for some time, we met and Ani listened to the song, liked it very much and within three days we were recording it in Greece!".
sources: eurovision.tv ; esctoday.com
The members of Mor ve Ötesi, the band representing Turkey presented themselves on stage like a typical rock band, with the lead singer and two more musicians playing the electronic guitar, and the fourth band member playing the drum kit.
Mor ve Ötesi showed a powerful and convincing performance, which looked and sounded flawless from the very beginning of the rehearsal.
Press conference
In their press conference, the band members were asked about the meaning of "Mor ve Ötesi". They replied that it means "Purple and beyond", referring to the colour spectrum, where purple is the last visible colour for human eyes. When they were asked about the lyrics of Deli, they explained that they had decided to sing in Turkish because they can express themselves better in their mother tongue.
source:eurovision.tv; esctoday.com
Charlotte Perrelli is joined by five backing singers - one of them located at the back part of the stage - and it was revealed that she will be wearing a glamourous, silver dress.
Charlotte starts her performance on a podium and usess the whole range of stage tricks: a special, jewelled microphone, a windmachine and also a green laser will be used in her performance!
Press conference
In her press conference Charlotte said that she believes in her song Hero as it is a fantastic song and hopes that people around Europe will like it too. Charlotte admitted that it's her first time in Serbia and that she really likes the country.
source: eurovision.tv; esctoday.com
Icelandic Euroband were the first to enter the stage at the Belgrade Arena singing their song This Is My Life.
The duet made up by Regína Ósk and Friðrik Ómar already wore their outfits for the Semi-Final.
Regína and Friðrik gave a powerful performance, and it seems like the choreography is more or less perfect.
Press conference
At the press conference after the rehearsal, the Icelandic delegation were very satisfied with everything in Belgrade, and they thought today's rehearsal went very well. A journalist from the accredited press asked why Euroband changed the original lyrics in Icelandic to English, and Regína replied that the English version was better for the up-tempo, techno song.
source:eurovision.tv
Dima Bilan is no stranger to the Eurovision Song Contest, having lost out only to Lordi in the 2006 contest in Athens. Hoping to go one further this year, Russia set about their first rehearsal this afternoon. There is a ladder in the middle of the stage fitting with the climbing theme within the song, Dima is seated at the bottom at the opening part of the song. He is joined by Hungarian violinist Edvin Marton, World & Olympic figure skating champion Eugeni Pluschenko who will be skating during the performance, a male dancer who meanders around the stage and on the ladder and finally two female backing vocalists. Dima ends the performance climbing part way up the ladder.
Dima Bilan - Believe - rehearsal
Press conference
The press conference followed, and as expected was very heavily attended. MTV Russia opened the questions session by asking how the partnership between Dima, Eugeni and Edvin came about. Dima answered "We are three friends, like in Heroes, the idea was born one year ago. There has never been a pop singer, violinist and Olympic Champion on the stage at the Eurovision Song Contest before" Speaking of the violin, Edvin Marton added "The violin used is a 1697 Stradivarius and was even played by Paganini over 300 years ago. I won this in a figure skating competition in Montreal."
source:eurovision.tv; esctoday.com
Kalomira gave a powerful and well-prepared performance in front of the press and fans in the Belgrade Arena.
In addition to the singing part of the performance, Kalomira and her three male dancers do a complicated choreography, including both Kalomira being lifted up on a board decorated with glitter and extensive moves during the interlude of the song. During the performance, a gigant pop-up shaped like a heart appears on the colourful stage. Kalomira and the dancers are joined by one male and one female singer. It seemed as if Kalomira was satisfied with the rehearsal. Definitely she turned up the charm and flirted immensely with the camera.
Kalomoira Secret Combination - rehearsal
Press conference
In her press conference, Kalomira revealed that her dress in the first semi-final was designed bz Jennifer Lopez's company. As an US-American, it wasn't hard for her to keep her Greek roots as her family kept all Greek traditions. Kalomira was excited about the way her first rehearsal went and thought that she didn't face problems at all.
source: eurovision.tv; esctoday.com
Bilingual romance for Romania
The Romanian representatives Nico & Vlad rehearsed their romantic duet for the first time today. They started their performance at distant positions on stage and moved towards each other during the song, hugging tenderly in the end. The two singers left a vocally brilliant impression of their bilingual song in Italian and Romanian language.
Romania is being represented in the First Semi-Final of the 2008 Eurovision Song Contest by a mixed duo, Nico and Vlad. Nico is the female part of the duo, performing her verses in Italian language, while Vlad performs his operatic parts in Romanian. Their first rehearsal went very well today, and both were vocally brilliant and very professional. In the beginning of the performance, Vlad was on stage alone, with Nico only joining him for the second verse. They stood at distant parts of the stage first and then moved closer towards each other. In the end, they reached out their hands for each other and then hugged.
Nico and Vlad - Pe-o margine de lume -rehearsal
Press conference
In the press conference, the Romanian delegation was asked why they decided to combine the Italian and Romanian languages in one song. They answered that, being latin languages, they harmonize very well. Furthermore, they explained how difficult it was to film the official video clip for the song because they had to wait for the right light for a whole day, and then, when the setting sun appeared between the clouds, they only had four minutes to record the key part of the video clip!
source:eurovision.tv
The Finnish rockers of Teräsbetoni rocked Beogradska Arena.
Vocally, they seemed to be in perfect shape from start to end and the whole act reminded a bit of Lordi's performance in Athens two years ago - not a bad sign for Teräsbetoni, as Lordi went on to win the 2006 Eurovision Song Contest altogether! Happy faces could be seen in the Finnish delegation after the group performed their song Missä Miehet Ratsastaa.
Press conference
During the press conference Teräsbetoni revealed that they were pretty happy about the way their first rehearsal went and that they thought the Belgrade stage was beautiful. Asked why they were singing in their native language Finnish instead of English, the group said that there would already be many Finnish hardrock bands singing in English and that they wanted to stand out.
sources:eurovision.tv; esckaz.com
Hind performs in front of several chandeliers which appear on big screens behind the stage.
Her vocals are very clear with perfect diction. It is always very easy understand the words while she is singing.
Press conference
At the press conference after the rehearsal, Hind expressed that she was very satisfied with her team and their mutual performance. Hind thought that the stage was really beautiful, so she really enjoyed rehearsing.
Hind had a surprise at the press conference: she brought a Serbian guitar player, called Vladan, and together they performed Your Heart Belongs To Me.
sources:oikotimes.com; eurovision.tv; esckaz.com
Sirusho appears on stage with three male dances and two male backing singers.
Her backing dancers spend a lot of the time withering on the floor around Sirusho, they also perform some very energetic gymnastic moves.
All in all, the performance looked very energetic and it illustrated the oriental motives in the song very well.
Sirusho - Qele Qele rehearsal
Press conference
In the press conference, Sirusho was asked what the song title Qele Qele stands for. She explained that "Qele" means "Come on" in English, and that it fits the message of the song well. Furthermore, Sirusho claimed that she received most of her influences as an artist and musician her parents, who are well respected artists in Armenia.
sources:esctoday.com;eurovision.tv
Laka is joined on stage by his sister for this excentric stage performance for Pokusaj. She starts the performance by hanging clothes on a washing line. She then collects bouquets from the four female backing singers who are dressed in white bridal gowns.
Laka - Pokusaj rehearsal
Press conference
In his press conference, Laka joked that the chicken that could be seen in the Bosnian preview video wasn't allowed to be on stage with them, so it ended up in a soup - which got roaring laughter from the many journalists and fans in the press conference group.
sources:esctoday.com; 12points.tv; eurovision.tv
Gisela's entry Casanova was performed successfully at today's rehearsal, and nobody can doubt on the vocal strength of this young female singer.
Casanova is sung in English, but a tiny stanza in the Catalan language has also been incorporated into the song.
Gisela - Casanova
Press conference
At the press conference, Gisela and the Andorran delegation expressed their content with todays rehearsal. Gisela explained that due tothe fact that the stage is much more different from what they are used to, they have to make afew changes in the choreography. "The sound is not ready yet", Gisela said, butshe is very optimistic about thenext rehearsals.
source:eurovision.tv;
Dustin's rehearsal went very smoothly, the stage is dark as the group arrive, and they are all dressed in black cloaks. When the music starts, the cloaks disappear. Dustin is in the shopping trolley as he was in the Irish national final.
There are a few alterations to the props, the main one being a heart shaped monitor which alternates various European flags. Dustin also has a doll spinning around on his revolving record decks. There are two male dancers sporting feathers in the Irish colours, and the same two ladies from the national final are backing Dustin, one of whom is the niece of 1994 Irish Eurovision Song Contest winner Paul Harrington. Finally, there is a fifth man who pushes Dustin around at various intervals during the song.
Irelande Douze Points
Press conference
Dustin commented "We want to bring back respect to the Eurovision Song Contest, there is a message about change in the song, and since the song was written the Irish football and rugby manager have changed and so has the president!"
sources:eurovision.tv;esckaz.com
Poland is being represented by a singer from the United States of America this year. Isis Gee just finished her first rehearsal. She was accompanied on stage by four violinists and her husband, who was playing the piano.
The Polish representative Isis Gee performed in a short white dress and created a warm atmosphere with her soft voice. During the rehearsal, there had been problems with the sound, but of course this can still be improved in the second rehearsal. Overall, Isis gave a confident performance. The main colour of the background scenery was red, and smoke effects were used during the stage act.
The Polish press conference was cancelled.
Accompanied by three female backing singers and two guitar-players, Maria integrated a fitting cheorography into her number which worked well. The stage during Hold On Be Strong is filled with hundreds of lights on a predominantly blue background and it seemed that Maria and her team were already wearing their final clothes which are also bright blue.
Norway - Hold on, be strong
Press conference
In her press conference Maria treated the present media with her enormous vocal talent. She was also satisfied with the way her rehearsal went. When asked what was her favourite song in this year's contest, she answered that she liked the Danish song most.
sources:eurovision.tv; 12points.tv; esckaz.com
Rebeka appears on stage with three female backing vocalists and two male dancers, one of whom choreographed the piece. Rebeka emerges from a cage at the beginning of the song, and is followed around by the male dancers. The theme of the song is about a girl feeling imprisoned by love, and wanting to break out, with love winning in the end.
Musically the song has been transformed. Now there is funkier and clubbier sound with spanish guitars used and has a more aggresive feel.
Rebeka Dremelj - Vrag Naj Vzame
Press conference
Rebeka Dremelj started by admitting that the first rehearsal was awful and that everyone is in a bad mood because of that, without denying, however, the team's responsibility for that. Promising that everything will go better in the future, she avoided answering relevant questions. As far as the lyrics are concerned, she said she thought that the population of Slovenia is small and they should be proud to sing in their native language. Her a capella singing was warmly greeted by the journalists.
sources:eurovision.tv; oikotimes.com; 12points.tv
Elnur and Samir were dressed as angel and devil, with Elnur and two backing dancers wearing big angel wings. While Elnur stands and shows his vast vocal range, Samir sits on a throne and performs some of his vocal parts in the typical national style of Mugham singing.
Their whole performance is very professional and elaborate. Towards the end of the song, people will see the climax of the whole stage act, with the throne falling apart and pyrotechnical effects illuminating the stage.
Day after day rehearsal
Press conference
Elnur and Samir were asked about the interest of their nation for the Contest, since it's the country's first participation in Eurovision. They replied that enthusiasm grows steadily in their country. As for themselves, they admitted that it took them two days to realise what had happened after they won in their national selection. The two contestants concluded the press conference inviting everyone to a live concert with them and other artists from their country on stage and they presented the press pack, which included a fine selection of gifts and gadgets from the Land of Fire.
sources:eurovision.tv;oikotimes.com;esckaz.com;
Belgian representatives Ishtar took to the stage yesterday to give their first rehearsal of their song "O Julissi".
The stage setting was a dark background, with graphics which could be described as resembling something similar to musical notes. The whole performance was very upbeat and lively, with lead singer Soetkin walking intermittantly between all of her backing musicians throughout the song. Reactions in general were very positive, as indeed was the upbeat press conference which followed.
Press conference
Soetkin, Ishtar's lead singer, revealed that this year's entries that touched her the most are Bosnia & Herzegovina's and Israel's. Then the author of the song, Michel Vangheluwe, talked about his inspiration for the song, which was his childhood memories and his youth. Words, actually "a patch of joyful sounds" as he said, came after the melody, in an imaginary language he calls Ishtarian.
sources:eurovision.tv;oikotimes.com;youtube.com
Miodio, delivered an outstanding first rehearsal of their song Complice. The group of five young men is joined by a female dancer on stage who interacts well with the lead singer of the group, Nicola Della Valle. The whole act looked very modern and could attract lots of votes from the younger televoters.
The song Complice is sung fully in Italian and it's one of three songs using the Italian language this year- the other too being Switzerland and Romania.
The stage during the San Marinese song is mostly black and blue with some orange in the back part of the LED screens.
Miodio - Complice - rehearsal
Press conference
During their press conference, the sympathetic group revealed that they are very happy to represent their native country. They also treated the audience with an acapella of Complice which was very well-received.
source:eurovision.tv; 12points.tv
Geta starts her song by sitting on a couch whilst a man with a trumpet in hand is seated next to her on the floor. No other performers are on the stage for this song.
The musical structure of the song has been changed to include some additional jazz elements.
Geta Burlacu - A century of love -rehearsal
Press conference
Geta Burlacu asked by journalists about the staging of her entry, revealed that she chose to perform with just the trumpet player with her on stage, because he is the man she loves and she aims at an intimate performance, which would be ruined were there also other people on stage.
The arrangement of A Century Of Love was changed to fit a television performance, she admitted, however she is still proud to present her entry in an unusual way, considering Eurovision standards.
sources:esctoday.com;oikotimes.com;12points.tv
The blondy female dancers are waving the Estonian, Serbian, German & Finnish flags on stage.
The band jump and prance around the stage shouting the song rather than singing and the grand finale features a cheerleading style finish with a pyramid of blondes above our slightly oversized gentlemen.
The performance is similar to that in Eurolaul (Estonian national selection). The song is a mixture of languages.
Estonia rehearsal: Leto Svet
Press conference
The different languages used in Kreisiraadio's entry were brought up in the band's press conference. Peeter answered "Finnish is because they are our good neighbours, German as they share big historic traditions, and Serbo Croatian as they are the host country, we think that next year lets say Greece should sing in Serbo Croatian and other countries sing in different mixtures of languages!".
sources:esctoday.com;oikotimes.com;eurovision.tv
Boaz Mauda had a very good rehearsal. Great stage performance along with his backing vocal. The song "Fire in your eyes" is performed in Hebrew throughout apart from one line in English.
Rehearsal and reactions of Boaz
Press conference
The delegation spoke of how pleased they were to have someone with Boaz's talents representing them this year. They also commented on the strength of the Swedish entry this year, saying that they were singing it in corridors! Needless to say they like that song, as well as the Swiss, Serbian and Romanian entries. Boaz revealed that in the next press conference he will be accompanied by Dana International (ESC 1998 winner), who is one of his song composers.
sources:esctoday.com;oikotimes.com;eurovision.tv
Stepfan Filiovic was the first performer to take the stage on the stunning Eurovision stage this morning. Appearing with four female backing dancers gave a strong vocal performance for this song Zauvijek Voliim.
Montenegro: Rehearsal and reactions
Press conference
The delegation of Montenegro talked about how the country is the newest to enter Eurovision (in terms of how long it's actually been a country, not been entering Eurovision) country. They talked about Stefan and then took questions from the audience. They declared themselves very satisfied with the first rehearsal and Stefan spoke about his decision not to sing in English but in his native language. He claimed that boosting his career in the countries of South-Eastern Europe was more important to him than achieving a top ranking in the Contest.
sources:esctoday.com;oikotimes.com;eurovision.tv
eurovision.tv reports:
The City of Belgrade will organize the Welcome Party for its Eurovision Song Contest guests at the White Palace on the 18th of May, starting at 21:00. The Royal Family will host the participants and delegation heads at a reception in the lead up to the Welcome Party.
Before the Welcome Party, between 18:30 and 20:30, Their Royal Highnesses Crown Prince Alexander II and Crown Princess Katherine will be hosts of the contestants of the Eurovision Song Contest and their Heads of Delegation.
The Welcome Party, initially scheduled to take place at the Kalemegdan park, will now take place at on of the royal palaces of Serbia.
At the White Palace of the Karađorđević Dynasty, the distinguished guests will have the opportunity to enjoy folk dances performed by the Academic Folk Ensemble Lola and thus be able to get to know dancing tradition of Serbia.
During the reception, a fashion show of Serbian national costumes will begiven as well.
oikotimes.com reports:
The late events in Spain are overpassing borders, and all drama is little compared to reality.As you have probably recently read we have witnessed how Spanish journalists and TV personas are attacking the festival in its most direct ways. First by choosing an entrant which is far from what music means, and lately by accusing Massiel of winning 1968 contest because of Franco's cheating.
The latest events are by no means much more aggressive; thus Spanish TV presenter, Andreu Buenafuente (creator of this year's entrant Rodolfo Chikilicuatre), in his late night show makes fun of the situation Serbia (no need to remind: this year's host) has had to undertake the past decade[....]
"I want my song, which has such beautiful words and such a magical message to be comprehended by most people. That is why we decided to make it also in Spanish – one of the most widespread languages in the world" - Dima Bilan
Nico and Vlad Mirita and the entire Romanian delegation will arrive in Belgrade tomorrow, on the 11th of May. The two Romanian representatives and Andrei Tudor, the composer of the Romanian song gave on Friday a press conference.
Nico and Vlad have confessed that they feel emotional and proud at the same time.
"There a lot of good songs this year but we are not the one who decides who wins.We will do our best to take the best possible position but the European public decides and we trust it." declared Nico and Vlad.
Nico and Vlad will wear clothes designed by the famous Romanian designer Razvan Sanda while the whole show will be an idea of Mr. Petre Nastase who also released the video clip.
Nico & Vlad Mirita -Pe-o margine de lume (English subtitles)
eurovision.tv reports:
From today, until the 25th of May, Eurovision.tv will report from Belgrade, where delegations will arrive for the 2008 Eurovision Song Contest. The upcoming two weeks are all about the rehearsals, press conferences, parties, dress rehearsals and the live shows on the 20th, 22nd and, finally, the 24th of May.
On the 20th, 22nd and 24th of May, Eurovision.tv will webcast the two Semi-Finals and the Final of the 2008 Eurovision Song Contest live online. The next day, you can watch last night's show on-demand. The on-demand streams will be available for the duration of one week.
Read more at eurovision.tv
Besides the song "Pe-o margine de lume", Nico and Vlad also oferred the audience a famous duet of Andrea Bocelli and Celine Dion, "The Prayer".
It was a good occasion for the public to sing along with Nico and Vlad, as they could not sing the Romanian lyrics of the first song.
Pe-o margine de lume - UK Eurovision Preview Party @ Scala
The prayer - UK Eurovision Preview Party @ Scala
A recording of the performance of the two singers at the concert organized by ARTHIS (House of Culture Belgiano-Romanian), which took place in Market St. Caterina in Brussels.
