Eurovision
Eurovision Winners Sell Trophy for $900,000 to Buy Drones for Ukraine
Ukrainian band Kalush Orchestra, which won the Eurovision Song Contest, has sold off its trophy for $900,000 to raise money for drones for the country’s armed forces fighting Russia’s invasion. The money raised would be used to buy three Ukraine-made PD-2 drones, TV presenter Serhiy Prytula, who hosted the auction, announced, according to Reuters. Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news The crystal microphone trophy was auctioned off on Facebook, with the band writing: “You guys are amazing! We appreciate each and every one of you who donated to this auction, and a special thanks to the team (of cryptocurrency exchange) Whitebit who purchased the trophy for $900,000 and are now the rightful owners of our trophy.” The sale on Sunday (May 29) coi...
In Record-Setting Fashion, Ukraine Rides Popular Sentiment to 2022 Eurovision Win
Ukraine’s rap and folk group Kalush Orchestra, riding a record number of votes from the public and a kinetic song that became an anthem for suffering mothers, overtook the United Kingdom, Sweden and Spain to capture the 66th Eurovision Song Contest in a nail-biter in Turin, Italy. Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news While the oddsmakers, pundits and fans pegged Ukraine as the clear favorite to win going into Saturday’s final, it didn’t look good after the jury vote, when Ukraine was in fourth place with 192 points and the U.K. was in first with 283. The juries were not especially kind to Ukraine, with some countries, like the Netherlands, giving them no points at all. Poland, Moldova, Latvia, Romania and Lithuania — all countries that are c...
Ukraine Favored at Eurovision Song Contest Amid War
Against the backdrop of war in Europe, the hugely popular Eurovision Song Contest entered its flamboyant climax Saturday night (May 14) as 25 bands performed in front of a live audience in the Italian city of Turin, while millions more watched on television around the world. The Ukrainian band Kalush Orchestra is heavily tipped to win by bookmakers, who are giving the group that mixes traditional Ukrainian rhythms, costumes and dance moves with contemporary hip-hop a 60% chance of winning. Despite Ukraine’s position as the oddsmakers’ and sentimental favorite, fans from Spain, Britain and elsewhere entering the PalaOlimpico venue from throughout Europe were rooting for their own country to win. Still, Ukrainian music fan Iryna Lasiy said she felt global support for her country in the war a...
Eurovision 2022: Ukrainian Band Kalush Orchestra Wins
Ukrainian band Kalush Orchestra won the Eurovision Song Contest in the early hours of Sunday in a clear show of support for the war-ravaged nation. The six-man band that mixes traditional folk melodies and contemporary hip hop in a purposeful defense of Ukrainian culture was the sentimental and bookmakers’ favorite among the 25 bands and performers competing in the grand finale. The public vote from home was decisive in securing their victory. The band’s frontman, Oleg Psiuk, took advantage of the enormous global audience to make an impassioned plea to free fighters still trapped beneath a sprawling steel plant in the southern port city of Mariupol following the six-man band’s performance. Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news “I ask all of y...
Heavily Favored Sweden and Poland, and Eight More Countries, Advance to Eurovision Grand Final
Sweden and Poland, both among the favorites to win this year’s Eurovision Song Contest, joined eight other countries advancing to the Grand Final on Saturday (May 14) in Turin, Italy. Also moving on after the second semi-final on Thursday were Finland, Serbia, Azerbaijan, Australia, Estonia, Romania, Belgium and the Czech Republic. Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news Failing to make the grade were Israel, Georgia, Malta, San Marino, Cyprus, Ireland, North Macedonia and Montenegro. The latest reports from the bookmakers who take bets on who will win Eurovision each year shows that Ukraine has a 57% chance of victory, followed by the United Kingdom with an 11% chance, based on averaging the odds from 13 different companies. That portends a high showi...
Ukraine and Nine Other Nations Advance to Eurovision Final
For years, watching the Eurovision Song Contest from the United States involved climbing on a rooftop to adjust the direction of a satellite dish and subscribing to a Portuguese channel. Today it’s as simple as tuning into a network app for the live broadcast. This year, champion figure skater Johnny Weir did on-air commentary for the U.S. feed of the first Eurovision semifinal in Turin, Italy, from a studio on the Universal Studios lot in Los Angeles. Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news On Tuesday (May 10), 10 nations advanced to the grand finale on Saturday out of a pool of 17 semifinalists: Armenia, Greece, Iceland, Lithuania, Moldova, The Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Switzerland and Ukraine. Here’s the 10 qualifiers from the First Semi-...
Eurovision Odds, Betting Tips and Free Bet: Ukraine Odds-On Favourites
With the annual Eurovision Song Contest just around the corner, we’ve taken a look at the latest odds and who are being tipped to win this year’s crown. Latest Eurovision Odds Eurovision Betting Tips For 2022 Competition Eurovision Betting Tip – Ukraine To Win Eurovision @ 8/11 with bet365 The Eurovision Song Contest kicks off on Tuesday 10th May with the semi-finals, which will also take place two days later on the Thursday 12th May. The competition will be live from the Pala Olimpico in Turin, following Italy’s victory last year with rock band Måneskin. The UK’s contestant, Sam Ryder, is competing with his song called “Space Man” which has the potential be the UK’s first victory since 1997. However, it seems several nations are tipped to be ahead of the UK in the running, with&...
American Song Contest Books The Crystal Method (?), Jewel (??), Michael Bolton (???), Sisqó (?????)
In the quest to find “America’s next great hit,” American Song Contest, the US’ answer to Eurovision, has booked such up-and-coming artists as [checks notes] The Crystal Method, Jewel, Michael Bolton, and Sisqó? We mean no disrespect to these iconic artists, who together made some of the most indelible music of the ’80s, ’90s, and ’00s. But the Eurovision Song Contest, which selects one artist to represent each participating country, is known for vaulting young singers to superstardom, including ABBA (1974 winners), Celine Dion (1988), and last year’s victors, the suddenly-omnipresent Måneskin. After a six-decade career, Michael Bolton has reached the very nice age of 69. Surely a rising artist could have been found to represent the great state of Connecticut? The inaug...
Eurovision Organizers Change Mind, Ban Russia from 2022 Competition
One day after insisting that the Eurovision Song Contest is a “non-political cultural event,” the European Broadcast Union has banned Russia from the 2022 competition following the unprovoked invasion of Ukraine. Via Variety, the EBU issued a statement saying that “no Russian act will participate in this year’s Eurovision Song Contest.” It continued, “The Executive Board of the EBU made the decision following a recommendation earlier today by the Eurovision Song Contest’s governing body, the Reference Group, based on the rules of the event and the values of the EBU. The Reference Group recommendation was also supported by the EBU’s Television Committee. The decision reflects concern that, in light of the unprecedented crisis in Ukraine, the inclusion of a Russian entry in this ye...
Russia Will Be Allowed to Compete in Eurovision 2022 Despite Ukraine Invasion
Organizers of the 2022 Eurovision Song Contest say that Russia will still be allowed to compete in the international competition despite the country’s unprovoked invasion of the neighboring nation of Ukraine. Via The Huffington Post, the European Broadcast Union (EBU), which produces the competition, defended Eurovision as a “non-political cultural event.” At the time of this writing, several Ukrainian cities are under attack, and Russian special forces and airborne troops have breached Ukraine’s capitol city of Kyiv. American officials have suggested that President Vladimir Putin may seek to replace the democratically-elected government of Ukraine with a shadow government, or perhaps even annex Ukraine into Russia. Two days ago, Putin said, “Ukraine has never had its own authentic st...
Kelly Clarkson and Snoop Dogg Announce Eurovision-Inspired American Song Contest
The Super Bowl gave way to America’s next big game with a primetime commercial spot starring Kelly Clarkson and Snoop Dogg announcing American Song Contest, the United States-based rendition of the long-running Eurovision Song Contest. The series gains some immediate legitimacy from its hosts Clarkson, the original American Idol and current coach on The Voice, and Snoop, who was probably, ahem, getting ready for the Super Bowl Halftime Show when the announcement aired. In the commercial, the pair appear together on a digital map of the country as it gets populated by local musicians. They jointly declare, “America’s next great hit could come from your hometown.” Watch it below. The latest import from the international reality talent competition pipeline follows the stru...
Eurovision 2021 Reports 183 Million Viewers, Solid Gains Online
Importantly, the popular song competition was a hit with young audiences. The 15–24-year-old demographic was up 7 percentage points against the corresponding data from 2019. More than half that age group (52.8%) tuned in on TV. Eurovision also spread the cheer online. In the week leading up to the final, some 50.6 million unique viewers logged onto the official YouTube channel, up 28% on 2019, with fans connected from 234 countries. Not surprisingly, the 18–34-year-olds accounted for most of the live views (71%), and Eurovision was a buzz topic on social media, with nearly 5 million Eurovision-related tweets sent on the night of the Grand Final. During Eurovision week, the official Eurovision social accounts — across Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and TikTok — generated 14 millio...
