{"id":1357,"date":"2016-05-08T17:44:41","date_gmt":"2016-05-08T16:44:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.edgehill.ac.uk\/eurovision\/?p=1357"},"modified":"2016-05-08T17:44:41","modified_gmt":"2016-05-08T16:44:41","slug":"esc2016-here-come-the-six-super-troupers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.edgehill.ac.uk\/eurovision\/2016\/05\/08\/esc2016-here-come-the-six-super-troupers\/","title":{"rendered":"ESC2016: Here come the six super troupers\u2026"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>As you will probably know, the \u2018Big 5\u2019 (France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom) are the countries that contribute the most to the EBU coffers, and as such they get an automatic pass to the Grand Final. Some people are a bit sniffy about this as it\u2019s seen as favouritism, and it does breed accusations that sometimes the Big 5 just don\u2019t try to send songs that are vaguely competitive and popular, as they don&#8217;t have to battle through the semi-finals and the indignity of being sent home early.<\/p>\n<p>It wasn\u2019t a great year for the Big 5 last year, when Germany finished in last place with the dreaded \u2018nul points\u2019. They were joined in the bottom five by France and the UK, with Spain languishing nearby in 21<sup>st<\/sup> place. Only Italy struck gold last year, finishing a well deserved third place. So what of 2016 \u2013 have they upped their game? Will it be <em>nul points<\/em> and national embarrassment for the Big 5, and how will defending champs Sweden do this year?<\/p>\n<p><strong>FRANCE<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Amir &#8211; J&#8217;ai cherch\u00e9<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Amir - J&#039;ai cherch\u00e9 - ?? France - Official Music Video - Eurovision 2016\" width=\"580\" height=\"326\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/boYQovCybYQ?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>Doesn\u2019t Amir have a look of Bradley Cooper about him!? This is a great entry from France and has been in the bookies top three for months. News came back from his first rehearsal that it was a bit wobbly, but hey that\u2019s what rehearsals are for, right?<\/p>\n<p>Back in 2011 France were the hot favourites with the bookies right up until the night of the Grand Final, when the wheels fell off for poor Amaury Vassili. His operatic number saw him pitch the wrong first note and he never fully recovered. Let\u2019s hope Amir lives up to the hype this time. France haven\u2019t won since 1977 (we think we\u2019re bad in the UK), and whilst I can\u2019t see that happening, it should deffo be top ten, perhaps top five.<\/p>\n<p><strong>GERMANY<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Jamie-Lee &#8211; Ghost<\/p>\n<p>Can Germany storm back up the leader board this year after their disappointing showing last year?<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Jamie-Lee - Ghost (Germany) 2016 Eurovision Song Contest\" width=\"580\" height=\"326\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/f-Z7pKopP9s?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s a no from me. I just don\u2019t get it. For me it\u2019s a hook-less song that doesn\u2019t really go anywhere. And, whilst I\u2019m all about rocking your own individual signature style, Jamie-Lee needs to fire her stylist. The Harajuku Girls vibe and the song, it\u2019s all a bit of a hot mess. Bottom five for me\u2026<\/p>\n<p><strong>ITALY<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Francesca Michielin &#8211; No Degree of Separation<\/p>\n<p>Since their return in 2011 there\u2019s certainly been no second-guessing Italy\u2019s entries. Each year a different vibe, but each year suitably Italian. I feel like I\u2019ve heard this haunting melody before. Answers on a postcard, please\u2026<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Francesca Michielin - No Degree of Separation (Italy) 2016 Eurovision Song Contest\" width=\"580\" height=\"326\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/WySSLip5uzc?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>I like the way it drops into English \u2013 but perhaps more of this needed to lift the hook of the song for us English speakers? The song is growing on me, but the music video is a distraction, so I\u2019m hoping for staging in Stockholm that really enhances the song and enchants me.<\/p>\n<p><strong>SPAIN<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Barei &#8211; Say Yay!<\/p>\n<p>The most dated sounding of the Big 5 and Sweden this year. Whilst the sound isn\u2019t particularly fresh, this is the first time that the Spanish entry is sung completely in English. Oh Dios m\u00edo en Espa\u00f1a!<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Barei - Say Yay! (Spain) 2016 Eurovision Song Contest\" width=\"580\" height=\"326\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/k0I37W3RN_U?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>It might do well with the UK audience, because the sound is reminiscent of our very own Jess Glynne. For me, say nay&#8230;<\/p>\n<p><strong>UNITED KINGDOM<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Joe and Jake &#8211; You&#8217;re Not Alone<\/p>\n<p>When I blogged from Stockholm back in March, I said that the UK had selected the best of our potential six songs for Europe. Best of a bad bunch, perhaps. Well, a couple of months on and I don\u2019t feel like that. It\u2019s a really strong song. The more I listen to it in the mix with all the other entries, the fresher it sounds. Mix Coldplay and 1D together, and you\u2019d get this.<\/p>\n<p>Since their first rehearsal a couple of days ago, the boys have bounced up the betting odds. Odds of 100-1 and over have now been slashed, and they are (as I type) 14<sup>th<\/sup> in the standings (from way down in the thirties) \u2013 very encouraging for our lads. Blimey, we might even make it over to the top half of the leader board this year!<\/p>\n<p>Having met Joe and Jake briefly a couple of weeks ago I hope their likability factor is also being played up this week. No national embarrassment for us, or them, however it goes this week. And I think it will probably be better than any of us can imagine.<\/p>\n<p><strong>SWEDEN<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Frans &#8211; If I Were Sorry<\/p>\n<p>Regular readers of this blog over the years, and my friends and euro chums, know that I am seemingly more biased (and blinded!) towards the Swedish entries every year. True story, I guess. True because I like the songs they select \u2013 simples.<\/p>\n<p>If you read my blog post from March, it was written when I was in Stockholm for Melodifestivalen. It was the clear favourite to win that contest, which it did. At the time it then also became the favourite to win the ESC. It has drifted slightly sine then, but still sits in the top five. I haven\u2019t changed my mind since March having now heard all 42 entries. I still think this is the song to beat. Sweden are not ready to relinquish their Eurovision crown just yet!<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Frans \u2013 If I were Sorry | Sweden | Melodifestivalen 2016\" width=\"580\" height=\"326\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/_GTdelXRlA4?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>Already a smash hit in Stockholm, it will become an international smash hit after Eurovision. An even more encouraging sign for the popularity of the song is that MTV UK have play listed the music video on their channel. This is unheard of \u2013 a Eurovision song on MTV in the UK before the finals. If it does win, and we\u2019re back in the Sweden, I will probably sit out either the Melodifestivalen or Eurovision next year.<\/p>\n<p>*Gasps from the crowd*<\/p>\n<p>So, that\u2019s our \u2018super six\u2019 for 2016. Overall a better showing than 2015, I\u2019d say. With at least one song in each of the semi-finals and the \u2018super six\u2019 in with a chance of winning. It will be interesting to see if there are any game changing performances in Stockholm. I haven\u2019t watched the rehearsals so it will all be fresh for me when I arrive in Stockholm tomorrow (Monday). Let\u2019s see if I change may mind, and also yours! In the meantime, a reminder of the \u2018Big 5\u2019 and Sweden\u2026<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Official Recap: Big 5 and Sweden (2016 Eurovision Song Contest)\" width=\"580\" height=\"326\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/BuC0MIW0llo?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>So, time to pack my bags &#8211; it\u2019s an early start in the morning. I will soon be back in the Eurovision bubble. Mama Mia! \ud83d\ude00<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>As you will probably know, the \u2018Big 5\u2019 (France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom) are the countries that contribute the most to the EBU coffers, and as such they get an automatic pass to the Grand Final. Some people are a bit sniffy about this as it\u2019s seen as favouritism, and it does [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":367,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1357","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.5 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>ESC2016: Here come the six super troupers\u2026 - Phil Jackson&#039;s Eurovision Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/blogs.edgehill.ac.uk\/eurovision\/2016\/05\/08\/esc2016-here-come-the-six-super-troupers\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"ESC2016: Here come the six super troupers\u2026 - Phil Jackson&#039;s Eurovision Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"As you will probably know, the \u2018Big 5\u2019 (France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom) are the countries that contribute the most to the EBU coffers, and as such they get an automatic pass to the Grand Final. 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