Welcome to the Eurovision That Never Was 2014!
If you’re new to the contest, here's an explanation of what it's all about.
Even if you’re not, read it anyway ;)
ETNW is about choosing a song you think sounds like it could have been an
entry in Eurovision – from any country that’s ever taken part in any year
between 1956 and 2013. Maybe there’s some Portuguese song you’ve just
discovered (probably full of longing and/or pine trees) which you think would
have made a great entry for the country in Athens in 2006; or you’ve always
loved some French song you’re sure Monaco would have claimed for itself in 1982...
Whatever entry you come up with, think ‘what if…?’ – it's the Eurovision That
Never Was, after all. Hopefully it’ll provide us with a good mix of music and a
great winner!
ETNW is about two things: finding an entry you feel is as authentic as
possible given the year and country you’ve allocated it to; and voting on the
other entries on the same basis. For example, if there are two songs you’re
torn between – one which you like but it doesn’t truly feel like it’s lifted
straight from ESC, and the other which you don’t like as much but which feels
as though it’s definitely a forgotten Eurovision entry – your higher mark
should go to the latter.
That’s what sets ETNW apart from other MB contests. It’s less about
personal taste and more about rewarding good matches. That said, sponsors have
been getting increasingly better at matches over the years, so come the final
we could well have n-teen equally
plausible entries, in which case it will probably come down to taste anyway ;) There
will be other posts in due course about rules and voting though, so keep an eye
out for them.
Submissions will open once I’ve sorted out the schedule and set up an email
address. Until then, here’s a recap of last year's winner and some helpful
hints from its sponsor, Stefan...
Czechoslovakia 1969
If the video's not showing up, go to http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gxFSD8S_Bvc.
So I won the coveted prize last year and now I'm here, being asked by our lovely host to give advice on how to win it... Well, that's easy.
1.
Get a partner from a potential ETNW country.
2.
Drive around their home country and listen carefully to the car radio,
especially vintage stuff.
3.
Immediately fall in love with a song you think would have made a great ESC
entry.
4.
Get the mp3 and prepare your submission.
5.
Realise last minute that it breaks a very basic rule (the three-minute one*)
and desperately search for something else in the same vein, but keeping to the
time, language and performer number constraints of ESC (present and past).
Well,
that's how I did it and got you all – almost all – to vote massively for this
cheerful little tune, which I didn't have in mind at all in the beginning.
So,
the bottom line is: we all know the ESC rules, we all know plenty of songs
outside ESC – you'll come across one that'll fit, and by pure chance, may even
win. Good luck, everyone!
(*Not that that’s a rule of ETNW, I
hasten to add. – Ed.)
____________________
Thanks for the tips, Stefan! Remember that entries can be submitted for any
year in the contest’s history; older stuff has tended to do better on the whole
than newer stuff, but for example an entry for Armenia 2012 made it into the
top 5 in the final last year. As always, it comes down to the individual entry
:) If you need advice, you can always ask on the MB. Threads tend to appear
about how to go about it in any case.
Keep your eyes open for submission news – and get your thinking caps on :)
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