Life after Helsinki 2007 Eurovision

If KAJ was real fresh air in Melodifestivalen so was Meira Omar but this time the Finnish sauna humor and sympathetic guys won over adorable Meira and her oriental ethno vibes. This is the only other song besides Bada bara bastu that survives on my Playlist still, out of about 4 that initially made it there btw. And it's the 15th song in this series of national selection songs from all over it's a perfect end for this series that started with Karnaval. 

Malta offered some goodies this year. If the general fandom went for songs like Kant and Heaven sent I went for Għażliet and Qalb ma' Qalb instead. Where as the twins showed some lack of experience on stage good old Dario with his sparkle in the eye shone with Zeppi and did very well considering it was just a reserve song. And yes, I am very happy it made the line up, my favourite by far!

This is my maybe favourite song from Sanremo 2025. Brunori was a familiar name to be beforehand but I wasn't so familiar with his music but L'albero delle noci hit home with the first hearing. Great artist, beautiful melody and lyrics, no gimmicks. But I never believed he'd end up 3rd overall and I was even more surprised when he told he would do Eurovision without a moment of hesitation and actually wanted to win because of that! And along with Lucio Corsi a great new artist for me to discover and like! The video btw stars his family, wife and daughter.....

So it happened as I suspected: Nelli Matula scored the biggest radio hit from UMK2025 staying already at #1 for the 5th week when writing this. And no wonder, Hitaammin hautaan was also my favourite right away when released. As a song, not necessarily for Eurovision though even if I would be very happy if this was our entry as I am with Ich komme and would have been with Made of....

This little butterfly left a mark on me in the first Albanian semi-final. She didn't pass. But she was one of my favourites with this pretty little song. And I remember liking her entry last year, too, when she qualified for the final with  Pikturë . I hope she tries again!

David Afonso may have placed last in the first Benidorm Fest 2025 but he deserved so much more. Vocally perfect with a melody that has stuck into my mind. But he's just in the beginning of his recording career so please do come back in coming years and win it all!

Another goodie from Croatia. Marko Tolja offered a solid classic ballad, extremely well sung. A classic polished performance. Of course fandom doesn't get these songs but as an Eurovision old schooler I just loved it. One of the best songs of the season. Had it been in Croatian it would have been perfection!

Goldielocks entered UMK2025 as the least known artist and in a short while charmed most everyone and placed close second to pre designed winner Erika Vikman. And not only she has conquered the radips as well being the 2nd most played song in the Finnish radios last week - behind another UMK2025 artist Nelli Matula who sits firmly at the #1 spot for the 4th week already. Friday we know if Goldielocks claims that spot from her following her rise in the charts! If it wasn't for Erika this would have been such an amazing entry and maybe the best staging of the whole national selection season!

This is a song that made me the most impact when hearing the Serbian songs for the first time. In the end it wasn't my favourite to win it being rather un-Eurovision song but it is a good pop song with a good vibe. Something that made into my playlist. Even if it only received one point from the jury and none from the public in semi-final.....

Tone Damli may have entered Norwegian MGP as sort of a pre-favorite but the reception by the fandom was very cold once the song was out, and the live performance the night didn't help her either. In the end she placed only 5th. But for me this is perfect pop with a lot of 80's/90's vibe to it aka the period I was young and love the music of the moment. Also this has been one of the most earwormy songs for me from the national selections. For that alone this deserves a spot in this series, despite the somewhat uninspired and awkward performance. 

Marco Rodrigues offered one of those timeless beautiful songs that makes Festival da Canção very dear national selection for me. A minha casa was just one of those, masterfully sung by successful and multi awarded, Grammy nominated fado singer Marco and one of those that sneakily starts playing in your head after the more instant and upbeat songs fade away and you grow tired of. 

Sanremo had one song that was Euroviison by numbers and a bit odd one in the list: Sarah Toscano's Amarcord. If Italy should one day have a national selection made for Eurovision rather than Sanremo that is just for the domestic market aimed affair I suspect the songs would be a bit in this genre in aim to please a mediocre Eurovision audience. Even if I like this song a lot I rather stick with Sanremo.... But Sarah (19) is a star in the making. Even if her first Sanremo ended with 17th place.

Ukrainian runner up was by far my favourite in Vidbir 2025. My sea is a perfect pop songs performed by an interesting duo. 

When I first heard Monopol I thought this is 100% Croatian Eurovision as I would imagine it. A male Maria Magdalena some 25 years later. The semi-final performance was rather disastrous with its sound problems but he did well in the final and the 10th place finish was a big disappointment for me, and even somewhat surprising. Great stuff; Eurovision by numbers but not like all those songs written in various song writing camps even if this might be one with its Swedish co-writers. 

One of my favorite songs this season is Elvana Gjata's Karnaval against all odds. Yes, it's all heard a zillion times before, the use of Spanish and English simple phrases, too, and the staging wasn't really that ground breaking. Yet, somehow it all works and comes together and the song seems to have taken a permanent residence in my head.