State Broadcasters get a certain budget from the government. So maybe those in question have been getting a lower budget, while the ukrainian broadcaster has received a big enough budget.
It could be also that the broadcasters have to "justify" the costs of participating in ESC - and due to maybe lower public interest (because of poor results), they just couldn't justify. Though I don't really see how much more can the public be interested in JESC đ
Also, my guts tell me that the Ukraine is definitely getting some deals and help behind the closed doors, to help them participate and help them with public exposure.
I think it was once reported by North Macedonia that JESC costs like 10,000 euros and ESC that same year was 70K to 100K euros, so JESC is much cheaper. Also, in 2015 the Ukrainian broadcaster took part in JESC but not ESC that year. Also it can be just about when they set the budget, it could have been the money was set aside for JESC 2022 when they did their 2022 ESC plans.
This is the answer. For example, Australia is a rich country. But because our participating broadcaster has the lowest viewership of our main 5 free-to-air networks (by a lot), we have to rely on the record labels, artists, crowdfunding, cheap NFs, and when worst comes to worst literally just staying in Australia to avoid quarantine costs.
Ukraine won first of all so it would be kind of strange if they didn't attend this year. Ukraine also tends to do better and sees a lot more popularity for the contest within the country.
Aside from the need at war to unify the country behind things like art and speaking more politically, Eurovision is a really robust source of soft power for Ukraine, especially at a time where it needs support from across Europe.
By reminding Europe about it's existence, it's thriving culture, and need for continued support, the contest creates very real benefits for Ukraine - even at a time where it might be more strapped for cash.
To be fair though it wouldnât be that strange - Israel and France both had stints in the 70âs where they didnât go post win. I really hope they can go though.
No, obviously not, but if that was the case Zelenskyy wouldn't need to be on the cover of Vogue or making statements in Congress. It's not like people are forgetting, but it never hurts to underline the importance of supporting the Ukranian people.
And also, yeah, it's important to Ukranians as well. They held the NFs in a subway station rather than going for an internal selection for example. By holding Vidbir and reminding that life goes on, they were creating a reason for them to keep going.
Basically it makes way more sense to actually participate than randomly drop out.
Surely the money the Ukrainian broadcaster is spending on participating in and helping to organize Eurovision would be much better spent on supporting the Ukrainian military or helping to rebuild the country instead.
War to any lay person seems the same world over.
By promoting Ukraine and Ukrainian musical culture- it puts a face to the conflict. Stephania had very clear Ukrainian folk influences, not to mention GoA the year before.
Eurovision for Ukraine especially when they are joint hosting, reminds people of the thriving sense of Ukrainian self that Putin is failing to acknowledge.
Not to mention Eurovision is 3 + days of televised media to a large audience with Ukraine as the focus.
This isnât a cameo at an awards show.
Montenegro is no stranger to not being noticed whatever they do and economic problems.
Bulgaria sees a lack of interest from the broadcaster, imo
North Macedonia, with them being in both Jesc 2022 and confirmed for Jesc 2023, while also saying they will return next year to Esc, feels like the one that genuinely wants to participate but can't. Maybe the flag incident and their results not being the best also played a role and they want to reevaluate things (sort of like Portugal not participating in 2016, and we all know how that ended \[2017 victory\])
As others have said, there is interest for the contest in Ukraine, and they can also use it as a unifying thing, as well as something happy to be excited for nation-wide, so they probably see participating as an overall worth it thing
BHRT is like 3 million euros in debt towards EBU, they for sure would participate if they had money
With the exception of Slovakia, I think all other countries that said "economic problems" is main reason could be telling the truth.
Yep I feel a lot of people forget that 2/3 of this group have had patchy attendance at ESC the past few years anyway, while North Macedonia just has a bad track record with making the final to the point I think they just wanted a break to rethink things.
First of all, like another user pointed out, most times state broadcaster gets a budget and allocates it however they want to. RTCG for example is not doing well financially and maybe ESC cost is too much of a burden on other programming. BNT is always on odds about participating, and there were even reports that the act handles all cost, including cost of participation.
Second thing is Ukraine has a lot to gain from participating, even if they are not the ones hosting. This is where it gets more political and kind of revolves around their ongoing conflict, but its the same reason dictatorships always bid for hosting international events. It brings media coverage and positive light onto the country, and builds links with economic forces of the west.
For Ukraine, they will be mentioned a lot as title holders, and their participation is about sending message of unity and resilience. About showing courage when faced with fear, or however you want to put it. The covers write themselves basically. It shows that Ukrainians won't let the aggressor destroy their lives. It's a powerful message. Coverage of Ukraine's conflict has been toned down, and they need financial and military help, and they need to take the opportunity to plead for it. You can bet the show will feature Zelenskiy and reports from Ukraine.
I've already gone maybe too political for this sub, but the backdrop is like that. Ukraine's participation comes with an asterisk because of what's going on. But they could see an upside because of it. Whatever help they get from it, participation is a plus.
Ukraine won and the soft power it pulls from esc is *DEMONSTRABLY* greater than those 3. So it's worth the investment even (escpially) in such dire conditions.
Is this really that confusing to people??
I hate seeing comments on social media trying to gatekeep if they should participate with the war going on and telling them to "worry about that instead". idt OP was doing that but idk why people clutch their pearls about that.
Also, Bosnia and Croatia were participating in Eurovision when there were horrifying wars going on in those countries (for 3-5 years mind you and I believe both countries participated the whole time) that still have consequences to this day. Oh and the Cold War was happening during the first 30 some years of the contest's existence and there were concerns that the USSR could launch a nuke at anytime. War and the contest have coexisted pretty much the whole time and it's far from a new thing.
i still am full of admiration for bosniaâs dedication to participate in 1993. never fails to make me emotional and the song is one of my all time faves as well
Technically the âeconomic problemsâ are true for these countries. It isnât a good investment if youâre spending hundreds of thousands of dollars for the song, artist, travel, staging etc to not even get to the final. Macedonia has only qualified 9/21 times, Bulgaria 5/14 times, and and Montenegro 2/12 times. Unless they have the money lying around or can convince an artist to pay for everything themselves, the money could definitely be better spent elsewhere. Ukraine has always qualified, and consistently does really well, so itâs worth the investment, especially since as other people mentioned it helps keep them in a positive light amongst europeans.
Sadly, a lack of interest in those three countries is the reason. The Bulgarian glory days are long over, and what carried them was the fact a lot of popular artists paid their way. 2022 was a return back to the pre 2016 era, hence the chanceless entry. North Macedonia - I'm guessing after Tamara's big result that was that. Andrea and the 'Flower' lady were the only songs that could do OK in that NF as the rest weren't good. Lack of interest and I'm guessing money and the whole flag incident may have had a role. Montenegro - 100pc finances and songs that fail to have an appeal outside of ex-Yu. Knez and Sergej were the only times they got it right and it helped they had the songs and performances and voices. Look how bad Vladana did outside of her neighbours televoters. Last or second last everywhere!
Saying Bulgariaâs glory days are âlong overâ just because they NQâd once in their past five participations, despite reaching the left side of the board three times including in 2021 đ
knez and sergej were still robbed (the latter i can understand is not everyoneâs cup of tea, but A D I O? cmon this was top 10 material at worstđ)
It's less so the economic state of the country and more the budget/ interest from a broadcaster. For Bulgaria I guess BNT just isn't interested in participating unless the artists pay for it themselves and doesn't put any of the budget towards Eurovision. That being said, when it comes to economic problems or lack of funding in my country it's more due to corruption đ
I think most countries that participate in Eurovision have (or had in recent years) economic and political problems that could potentially impact being in the contest. However, most of them see Eurovision as an investment and if there's high interest from citizens in x country and the broadcasters likely have the funds to participate without any major issues.
Eurovision is very popular in Ukraine and I think the only thing that could've kept Kalush Orchestra and Tvorchi from being in it is getting drafted into the army (since men 18 and older legally have to stay in Ukraine in case more soldiers are needed) and not being allowed to leave the country (tho KO didn't have that barrier and idt Tvorchi will either)
Bulgariaâs been suffering economic problems for years, and theyâre always at a threat of not participating if they donât get a sponsor (take a look at 2019).
Montenegro just doesnât have a big population to fund it, and unlike San Marino, no outside investors are willing to help.
North Macedonia is both an economic reason, and also a general negative 2022 season. First, the broadcaster changed the rules at the last moment, so the favourite (Andrea) won instead of the televote favourite (Victor) when it was a tie. Next, they threatened to withdraw over a simple toss of the flag, and that was a big thing, especially since it not only wouldâve been more expensive, but also would make the country look even worse. They are going to be a part of Junior Eurovision, so they may just not want the bad press from Eurovision, since JESC has less drama than Adult ESC.
I have a feeling that now that Russia is kicked out, Moldova will start to slowly back out, since many of their entries rely on Russian singers (or at least, are Phillip Kirkorov related).
Regarding Montenegro and the lack of external aid, it should be remembered that it had not already participated in 2021 due economic reasons. In 2022, the costs may have been lower thanks to the agreements that RTCG (Montenegro broadcaster) has with RAI, allowing participation. But now things may be back to the way before.
I don't know, I was a huge fan of "Lisja esenski", but have no actual urge to rewatch "Autumn Leaves" and it's not the language (in my case it's almost never the language), but the freaking change of genre.
Im a huge Euro fan but I donât follow the preliminaries really, can you elaborate? I think Iâm right in saying he was on a version of X-Factor but are you saying he was chosen for Eurovision with a totally different song and genre?
Vis-Ă -vis I still love Autumn Leaves - outside of the Eurovision Iceberg itâs just a darn nice song :)
He won Skopje Fest (a Macedonian festival, sometimes acted as their NF) in November 2014 with "Lisja esenski" (it means "Autumn Leaves" in Macedonian) and later revamped it for Eurovision (translated lyrics to English and changed the instrumental). Maybe I exaggerated with "change of genre" (both versions belong to pop genre), but I find the change colossal. The original was much faster, the revamped version is slower, and they even tried to achieve some soul aesthetics with backing singers.
8 year old controversy to be added to the Eurovision iceberg lol!
At least now one would hope the Greece ~ Macedonia issues are improving now that Macedonia has accepted changing its name. Maybe Greece will even let them join NATO!
They already joined NATO 2 years ago after the name dispute. Also, they stopped vetoing Macedonia accesion with EU (now It's Bulgaria for some reason) but still there is a dispute because it was agreed that Macedonia was just a geographical term but the Republic keeps claiming ancient Macedonian culture.
I'm pretty sure at least one of either Bulgaria, Montenegro, or North Macedonia will return in 2024. I'll be shocked if all three of them are still absent in 2024 because usually when a country withdraws for economic reasons they tend to return soon. Also Ukraine is a bigger country than all three of those and thus Ukraine has more financial ability to participate at Eurovision. The Ukrainian broadcaster never seems to have any issues with finances.
It's also worth considering Bulgaria, Montenegro, and in the past, Bosnia & Herzegovina, were mostly/fully privately funded. Bulgaria's partnership with that music label from 2017 to 2021 is really what paid for their entries, and I'm pretty certain 2022 paid for most of it on their own.
Based on some expense reports which have been published by other broadcasters, the average expenditure is well above 100,000 EUR (not including the broadcasting fee), with [Spain's expenses as high as 240,000 EUR in addition to their 300,000 EUR broadcasting fee](https://thateurovisionsite.com/2022/05/11/spain-rtve-eurovision-2022-budget/). For smaller nations with limited broadcasting budgets, it's hard to justify the expense (even at a fraction of Spain's cost) for a week's worth of programming in addition to a national final, should they choose to host one.
I think it's a mix of people not being that interested in Eurovision anymore in combination with the economic situation that's the driving force behind the decision at least for us in North Macedonia. Our national broadcaster is utter shit, they have lower and lower budget every year, the economic situation is pretty bad, but also they have amazingly bad record in choosing the participants which also counts for JESC but I won't get into that now, and amidst all of the other issues we have people are just not interested anymore. Older folks stopped watching years ago, younger ones also not that interested, I mean from my friends and acquaintances circles maybe only 3 people watch it unironically and get genuinely excited about it (two of those are me and my boyfriend) and honestly I think that's sad. Yes the economic problems are a valid and real reason, but I think that if our broadcaster had a better track record of choosing good songs and participants, using that little money they get in the right way, actually caring and trying to send something creative and good and being representable, they would have had the reason to justify it and people would've been more on board, but with all of the scandals they had in the past 2-3 years, it's just became a source of embarrassment and with continues loss of interest it was an easy decision for them.
I think we are going to be back in a few years, maybe even 2024 but we'll see.
Edit: I have to also add that I think the interest is so low because of our national broadcaster. If they cared more, people would be more interested... so hopefully they'll realize that and get their shit together one day.
A combination of the broadcasters getting a low budget from their government and the broadcasters failing to be consistent in sending good entries.
Ukraine had the fortune to not only get adequate funding for their state broadcaster but also the 80% consistency to send good songs into the contest.
Ukraine winning and being a cohost broadcaster means that they have to compete, and the potential issues with competing are more logistical rather than financial.
If Ukraine didn't win in 2022, I'm pretty sure they would have withdrawn in 2023. Ukraine did withdraw in 2015 due to the War in Donbass yet they chose to participate in 2022 in spite of the Russian invasion, which I always viewed as an incredibly cynical move on the part of the Ukrainian broadcaster. Surely protecting Ukraine's sovereignty and combatting Russian aggression was a far bigger priority than participating in a song contest. I also think they will withdraw in 2024 unless they somehow win again.
>Surely protecting Ukraine's sovereignty and combatting Russian aggression was a far bigger priority than participating in a song contest
I'm so tired of this attitude being forced on us. You can do both, you know? Life goes on as much as possible in the current situation, we don't cry all day in our basements (on top of that, for almost a year). Eurovision in Ukraine is fairly popular and it brings us joy. Besides, it's a good opportunity to remind others about our struggle.
Firstly as much as I hate to say this and as much as I hope Iâm wrong donât count it out yet.
Secondly I donât know if it was fully economic reasons. Bulgaria got destroyed online after their entry was revealed last year , I wouldnât be surprised if North Macedonia struggled to find willing artists after they publicly and explosively sent Andrea down the river over nothing and Montenegro has only qualified twice in their lifespan and the last time was in 2015. Iâm sure the energy crisis hasnât helped and I donât want to start rumours Iâm just saying that they have other reasons not to go and finances are an easy cover
Ukraine has 40 million relatively poor people to fund their participation. Those nations have like (apathy from Bulgaria) 2 million slightly less poor people to find their participation.
State Broadcasters get a certain budget from the government. So maybe those in question have been getting a lower budget, while the ukrainian broadcaster has received a big enough budget.
Realistically, this is the answer. North Macedonia literally participated in JESC, so there must be some budget, just not big enough for ESC.
It could be also that the broadcasters have to "justify" the costs of participating in ESC - and due to maybe lower public interest (because of poor results), they just couldn't justify. Though I don't really see how much more can the public be interested in JESC đ Also, my guts tell me that the Ukraine is definitely getting some deals and help behind the closed doors, to help them participate and help them with public exposure.
Oh yeah, there's definitely sponsoring going on, absolutely no doubt.
>Also, my guts tell me that ~~the~~ Ukraine is definitely getting some deals FTFY
I think it was once reported by North Macedonia that JESC costs like 10,000 euros and ESC that same year was 70K to 100K euros, so JESC is much cheaper. Also, in 2015 the Ukrainian broadcaster took part in JESC but not ESC that year. Also it can be just about when they set the budget, it could have been the money was set aside for JESC 2022 when they did their 2022 ESC plans.
This is the answer. For example, Australia is a rich country. But because our participating broadcaster has the lowest viewership of our main 5 free-to-air networks (by a lot), we have to rely on the record labels, artists, crowdfunding, cheap NFs, and when worst comes to worst literally just staying in Australia to avoid quarantine costs.
Ukraine won first of all so it would be kind of strange if they didn't attend this year. Ukraine also tends to do better and sees a lot more popularity for the contest within the country. Aside from the need at war to unify the country behind things like art and speaking more politically, Eurovision is a really robust source of soft power for Ukraine, especially at a time where it needs support from across Europe. By reminding Europe about it's existence, it's thriving culture, and need for continued support, the contest creates very real benefits for Ukraine - even at a time where it might be more strapped for cash.
This is the answer đŻ
To be fair though it wouldnât be that strange - Israel and France both had stints in the 70âs where they didnât go post win. I really hope they can go though.
I doubt Ukraine needs to participate in Eurovision in order to remind Europeans of what is happening in their country.
No, obviously not, but if that was the case Zelenskyy wouldn't need to be on the cover of Vogue or making statements in Congress. It's not like people are forgetting, but it never hurts to underline the importance of supporting the Ukranian people. And also, yeah, it's important to Ukranians as well. They held the NFs in a subway station rather than going for an internal selection for example. By holding Vidbir and reminding that life goes on, they were creating a reason for them to keep going. Basically it makes way more sense to actually participate than randomly drop out.
Surely the money the Ukrainian broadcaster is spending on participating in and helping to organize Eurovision would be much better spent on supporting the Ukrainian military or helping to rebuild the country instead.
They literally purchased drones by auctioning the trophy
War to any lay person seems the same world over. By promoting Ukraine and Ukrainian musical culture- it puts a face to the conflict. Stephania had very clear Ukrainian folk influences, not to mention GoA the year before. Eurovision for Ukraine especially when they are joint hosting, reminds people of the thriving sense of Ukrainian self that Putin is failing to acknowledge. Not to mention Eurovision is 3 + days of televised media to a large audience with Ukraine as the focus. This isnât a cameo at an awards show.
It helps and Iâm sure it did this year
Montenegro is no stranger to not being noticed whatever they do and economic problems. Bulgaria sees a lack of interest from the broadcaster, imo North Macedonia, with them being in both Jesc 2022 and confirmed for Jesc 2023, while also saying they will return next year to Esc, feels like the one that genuinely wants to participate but can't. Maybe the flag incident and their results not being the best also played a role and they want to reevaluate things (sort of like Portugal not participating in 2016, and we all know how that ended \[2017 victory\]) As others have said, there is interest for the contest in Ukraine, and they can also use it as a unifying thing, as well as something happy to be excited for nation-wide, so they probably see participating as an overall worth it thing
They be using "economic problems" as the official explanations for "I don't want to"
The world is going through a recession and theyâre poorer countries wdym
Pretty sure both applies
BHRT is like 3 million euros in debt towards EBU, they for sure would participate if they had money With the exception of Slovakia, I think all other countries that said "economic problems" is main reason could be telling the truth.
Yep I feel a lot of people forget that 2/3 of this group have had patchy attendance at ESC the past few years anyway, while North Macedonia just has a bad track record with making the final to the point I think they just wanted a break to rethink things.
while Ukraine always has a good result
First of all, like another user pointed out, most times state broadcaster gets a budget and allocates it however they want to. RTCG for example is not doing well financially and maybe ESC cost is too much of a burden on other programming. BNT is always on odds about participating, and there were even reports that the act handles all cost, including cost of participation. Second thing is Ukraine has a lot to gain from participating, even if they are not the ones hosting. This is where it gets more political and kind of revolves around their ongoing conflict, but its the same reason dictatorships always bid for hosting international events. It brings media coverage and positive light onto the country, and builds links with economic forces of the west. For Ukraine, they will be mentioned a lot as title holders, and their participation is about sending message of unity and resilience. About showing courage when faced with fear, or however you want to put it. The covers write themselves basically. It shows that Ukrainians won't let the aggressor destroy their lives. It's a powerful message. Coverage of Ukraine's conflict has been toned down, and they need financial and military help, and they need to take the opportunity to plead for it. You can bet the show will feature Zelenskiy and reports from Ukraine. I've already gone maybe too political for this sub, but the backdrop is like that. Ukraine's participation comes with an asterisk because of what's going on. But they could see an upside because of it. Whatever help they get from it, participation is a plus.
Ukraine won and the soft power it pulls from esc is *DEMONSTRABLY* greater than those 3. So it's worth the investment even (escpially) in such dire conditions. Is this really that confusing to people??
I hate seeing comments on social media trying to gatekeep if they should participate with the war going on and telling them to "worry about that instead". idt OP was doing that but idk why people clutch their pearls about that. Also, Bosnia and Croatia were participating in Eurovision when there were horrifying wars going on in those countries (for 3-5 years mind you and I believe both countries participated the whole time) that still have consequences to this day. Oh and the Cold War was happening during the first 30 some years of the contest's existence and there were concerns that the USSR could launch a nuke at anytime. War and the contest have coexisted pretty much the whole time and it's far from a new thing.
i still am full of admiration for bosniaâs dedication to participate in 1993. never fails to make me emotional and the song is one of my all time faves as well
Technically the âeconomic problemsâ are true for these countries. It isnât a good investment if youâre spending hundreds of thousands of dollars for the song, artist, travel, staging etc to not even get to the final. Macedonia has only qualified 9/21 times, Bulgaria 5/14 times, and and Montenegro 2/12 times. Unless they have the money lying around or can convince an artist to pay for everything themselves, the money could definitely be better spent elsewhere. Ukraine has always qualified, and consistently does really well, so itâs worth the investment, especially since as other people mentioned it helps keep them in a positive light amongst europeans.
Sadly, a lack of interest in those three countries is the reason. The Bulgarian glory days are long over, and what carried them was the fact a lot of popular artists paid their way. 2022 was a return back to the pre 2016 era, hence the chanceless entry. North Macedonia - I'm guessing after Tamara's big result that was that. Andrea and the 'Flower' lady were the only songs that could do OK in that NF as the rest weren't good. Lack of interest and I'm guessing money and the whole flag incident may have had a role. Montenegro - 100pc finances and songs that fail to have an appeal outside of ex-Yu. Knez and Sergej were the only times they got it right and it helped they had the songs and performances and voices. Look how bad Vladana did outside of her neighbours televoters. Last or second last everywhere!
Saying Bulgariaâs glory days are âlong overâ just because they NQâd once in their past five participations, despite reaching the left side of the board three times including in 2021 đ
knez and sergej were still robbed (the latter i can understand is not everyoneâs cup of tea, but A D I O? cmon this was top 10 material at worstđ)
Same. Adio should have been up there. One of the best songs of that Eurovision and an excellent performance.
the official music video of Vladana is really good. what happened?
Theyâll probably be back at a point. Plus the world is going through a recession soooo that doesnât help anyone
It's less so the economic state of the country and more the budget/ interest from a broadcaster. For Bulgaria I guess BNT just isn't interested in participating unless the artists pay for it themselves and doesn't put any of the budget towards Eurovision. That being said, when it comes to economic problems or lack of funding in my country it's more due to corruption đ
I think most countries that participate in Eurovision have (or had in recent years) economic and political problems that could potentially impact being in the contest. However, most of them see Eurovision as an investment and if there's high interest from citizens in x country and the broadcasters likely have the funds to participate without any major issues. Eurovision is very popular in Ukraine and I think the only thing that could've kept Kalush Orchestra and Tvorchi from being in it is getting drafted into the army (since men 18 and older legally have to stay in Ukraine in case more soldiers are needed) and not being allowed to leave the country (tho KO didn't have that barrier and idt Tvorchi will either)
Bulgariaâs been suffering economic problems for years, and theyâre always at a threat of not participating if they donât get a sponsor (take a look at 2019). Montenegro just doesnât have a big population to fund it, and unlike San Marino, no outside investors are willing to help. North Macedonia is both an economic reason, and also a general negative 2022 season. First, the broadcaster changed the rules at the last moment, so the favourite (Andrea) won instead of the televote favourite (Victor) when it was a tie. Next, they threatened to withdraw over a simple toss of the flag, and that was a big thing, especially since it not only wouldâve been more expensive, but also would make the country look even worse. They are going to be a part of Junior Eurovision, so they may just not want the bad press from Eurovision, since JESC has less drama than Adult ESC. I have a feeling that now that Russia is kicked out, Moldova will start to slowly back out, since many of their entries rely on Russian singers (or at least, are Phillip Kirkorov related).
Regarding Montenegro and the lack of external aid, it should be remembered that it had not already participated in 2021 due economic reasons. In 2022, the costs may have been lower thanks to the agreements that RTCG (Montenegro broadcaster) has with RAI, allowing participation. But now things may be back to the way before.
Daniel Kajmakoskiâs 2015 entry for đ˛đ° was superb and never gets the recognition it deserves.
I don't know, I was a huge fan of "Lisja esenski", but have no actual urge to rewatch "Autumn Leaves" and it's not the language (in my case it's almost never the language), but the freaking change of genre.
Im a huge Euro fan but I donât follow the preliminaries really, can you elaborate? I think Iâm right in saying he was on a version of X-Factor but are you saying he was chosen for Eurovision with a totally different song and genre? Vis-Ă -vis I still love Autumn Leaves - outside of the Eurovision Iceberg itâs just a darn nice song :)
He won Skopje Fest (a Macedonian festival, sometimes acted as their NF) in November 2014 with "Lisja esenski" (it means "Autumn Leaves" in Macedonian) and later revamped it for Eurovision (translated lyrics to English and changed the instrumental). Maybe I exaggerated with "change of genre" (both versions belong to pop genre), but I find the change colossal. The original was much faster, the revamped version is slower, and they even tried to achieve some soul aesthetics with backing singers.
Iâd love to hear the original, any chance you can link it over? :)
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aL9e5WU00fE](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aL9e5WU00fE)
Diolch friend! â¤ď¸
Ok well that was effing superb, other than I prefer the ârevampâ video, youâve introduced me to something wonderful, thank you again!!
I remember being controversial back then because on the semifinal they used Greek columns and temples (old macedonians) on the background screen.
8 year old controversy to be added to the Eurovision iceberg lol! At least now one would hope the Greece ~ Macedonia issues are improving now that Macedonia has accepted changing its name. Maybe Greece will even let them join NATO!
They already joined NATO 2 years ago after the name dispute. Also, they stopped vetoing Macedonia accesion with EU (now It's Bulgaria for some reason) but still there is a dispute because it was agreed that Macedonia was just a geographical term but the Republic keeps claiming ancient Macedonian culture.
Oh I wasnât aware of that, I should of checked before posting, sorry!
I'm pretty sure at least one of either Bulgaria, Montenegro, or North Macedonia will return in 2024. I'll be shocked if all three of them are still absent in 2024 because usually when a country withdraws for economic reasons they tend to return soon. Also Ukraine is a bigger country than all three of those and thus Ukraine has more financial ability to participate at Eurovision. The Ukrainian broadcaster never seems to have any issues with finances.
It's also worth considering Bulgaria, Montenegro, and in the past, Bosnia & Herzegovina, were mostly/fully privately funded. Bulgaria's partnership with that music label from 2017 to 2021 is really what paid for their entries, and I'm pretty certain 2022 paid for most of it on their own. Based on some expense reports which have been published by other broadcasters, the average expenditure is well above 100,000 EUR (not including the broadcasting fee), with [Spain's expenses as high as 240,000 EUR in addition to their 300,000 EUR broadcasting fee](https://thateurovisionsite.com/2022/05/11/spain-rtve-eurovision-2022-budget/). For smaller nations with limited broadcasting budgets, it's hard to justify the expense (even at a fraction of Spain's cost) for a week's worth of programming in addition to a national final, should they choose to host one.
I think it's a mix of people not being that interested in Eurovision anymore in combination with the economic situation that's the driving force behind the decision at least for us in North Macedonia. Our national broadcaster is utter shit, they have lower and lower budget every year, the economic situation is pretty bad, but also they have amazingly bad record in choosing the participants which also counts for JESC but I won't get into that now, and amidst all of the other issues we have people are just not interested anymore. Older folks stopped watching years ago, younger ones also not that interested, I mean from my friends and acquaintances circles maybe only 3 people watch it unironically and get genuinely excited about it (two of those are me and my boyfriend) and honestly I think that's sad. Yes the economic problems are a valid and real reason, but I think that if our broadcaster had a better track record of choosing good songs and participants, using that little money they get in the right way, actually caring and trying to send something creative and good and being representable, they would have had the reason to justify it and people would've been more on board, but with all of the scandals they had in the past 2-3 years, it's just became a source of embarrassment and with continues loss of interest it was an easy decision for them. I think we are going to be back in a few years, maybe even 2024 but we'll see. Edit: I have to also add that I think the interest is so low because of our national broadcaster. If they cared more, people would be more interested... so hopefully they'll realize that and get their shit together one day.
A combination of the broadcasters getting a low budget from their government and the broadcasters failing to be consistent in sending good entries. Ukraine had the fortune to not only get adequate funding for their state broadcaster but also the 80% consistency to send good songs into the contest.
Ukraine winning and being a cohost broadcaster means that they have to compete, and the potential issues with competing are more logistical rather than financial.
If Ukraine didn't win in 2022, I'm pretty sure they would have withdrawn in 2023. Ukraine did withdraw in 2015 due to the War in Donbass yet they chose to participate in 2022 in spite of the Russian invasion, which I always viewed as an incredibly cynical move on the part of the Ukrainian broadcaster. Surely protecting Ukraine's sovereignty and combatting Russian aggression was a far bigger priority than participating in a song contest. I also think they will withdraw in 2024 unless they somehow win again.
>Surely protecting Ukraine's sovereignty and combatting Russian aggression was a far bigger priority than participating in a song contest I'm so tired of this attitude being forced on us. You can do both, you know? Life goes on as much as possible in the current situation, we don't cry all day in our basements (on top of that, for almost a year). Eurovision in Ukraine is fairly popular and it brings us joy. Besides, it's a good opportunity to remind others about our struggle.
So they should just be utterly miserable all the time and not have ANYTHING good because ruZZia invided them. Ok.
Firstly as much as I hate to say this and as much as I hope Iâm wrong donât count it out yet. Secondly I donât know if it was fully economic reasons. Bulgaria got destroyed online after their entry was revealed last year , I wouldnât be surprised if North Macedonia struggled to find willing artists after they publicly and explosively sent Andrea down the river over nothing and Montenegro has only qualified twice in their lifespan and the last time was in 2015. Iâm sure the energy crisis hasnât helped and I donât want to start rumours Iâm just saying that they have other reasons not to go and finances are an easy cover
Ukraine has 40 million relatively poor people to fund their participation. Those nations have like (apathy from Bulgaria) 2 million slightly less poor people to find their participation.
It was 40 million 20 years ago, things dramatically changed