Wiwi Jury: Malta’s Brooke with ‘Golden’

Earlier today, the Wiwi Jury — our in-house panel of music unprofessionals — gathered in Valletta to discuss the contestants participating in Malta Eurovision Song Contest 2016 (MESC). After checking out 202 Jewellery in Bisazza, we were in the mood to assess Brooke and her entry “Golden”. Do we think Brooke’s performance is solid gold, or is it more of a golden shower? Read on to find out…

BROOKE – “GOLDEN”

“GOLDEN” REVIEWS

Anthony: It’s quite fitting the name matches the golden blonde-haired singer that is Brooke, and so as the song itself. She is one of the entrants I was most looking forward to hearing from, and it’s been worth the wait. Brooke’s dazzling vocals elegantly ooze pizzazz on this modern power ballad entry.

Score: 9/10

Deban: Lyrically, “Golden” is a standout. However, in order to appeal to all of Europe, it needs to punch beyond its lyrics. Yes, Brooke can sing, but she shouts too. Also, when I think of songs with similar titles, I prefer Mika, Jill Scott and Beverley Knight.

Score: 6/10

Josh: Another power ballad of female self-worth. Normally I’d be sulking about the whole “been there, done that” thing but there’s something really endearing about Brooke’s song. Brooke’s voice is quite a bit more raspy which adds to the power of the song. The chorus does remind me a little of “Flashlight” by Jessie J but I can get past the similarities because the song is, in my opinion, quite golden.

Score: 8.5/10

Mario: Brooke’s “Golden” is a safe enough choice to me: singing about empowerment has always been in. And when it’s the case of an easy-on-the-eyes fresh face who, by the way, can belt the song out, it just can’t go bad. However, there is job to be done in terms of staging – the clichè movements from the presentation video ain’t get you the ticket to Stockholm.

Score: 5.5/10

Robyn: Brooke is a good singer and “Golden” is a decent and catchy song, but stylistically, it feels like a rehash of “Warrior”. Yeah, Malta could send another young diva singing an anthem of self-worth, but wouldn’t it be more fun if they chose something else?

Score: 6/10

William: You can’t dim Brooke’s light — this lady is fierce! Channeling her inner Agnes, she serves a current take on the female power ballad, and one that men will surely get behind too. “Golden” has a memorable hook and, owing to its glorious peaks and valleys, avoids the monotony of so many MESC entries this year. These three minutes fly by, suggesting Brooke may soon be flying to Stockholm.

Score: 8/10

In the Maltese Wiwi Jury we have 18 jurors but only have room for six reviews. The remaining twelve scores are below.

Antranig: 10/10

Bernardo: 8/10

Cristian: 8/10

Denise: 8/10

George: 8.5/10

Luis: 6/10

Maria: 5/10

Patrick: 8/10

Ramadan: 7/10

Renske: 7/10

Rezo: 10/10

Zakaria: 8.5/10

The highest and lowest scores are dropped prior to calculating the average score. This is to remove outliers and reduce potential bias. We have removed a low of 5 and a high of 10.

WIWI JURY SCORE: 7.63/10

FOR OUR LIST OF MESC 2016 RANKINGS, CLICK HERE

FOR MORE MALTA EUROVISION NEWS, CLICK HERE