After three weeks of auditions, Round Two of Depi Evratesil is now underway. The three-month long Armenian national selection has been full of soaring voices and raw talent (not to mention a few misplaced hopes). But with the wannabes and the real things now sorted, the show is really heating up. All of this week’s performers have already impressed the star-studded judging panel once and are now competing to join the judges’ teams.
In Round Two, the judges have the option of pressing their buttons in the last ten seconds of each performance. The first judge to press their button gets the artist, with each judge looking for four artists to join their team. If none of the judges press their button in this period, the contestant is eliminated from the competition. This is getting serious, y’all!
Nine artists performed this week and you can watch the full episode below.
Performing first at 6:40 was Veronica Grigoryan. In last week’s episode, she caught our eye by covering Ani Lorak’s “Shady Lady“. If you were looking for another Eurovision cover, Veronica did not disappoint. This time, she sang Bosnia & Herzegovina’s 2007 entry — Marija Sestic’s “Rijeka Bez Imena“. Bringing the Balkan realness to Armenia, she impressed the judges but they were looking for a different style to send to Eurovision. Perhaps the judges weren’t aware that Bosnia & Herzegovina finished eleventh with this song.
Perhaps the most memorable contestant in the auditions was Egine. She made it through in the first episode with her cover of Miley Cyrus’ “Wrecking Ball” despite her questionable vocals, with the judges impressed by her look and her stage presence. This week she chose to cover Rihanna’s “Sledgehammer“, starting at 16:15. Despite some more shaky vocals, Hayko pressed his button, beating Iveta to the punch. Hayko stated that they could work to improve her vocals and prepare her for Eurovision.
There were many other familiar faces among the contestants this week — including Christina Mangasaryan, who sang “Euphoria” last week. This time, she performed P!nk’s “Try“, starting at 37:50. Christina was one of Iveta’s backing vocalists at Eurovision 2016 and her friend was quick to press her button, eyeing the other judges to back off. Can Iveta lead her backing vocalist towards becoming her Eurovision successor?
The final performer of the night was Rob Avalyan and the show ended the same way it started — with a Eurovision 2007 cover. This time, it was the Greek entry — Sarbel’s “Yassou Maria“. Starting at 46:20, the performance was full of energy and he won over the crowd. The judges were also impressed but Iveta said that it is very difficult to choose and they have to be very strict with their choices in this round.
There was plenty of talent among the rest of the field, with six of the nine performers earning a spot on the judges’ teams. As of this episode, the current teams are:
- Aram MP3 — Lucy and Saro Gevorgyan
- Inga — Suzanna Melkonyan
- Essaï — Opera Viva
- Iveta — Christina Mangasaryan
- Hayko — Egina
- Anush — None
Round Two continues next week, when more contestants will fight for a place in the next round.
What do you think of Round Two so far? Is the winner among this week’s acts? Let us know in the comments below.
I pray for Hasmik Shiroyan or Marta to win. I will be totally fine with Suzanna Melkonyan, Lilit Harutyun or Sona Dunoyan, just NOT Egine or this Christina girl who was Iveta’s backing vocalist.
@I am not Jamala
We are not offended 😉 We think the same.
P.S. Sorry for redundant comment. It was just a wrong hit. And this system doesn’t allow to delete it 🙁
Mag
Veronica was robbed. 🙁
I am not Jamala, they (her fanboys)) say she was sick)) Well, I don’t believe in that. She is weak as a singer.
Mister Twister you forgot about orher strong competitors: Lilith Harutunian, Hasmik Shiroian.. and Saro.. Vahe too and Zemfira.. There are many talented singers in this conetst who could easily represent Armenia in Kiev. I personally go for Hasmik.. or Lilith.
Egine sounded horrific, sorry to any Armenians offended by this.
Come on! Everybody knows who will be the winner of this project. Of course, it’s Lucy. Because she is more professionally than each of the participants. Ands she won “Hay superstar” (Armenian version of “American Idol”). She has a great voice and she is universal artist. And she is beautiful girl and very hardworking person! Other participants are not competitors for her. Go, Lucy jan! You are most worthy of victory! #LucyforESCArmenia2017 #LucyforEurovision #TeamLucy
Has ANYONE ever done well at Eurovision – recently I mean – under the theory that “we can work on her vocals”? Imagine that poor girl having to go on TV in front of 30 million SF viewers and put her “worked on” vocals up against a Dami Im …
@Pollaski
37
So 24 will survive round 2. How many survived the first round?
Round Two has been a lot more interesting than the auditions – we had some great performances in this episode!
really loving this selection even though watching it live is a pain
Lilit or either one of the Annas to win thx
Such a great format, so bad that I don’t get a word of what they say. How mamy weeks is due to last round two?
I am looking forward to seeing Lilit Harutyunyan and Anna Danielyan perform again, especially Lilit… such a powerful voice and presence. I can’t see Armenia being represented this year by anyone else!