Prediction: Trio Mandili should win Georgia’s national final 2017

Tonight Georgia selects their act for Eurovision 2017 in a huge 25-song national final. Over the last month, we’ve been polling our readers on who they thought should win. At the same time, the Wiwi Jury has been ranking all 25 finalists.

Now we’ve pulled together all the results to come up with a combined winner. Topping our list is Trio Mandili with their song “Me da shen”!

Georgia National Final 2017 — Combined Jury/Poll Prediction

1. Trio Mandili — “Me da Shen”

https://youtu.be/VaR_xEuVC8Y

Best: “As I listened to this the first time, I was screaming ‘YAS’ for three minutes. I love the traditional music, I love the mood it sets and I would love dancing to it. This is definitely in my top three of the Georgian selection and I think Eurovision needs some good folk-pop. These ladies slay the pack.” (Antranig)

Worst: “Georgian folk music sure sounds like a pirate shanty, huh? I appreciate Trio Mandili’s presence here amongst some of the other songs in the NF. That being said, I wouldn’t want to see them at Eurovision: there’s just too much happening here for me. Strip it back a level and maybe I’d be sold.” (Chris)

Wiwi Jury Ranking: 1st (6.65) — Poll Ranking: 5th (7%)

2. Nutsa Buzaladze — “White Horses Run”

https://youtu.be/_ypu0O34DGU

Best: “I can easily picture this at Eurovision and reaching the final once it’s there. It’s simple, yet extremely effective. The song is also raw, which gives her plenty of space for a revamp. Nutsa is a very powerful vocalist and stage performer who will nail this with ease.” (Renske)

Worst: “Nutsa is obviously a great singer, but she’s been given such a boring song. There’s no story, no sense of progression. It’s just her belting out the same line in different styles 13 times. In the end, it sounds more like a vocal exercise than a ballad worthy of such a diva.” (Robyn)

Wiwi Jury Ranking: 3rd (6.65) — Poll Ranking: 4th (7%)

3. Maliibu — “We Live Once”

https://youtu.be/vudxY3MpR_c

Best: “Maliibu has such a powerful vocal and has a lot of attitude to bring. Still, “We Live Once” misses something that would make it a good Eurovision song. It will be really difficult to translate such a song into a stage performance without making it trashy or dated.” (Renske)

Worst: “Maliibu brings a standard transcendental ballad which sounds dated. There’s potential, but it needs major work, beginning with a much slicker production and some more ‘out of the box’ beats. Right now, it sounds like a demo, but with better production, this could become edgy and avant-garde.” (Luis)

Wiwi Jury Ranking: 6th (5.8) — Poll Ranking: 3rd (9%)

4. Tako Gachechiladze — “Keep the Faith”

https://youtu.be/IlAkDvTacGo

Best: “I think Tako wants us to keep the faith. Maybe she could tell us a few more times just to be sure? This has a “Moment of Silence” kind of feel to it and I kind of love just how over the top it goes. If Tako can nail this vocally live then I might be all in.” (Chris)

Worst: “I can bear with a bit of drama, but Jesus Christ, this is too much. The song drew me out of it in the first minute, and by 2:00 I only wanted it to finish. Why would you sing such a tragic song when your message is, in theory, encouraging?” (Luis)

Wiwi Jury Ranking: 14th (4.5) — Poll Ranking: 1st (14%)

5. The Mins — “Crime”

https://youtu.be/iQAF989v-fg

Best: ” If Georgia want to send another rock track, they wouldn’t go wrong with “Crime”. While the current version of the song is rough around the edges, the usual Georgian polish could see it sweetened up. But then, some of us enjoy the sound of big crashing cymbals.” (Robyn)

Worst: “The opening lyrics are indecipherable, the transition to the second verse is jarring and the chorus merits a very large container of Ibuprofen. So much cymbal, so much noise — and not even the mellow breaks are enough to balance it out.” (William)

Wiwi Jury Ranking: 13th (5.05) — Poll Ranking: 2nd (11%)

6. Sparkle — “On the Top”

https://youtu.be/KmsRVBPIs5w

Best: ““On the Top” delivers a wicked beat and immediately stands out in this national final. This is cheap trashy pop that would do absolutely terribly at Eurovision — and that makes it one of the best songs in this national final. The rap is incredible and I want more.” (Antranig)

Worst: “Grab your IDs and chill the wine cooler: The euro-trash discotheque is open for business! This is a totally bombastic song that includes loading guns, early 90s rap, unidentifiable synthesised noises, and the tiniest flash of Ke$ha in the attitude and lyrics. Everything is in the kitchen sink and I just want to turn on the garbage disposal!” (William)

Wiwi Jury Ranking: 5th (5.95) — Poll Ranking: 10th (4%)

7. Mariko Lezhava — “Light It Up”

https://youtu.be/dZjND6uGd1w

Best: “I feel like I can only call this song by its original title. Anyway, “Bithard and Avol Waves” is clearly the best song in the selection, even if that’s not saying too much. It’ll need some work, but I could see the live crowd in Kyiv loving that pre-chorus and the drop. Bojana had a similar effect in Vienna and that certainly helped her — I could see it working for Mariko too.” (Chris)

Worst: “Talk about cut and paste! This mixes anthemic chanting, electro rave and bass so heavy you think you’re going to explode. Amid all that, and some extended instrumental sections, I sometimes forget Mariko is in the picture at all.” (William)

Wiwi Jury Ranking: 2nd (6.6) — Poll Ranking: 14th (3%)

8. Misha Sulukhia — “Magic”

https://youtu.be/j71Wk0UyH-4

Best: “I appreciate “Magic” for its variety and for just being really entertaining. Misha throws a lot into the one song, but he owns it all and it works. The song is laden with attitude and could deliver some really extravagant, memorable staging.” (Robyn)

Worst: “This song is magic. I don’t know if that is positive or negative. People will either love it or hate it a lot. It has something special and original in it and it would be a good follow-up to the Young Georgian Lolitaz. But it has some kind of dated Anri Jokhadze vibes as well. And we all know how that went.” (Renske)

Wiwi Jury Ranking: 7th (5.5) — Poll Ranking: 12th (3%)

9. Oto Nemsadze & Limbo — “Dear God”

https://youtu.be/xWXKP-TlkZ4

Best: “I’m hearing System of a Down and I’m hearing Aerosmith, but I’m not hearing them enough. There are moments in this song where it is really powerful (the last minute, especially) but the verses are just boring. This needs more grit in the verses and a bit more oomph at the very end.” (Luis)

Worst: ““Dear God”, what did I do to deserve this song? This sounded like it would be the worst song in the selection. Fortunately, the last minute of it is really good. Unfortunately, I can’t overlook two minutes of boredom. Give me three minutes of that final minute and I would be on board.” (Antranig)

Wiwi Jury Ranking: 18th (2.9) — Poll Ranking: 6th (7%)

10. Asea Sool — “Nature”

https://youtu.be/q6TRKEZ55CQ

Best: “This song is art. It grabs your attention from the first high note. It’s a very unique, futuristic song and I love this song as much I loved the Hardkiss’ “Helpless” last year too. This has so much potential and I cannot wait to see this live.” (Renske)

Worst: “A part of me wants to like this, but I’m not completely feeling it. While I appreciate the duo’s artistry, the song has so many flaws. It’s slow and not very cohesive. That’s why it comes across as three minutes of pointless shouting with a nice cello backing.” (Luis)

Wiwi Jury Ranking: 11th (5.35) — Poll Ranking: 15th (3%)

Results 11 — 25

11. Nino Basharuli — “The Song of Love” (Wiwi Jury Ranking: 9th, Poll Ranking: 17th)
12. Mariam Chachkiani — “Fly” (Wiwi Jury Ranking: 8th, Poll Ranking: 18th)
13. Andrea Gvelesiani — “Revolutionise” (Wiwi Jury Ranking: 20th, Poll Ranking: 7th)
14. Davit Shanidze — “Mtveris kaci” (Wiwi Jury Ranking: 16th, Poll Ranking: 11th)
15. Elene Mikiashvili — “Fighter” (Wiwi Jury Ranking: 4th, Poll Ranking: 24th)
16. Tornike Kipiani & Giorgi Bolotashvili — “You Are My Sunshine” (Wiwi Jury Ranking: 22nd, Poll Ranking: 8th)
17. Alisa Daniela — “We Are Eternity” (Wiwi Jury Ranking: 10th, Poll Ranking: 20th)
18. Dima Kobeshavidze — “Scream” (Wiwi Jury Ranking: 15th, Poll Ranking: 16th)
19. Rati Durglishvili — “Why” (Wiwi Jury Ranking: 19th, Poll Ranking: 13th)
20. Sabina Chantouria — “Stranger” (Wiwi Jury Ranking: 12th, Poll Ranking: 21st)
21. Nanuka Giorgobiani — “Let the Sunshine In” (Wiwi Jury Ranking: 25th, Poll Ranking: 9th)
22. EOS — “Urban Signs” (Wiwi Jury Ranking: 21st, Poll Ranking: 19th)
23. Brandon Stone & Eteri Beriashvili — “Heyo Song” (Wiwi Jury Ranking: 17th, Poll Ranking: 25th)
24. Giorgi Chikovani — “Make It Right” (Wiwi Jury Ranking: 24th, Poll Ranking: 22nd)
25. Temo Sajaia — “All The Same” (Wiwi Jury Ranking: 23rd, Poll Ranking: 23rd)

Congratulations to Trio Mandili for topping our combined poll! Will they go on to win the Georgia national final? The good news is that GPB will be streaming the national final live on YouTube (Click here for link), so you can follow along from 17:00 CET. Make sure to check on wiwibloggs too for all the results and reaction after the show!

Follow all of our Georgia Eurovision news here