Ever since Croatia shelved its national selection Dora back in 2012, fans and music enthusiasts have called for its return. Despite the pair of good results that the country has achieved at the last two editions of the Eurovision Song Contest, Croatian Eurofans still want HRT to revive the beloved festival — thereby giving viewers input on the country’s singer.

And earlier this week the idea received professional backing from the Croatian Composers’ Society (HDS) and its Office for the Protection of Music Copyright (ZAMP).

“Last year’s selection went pretty much unnoticed and I think that it is much better to organize something suited for the audiences that love popular and fun music,” Sinisa Skarica, a producer at Croatia Records, told 24Sata.

Skarica considers Dora the perfect platform to promote new artists and songwriters, while also selecting an act for Eurovision.

“Perhaps the system the British had for years would work. They would pick the artist and then open a selection for songwriters who would submit songs for that particular artist.”

He also prefers the openness and transparency of such a process, citing how “shady” recent selections of songs and artists has been.

HRT, Croatian public broadcaster, explained its internal selection process in a brief statement:

HRT, as the governing body for the selection of the Croatian entry for the Eurovision Song Contest, defines the way of choosing the song for that music competition every year.

Croatian Radiotelevision decided to go with an internal selection of both songwriters and songs that would compete in Eurovision since Dora, which had been the selection process for more than ten years in a row, had not given expected results.

Lorde at Eurovision?

Croatian Eurovision fans hope that HRT will select Lorde as their representative for next year’s event in Lisbon. The “Royals” hitmaker, who is of Croatian origin through her mother, has recently been given Croatian citizenship, which has fuelled the hype.

“My mother is Croatian,” Lorde told WTF earlier this month. “There’s like 100,000 Croats in New Zealand and lots of them have been there for a long time….so yes, I’m Croatian and I have Croatian citizenship.”

However, the New Zealand-born pop star said that she believed she had been given citizenship for being a “fancy, famous Croatian.”

“I think they hooked me, so to speak.”

Lorde — “Perfect Places”

Ksenija Urlicic, the editor of entertainment programmes at HRT, points to the success of the country’s recent internal selections.

“The answer is very clear and it can be concluded from the results we had with Dora and those we have had now that we choose our songs the other way.”

Still, she believes that Croatia had better songs in the times of Dora than it does now, although the results have been better with the songs she is less fond of.

“Dora became our authentic product. The audience was included in the selection process and supported their own musical idols, and we were also giving young composers a chance to showcase their abilities.”

Urlicic confirmed there are leanings at HRT to bring Dora back, and added that she personally would support that idea.

“People still remember Dora, although it has been gone for years now.”

What do you think? Do you want Dora to return? And would you like to see Lorde on the Eurovision scene? Tell us in the comments section below!

Read more Croatia Eurovision news

Photo credits: RTVE, Billboard

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Sanja
Sanja
6 years ago

Nikita croatian best singer it is only solution !

Alen
Alen
6 years ago

Breaking news:

Luminize will most probably represent Croatia at ESC 2018. Check this out: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vFOEHU8v8v8

Alen
Alen
6 years ago

Breaking news:

Luminize will nost probably represent Croatia at ESC 2018. Check this out: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vFOEHU8v8v8

AngieP
AngieP
6 years ago

First of all, why is Lorde in this discussion? Ok, she’s half Croatian but I had litterally no idea about it.

Besides, Lorde has a respectable carreer and she’s known all over the world. It’s basically like suggesting Adele to represent U.K. or Nelly Furtado to represent Portugal as some of you say.

Globally successful artists are not interested in Eurovision. Better artists known in their coutries with talent and a good song than artists we all know with a song that may not be as good as we expected.

Marcus (Day One)
Marcus (Day One)
6 years ago

I like the idea of choosing the artist internally and the song from a national selection
Perhaps the recent results for Croatia would encourage high quality entries to be submitted for a national selection.

Mako
Mako
6 years ago

Yeah but not Lorde. No way. Croatian fans can dream !

I’d prefer to see her at the EASC participating for New Zealand

dany
dany
5 years ago
Reply to  Mako

Mako do you think you’re important here?

JAKKA
JAKKA
6 years ago

Lorde is my favourite artist of all the times…but imagining her in Eurovision is just very very absurd. The absurdest thing ever.

khm
khm
6 years ago

That old bat should shut her mouth since all her Doras were internal selections in disguise.

And Škarica is NOW complaining? Where the hell was he when all Croatian composers destroyed our placements on ESC? When HRT withdrew from ESC? NOOOOOO, they started to complain on the same moment when Nina K. showed them a middle finger and went with a song from foreign composers.

Sorry about the rant, but I really can’t stand people who still think Eurovision is in 1993.

khm
khm
6 years ago

That old bat should shut her mouth since all her Doras were internal selections in disguise.

And Škarica is NOW complaining? Where the hell was he when all Croatian composers destroyed our placements on ESC? When HRT withdrew from ESC? NOOOOOO, they started to complain on the same moment when Nina K. showed them a middle finger and went with a song from foreign composers.

Sorry about the rant, but I really can’t stand people who still think Eurovision is in 1993.

no stars
no stars
6 years ago

Stars are overestimated. Stop wanting them – Adele, Lorde, Nelly Furtado. They will not do well. NOOOOOOTT. Patricia Kass did well only because she is so…European, if her song were in english would have look DESPERATE, but she was so French.

Katy
Katy
6 years ago

Uhm, Ksenija Urlicic is not a head of entertainment at HRT. She’s retired. She was Croatia’s HoD between 1993 and 2001.

Denis
Denis
6 years ago

There’s as much of a chance that Lorde will represent Croatia then there is of Nelly Furtado representing Portugal, Cher representing Armenia, Madonna or Alessia Cara representing Italy, Bebe Rexha representing Albania, Rita Ora representing Kosovo. None of it will happen..
Has she ever been to Croatia?

escphbelgium
escphbelgium
6 years ago

I see Lorde representing New Zealand in Eurovision Asia more than representing Croatia in Eurovision.

Anabela
Anabela
6 years ago

I’ve never seen a diamond in the flesh.. 🙂

Polegend Godgarina
6 years ago

By this logic we should have Lady Gaga for Italy and Katy Perry for Portugal. It doesn’t work like that, hennies.

Polegend Godgarina
6 years ago

Have you seen Lorde’s performance at the VMAs? It was a DISASTER. Those fans need to get to know real Croatian artists, because it’s clear they couldn’t name any.

Monika
Monika
6 years ago

Lorde will represent Croatia when pigs will fly!

Michael
Michael
6 years ago

Expecting Lorde to go to Eurovision for Croatia is almost as absurd as expecting System of a Down to represent Armenia. It might be interesting, but it is extremely unlikely.

Mako
Mako
6 years ago

Lorde is one of my favourite artists (singer – song writer) … but I don’t want her to participate at ESC, especially if it is to represent Croatia, a country that I don’t love at ESC (and ONLY at ESC).