Two semi-finals have already taken place in Lisbon and all roads led to Elvas. Portugal will determine its representative for Eurovision 2020 with the grand final of Festival da Canção 2020 on Saturday 7 March. Having now seen the live performances, the Wiwi Jury has reconvened to see if their preferences have changed.
Antranig
1. Elisa – “Medo de sentir”
All of the entries delivered more or less as expected at the semi-finals — even if the results didn’t reflect that. The only song that greatly elevated was Elisa’s. She created such an intense atmosphere with “Medo de sentir” in which you can feel her passion with every word even if you can’t understand them. This woman knows how to own a stage and I am sure she can make a positive impact on the one in Rotterdam too.
2. Throes + The Shine – “Movimento”
3. Bárbara Tinoco – “Passe-Partout”
4. Jimmy P – “Abensonhado”
5. Kady – “Diz só”
Åri
1. Bárbara Tinoco – “Passe-Partout”
Festival da Canção 2020 held a blessing in disguise. With my top four of the entire contest crashing in the semis, I learned to love “Passe-Partout” much more than ever. While originally I put it sixth in a field of 16, the live performance and vibe, combined with the death of my favourites, won my heart over. In retrospect, this song was right there all along — and now it’s my second favourite of the whole thing. It’s simply a song that works live and reminds me of the beginning of “It’s Oh So Quiet”, which I love. I’m not afraid to say this can and will bring Portugal back to the final.
2. Elisa – “Medo de sentir”
3. Elisa Rodrigues – “Não voltes mais”
4. Kady – “Diz só”
5. Throes + The Shine – “Movimento”
Florian
1. Jimmy P – “Abensonhado”
There’s something very unique about Jimmy P’s “Abensonhado”, which was underlined by his live performance. The song is contemporary yet feels Portuguese — something that allows it to appeal to a broad audience. Moreover, it’s recognisable production could easily make it stand out in Rotterdam. Ultimately, it’s the unique tone in his voice that brings the production to perfection.
2. Bárbara Tinoco – “Passe-Partout”
3. Elisa – “Medo de sentir”
4. Throes + The Shine – “Movimento”
5. Elisa Rodrigues – “Não voltes mais”
Luis
1. Bárbara Tinoco – “Passe-Partout”
Bárbara nailed it in the semi-final with a cute performance which suits the concept of “Passe-Partout” perfectly. There are several things to work on though — she needs to be more quirky, she shouldn’t look to the floor as much as she did in the semi-final and the camera angles need to be tighter. The dancers seem too frenetic at times and their moves are way faster than the melody by the end. However, those are just issues to polish, but the raw material is there.
2. Elisa – “Medo de sentir”
3. Throes + The Shine – “Movimento”
4. Jimmy P – “Abensonhado”
5. Filipe Sambado – “Gerbera amarela do Sul”
Robyn
1. Filipe Sambado – “Gerbera amarela do Sul”
This wasn’t on my radar until his semi-final performance elevated the song. Filipe presents as a regal gothic mourner, but what is he mourning in his Portuguese alternative folk style? The lyrics suggest it’s relating to Portugal’s eucalyptus plantations, which suck up all the water and leave the landscape dry and susceptible to wildfire. Honestly, this likely isn’t going anywhere near Eurovision, but I’m very happy that Festival da Cancão has delivered yet another unforgettable performance.
2. Throes + The Shine – “Movimento”
3. Jimmy P – “Abensonhado”
4. Elisa – “Medo de sentir”
5. Bárbara Tinoco – “Passe-Partout”
I would choose Jimmy P without any doubt
Well guys I am just excited that everything is so open and (almost) all is possible. I can’t recall that being the case for a long time now. And I am flabergastered that someone non Porrtuguese-speaker would choose Filipe Sambado over others, such as Robyn did… 🙂 If I could choose I would go for Jimmy P, though. He has the fullest package: originality, professionalism, staging, great song, great gospel chorus, a potent narrative and even some very telling verses in English. What is there not to like? Throes+the Shine and Kady get my second and third place. But I… Read more »
Can’t choose between Jimmy P and Barbara need to see the final performances!
Tom Leeb is excited, if Barbara gets through he will no longer be in last place.
What are you implying? That Barbara will end-up last in the semi-final or the final? If she is eliminated in the semi, technically it would make no difference whether she’s 11th or last, she’d by a default be lower than Tom. If she qualifies and ends-up as 26th in the final, it would still be by comparison a better result for someone who had to qualify first than it would have been for an automatic qualifier. Or are you implying they would be last and semi-last on your own list? That one would be legit, since it’s personal.
Hi Colin, I was trying (badly) to be funny. It’s my personal list. I always wish the best of luck to all participants. I thought Tom would be my last, but if Barbara gets through (which seems likely), she will definitely go there (I can’t get through the song and performance, it just epitomizes everything I hate in music). But of course, they don’t care what I think, and nor should they (as Lesley quite rightly points out in her song).
Thanks for the reply, Kosey. I assumed it might be that. I was being a smartass myself. 🙂 I totally get that. There’s not an objective music list and I think that’s the charm of ESC voting. My personal least favorites are Belarus and France, with some underwhelming songs not being far behind. For example, Serbia is really low on my list even if I know that many will enjoy it. It will be an interesting season, for sure.
Indeed it will, it’s getting very exciting now. It’s easy to get attached to songs that have a deep personal connection (that’s what songs are for after all!) but it is all a bit of fun at the end of the day. I like reading about others’ reactions and indeed how they can be wildly different to my own – Barbara falls into that bracket for me this year. I am with you on Belarus as well – that song is not doing it for me either. On Serbia, I was desperate to hate it as I was salty about… Read more »
I guess Bárbara Tinoc wins this, but I’m really in love with Elisa’s song and voice. It sounds like an Adele song, just the look needs to be changed 😀 I love they all stick to Portuguese, though, it’s such a beautiful language.
Elisa only !!!
Barbara is best, but i don t like stageing of song (dancers,costume)
This is a very strong NF! Barbara, Elisa and Throes + The Shine are great, Kady, Jimmy and Filipe are really good, Elisa R. and Tomas are okay. I firmly expect Portugal to choose Barbara Tinoco. It’s a song which would make them stand out next to everything already chosen on ESC. It’s bright, uptempo, charming in an old-fashioned way with a modern twist to it. I’m rooting for her as well, but any of my top 6 could qualify from the semis.
Call me a loser but I’m rooting for Kady. Such a beautiful voice and “Diz só” reminds me of golden era of r&b and soul music. Also, great staging!
I m also team Kady. Refreshing
Conan deserved way better last year he was my absolute favourite by a huge margin
Something was missing from the national final in his performance in Tel Aviv…it was not as strong in eurovision.