We’ve steadily been working through our list of the best national final songs of Eurovision 2016. Today we enter the home stretch, with our top fifteen songs set to be revealed over the next three days. This time we’ve got songs from five different countries making their way on to our list. Who will just miss out on a place in the top ten? Find out below.

15. “Golden” — Brooke (Malta)

It says a lot about just how good a song “Golden” was that there were many people who wanted Ira Losco to ditch “Chameleon” for it. That’s not to say that Brooke didn’t do a good job of performing “Golden” either. Unfortunately it was a case of Ira or bust at MESC this year. Unsurprisingly, Brooke was her nearest competitor and for good reason. In her solo MESC debut, Brooke really stood out and will surely represent the country soon.

Wiwi Jury: “It’s quite fitting the name matches the blonde-haired singer. 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 ooze pizzazz on this modern power ballad.” (Anthony)

14. “I’m Not Lost” — Tom Frantzis (Belgium)

Ahead of Belgium’s national selection, Tom won the Wiwi Jury as well as our pre-show fan poll. And for good reason: “I’m Not Lost” showcased just how good a performer Tom is.

Wiwi Jury: “Soft to loud, vulnerable to strong, Tom plays the extremes but fills the gaps beautifully. He sings with sincerity and soul, and the impeccable production helps him tug on heartstrings and push buttons at just the right time. Tom’s joyous delivery is infectious and helps turn a pop entry into an anthem of perseverance.” (William)

13. “Victorious” — Xuso Jones (Spain)

With the prospect of a national final on their hands, Spanish fans were quick to clamour for Xuso Jones to be a part of the action. “Victorious” had early fan backing behind it, along with some real pedigree: former ESC winning writer/producer Peter Bostrom was part of the writing team. Xuso did well with the televote, but still fell short to Barei. “Runner Up” doesn’t have quite the same ring to it, though…

Wiwi Jury: “A Nordic influenced pop track with strong vocals from Xuso Jones, ‘Victorious’ is now on constant loop in my playlist — it has Eurovision written all over it. It’s impossible not to enjoy it! He wants to stand victorious? Well, Xuso, I bet you will. I can see Danny Saucedo’s ‘Amazing’ performance slaying the competition in Objetivo Eurovision.” (Bernardo)

12. “Helpless” — The Hardkiss (Ukraine)

You don’t get to be the biggest band in the Ukraine for no reason. The Hardkiss brought their avant garde style to the Ukrainian national selection, managing to skirt around all the drama around them. They were the early favourites too, but even though the jury favoured “Helpless” over “1944”, it was Jamala who crucially won over the public. No harm done for the Hardkiss, but we can’t help think that they could have made “Helpless” into something spectacular on the Eurovision stage.

Wiwi Jury: “This song will simply blow you away. It is powerful, it has those original notes, it has its own style. I don’t understand the people who judge it based on their expectations. Yes, it is different from other Hardkiss songs, but does it mean it’s bad? Hell NO! This song captures your breath right from the beginning and keeps it until the end. If you listen with good headphones, it can take you into space and beyond.” (Mikhail)

11. “Youniverse” — Molly Sandén (Sweden)

This was “meant” to be Molly Sandén’s year at Melodifestivalen. She was given the all-important final spot in the fourth semi-final and her song “Youniverse” was penned (in part) by her boyfriend, Danny Saucedo. After being ranked the pre-contest favourite, both in our poll and by the bookmakers, it all fell apart for Molly. An underwhelming semi final performance and Frans stealing the thunder seemed to doom “Youniverse” there and then. Molly turned it out in the final, reminding us just how good of a performer she is. That was redemption enough, and she’s well deserving of this spot on our list.

Wiwi Jury: “This is the bomb. Everyone was watching and waiting for Molly, and predictably the super-hype has resulted for many in a super let down. For me, ‘Youniverse’ nailed everything it set out to do. It is more sophisticated than ‘Why Am I Crying’, Molly’s vocal is killer and the performance is out of this universe.” (Angus)

Check back tomorrow as we make our way through our top ten songs. Who do you think is still in with a chance of winning? Let us know in the comments section below.

Check out all of our top national final songs posts here

23 Comments
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paddy from estonia
paddy from estonia
7 years ago

I can’t believe that Molly Sanden didn’t make it. That was a top 3 performance with a top 3 song.

fikri
fikri
7 years ago

i’m loving none of these. thank god they all stuck in their national finals.

Han
Han
7 years ago

“I’m not lost” is awesome, Tom should’ve won in Belgium 🙁 i also like The Hardkiss’ song. Such a shame we won’t see these two acts in Stockholm.

irish esc
irish esc
7 years ago

tom, the hardkiss and xuso jones <3

Tha
Tha
7 years ago

I still don’t get how Jamala won over The Hardkiss. Ukraine would be one of my top contenders of this year if the send “Helpless”.

Sal
Sal
7 years ago

Tom Frantzis was robbed! He’s so darn cute as well!
I’m sure we’ll see the day when Hardkiss participate at Eurovision and I am certain whatever they bring will be a contender for the top prize.

Elvin
Elvin
7 years ago

#CoolMeDown <3

Antonio
Antonio
7 years ago

Xuso 1000 times better than Barei 🙁

juri
juri
7 years ago

jr esc nl

You read about that on eurovoix . In article we can read that Albania and Kosovar media is reporting that Kosovo has been invited to participate in the 2017 Eurovision Song Contest.
Who invited them EBU or host country of Eurovision 2017.

jr esc nl
jr esc nl
7 years ago

omg! kosovo will participate in eurovision 2017 :0

Alexey
Alexey
7 years ago

The Hardkis promised to think about participating in next year

manu
manu
7 years ago

Los jurados de esta pagina sois mucho horteras, pero mucho mucho. Para vosotros la cancion es mejor cuantos mas cliches cumplen…actualizaros un poco.

hardkisss
hardkisss
7 years ago

I hope Ukraine will choose The Hardkiss internally next year and they will make NF with three songs like Tony Talk and Make Up. They will be the winners in 2017.

Laburnum
Laburnum
7 years ago

Brooke was my favourite, but I’d rather have Walk On Water.

Shona
Shona
7 years ago

My top national final entry was the finnish entry Good Enough. Unfortunately no hype was built around it. All the attention went elsewhere.

Harry
Harry
7 years ago

I hope we will see Brooke next year, or some other year. She is Golden Girl!

Österrike
Österrike
7 years ago

It would be travesty if Margaret wins this poll with her sucky and hoarse live performance. Ace would be kinda meh too. I want “Días de alegría” to win.

Jim H
Jim H
7 years ago

I’m surprised Bianca from the UK didn’t make the list (I’m going to jump to the conclusion she didn’t make the top 10). She had everything going for her that a top 10 song would.

Digital Style
Digital Style
7 years ago

I hope Ace Wilder’s ‘Don’t Worry’ is in the Top 10

T
T
7 years ago

No wonder Molly flopped. The song was rush written in a week (!!!) with her ”own team.”
She could’ve won this contest years ago if only she could loose her pride and let Kempe and his team or the Deb team give her a good song.

jowncarlo
jowncarlo
7 years ago

I was so sad and broken back in January when Tom Frantzis didn’t win. I’m Not Lost is easily my favorite song this year, in and out of Eurovision. As for Molly Sandén’s defeat, I understand. I still think though that Youniverse would’ve been a great home ground entry. Something about the song gets to me.

I know Lorenzo Fragola with Infinite Volte won’t be in this list since Sanremo is not really a National Final, but he together with Tom and Molly could’ve been my top three favorite acts. Maybe some other year. Ha-ha. 🙂

Thiscan'tbetrue!
Thiscan'tbetrue!
7 years ago

Helpless of the Hardkiss should be much higher in my opinion

Olga from Latvia
Olga from Latvia
7 years ago

Meh. Don’t like none of them. Well, I don’t like most of the songs overall, high standarts, you know.