Ukraine: Wiwi Jury reviews Melovin and Tayanna

The Wiwi Jury — our in-house panel of music unprofessionals comes to the final two acts competing in tomorrow’s grand final of Ukraine’s national selection for Eurovision 2018. Finally, we take a look at the entries from two returning artists, Melovin with “Under the Ladder” and Tayanna with “Lelya”. Did we see a brighter future for either of these acts? Read on to find out!

Melovin – “Under the Ladder”

“Under the Ladder” reviews

Antranig: Melovin is full of potential and in most ways “Under the Ladder” is a step up from “Wonder”. The song goes places and Melovin sells it all superbly on stage. My biggest criticism is the lyrics, which are a bit peculiar to begin with, and in parts quite unintelligible in the live performance. Melovin is a star though, and I expect him to be able to iron everything out in due time. Oh, and please fire his hair stylist.

Score: 8.5/10

Luis: If “Wonder” was already brilliant, here is Melovin bringing an even better entry this year. This is how you do it. “Under the Ladder” is a rush, it makes you want to move. His quirky performance just enhances it. Not everything is perfect here: the production could be a bit heavier in the chorus. Overall, this has a very good shot at making it to Eurovision.

Score: 8/10

Natalie: This is a solid energetic pop song. I wish there was more substance to the lyrics than “oh-oh-o-oh-oh” in parts, but it’s still got a lot of juice amid Melovin’s well-trained voice. The production is perhaps a bit unoriginal, but still pretty cool and with a lot of shine. It makes me happy to listen to. It seems to have captured the hearts of Ukraine, so it might do well across Europe.

Score: 8/10

Raphael: “Under the Ladder” has great potential to be a radio hit, and Melovin has the stage presence and energy to keep the song alive until well past Eurovision. Apart from his disposable contact lens, all this song and performance could improve at this point is the song’s rise and fall. With a pounding chorus that hits early and a somewhat awkward piano slowdown halfway through, the track doesn’t build and peak as naturally as it could. But I admit, I’m being picky!

Score: 7/10

Robyn: Melovin wants to go to Eurovision and I am very happy for him to be on that plane to Lisbon. “Under the Ladder” is packed full of energy and young Mel’ puts his substantial experience as a performer to good use. He’s a teen idol in Ukraine and he has the swagger to sell it to an international audience. The only thing — his trademark novelty contact lens makes him look like a 14-year-old boy dressed for Halloween and distracts from the performance.

Score: 8.5/10

Our jury for Ukraine consists of ten jurors, but we only have room for five reviews. The remaining ten scores are listed below.

Before calculating the average score, the highest and lowest scores are dropped. This is to remove outliers and reduce potential bias. We have removed a low of 5.5 and a high of 9.

WIWI JURY VERDICT: 7.68/10

Tayanna – “Lelya”

“Lelya” reviews

Deban: “Leyla” is folk-pop on energiser. It is packed with vigour and rapturous energy. The staging is well thought out, and it complements the snazzy choreography. Tayanna is confident, without being cocky and I love her for this.

Score: 8/10

Jonathan: The studio version of “Lelya” is a bop, and the only song in Vidbir 2018 that I’ve had on repeat since first listen. It’s clever of Tayanna to bring something that can still show off her vocals, but isn’t too reliant on it that there’s a risk of another botched note like last year. The staging in the semi-final however was rather frenetic and for non-Ukrainian speakers a bit confusing. But we know that Ukraine can stage a great Eurovision entry. So, combine this song with Ukraine’s staging team and Tayanna is clearly the country’s best option for the second year in a row.

Score: 9/10

Luis: There’s so much to love about this performance. It’s very surprising to see a singer who did such a heartfelt ballad last year rocking a bop with such ease as Tayanna. This woman is gold. Not only her voice is impeccable despite all her dance moves, she also seems to be enjoying so much on stage. “Lelya” is infectious, uplifting and so much fun, and it would make a fabulous entry for Ukraine.

Score: 8/10

Natalie: We all know Tayanna’s got a great voice, and she has no fear showing it off here again. She’s also got a much more fun and energetic song this year, which will please lots of people. I do feel Tayanna is more comfortable with her dramatic ballad, but she certainly still gives her all here. It’s such a fun and boppy song with such a cute energy, and even with the language barrier it’s so easy to get into. I would love to see Tayanna in Lisbon this year.

Score: 8.5/10

Raphael: “Lelya” is the only non-English song of Vidbir during which I feel completely comfortable just rocking out to gibberish. Tayanna brings sexiness, energy, a crisp voice, and most importantly, a party to the stage. Even if “Lelya” isn’t as strong as its competitors in terms of composition, Tayanna sells it with pure attitude and confidence. I could easily see her wind machine blowing her all the way to Lisbon.

Score: 8.5/10

Our jury for Ukraine consists of ten jurors, but we only have room for five reviews. The remaining ten scores are listed below.

Before calculating the average score, the highest and lowest scores are dropped. This is to remove outliers and reduce potential bias. We have removed a low of 7 and a high of 9.5.

WIWI JURY VERDICT: 8.13/10

SEE OUR LIST OF UKRAINE 2018 RANKINGS HERE

READ MORE UKRAINE EUROVISION NEWS HERE