Eurovision podcast (Episode 77): Portugal confirms, Finland chooses finalists, why Samanta Tina is queen

Let the music play! And while we’re at it, the podcast too.

There’s a lot of ground to cover in this week’s episode, including: Portugal‘s confirmation for Eurovision 2021 and new rules at Festival da Canção that allow for pre-recording backing; Finland‘s announcement that producers have chosen 7 acts for the final; Samanta Tina‘s songwriting camp with Aminata; Israel‘s ongoing song selection process for Eden Alene; the question of whether “Husavik” from the Eurovision movie can bag an Oscar; and some of this week’s hottest new music releases, including Serhat‘s “Di Na Na Na”. (Don’t worry: We covered the Daði Freyr confirmation in a special podcast over the weekend).

In addition to William and Deban, who recorded together in their support bubble in London, you’ll also hear from some of our global contributors including Bernardo in Portugal, Robyn in New Zealand, Lauren in Norway and Jonathan in the UK. And we’re pleased to say that a certain Eurovision 2019 act sends y’all a special message from Istanbul…

You can listen to the latest episode below. You can also subscribe on Spotify and Apple Music. Finally, shout-out to Samuel George Baugh in London who produced this episode.

Eurovision podcast (Episode 77)

Topics covered in this week’s episode, include:

Portugal confirms for Eurovision 2021 and opens entries for Festival da Canção

Finland: YLE promises versatile lineup as seven acts selected for UMK 2021

Samanta Tina gets creative with Aminata at Eurovision songwriting camp

Simon Cowell is in talks to produce “50 States to Stardom”

Israel: Eden Alene receives 220 songs for national selection, 16 to be revealed next month

Netflix Eurovision song — does Husavik deserve a nomination?

Serhat shares “Di Na Na Na” — the Spanish version of his Eurovision 2019 entry

New music this week: 20 songs from Sergey Lazarev, Miki Nuñez, Aminata and more