It’s the first national final result of the Eurovision 2022 season. After days of online voting, We Are Domi came out victorious in ESCZ and will represent the Czech Republic at Eurovision 2022 with the song “Lights Off”.
We Are Domi wins ESCZ 2022 with “Lights Off”
The Czech Republic’s act for Eurovision 2022 was determined through a mix of public votes and jury votes. An international jury of music industry professionals contributed 50% of the overall result. Meanwhile, votes from international fans contribute 25%, with the final 25% coming from Czech fans.
The final results were revealed through a video uploaded on the Eurovision YouTube channel.
Jury results
- We Are Domi – 12 points (120)
- Elis Mraz – 10 points (92)
- Annabelle – 8 points (84)
- Giudi – 6 points (69)
- Skywalker – 6 points (69)
- The Valentines – 4 points (57)
- Emma Smetana & Jordan Haj – 3 points (49)
Czech fan vote results
- Emma Smetana & Jordan Haj – 6 points
- Elis Mraz – 5 points
- Giudi – 4 points
- We Are Domi – 3 points
- Skywalker – 2 points
- Annabelle – 1.5 points
- The Valentines – 1 point
International vote results
- We Are Domi – 6 points
- Giudi – 5 points
- Skywalker – 4 points
- Emma Smetana & Jordan Haj – 3 points
- Elis Mraz – 2 points
- Annabelle – 1.5 points
- The Valentines – 1 point
Full results
- We are Domi – 21 points
- Elis Mraz – 17 points
- Giudi – 15 points
- Emma Smetana & Jordan Haj – 12 points
- Skywalker – 12 points
- Annabelle – 11 points
- The Valentines – 6 points
Czech Republic at Eurovision
The Czech Republic is one of the more recent additions to the Eurovision Song Contest, having made its debut in 2007. However, its early years were not so successful.
In its first three years, Czechia failed to qualify for the grand final three times, and even finished last in its semi-final twice, once with nil points.
The country took a break from Eurovision and returned in 2015 with a much better overall run of results. In 2016, Gabriela Gunčíková took Czechia into the grand final for the first time with her ballad “I Stand”.
In 2018, Mikolas Josef brought his cheeky R&B tune “Lie to Me” to Lisbon. He won over audiences and finished sixth in the grand final — the best ever result for the Czech Republic. Pop band Lake Malawi also did well the following year, finishing 11th with their song “Friend of a Friend”.
Benny Cristo represented the Czech Republic at Eurovision 2021. And while he had been selected from winning ESCZ2020, his song for Rotterdam had been internally selected following the cancellation of Eurovision 2020. “Omaga” finished 15th in its semi-final, missing out on the grand final.
What do you think of the ESCZ 2022 result? How do you think the Czech Republic will fair at Eurovision 2022? Sound off in the comments below!
Good song this from the Czech Republic. Catchy chorus, good singer and memorable lyrics.
nothing too special or innovative, but still enjoyable. they might get a good placement if they stage this right.
Probably qualifies, low score in the finals. Sounds like something I heard 1000 times on the radio
That´s a quite realistic prediction
Finnish Jury and The International Public should have been The only one’s who were allowed to vote. #justiceforjezinky
Congratulations Czech Republic, you’re exactly 10 years too late with this beat. Like how the hell can you be THIS outdated?
French chanson is even more “dated” and managed to be a runner-up in 2021. so, no worries there tbh.
I would say the entire top 3 was dated as in being genres no one listened to anymore but hey they did well..
Chansons are timeless. This entry sounds like something from 2012 by a DJ that’s no longer relevant.
Chansons may be timeless, but would probably not work for a country other than France and even for her even once in a while…
But maybe bringing a “dated” EDM song is the way for success…you never know. OK, probably not TOP 5, but …I mean come on, it is only a pointless contest….
Stating the obvious, sis. If this song is in Melodifestivalen, people would not give any compliments to it. That’s how generic it is. But it’s from a country that doesn’t usually do well in Eurovision, everything is fine now.
Czech Republic 7/10
So far the song from the Czech Republic is better than the song from the Bulgarian Republic. Let’s wait for the song from the Albanian Republic, I bet it will be better than those 2 (fingers crossed for Theje).
I´ll be with you
I get that people are upset that the Czech public didn’t have as much of an impact, but I also get the concern about voting without listening to all of the songs, and voting for famous people only. Perhaps this would sound a bit extreme, but how about only being able to vote after listening to, and reviewing (with five or more full sentences) all of the songs. Also, the program wouldn’t accept reviews containing profanities or those which are copy-pasted from other reviews. That way, only people who *actually care* about who goes to ESC would have the televoting… Read more »
It is of course too early to tell but at this point it looks like the international jury just saved Czechia’s chances in the contest lol. The strongest advantage of this song is that it has immediate appeal, thus all the casual viewers who will hear it for the first time will instantly remember the chorus and I can already see in my mind the future recap fragment with this prolonged “where are you noooooow”. So all you have to do is to couple it with some decent staging and bob’s your uncle. Also the frontgirl is staggeringly beautiful.
OK, I think it’s a pretty good choice because this was imho one of the better songs on offer. It starts really promising and fresh, and I think it has great potential for a fun staging. But after the first chorus you’ve really heard it all and the bridge is weak. Whether they have the charisma to bring this to the big stage is hard to judge in the video. Nice song but I just don’t know if it is interesting enough.
Also this song is another case of “the live version being waay better than the studio version”. This in particular is a great trait to have if you are going to compete in Eurovision. The dark color patterns and the smoke effect used in the performance add to it a lot, so I would really advise them to have this same mindset while preparing their performance in May!
there is nothing wrong with the song itself, its quite nice and safe, a little bit too safe to the point where it feels generic, they should definitely revamp this but I see potential.
Poor Elis got second again
I think Czech Republic will struggle to qualify because the song is super generic and it will get lost in the contest among a field of stronger songs. Borderline qualifier at best.
…and how do you know there will be stronger songs? 🙂
There always are. The first songs released are always overshadowed by later entries.
Seeing how we only have like 3 songs at the moment you cant reallly judge it..
3? We have 2 songs
Which is the third song ?
Sorry, my mind is not here today. Forgot there were only two songs!
But hey, it’s Friday:)
To be fair, the live version was a great surprise, and its quite different from the scandipop that Sweden sends. A loss for the UK and a potential top 10 placement for the Czechs.
In case anybody also wondered what would happen under ESCZ 2019’s rules, I did the (simple) math and Elis would have won (20×18 against We Are Domi). In 2019, the international vote was counted as an extra juror. So the only difference would make for the jury voting is that Giudi wouldn’t tie with Skywalker, being the one with 6 points from the juries. Ironically, it would affect all the acts below, because Skywalker would drop to 4 points, but also The Valentines would go from 4 to 3 and Jordan & Emma from 3 to 2. And the Czech… Read more »
Very interesting. It really shows how sometimes the structure of the voting plays a huge role in who ends up winning and in how the final ranking is formed. And for that to be the case, the conclusion is that most of the times the results are very tight and a change in the voting system can even change the winner.
Just like at this year’s ESC. If the old voting system were used, France would have won by exactly 1 point.
It’s true, a minor change in the rules can bring different results, especially in a tough competition like ESCZ 2022 and 2020. I guess this also shows that there isn’t a perfect voting system, though organizers have to keep trying to find the best possible balance.
I have made up possible new voting rules – Jury, int. televote and Czech televote each having 1/3 voting strength and with seven contestants awarding 12-10-8-6-4-2-1 marks:
It would be as follows:
This voting would give the Czech voters a slightly higher strength, but the results would not really change here.
That’s interesting. I can totally see ESCZ trying this format for 2023, giving a little more power to the Czech audience but still avoiding fanbases to make it unbalanced. Though what I really wanted for them is an actually televised competition. I guess the HoD also wants it, but they don’t have enough funds for it.
So basically, everyone wanted We Are Domi, except the Czech public themselves. 😉
That really sucks..
That’s perfectly ok. The “Czech public themselves” is something like 100-200 hardcore fans, plus thousands of votes from the fanbases who’ll only vote for their darlings and might not even bother listening to the other songs on offer.
Once we have an actual televised NF where fanbases would presumably have a smaller impact – then we can have bigger power again.
Exactly. the Czech vote is unfortunately not a rational/unbiased vote. It is a fanbased vote and thus always prone to push the artist with a bigger fanbase despite this artist having a “worse” song…
As I have shown above, a possible increase to a vote power of 33,33 % could be feasible.
I voted for Emma & Jordan. But none of the songs were bad, all would do really well. “Lights Off” was a clear winner though so can’t argue against it! Congratulations We are Domi and Czech Republic.
Mochowa 4th
Mochowa 3rd
We All Poop 4th
Giudi 3rd
my favs literally never win
also forgot to mention Burešová 3rd
This song doesn’t make my nipples go hard but it’s a decent effort.
Love this! Gonna do pretty well in May. Well done Czech Republic for this great national final. Hope to see the contest in Prague in the next 10 years.
JUSTICE TO JEZINKY(((
Justice for Cherry Red!!!
Jezinky, unlike Barbora Mochowa, was even not appealing to the jurors. Being first with the juries and slain by televoters by being dead last…that is cruel. And Black and white holes was a better song than Jezinky imho…
Nevertheless—I hope we will hear from Giudi at ESCZ202x
And the fact that the public gave max points to Ema and Jordan while the juries oblitrated them is very weird, were they deaf tonight?
They only got 12 points from the Czech televote because Emma is famous there. Same situation as Benny.
the most quality song (the duett) was last at the jurys!
hey,there were a lot of musicans in the jurys – are they deaf?
the winnersong is solid but not more – good voice but the beatspart is too trashy – generic plasticsound – maybe a revamp here?
good luck czech republic – final is very possible because many people loves this style.
No please this song does not need a revamp. Have we not learned from the whole Benny Cristo fiasco?
They look like an indie band but their actual song is more like Eurodance. Nothing wrong with that, of course, it’s quite catchy and it’s certainly way better than what Bulgaria has offered us.
I like the song but it never really takes of unfortunately. Good performence and solid entry but I just think the song lacks something.
Great choice! It was my 2nd place initially but I regretted I didn’t vote for them in the end so happy with the outcome 🙂
A strong list of juries as well. Many of the people who were in my top 10s in their given years. Nice to see that Gjon and Dadi have put Jezinky second, and Blind Channel have put them first, that Victor Crone appreciated Stay or Go (his 2nd), that Go_A appreciated Annabelle (their 2nd), and that Manizha gave her powerwoman vote to Elis. The votes were actually much more diverse that I thought (only 6 out of 12 jurors have put the winner as their 12 points), and these points are just the aggregator. As Lights Off is the most… Read more »
I love this song!!! So happy it went through, but simultaneously gutted about Giudi and Annabelle.
We have heard this kind of EDM song on the radio for so many years. Nothing special. Why this?
You could say the same about 90% of Eurovision songs…actually, even worse, style of many ESC songs is not even on radios as it’s way past its time.
I hope you can say the same thing when other big big countries send some generic songs like this in the next few months.
It needs a slight revamp, a little more umph at the end. But overall solid song.
Very strong selection. Personal favorites were Emma & Jordan and Elis, but I guess We Are Domi is the safer bet for ESC.
Why did the Czech public try sabotaging themselves? Top marks to Jordan and Emma has to be a joke lmao
Jordan and Emma must be famous names by the czech public, but it’s a good thing we had the international televote and Jury component to keep The Czech Republic from choosing a definite non-qualifier. OK, we don’t know at this point whether lights off will qualify or not, but it has a better chance than by now.
I do not think Jordan and Emma would have been certain NQs, but they simply had the biggest media coverage and thus were likely to attract the mos Czech televotes…it is not a song based vote, it is an artist based vote. Benny, Kabát, Jakub Ondra etc….luckily, the Czech televote is accordingly marginalised.
Actually I really like it. It is really easy to listen to and has captivated me at the very first moment. We’ll see how it goes, as it is still 2021 though…
Bit guttered that Emma and Jordan were last from the juries, seems wild to me considering they were my fav. But they wouldn’t have won anyways based on We are Domi’s popularity, so I guess it doesn’t matter ultimately…
At least it’s better than Bulgaria…
A dance track hit with a great vocal. Juries should love this. The song is quite “by the numbers”, but the vocalist means every word she’s singing, so I think it works.
I personally would have taken a risk and sent Giudi, but We Are Domi are a solid choice. Thanks Czechia. 🙂
Well, better than Bulgaria….by a mile. So, my current favorite.
Well, out of eight random top 2 lists I saw on YT, only one places Czechia second. I also have We Are Domi first – by a mile. I am interested in which direction will this go once we get more songs.
It could be one of the best songs of 2022, or it could slide down to middle of the pack. I don’t think this will be a bottom tier song, but it all depends on the competition. Another matter is what semifinal Czech Republic will be sorted in. If it’s in a stronger semifinal, it could struggle, but if it’s weaker it might sail through.
I mean what a shocker. That Bulgarian song provides no competition whatsoever.
Prepare for total “Domi”nation.
Yaas! Better send that one to the band. 🙂
Lights off simply doesn’t take off the ground, sadly. I don’t know how they’ll try to get attention from juries and public to go through, the song feels generic. I’ll miss both Giudi and Annabelle, better choices to my ears. But it’s ok CZ I guess
Well they won both the International jury and fan vote, so I think they have a pretty good shot at Eurovision. This is the type of song juries vote for and it won’t be at the bottom of the pack for many fans, so will definitely get some votes there. Personally even without knowing any of the other songs, they have my vote at Eurovision. Have had Lights Off on repeat since it was released.
Oh, this is a nice one. Very easy on the ears. 🙂
If I remember we all thought Friend of A Friend was average and middle of the pack. So I am very excited at this prospect. Already looking to be a diverse lineup.
I have to say, I’m pleasantly surprised. My first choice actually won! I voted for lights out and I’m pleased that it’s going to represent the Czech Republic at Eurovision. All I can say is good luck we are domi.
Can’t really describe how i feel about GIUDI not making it. Right now I’m kinda empty inside. Just wanna know why some of the juries gave the lowest score to this masterpiece.
Congrats to Domi for winning the selection. Seems that everyone except Czechs wanted them. Really glad for Emma and Jordan getting 4th as they were my second favorite.
It always makes me kind of sad if you’re holding a NF, but the fans from your country don’t have a lot to say in the outcome, like in Czech Republic. So why holding a NF if the International juries and International fans have together more say than the own fans in the country? *No hate, no offense, please! Just my own personal opinion!*
eurofans are usually pretty quick in calling out juries that don’t vote in accordance with the televote but it’s crickets here. czech fans wanted by now to go to turin and the international jury literally placed them LAST.
I understand the frustration, but in all three of cases of ESCZ, the most known artist in Czechia has won the local televote – Jakub Ondra, Benny Cristo, Jordan & Emma. In all cases, these were the only people to actually have their Wikipedia page in Czech prior to the contest (okay, Elis has one now too, but she didn’t when she competed in 2020). To balance out the hype train, they have the juries and international fans. In 2020, the Czech fans got to pick the winner. In 2022, it’s the other way around. PS. It’s also more televoting… Read more »
There is some sense in doing that, as a country’s placing in the ESC is decided only by other countries, but I get what you mean.
Czech Republic has a particular problem that other national selections don’t have. Since it’s 100% online, those with a bigger following in social media will end up taking advantage of it, because engagement from fans is just a simple link away. If Jordan/Emmy had to make their fans to watch a televised show and vote during that particular hour, maybe they wouldn’t be able to translate their popularity into voting (though Bilal did that with a landslide televote victory in France). I honestly don’t know how can they deal with that. They had to choose between risking a fandom “hijacking”… Read more »
No one follows Eurovision except a few die hard fans. The most known artist always win our Czech televote, because the artist simply has the broadest reach – when they post on social media people should vote for them, their fanbase will. So in the end it’s a battle of fanbases and eurovision fans. No one else is voting. I, as a Czech, am glad the voting system is set up this way, otherwise we would get Jordan x Emma this year and Space Sushi instead of Friend of a friend.
A fan from CZ here. I am not really a fan of the winning song.
But for reasons explained above, I am very glad the % are exactly as they are. The Czech televote is not a vote of people interested in choosing a good song, for the bigger part, it is just a pure fanbase battle.
Once we have an actual televised NF and people take Eurovision a bit more seriously here… then we can also change the percentages.
Good song, but I am affraid it won’t stand out enough among other 40 songs at the actual Eurovision. Jezinky was far better
Totally agree
you actually think anyone would actually vote for Jezinky if it went to Turin? nah
People were saying it about voila last year as well..
Voila is a way more accessible song and has broader appeal.
We won’t find it out but to be truth, none of this song is a winner. Lights off might get to the final but that’s it.
Yeahhhh!! It’s my lucky day I’m so happy Domi won! Amazing song I can listen it again and again! I think it will do well on Eurovision stage!
Great news!!!!
Congrats to We Are Domi! It’s a really nice and polished song, and I think that the juries will appreciate it. The production is really top notch, and the performance is also really strong. Sure, it’s on a safer side, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing, especially if it gets stuck in a semi with many offbeat choices. There is a certain safety net in having a song as approachable as this one in the line-up. My advice would be to contrast the perfectly produced club song with some warm colors and tenderness on stage. As such, this could… Read more »
Actually I personally liked the dark colors, smoke and atmospheric staging of the live on tape performance of Lights Off. I would prefer them to stick to this idea as it’s nice aesthetically and fits the lyrics of the song as well.
I agree that the dark tone fits the lyrics, but I feel like this still needs a touch a warmth. It’s a tad cold for me, even if I appreciate it the way it is. Perhaps keep it dark, but just tad less monochromatic? Smoke is a nice touch, and they should keep it, definitely.
Of course there is always room for improvement and for more changes to the staging. I would just want them to stick to the vision they already have for the staging. This way it feels a bit less Scandi-pop to me (although it clearly resembles this genre xD) and a tad more artsy and impactful. But yes I agree that a bigger variety of colors, while at the same time keeping the already existing formula can perhaps elevate it more.
lmfao ok. as if Bulgaria will qualify