In September 2021 the CEO of Panik Records told Esquire Greece that the label, in conjunction with Cypriot broadcaster CyBC, would choose the Cypriot act for Eurovision 2023 using a TV talent show.
And today it seems that the pieces have finally come together. OGAE Greece has made some calls and has revealed that Cyprus will choose its artist through the TV series All Together Now.
Cyprus: Eurovision 2023 artist will be chosen through “All Together Now”
Back in September 2021, our sources told us that the expectation was for the show to air on CyBC (also known as RIK) in Cyprus and also on a major private TV network in Greece, with open auditions in both countries. This would create an opportunity for new talent — and act as a scouting opportunity for the label itself.
The BBC launched the original edition of All Together Now in the United Kingdom in 2018. In each episode, a range of singers performed in front of “The 100” — a panel of music experts that ranged from drag queens to high school music teachers to Spice Girl Geri Halliwell.
Michael Rice — the UK’s Eurovision 2019 star — won the first series of the show. The series lasted just two seasons.
As we reported back in 2021, the upcoming Cypriot selection will include many former Eurovision representatives from Cyprus. You’ll recall that artists from Panik Records were internally selected for Eurovision 2018 (Eleni Foureira), 2020 (Sandro), 2021 (Elena Tsagrinou) and 2022 (Andromache). Panik also represents Eurovision alums including Demy and Ivi Adamou.
OGAE Greece says The 100 will also include Eurovision stars from Greece and Eurofans from both countries.
The show, which is expected to start in mid-October, will air every Saturday evening on CyBC and ALPHA Greece. Two singers from each of the shows will make it to the semi-finals. The final, which will air at the end of the year, will consist of ten artists. Nikos Koklonis will host.
Are you excited by the Cypriot selection? Who do you hope to see in The 100? Let us know in the comments box below!
Interesting, but I think an actual national final might have been a better idea?
I cant see Eleni returning any time soon. I’ve seen so many people putting her down when comparing her to this years Spanish dance queen Chanel. They’re likely still going to compare her for the next few years at least.
If I was Eleni, I would honestly just enjoy being the biggest and most successful part of Cyprus’s comeback legacy and leave it to someone else to take the legacy further.
I’d say a change of pace could work, but the selection process needs to be kept at the center of the idea. I figure selecting an artist like this could work, but a song? I believe it’ll work better if they choose an artist and then compose a song specifically tailored to that artist. I do hope Cyprus deviates from the norm of dancy pop songs though, we’ve seen enough of them for now.
i mean this kind of selection gave us Micahel Ben David and for that they should be banned for a lifetime but whatever, hope that the winner wont be a harraser/attention w@@re like that thing
It also gave us Netta, so it’s a hit or miss 🙂
Cyprus’s song and staging this year were actually GOOD and unique. The reason why people didn’t vote for it is because Andromache’s vocals were TERRIBLE, probably the worst of the semi-final she was in!
And where did Michael Rice position in 2019? I mean, his song was good, it was written by the Swedish guy from that year, but it did TERRIBLY.
Good? Christer Björkman talked him out of sending it to Melodifestivalen because it was not a good song. Which is why he went with ” Too Iate for Love”.
Now that might not have been the best of songs either but it is miles above Michael Rice.
NOOO!!! i think they need to stick with the internal selection.
since 2018 Cyprus was in my top 5 [2019 and 2021 as my winners, 2018 and 2020 as my 2nd, and 2022 as my 5th].
The weirdest way to Select an entrant ever
So they want to use a format that has been dead in its native UK since 2019? Would have made more sense to use it while the concept was fresh, not now when its buried and gone
That said I did enjoy the clips I saw on YouTube from this show, looked fun. Why BBC cancelled it I dont know..
A format that failed in its home country but finding success being sold off to other countries isn’t new. Pop Idol only lasted two seasons in the UK but its American offshoot that only began airing about a year after Will Young was first crowned the winner and it has gone on for 20 or so seasons now, with multiple versions of Idol coming out around the world.
Artist selection instead of artist + song selection rarely works. It’s the combo of an artist and a song that makes the difference. I believe national finals are the beat option. We ve seen many cases where they select artist and then the song is mediocre or not custom made for the artist (thus not sounding authentic). Good luck to Cyprus!
I thought it should have been a national final?
Good approach, finally no internal selections with foreigners. Let the public decide.
Although this is going to be an artist selection and not a song selection….
As long as they pick someone who will get the job done and take the time to craft the best possible song for them then sure, gopher it.
I’d like Cyprus’ ambition to win the contest to increase after this year’s NQ.
I want the NQ to teach them that they’ve played out the dance song formula as much as humanly possible and need to diversify. It used to not be obvious what Cyprus would send from year to year…
Ela wasn’t really a dance song in the mold of Fuego. It was a little different And it’s a shame it didn’t qualify. Will they actually learn their lesson to diversify? I don’t know.
2020 was different.
True, I forgot about 2020, but I think Cyprus would have failed to qualify that year had the contest not been cancelled. They dodged a bullet, but not for long.
Andromache couldn’t sing live. That was the problem.
So, probably this is just selecting another Greek singer, preferably with an uptempo dance song, but with extra steps this time. Got it!
Just pre-select Sandro now and find him a really good song
At least let him audition more than once, under all of his names.
Im Cypriot and although this means more eurovision nights for us which is good i I find the idea horrible. No good comes out of these talent shows and the idea of sending someone nobody knows will result remaining in the semis.
Ummm say that to Netta honey
The key is to give the artist a song that’s made FOR them/BY them specifically. Yeah, it worked for Netta bc that’s what they did with her. It didn’t work so hot for Michael this year bc the song wasn’t written with any specific artist in mind.
Precisely! Netta is the most perfect example of crafting the perfect song for the singer. I NEED Israel to keep doing that! Cyprus should do. Everyone should, unless you have a genuinely strong NF.
Nice idea, it’s a good concept to select artists that stand out, and it’s like to get the opinion of kind of a demoscopic jury on artists, it’s interesting.
So apparently we will have the Cypriot representative at the end of the year, it’s great but knowing Cyprus we will have the song not before March unfortunately. I would like Greece to do something like that instead of their random internal selection.
how is a nice idea a show that only did two seasons in the country of its origin? apart from Germany 2010 when did a similar concept worked?
It’s worse than an internal selection because it just limits the song choice even further.
We’re talking about to choose an artist here with this concept not the Eurovision song with which he/she/they will compete so I don’t see how it limits the song choice?
At least don’t let popular Panik artists to compete , let the independent/public artists in and choose somebody from the island
Why are you thinking about it?
thats not gonna happen, panik uses every opportunity to promote its artists in the worst way possible, watch people auditioning that they are already signed with them
The article says they’re looking for new talent. Signing up to Panik would obviously become a part of the winner’s package. I doubt they’ll let those from their existing roster to put their names forward for consideration.
Excluding people with previous experience is quite harsh to be honest, everyone should be allowed to compete if they wish to do so.
And so here ends Cyprus’s rise at Eurovision.
It’s overproduced mess anyway. They will know who wins months ahead
How so? Convincing a hundred people to vote a certain way could be damaging to the those hundred people more than the show itself. That’s counterproductive.
You know these all are wannabie stars that would do anything producers ask them do just to get some screen time, right?
Well that’s the purpose of talent shows: To look for people who want to be stars.
I’m talking about juries…
I was expecting a proper NF, not a spin-off of a short lived reality show
I’m sorry, this sounds horrible.
aw, i was expecting something more exciting like a proper national final with original songs. this is just a boring talent show format.
What happened to the proposed national final that Cyprus was supposed to have?
Using reality shows as selections for Eurovision doesn’t feel authentic. I mean, look at X Factor Israel or Georgian Idol for example. Most of the time, it never works out in the end. The Panik Records collaboration they had in the past was great, it’s a shame that era is over.
Panik Records probably saw the writing on the wall early on that their current arrangement with CyBC over the selection process is bound to hit a snag, especially if their way to do so these past few years was essentially recreating the success they had with Eleni and “Fuego” but with diminishing returns.
To be fair, with every X-Factor Israel and Georgian Idol (and let’s even throw in MESC 2022 just because they only selected the singer, not the actual winning song), there’s X-Factor Malta and Rising Star Israel.
Instead of looking for something that would be a complete package they are looking for singers as if that’s the problem…. I bet that the winner will be a Cypriot girl already signed in panik records, that show is a way to promote their B/C list artists