Hola Benidorm! It’s that time of the year again: Spain has confirmed its national final date for February 3.
Right by the city’s gorgeous coastline, RTVE announced the dates for the third edition of Benidorm Fest: The first semi-final will take place on Tuesday, January 30; the second, on Thursday, February 1 and the finale on February 3.
?? Save the date! Spain will choose its #Eurovision2024 act on 3 February during the final of #BenidormFest2024.
— wiwibloggs (@wiwibloggs) July 26, 2023
? The 16 participating artists will be revealed on 11 November during the #LatinGrammy Awards. pic.twitter.com/djtUGMPlOZ
16 acts will compete at Benidorm’s Palau l’Illa in order to get to Malmö. Or in order to replicate a smashing commercial success such as Vicco‘s. Or both.
Most excitingly, the list will be revealed on November 11 in Seville, the city which is hosting the Latin Grammys.
Benidorm Fest 2024: The competition
Following a long press conference, RTVE’s team unveiled some juicy stuff about how Benidorm Fest 2024 is developing and who will be taking part.
Co-director César Vallejo stressed that this year they’re putting extra emphasis on the idea of Benidorm Fest being the festival of Spanish music. “If you sell this as a competition, established artists won’t like the idea of coming 16th”.
“Some well-known artists are sometimes wary of taking part. That’s why we have to get people to perceive Benidorm not as a competition, but as a showcase of the best Spanish music”, he said.
Vallejo also clarified one of the main issues within the Benidorm Fest 2024 base: the song rights. RTVE will only hold 15% of the rights of the winning entry, and none from the rest. That means creators will largely get to keep their coin!
According to Head of Delegation Ana María Bordas this is merely a “symbolic percentage” so that RTVE doesn’t lose money when they play the winning song.
Eva Mora’s dismissal
Despite RTVE’s tendency of holding many press conferences, this was the first one held since Eva Mora, the former Head of Delegation, was fired. And thus her dismissal was one of the questions.
Head of Communication María Eizaguirre pointed out that RTVE “just like any other entreprise when seasons finish, takes decisions about the teams”. “I think that personally and publically, Eva has been thanked for her work”.
Fans, however, have pointed out that there hasn’t been any statement referring to that, and Eizaguirre didn’t reply precisely to the question of why Eva Mora wasn’t mentioned in the press release where the new organisation was announced.
There were also questions regarding Ana María Bordas and her status as Head of Delegation. Despite the fact that she had always been involved in Benidorm Fest and Eurovision, only Eva Mora was shown as head of delegation during 2022 and most of 2023.
Bordas explained that she hasn’t stop holding the position, and that’s why she was chosen as part of the Reference Group before Eurovision 2023. However, this was not announced before the contest.
Benidorm Mess: Massiel calls on PSOE to support Feijóo
?Massiel la lía en la rueda de prensa del #BenidormFest2024 y reivindica que Feijóo ha ganado las elecciones y el PSOE debe pactar con ellos "como en Alemania" pic.twitter.com/5Zyb8C5z7J
— El Televisero (@eltelevisero) July 26, 2023
You may be aware that there were general elections in Spain on Sunday, and that the result has left the country in a bit of uncertainty to say the least.
Eurovision 1968 winner, Massiel, has her opinion, and she decided to share it while being interviewed. After she was asked about her journey to London 55 years ago, she started saying: “I remember Feijóo saying he would ask Sánchez for support after he won and in the end, he has won. He should speak with Sánchez so they get a fucking agreement once and for all”.
“They’ve done this in Germany and it went really good, why do they have to try to invent another thing?”, she said. “Then you can cut this if you want”, she says.
What do you make of Benidorm Fest’s new edition? Will it be third time lucky for Spain? Let us know in the comment section below!
My BeFest fever dream would be Belinda or Danna Paola taking part of it
I have no concern about whatever entry Spain selects because the only time I supported Spain was in 2022, when my pleas for a reggaeton song to be included in the competition were answered. Discovering new artists and adding new songs to my playlist, though, is what I really enjoy doing, and that is why I am eagerly waiting for the season of national selections to begin. Whatever you want to say, “Yo quisiera” by Alice Wonder is still on my regular playlist. The songs “Flamenco”, “Sayonara”, “Mi Familia”, and “Inviernos en Marte” frequently appear on my playlist these days… Read more »
I think Spain should keep doing what they are doing, as personally I have loved the Spanish entries for the last two years, and Blanca and her song were spellbindingly uniqye and fabulous.
I few days ago I watched Blanca Paloma’s performance at Eurovision and I finally came to terms with her last position in televote, I even kind of understood It, It was too different, too not mainstream or too whatever, It does not really Matter BUT i also understood that this kind of songs are necessary at Eurovision (and a song like EaEa was really necessary in the history of Spain at Eurovision). We, Spaniards, have always been on the “safe” side when choosing a song with very poor results and It feels so good for a change to get a… Read more »
Spain should be sending Summer Bop . Europe dosnt Wish to Endoor your Fartsy Artsy Crap we want to Party
I am not spaniard. I was at Madrid party and believe me that you can party also on EaEa. It is not about the song, it is about you. Think out of the box next timee. Byeee!
If your pseudo corresponds to your tastes, I can understand why you don’t like a song such as Eaea.
Ok noted. Next.
ExACTly. And Blanca is still one of Spain’s better results in recent years.
By the way, you should check out Ping Pong, the new Chanel’s song, it is a banger
Anyone who talks sh*t about EaEa is just a clueless normie with really basic taste in music, Blanca’s song is undeniably one of the greatest Spanish entries of all time, regardless of any results.
Anyone who talks sh*t about Solo is just a clueless normie with really basic taste in music, Blanka’s song is undeniably one of the greatest Polish entries of all time, regardless of any results.
how does that got to do with Spain in Eurovision or their last entry, this person didn’t bring up Blanka or her song, so I don’t know why you brought it up
Because you can say these things about any Song . I really Love Solo and know Most Here hate me for this fact , but its my Opinion. EaEa was really bad but this is his Opinion but him saying all this things dosnt make it Good and also dosnt mean his Music Tastes are Superior to Us All .
Well said respect to you
Tf is u talkin abt? Solo is a fkn gimmick with childish lyrics
I think people are entitled to their opinions and even to their really mean opinions… I was so disappointed with the Spanish result this year that It took me a long time to watch the performance again on YouTube but when I did I realized that regardless of the position I am Happy that we sent this song to Eurovisión and if people dont appreciate It, It is ok…
If It is just about getting a good result It has been proved that a girl dancing her ass off IS a good choice. I expect more from Eurovision though.
Hey, I love EaEa, but people have their reasons for not liking it. It just means they have different music tastes. Nothing wrong with that.
Hoping for yet another good song from Spain! They have really upped their game the past few years. Agoney and Megara in particular this year were fantastic!!
Spain don’t waste your time and your money for that in the current state of things it’s useless and hopeless, and we all know why….. Moreover Melfest and San Remo want to keep their “prestige” and their european domination you know. Some countries try since decades to be successful with a national final and maybe they manage to be top 10 once or twice in 15 years…. while Sweden and Italy systematically every year yes whatever the quality of their acts. So really Spain don’t use your time for that… after all Sweden needs absolutely Eurovision to shine internationally and… Read more »
And stop using international juries belonging to this Esc mafia, it won’t help you at all since it’s not their aim to see you having success but the opposite…I repeat they want to keep their prestige and don’t want to share.
Yeah, Sweden is overrated af but Italy is fantastic. They could have won every year of the past decade and I wouldn’t have minded.
I don’t agree, in 2012, 2013, 2014, 2017, 2018, 2021, 2022, 2023 certainly not, and in some of these years they didn’t deserve the top 10 sorry. In 2015, 2016, 2019 yes why not, 2016 was their best song imo. So Italy on the paper is not more fantastic than others.
And 2011 runner up seriously lol.
Before their come back they weren’t successful in Eurovision…. so maybe it was the condition of their come back to get good results systematically, only the Esc gods know. In 12 years they got 10 top 10 and it’s laughable sorry.
And San Remo must be the most boring festival if you are not italian, sorry I know here the leitmotiv is don’t touch to Italy and San Remo but I’m not part of the sect, sorry.
You may need to drink a tea and think a bit. It is possible that both Sweden and Italy are a bit overrated but please, don’t tell that the songs they send year after year are bad. Those 2 countries clearly are the best of the best in this competition. I’m not going to answer to all the things you said because you talked A LOT. Just a few things here and there. First of all, Sweden doesn’t need Eurovision to shine worldwide. In case you haven’t noticed yet, swedish products are now everywhere around us in our daily life… Read more »
Sure! Lol, Ikea and Zara Larson makes them shine… I repeat they need Eurovision and not the opposite.
Italy 2011 perfect! So laughable as if this piece of jazz was the best song of the night, NEVER.
Benidorm Fest popular in Spain?! Have you seen the TV ratings, nobody cares except the eurofans, who are not so many, the general public really doesn’t care, sorry.
Let’s agree to disagree. If you onyl know IKEA and Zara Larson from Sweden, I can’t help you. For 2011 what was the best perfomance for you? Let’s make a quick recap of the songs that deserve attention. Azerbaijan: bad song, never understood how it won. Sweden: bad singer and very bad lyrics. Ukraine: average song with a nice staging idea. Denmark: nice song and nice group but nothing outstanding. I only talked about the rest of the top 5 there. If we look at other finalists, we can see a lot of fans favorites who failed their performance (Hungary,… Read more »
Lena should have won twice in a row, she would have made History like that, first woman to win twice in a row….. and with that the obsession to make Loreen the first woman to win twice wouldn’t have existed. Next year Conchita may come back so let’s make her the first drag act to win twice, why not, let’s kill the contest each year….thank you Loreen. Tell me what makes shine Sweden worldwide musically now….I’m curious…. ABBA, Avici and Spotify ok great but who and what else. You said Swedish music is streamed worldwide ok but not as the… Read more »
I personally nominete Belén Aguilera as the 2024 Spanish representer.
Spain needs to send Latin dance bops every year because that’s what’s expected of them and that’s what we the people want. Otherwise, we have no problem canceling them.
A harsh truth Spanish fans need to accept. The public want and expect only one thing from them: modern Jennifer Lopez and Ricky Martin impersonators singing and dancing to catchy Latin music. If they want to do well, then they need to leave anything else at home for a while and see if they get their desired results. Sweden is the proof that there’s nothing wrong with being a one-trick pony.
Go Megara!
The people want Bop from Spain not A Woman Screetching And Shouting . No wonder Spain is Last place in Televoting , Nobody wants these things
I do love me a screeching and shouting woman at Eurovision, but Albania already does that very well, and I am a fan of their screaming ladies. I would agree with you though; I don’t think people are looking to Spain to give them that.
Well done you for speaking up. I hope a certain wiwi jury member who thought the low vote for the screaming song learns his lesson and realises it was not a crime of the 2023 season that the general public didn’t respond but just an really awful song.
I always speak Up . And I am not scared of the tirannical Elites who delete my Comments on Wiwiblogs , they always deleted Mine even when it is 100PrecentTruth . They do not want to hear it
Some people might want that and other people might want something different. I LOVE EaEa and Blanca Paloma. It is ok she was last in televote as a Matter of fact I did not specially liked 1st, 2nd or 3rd place this year… Do minorities dont have the right to be represented also in Eurovision?
Hope this time they’ll pick wisely, not like this year’s fail. It should have been Agoney. But judging about their record, they’ll probably pick another joke act like Manel Navarro, Miki and so on…
Yes it should have been Agoney
A festival of Spanish music over it being a competition is defintely a good route to go down. IF, and I stress IF, the UK ever has a national final, this a line the BBC should take too. Finishing last shouldn’t be seen as a humiliation. Benjamin came last in UMK, but does anyone care? Has it harmed his career? Probably not.
Benjamin got his song widely known to the public, participating in UMK also brought more exposure to his next releases as well and he has been performing in different summer festivals this year so he has done quite well.
We all want Spain to do well! They just need to find a better blend/commercial middle ground between traditional music and mainstream appeal as France 2022 and Spain 2023 showed