Spanish broadcaster RTVE is laying down plans and smoothing the road for Blas Cantó as he journeys to next year’s Eurovision Song Contest. In November, the Spanish Eurovision site EurovisionSpain reported that the “Universo” singer had shortlisted four songs and presented them to RTVE and his record label. And today the same outlet shed more light on how Spain will likely decide their song for Eurovision 2021. Unlike last year RTVE will not be internally selecting the song.
Yes, the nation known for some of the spiciest national selections ever will spice it up yet again in 2021 — no doubt hoping for better results than in recent years. Spain has explored more formats than anyone, and in 2021 the Iberian nation will go for a song selection show. Blas will sing and the public will decide.
[EXCLUSIVA]
? TVE (@eurovision_tve) hará una preselección para elegir la canción de @BlasCanto para Róterdam 2021??Varias canciones.
??Papel fundamental de la audiencia.
??Artistas invitados.
??Fecha aún por determinar. Entre enero y febrero.https://t.co/3XHvg57MbM pic.twitter.com/pOhjz7xqK7— Eurovision-Spain.com | PrePartyES (@eurospaincom) December 29, 2020
Blas Cantó: Song selection gala format for Eurovision 2021
As EurovisionSpain confirms, RTVE, Blas’s team and his record label have all decided on a song selection gala for Rotterdam 2021. In this gala, which is set to take place in January or February, the Murcian singer will present his offerings and the audience will play an essential role.
Pastora Soler, who represented Spain in 2012, went through a similar song selection process. From the three offerings Spain had that year, both the audience and a professional jury agreed on “Quedate Conmigo” as their entry for Baku. Her participation culminated in a 10th place finish in 2012, remembered by many as one of the best performances in Spain’s history.
However, the same process did not work out as well in 2013. In a gala called “El Sueño de Morfeo: Destino Eurovision”, both the audience and the jury decided on “Contigo hasta el final” as the song for Malmö. The Spanish band only managed 8 points and placed 25th that year.
Official details are forthcoming. It’s not yet clear if the audience will make up 100% of the vote or how many songs Blas will sing. Stay tuned!
Do you approve of Spain’s proposed selection method? What genre do you want to see Blas perform in? And will this method help Spain exit the bottom 5 after an unfortunate four years? Let us know in the comments box below!
Good idea. “Universo” was not a good choice, so getting the public involved might give a better outcome.
Good news. I’m just a bit worried about the audience having all the power. Some Spanish eurofans are known for its dated, tacky and extravagant preferences.
So long as Blas is involved, this will probably get them a decent if unremarkable result, which would be a good turning point for success down the line.
I all up for national finals with internally selected artists. BUT when they do Spain’s/Romania’s style of them – so the artists are involved with the song selection and writing process and they aren’t just offered a bunch of songs, which they also may dislike (Israel’s and also maybe Slovenia’s style).
Ana Soklic does write her own songs, so I bet some of the submissions are hers.
As far as I know, Blas himself has reportedly presented four songs to TVE. Let’s see if any of them makes the NF pool.
One more national final, nice. 🙂 I trust Blas can deliver a better song than “Universo”.
Likely a mix of both and there’s a pretty good chance, Blas himself is also involved as a co-writer.
This is fun! In a year with less national selections than usual, I’m excited for other countries announcing they will do one!
Well, I did like “Contigo hasta al final”. Europe was simply not ready for a feel-good bagpipes-inspired pop rock tune in Spanish.
The song was good, the live vocals not so much.