Because of the current situation with the reigning champion, Ukraine, that made it infeasible to host this year's Eurovision Song Contest there, the runner-up, United Kingdom, took the reins in hosting this event. They promised that even if it will be held in the port city of Liverpool, they will pepper the proceedings with some touches of Ukrainian culture. Meanwhile, three countries--Bulgaria, Montenegro, and North Macedonia--dropped out of the contest this year as their broadcasters were strapped for cash. Hopefully we'll see them back next year. So we're down to 37 entries this year, the lowest turnout since 2014.
There is also a new twist in the voting process in light of last year's jury collusion scandal--the semifinals will be determined solely by televote. And this year there would be extra televote points for people living outside the European Broadcasting Region--the rest of the world's Top 10 votes would count as coming from one country. The finals will still maintain the jury and televote split with that extra rest of the world vote.
The Ukrainian situation does loom large with the entries of this year's contest. This can be found with UKRAINE's defiant message of prevailing amidst the odds, sentiments of peace and unity from CZECHIA and ESTONIA, CROATIA's satirical message, and SWITZERLAND's general anti-war sentiment.
Corollary to the concerns over the war in Ukraine is concerns about mental health. This is reflected most especially with LATVIA, who was inspired by the conflict to compose a song about mental anxiety. Though not necessarily related to the conflict, SERBIA also touches upon mental health in terms of waking up and becoming aware of his surroundings to overcome his circumstances, ARMENIA is about expressing anxiety in thinking about getting a lover, and FINLAND and MALTA talk about overcoming introversion to be able to party. We can also add ALBANIA to this bucket, as dealing with a family separating/falling apart does also take a toll on one's mental health.
Apparently the Måneskin influence still continues to loom large this year as we have a plethora of rock acts this year and it grew from last year's roster of seven. Eight of them are obvious: AUSTRALIA (hard synth rock), CROATIA (social commentary/parodic rock), GERMANY (goth/new wave rock), IRELAND (mainstream rock), LATVIA (indie art-rock), ROMANIA (bluesy rock), SAN MARINO (mainstream rock), and SLOVENIA (modern rock). Less obvious choices would include AZERBAIJAN, whose mellow sound still highlight influences from the Beatles, FINLAND's abrasive metal first half segment (though it should be noted that the latter half of the song goes into pop territory), and GREECE's mellow acoustic sound having a rhythmic rock edge to it. YouTube channel Overthinking It counted all of the above except GREECE as rock entries for this year. On top of that, one can say SERBIA is rock-adjacent as it uses abrasive industrial elements in its pop sound. But is this the most rock-laden Eurovision in history? Turns out the rockiest year was 2007, as post Lordi's "Hard Rock Hallelujah" victory it attracted a higher number of rock acts--Overthinking It counted 15 but I think we can add ROMANIA in that roster, on top of seeing GREECE, LITHUANIA, and NORTH MACEDONIA as being rock-adjacent..
Another observable trend during national final season was puffy sleeves worn by the singers. This could be found on the wardrobes sported by BELGIUM, CZECHIA, FINLAND, and LITHUANIA, and wen the official music video of the song was released, NORWAY also featured puffy sleeves. But as rehearsals drew in, most of them dropped the sleeves--only FINLAND kept it as other acts opted for sleeker wardrobe.
Last year's representative from Ireland, Brooke Scullion, proved to be a surprising inspiration as her sassy influence can be felt with the vocalists from ISRAEL, POLAND, and UNITED KINGDOM, Some people might want to add AUSTRIA into this mix, but I think they are not really pop thrushes like the aforementioned acts.
Some of the female acts also showcased long claw-like fingernails, like that reflected with ARMENIA, UNITED KINGDOM, and SWEDEN. One might be tempted to add FRANCE to that list, too, especially the way her red nails were very prominent in rehearsals.
Now, it's time for the Eurovision hunks and babes roundup. It's undeniable that this year's Eurovision Hunk of the Year is from ITALY, Marco Mengoni. It's interesting how he evolved from his slender pale-complexioned pompadoured look back in 2013 (where he was 1st runner-up for the title behind Azerbaijan's Farid Mamadov) to his now swarthier, beefier, Gerard Butler-esque (think 300) persona.
A close second is CYPRUS with Andrew Lambrou. Andrew also wins the Duncan Lawrence falsetto award as he is proving he can hit the high notes of his song live.
MOLDOVA's Pasha Parfeni continues to channel Colin Farrell's charisma, this time doing Colin's long-hair phase.
Not that heavily buzzed about but also appealing is NETHERLAND's Dion Cooper.
Three of this year's rock acts are loaded with pretty boys, and you can almost confuse them with dreamy boybands, except that these have legitimate rock cred: IRELAND (Wild Youth), LATVIA (Sudden Lights), and SLOVENIA (Joker Out). It's easy to imagine hormonal teenage and 20-something females swooning over these young lads.
I almost included SAN MARINO's Piqued Jacks in the above attractive boy-band list, but only the lead singer, Andrea "E-King" Lazzeretti, is exuding charisma at a high level while his bandmates are a tad muted.
I'm also singling out MALTA's frontman from The Busker, Dave "Dav. Jr." Meilak over his bandmates as he has this cute, boyish, puppydog appeal.
For young hormonal girls, they might go for the youthful baritones from SWITZERLAND (Remo Forrer) and GREECE (Victor Vernicos), who are 21 and 16, respectively.
Looking almost 10 years younger than his actual age is SERBIA's Luke Black. His androgynous look can also be highly appealing to ladies and twink-hunters.
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Also exuding the vibe of youth even if he's revealed to be in his mid-20s is DENMARK's Reiley.
For those with a youthful alternative bent, they might dig 18-year-old Theodor Andrei from ROMANIA.
Also for alternative tastes is FINLAND's Käärijä. I'm surprised there are even a few fans who are dubbing him hunk of this year's batch--I vehemently beg to disagree, but well, there are people who think a funny man is desirable.
We should not forget the duo from UKRAINE, Tvorchi. For those hungering for a black man, singer Jeffrey Kenny (a.k.a. Jimoh Kehinde).from this band is the sole black representative this year.
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Now, for those looking for 'zaddies", we also have a good selection. Let's start with GERMANY's Lord of the Lost, especially frontman Chris "The Lord" Harms.
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Also bringing zaddy energy are the singers from AUSTRALIA's Voyager, frontman/keytarist Daniel Estrin and bassist Alex Canion, though we should not count out drummer Ashley Doodkorte..
But then, if you consider the sheer willingness to perform undressed, all the members of CROATIA's Let 3 can also fit the zaddy category.
Time to discuss the ladies. After careful (and admittedly reluctant) consideration, I crown POLAND's Blanka as Miss Eurovision 2023. Her slender body and prettiness were just too undeniable.
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Holding in close runner-up positions are ISRAEL's Noa Kirel and ARMENIA's Brunette. As the rehearsals wore on, Noa is pulling up the ranks as she looks like she's channeling the legendary Eleni Foureira of Cyprus (2018), though Brunette's beautiful staging is also a sight to behold.
I almost gave the Miss Eurovision 2023 crown to SPAIN's Blanca Paloma, but I learned based on photos she's not that photogenic. However, I have to note that with her magnificently dulcet belting voice and stage charisma I find her totally transfixing as a performer and that made her utterly gorgeous.
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It's interesting that when the entries were previewed in PORTUGAL's Festival da Canção, Mimicat was shown as a brunette. But then as she performed her song, she emerged as a blonde and she remains that moving forward. I do tend to prefer the brunette version of her, but the blonde look does make more sence with her presentation.
Bringing a lot of chic retro style is FRANCE's La Zarra, who is actually Quebecois with Moroccan heritage.
Speaking of Moroccan descent, though I wouldn't consider SWEDEN's Loreen as conventionally pretty, she is undeniably a queen who deserves to be genuflected.
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The ladies of CZECHIA's Vesna are gorgeous, even if they are deep in pancake makeup in their music video. Going for a more streamlined look for the Eurovision stage would just showcase their Slavic gorgeousness further.
Giving me Renee-Zellweger-in-Jerry-Maguire vibes is LITHUANIA's Monika Linkyte. She is exuding a very different vibe from her 2015 Eurovision stint--I'll discuss more of that when I get to her entry.
For those who wanted a more hipper indie bent, we have the NETHERLANDS' Mia Nicolai.
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ALBANIA's Albina Kelmendi is this year's gorgeously dramatic brunette, which is reflective of the intense passion she is conveying in her song.
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Meanwhile, UNITED KINGDOM's Mae Muller.is the sassy brunette.
The Nordic region is showcasing a couple of ingenues barely past the age of 20: Alessandra Mele from NORWAY and Dilja from ICELAND
Also on the youthful ingenue vibe is GEORGIA's Iru.Khechanovi or Iru--she saw action in Junior Eurovision 2011 as part of the kiddie girl group Candy and won with Candy Music.
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Surprisingly youthful is ESTONIA's Alika, who is only 20 years old.
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Finally, for those who want women with real body shapes and curves, we have AUSTRIA's Teya & Salena.
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