Liverpool ready for first Eurovision semi-final
The first semi-final of the Eurovision Song Contest 2023 will start in Liverpool on the evening of 9 May at 21:00 CET. Artists from 15 countries participate, 10 of them will go to the final. This year, the contest’s organizing body, the European Broadcasting Union, canceled the vote by national juries in the qualifiers. It will be duplicated. Who goes to the final is decided by the viewers. Jury scores will only count if the public vote in a given country is invalidated.
Eurovision on behalf of Ukraine
“This competition will undoubtedly be remembered. It takes place in Liverpool, but on behalf of Ukraine,” emphasized Eurovision Executive Producer Martin Österdahl at the opening ceremony on 7 May. Due to Russian aggression, Ukraine, which won the previous competition in Turin, was unable to host Eurovision. The European Broadcasting Union handed over the role of host to the United Kingdom, which came second in 2022.
Symbols of solidarity with Ukraine – flags, posters, colors and the emblem of the current competition – are visible in Liverpool. In addition, Yulina Sanina from the Ukrainian group The Hardkiss, who is also a co-host of the contest, and singer Alyosha will perform as guests in the first semi-final. Rita Ora will represent the UK during the public vote on the Eurovision stage with a medley of her hits and the premiere of a new song.
Favorites of the first “Eurovision” semi-final
The favorites for the first semi-final are also the main candidates for victory in the competition – the Swede Lorin and the Finnish Carie. Lauryn already won Eurovision 2012 in Baku and is the absolute favorite of bookmakers in Liverpool. In the same semi-final, the Croatian group Let 3 presents the most controversial composition of the current competition, the absurd anti-war satire “Mama SC”.
Pasha Parfeniy from Moldova, Sudden Lights from Latvia, twin duo TuralTuranX from Azerbaijan, Noa Kirel, one of the most popular singers in Israel today, as well as group Vesna from the Czech Republic, are also competing for spots in the final. It includes the Russian Olesya Ochepovskaya. Russia and Belarus are suspended from participating in Eurovision, therefore TV channels in these countries do not broadcast the contest. But you can watch it live on the official website of “Eurovision”. The second semifinal will be on May 11th and the final on Saturday, May 13th.
Source: DW
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