Eurovision 2016

So, how was Eurovision 2016 for you? A fun-filled evening of cheesy pop (evenings, if you also caught the semi-finals). Here, for one half of the household, specifically the white-blue-red striped half, it was too much too bear...

source

As you probably know, Ukraine won Eurovision. To clarify very quickly, my wife isn't fervently nationalistic, and certainly not so much so that she hates Ukraine and automatically detested the very notion of them winning (she likes Ukraine and Ukranians... we went to Kiev a few years back - we both think it's lovely and the locals are so nice it's unreal... it's a bit like Moscow in a parallel universe where the majority of people are exceedingly friendly and don't have an expression on their faces which says 'come within 5 metres of me and I'll kill you'). What got to my wife was the content of the song and it's lyrics aimed at Russia. It's hard not to agree with with her.

The winning song is called 1944 and is about the deportation of Crimean Tatars by Stalin [a very bad thing]. Are you starting to see the parallels with more recent events? [Russia, Crimea, annexation]

The song is about political, historical events. Fine by Eurovision this year... but Armenia's song purportedly about the 1915 genocide (the entrants said it wasn't) had to be changed because Eurovision thought it was too political. In contrast, Jamala, the singer, has openly acknowledged its original meaning and its relevance to the current situation and, worse in my view, used that to call for votes.

I think it was lucky to be allowed in unchanged. After that though, I don't think that its content made any difference to the result.

 

It was a powerful, emotional performance and one that was different to everything else on offer, which is often a key factor in the winning song (but not monstrously different... see Georgia's assault on the eyes and ears, a weapon of mass destruction impressively condensed into song-form). It was nice that someone sang in Tatar and it also called for peace...

We could build a future
Where people are free
to live and love.
The happiest time.

As you can imagine, it hasn't gone down too well in all quarters in Russia but others, given Ukraine's perilous finances, are looking forward to next year's final...

EUROVISION 2017, KIEV

(Russian internet meme, widely doing the rounds)

I'm also keen to see Russia's response for next year: a boycott? pulling out all the stops to win in Kiev? or will they send an act that displays the same level of contempt for the contest that the UK has shown for the last decade or so?

Ultimately, it's a lot of fuss over some so-so songs, none of which were anywhere like as good as the hosts' song and dance routines at the semi and in the final. Remember: "peace, peace, love, love (and a man in in a hamster wheel)" everywhere, including towards your neighbours, and it's not as if it's something that's really important... like football!

p.s. should this really have been tagged "culture"?