| Eurovision Song Contest News - 2008 Belgrade, Serbia 

Euro Sheep

Hello Europe and beyond!

As you can all see, I am Euro Sheep! At the minute I'm 17, studying for my IB exams in May 2009 ( that means I can't see ESC ) in the sleepiest and one of the most beautiful parts of the UK! I joined esctoday in 2007 after the contest in Helsinki because it was a chance to meet new people, keep up to date with all the ESC news and share opinions (although after almost a year I have learned you have to shout pretty loud to be heard, and that not all opinions are necessarily nice or even valid!) Since my birth I have always watched Eurovision on TV, I would never look forward to it, I always enjoyed watching it and I would always forget about it for another year after not being able to find the CD in the shops! I have many strange but special memories; buying the tape of "No Dream Impossible" in 2001, wanting Denmark to beat Estonia even though I hadn't listened to the songs, being convinced t.A.T.u. would win in 2003 and getting really angry in 2005 after switching on to just see the finish of Helena Paparizou's performance! 2006 was the turning point for me...I cast my first vote EVER! for Sweden and I finally managed to find the CD, but it was hidden really well in store - so I often look back and think "what if I had never found it!"

Anyone who has read one of my comments will probably think that my head is pretty empty and that my opinion is well, basically worth nothing. I'm not stupid - just lacking in common sense . It is very hard to judge a person from a few lines (so how can you trust what I'm saying here!? haha). If any of you would like to contact me, I urge you to do so because I have no-one to talk to in person about Eurovision (though it's not because I have no friends, honest!), hence I need all the e-friends I can get! So...if you want to my eMail address is:

esc_talk2me@hotmail.co.uk

For me, Eurovision extends further than the songs, the show, the participants...it is proof to everyone that Europe can unite in celebration. It shows the power of music, that countries which once made it their aim to destroy each other and wipe each other off the face of the map now give each other the gift of points. If you cannot find something admirable in every ESC entry then you must open your mind and let the music in, so that you can truly be part of something so universal and so moving...

After a year of reacting and commenting on this site, I have seen quite a lot and met quite a few horrible people (I wont name names). There are also many I admire for their conviction and witty observations. But one who has always been at the forefront of my attention has been Florian G. I am in awe of his eloquence and thank him for his beautiful descriptions of his favourite entries; he enabled me to see "Cvet Z Juga" in a completely different way and rekindled my love for "Alvedansen". So to him, I say a heart felt thank you...

I guess you could say I was a schlager lover (though not completely) but I feel if you want to find moving ballads there are plenty of others which are better than the ones in ESC (although I still haven't found anything like "Angel", "Questa Notte" or "Heaven"). That said, there is nothing better than up-tempo ESC music, it courses through my blood vessels like electricity and is the very thing which keeps me moving and smiling everyday!!!

My favourite contest Kyiv, Ukraine 2005
My favourite winner GREECE 2005: My Number One - Helena Paparizou
My favourite entry of all time GEORGIA 2007: Visionary Dream - Sopho

ESC Belgrade, Serbia 2008
This year sees the biggest Eurovision in its history and for me, I wanted to celebrate this with a bang! I've been looking forward to it since the 13th of May 2007 – when the Helsinki final ended – and so this year was the first time I looked at the national finals. I'm really glad that I did because I've found so many amazing songs, and I am very close to the winners of the shows I watched. In the past, I would never listen to the entries until the night of the show, but this year the temptation has been too much and I have heard a few, though only a few! So...without any further delay here are my full points for Eurovision 2008!

12 points ARMENIA: Qele, Qele – Sirusho
So many people have criticised this entry for being too cheap, boring and being sure to finish top 10 due to the Armenia diaspora. To these people I say: “shut up, save your opinions for people who care and frankly f*** off!” - sorry to be rude. Yes, this entry is not the most lyrically complex and it may not be an amazing insight into human emotion/relationships, but there are so many worse songs out there! Sirusho is stunning, she is talented as SHE wrote the lyrics to the song and it was an instant hit with me. It is addictive, catchy and all it does is make me want to dance. And when all is said and done...that's what I really want from a song

10 points UKRAINE: Shady Lady – Ani Lorak
I cannot watch this video for more than 5 seconds because I loose myself completely. Ani may just be the most gorgeous woman I have ever seen!!! I thought Tina Karol was beautiful but Ani has taken the crown! I love her, the song and the country. Ukraine has done it again, proving that they deserve a place in my top 10 countries! This song is a guaranteed body-mover, I cannot stop dancing when I hear it and Kirkorov/Kavaleryan have created a masterpiece which is even better than "Work Your Magic" last year!

8 points SERBIA: Oro – Jelena Tomasevic feat. Bora Dugic
Again, there have been lots of people hating this song, criticising it for being too similar to all the other Balkan entries. And again, I say to them what I said the people who hate the Armenian entry! This is some of Zeljko's finest work, with the same breathtaking texture and exquisite lyrics as his own entry in 2004. This is all made better by Jelena herself, whose sorrow-filled voice carries it to another level and really conveys a heartache that will never fade. Jelena is not afraid to be honest and truthful, hitting out at Dustin and the other “uninspiring entries”. I say this is better than “Molitva” but I still believe that Serbia are most deserving winners!

7 points SWEDEN: Hero – Charlotte Perrelli
OK! I admit it, I guess I'm a schlager-sheep at heart I watched Melodifestivalen for the first time this year and WOW – it was amazing!!! This is how ESC should be, Charlotte is an inspiring woman and I have really been endeared to her – anyone who can perform in heels like she does is amazing enough! I can remember desperately trying to find the tape of “Take Me To Your Heaven” in my small-town shop and feeling elated when I finally got my hands on it! Sweden was the first country I ever voted for back in 2006 and this year there's a vote for “Hero” from me!

6 points ROMANIA: Pe-o Margine De Lume – Nico & Vlad
What's strange about this is I haven't heard the entry yet ! I am only going on what I have heard about these two and their song. I love the translation of the title; “At The Edge Of The World” (along those lines) it sounds inspiring and stands out to me as most of the songs I love normally do! Nico and Vlad appear to be very talented and their voices are stunning so I'm really looking forward to seeing this entry in the first semi-final and hopefully the final!

5 points MALTA: Vodka – Morena
It seems silly to give an entry points when I have never heard them, but with some countries you just know they're not going to disappoint. Malta is one of these countries and sending Morena this year will hopefully pay off for them! The schlager-boys love this, so you know it has to be good!

4 points GREECE: Secret Combination – Kalomira
I see a pattern developing here... Anyway, I love Greece's formula for Eurovision entries and I adore Helena, Sarbel and Sakis! Like those 3, Kalomira is almost illegally attractive and this is another one of those entries which I cannot wait to see on stage in Serbia!

3 points BULGARIA: DJ, Take Me Away – Deep Zone & Balthazar
Bulgaria's first two entries into ESC, I feel are the worst in the history of the competition (at least for the 21st century). I would say that “Lorraine” by Kaffe is probably the worst debut entry ever (even worse than Azerbaijan, I hear you say!) But that's enough of the negative, last year Bulgaria blew me away, I have not the words to describe Elitsa and Stoyan! I always knew the country had it in them and I just wish that “Water” could have got an even higher placing! Again, another entry I have not heard but which calls to me somehow (ironic actually because this is the one entry in the list of EuroBGvision songs which I said would not have a hope in hell of winning!) but without even listening to a word I have not been able to stop saying “DJ, please, TAKE ME AWAY!!!”...preferably to Bulgaria

2 points ALBANIA: Zemrën E Lamë Peng – Olta Boka
I hate her...she is younger than I am and she's going to Belgrade! Life is not fair! But seriously, Olta is a wonderful, charming girl. This entry has been with me the longest as I watched FIK and I have probably “over-listened” to it by now – but there is hope, I have not heard the ESC version yet! I have made my opinions of the FIK judges well known but I feel that the biggest injustice is that Olta was deprived the right of winning without question...I hope she does amazingly well in everything she does because she really does deserve it!

1 point ICELAND: This Is My Life – Euroband
The final jewel in the crown that is my points. Except for Eurolaul, Laugardagslögin was the national final I had the most interest in. I wanted “Núna Veit Ég” to win, but then I realised that nobody else did! So I faced a choice...”Fullkomið Líf”, “Ho, Ho, Ho We Say Hey, Hey, Hey” or “The Wiggle Wiggle Song”. The decision was obvious, I hate the pathetic wiggle song to this day, I hated “Ho, Ho, Ho We Say Hey, Hey, Hey” when I first listened to it (but now find it's really catchy) so my last option to back a winner was Euroband. Pure chance you could say, although I had that strange sixth-sense thing about the title “Perfect Life” (the same sense which has given Romania 6 points without me hearing a second of this song). I Euroband for so many reasons, after so many months of listening to their song (but not the final version, yey!) I feel close to them and I wish them all the luck in the world for Belgrade!

Peace,

Euro Sheep
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