Since 2008, France has chosen their Eurovision representatives and songs via an internal selection. Over these past few years, broadcaster France 3 has given us genres ranging from ambient electronica to jazz chanson to afro-dance-pop to operatic bolero, with results generally bouncing around the middle of the scoreboard (often despite expectations or critical acclaim). One thing is for sure: over the past few years, variety has been key. You can't expect France to offer up the same thing twice in a row anymore, which leaves us with the question: what should we expect them to serve up in Baku next year? Well, as a fan with way too much time on her hands during the off-season, allow me to come up with a few suggestions. (Again, as I said when I did this series last year, these are only my opinions, and I do not intend to start any rumors.)
1) Caravan Palace: Following Raphael Gualazzi's surprisingly high result for Italy on 2011's scoreboard, I wouldn't be shocked to see a rise in the usage of jazz or other unexpected genres in future Eurovisions. Continuing on with that trend, might I recommend taking a look at Caravan Palace, an electro-gypsy-swing combo:
They seem to be masters at crafting jazzy earworms that sound both classic and updated at the same time, and any band that can claim both Django Reinhardt and Daft Punk as influences is more than fine with me! It's hard to find music that you can both dance to and chill out with, but this Parisian group has found a nice balance. Plus, considering Baku's surprisingly avid fondness for jazz, this might be an interesting option for France 3 to consider...
2) Julien Doré: I have been a fan of Julien since blogger Perez Hilton featured him on his site a few years ago. The winner of Season 5 of "Nouvelle Star" (the French equivalent of the "Idols" series), Julien is quirky, sexy, and unabashedly talented. Here's his first single, post-"Nouvelle Star" (and. for the record, he's the one dancing in the background, not the one clutching the chicken):
The 29-year old singer from Languedoc-Roussillon has released three albums, including 2011 release "Bichon". In all honesty, I've been unable to get that album's first single, "Kiss Me Forever", out of my head, and his oddly dark and twisted cover of Alizée's "Moi...Lolita" (which he performed on "Nouvelle Star" itself) raises the hairs on the back of my neck in the best possible way. Having Julien representing France would hearken back to the lighthearted, tongue-in-cheek entries of 2007 ("L'Amour à la française") and 2008 ("Divine"): flirting with parody, but without delving into full-on Verka Serduchka territory.
3) Phoenix: Ok, now I know this one is a long shot. One, they're a globally-known act (even in that ever-elusive American crossover market), and Eurovision might be an unexpected step for them. Two, they sing almost exclusively in English, which as we might remember from Sébastien Tellier's "Divine", might have the potential to raise the hackles of many. And finally, they're currently working on the follow-up to their highly successful 2009 album, "Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix", so they've got a bit on their minds at the moment. But lead singer Thomas Mars is currently married to Oscar-nominated film director Sophia Coppola...so can you imagine the promotional video we'd potentially have on our hands, people? An upbeat alt-rock smash like "Lizstomania" or "1901" might be just the trick to get France to the top of the leaderboard for the first time since 1977.
(Plus, a participation by Phoenix might raise more interest in the ESC in the United States, a personal hope of mine...a girl can dream, right?)
Who would you like to see for France next year? Let me know in the comments below, on Twitter (@escinsider), or on the ESC Insider's Facebook page; I love to hear from my readers!
Showing posts with label France. Show all posts
Showing posts with label France. Show all posts
Thursday, October 27, 2011
Sunday, May 8, 2011
Wednesday, April 13, 2011
New Videos from Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Latvia (plus, new versions for France and Croatia!)
Over the past week, a number of new videos have been released for this year's Eurovision hopefuls. Let's have a look, shall we?
First up, Armenia has revealed the official clip for Emmy's "Boom Boom", featuring German-Armenian boxer Arthur Abraham:
Well, at least the Armenians are probably realizing just how kitschy their song is...having Emmy and her pals dance around in a ring, wearing bedazzled boxing gloves and randomly turning into comic book characters is a pretty decent sign that they're taking "Boom Boom" with a grain of salt (and I, for one, could use a margarita after watching it. Oy...)
Next up, we've got Armenia's cross-Caucasus neighbors (and perpetual rivals) Azerbaijan, who released a second clip for Eldar and Nigar's "Running Scared":
Compared to previous years' entries from Baku, "Running Scared" is elegant, subtle, and sweet. The video is visually beautiful (not only because of the landscapes, but also for the copious shots of Eldar and Nigar!). I'm not quite sure why Azerbaijan insisted on recording a second video for "Running Scared", as their first version was definitely not unpleasant, but considering the country's penchant for Eurovision excess, they probably just figured that any money spent was money well spent.
First up, Armenia has revealed the official clip for Emmy's "Boom Boom", featuring German-Armenian boxer Arthur Abraham:
Well, at least the Armenians are probably realizing just how kitschy their song is...having Emmy and her pals dance around in a ring, wearing bedazzled boxing gloves and randomly turning into comic book characters is a pretty decent sign that they're taking "Boom Boom" with a grain of salt (and I, for one, could use a margarita after watching it. Oy...)
Next up, we've got Armenia's cross-Caucasus neighbors (and perpetual rivals) Azerbaijan, who released a second clip for Eldar and Nigar's "Running Scared":
Compared to previous years' entries from Baku, "Running Scared" is elegant, subtle, and sweet. The video is visually beautiful (not only because of the landscapes, but also for the copious shots of Eldar and Nigar!). I'm not quite sure why Azerbaijan insisted on recording a second video for "Running Scared", as their first version was definitely not unpleasant, but considering the country's penchant for Eurovision excess, they probably just figured that any money spent was money well spent.
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
Amaury Vassili's "Sognu" finally released!
...and I think I might be in love.
As expected, France has taken a complete 180 degree turn from last year's Afro-Caribbean club jam "Allez! Ola! Olé!" "Sognu", performed in Corsican, is a operatic bolero performed by one of the world's youngest professional tenors. Twenty-one-year-old Amaury, a native of Normandy, rarely sings in French, preferring to record songs in Italian or English. France, however, being France (remember, this is the country that argued in Parliament over whether their 2008 entry should be performed in English or not), will have their song performed in Corsican, the language spoken on the island where Napoleon himself was born and raised. This will be only the second French ESC entry where not a word of the French language will be heard, the first being 1996's "Diwanit Bugale", performed in Breton.
I am not a musicologist, or even an aficionado of opera. I am a proud Josh Groban fan, and I took a few trips to Lincoln Center as a schoolgirl, but that's really the extent of my experience in this genre. I am, however, very impressed by Amaury's talent, especially considering his age, and I hope he's as good live as he is on the studio recording of this single. Obviously, "Sognu" is not the typical Eurovision entry, and it will not be to everybody's liking. However, between Amaury and Italy's Raphael Gualazzi, we're seeing a few songs that step outside of the expected ESC mold of Schlager, Ballads, and Europop and take a risk by bringing unexpected genres to the event. Many "mainstream artists", especially in Western Europe, tend to pooh-pooh Eurovision, claiming that it's no longer a musical competition, but rather a popularity contest or a political event. If Amaury or Raphael make a big enough impact on the scoreboard, we might see opinions like that start to shift.
Or at least I can hope, right?
As expected, France has taken a complete 180 degree turn from last year's Afro-Caribbean club jam "Allez! Ola! Olé!" "Sognu", performed in Corsican, is a operatic bolero performed by one of the world's youngest professional tenors. Twenty-one-year-old Amaury, a native of Normandy, rarely sings in French, preferring to record songs in Italian or English. France, however, being France (remember, this is the country that argued in Parliament over whether their 2008 entry should be performed in English or not), will have their song performed in Corsican, the language spoken on the island where Napoleon himself was born and raised. This will be only the second French ESC entry where not a word of the French language will be heard, the first being 1996's "Diwanit Bugale", performed in Breton.
I am not a musicologist, or even an aficionado of opera. I am a proud Josh Groban fan, and I took a few trips to Lincoln Center as a schoolgirl, but that's really the extent of my experience in this genre. I am, however, very impressed by Amaury's talent, especially considering his age, and I hope he's as good live as he is on the studio recording of this single. Obviously, "Sognu" is not the typical Eurovision entry, and it will not be to everybody's liking. However, between Amaury and Italy's Raphael Gualazzi, we're seeing a few songs that step outside of the expected ESC mold of Schlager, Ballads, and Europop and take a risk by bringing unexpected genres to the event. Many "mainstream artists", especially in Western Europe, tend to pooh-pooh Eurovision, claiming that it's no longer a musical competition, but rather a popularity contest or a political event. If Amaury or Raphael make a big enough impact on the scoreboard, we might see opinions like that start to shift.
Or at least I can hope, right?
Saturday, February 5, 2011
In other cool news...
Various ESC websites are reporting that France's representative, the 21-year-old tenor Amaury Vassili, will be singing his song not in French, but rather in Corsican! If these rumors pan out to be true, it will be only the second time that this Romance language (which is more closely related to Italian than French) will have been heard in a Eurovision performance. The first appearance of the tongue was in 1993, when Patrick Fiori sang the bilingual "Mama Corsica". His fourth-place result remains the highest placement for a song in an actual minority language in Eurovision History (and I'm not counting 2003's "Sanomi" from Belgium...imaginary lexicons don't count!!!)
Here's Patrick and "Mama Corsica":
As soon as we have information on Amaury's song, I'll pass it along to you!
(Edit/Update: Yep, it's been officially confirmed by the EBU...it's "Sonniu (Dream)", a Corsican-language Bolero for Amaury!)
Here's Patrick and "Mama Corsica":
As soon as we have information on Amaury's song, I'll pass it along to you!
(Edit/Update: Yep, it's been officially confirmed by the EBU...it's "Sonniu (Dream)", a Corsican-language Bolero for Amaury!)
Thursday, January 27, 2011
It's Amaury Vassili for France!
It looks like we have our second name out of the Big Five for Düsseldorf! As we already knew, defending champion Lena Meyer-Landrut will be representing her homeland again this year (her new album "Good News" will be released in February, with all of the songs considered for her participation on it). Today we got news of France's choice for the ESC: 21-year-old tenor Amaury Vassili. Here's a clip of one of his earlier live performances (details on his song for Eurovision have not been released yet).
Vassili, despite his young age, is already an accomplished performer; he has released three successful albums that have made some significant impact on the charts in France and Wallonia (the French-speaking portion of Belgium). His style tends more towards "popera", and while his song has yet to be announced, it's more than likely that he'll stay in this general genre. One minor caveat: Amaury tends to sing in either Italian or English, and France, more than any other nation, tends to be a stickler for their language to be featured in their Eurovision entries. (Some ESC fans might remember the uproar back in 2008 when Sebastien Tellier wanted to sing "Divine" entirely in English; the French Parliament basically forced him to include at least a few lines in French!) We'll see what Amaury decides to do when his song is presented to the public.
More after the jump!
Vassili, despite his young age, is already an accomplished performer; he has released three successful albums that have made some significant impact on the charts in France and Wallonia (the French-speaking portion of Belgium). His style tends more towards "popera", and while his song has yet to be announced, it's more than likely that he'll stay in this general genre. One minor caveat: Amaury tends to sing in either Italian or English, and France, more than any other nation, tends to be a stickler for their language to be featured in their Eurovision entries. (Some ESC fans might remember the uproar back in 2008 when Sebastien Tellier wanted to sing "Divine" entirely in English; the French Parliament basically forced him to include at least a few lines in French!) We'll see what Amaury decides to do when his song is presented to the public.
More after the jump!
Wednesday, May 5, 2010
ESC 2010 Reviews: France
Ah, France. One of Eurovision's Grande Dames, she truly has the reputation of one of the competition's greatest Divas. Her highest heights were reached in the faded glory days of the earliest years of the contest, and almost entirely by big-voiced and powerful chansons and ballads. She also takes a diva-ish attitude towards the ESC, alternating between adoration and disdain. And, oui, France might not have raised the trophy high since the 1970s (although they lost the 1991 Contest on a technicality), but merde, they're still here! Their regional and linguistic allies Luxembourg and Monaco have both dropped out (since 1993 and 2006, respectively), but France's love-hate relationship continues. Back in the 1980s, a network head described Eurovision as a "monument to drivel", but instead of withdrawing from the ESC, the nation simply switched networks, and after a 1-year absence, they resumed participation.
Another interesting point about France's relationship with Eurovision is that of linguistics. Traditionally, the ESC uses both English and French as its official languages (as in, the hosts will present the contest bilingually, and points are announced in both languages), and nations are allowed to pick whichever language they'd like to sing in. As time has progressed, more countries have sent songs in English, and hosts only seem to use French nowadays as a ceremonial tool. France has held incredibly steadfast to their focus on their language's representation in Eurovision. Back in 2008, when offbeat singer Sebastien Tellier was the nation's choice, there were shocks felt all over France when it was realized that his song "Divine" was almost entirely in English. One member of Parliament made such a fuss that Tellier eventually changed a few lines of his song into French, just to appease his compatriots. (And, to tell you the truth, Tellier's lyrics were basically unintelligible anyway. He could have been singing in Malagasy, and I wouldn't have been able to tell much of a difference. But he put fake beards on his backing singers, drove on stage in a golf cart, and sucked in helium onstage. That automatically makes him awesome.) France has dabbled in other languages, however, besides just traditional French. In 1992, "Monté la riviè (Go Up the River)" was sung partially in Hatian Creole. 1993 brought Corsican to the ESC stage for the first time ("Mama Corsica"), and 1996's entry, "Diwanit Bugale (May You Blossom, Children)", was sung entirely in Breton.
Anyway, back to what France does best: big songs with bigger voices. One of France's five victories was the disputed contest of 1969, when four countries actually tied for the victory (it hadn't occurred to anyone to come up with a tie-breaking method!). France shared their victory with the United Kingdom, Spain, and the Netherlands that year, but Frida Boccara's "Un Jour, Un Enfant (A Day, A Child) was my favorite of the four. Interestingly, if today's tiebreaking rules had been in effect back in 1969, France would have won anyway! In 1977, France won its most recent title, sending Portuguese-born Marie Myriam with "L'oiseau et L'enfant (The Bird and the Child)". Another big, beautiful performance, and another victory.
Last year's entry tried to follow this beautiful old paradigm. France picked the renowned jazz-pop singer Patricia Kaas to represent them with "Et s'il fallait le faire (And If it Had to Be Done)", a lush chanson that might have been lovingly lifted from a film noir's soundtrack. However, despite the beautiful song and emotional performance from Kaas, the song only placed in 8th position.
If Patricia Kaas, a well-known and respected singer who has sold an estimated 16 million records worldwide, couldn't bring the competition back to Paris, maybe it was time for a change from France's old wheelhouse. And that's where 2010's French representative, Jessy Matador, comes in.
Jessy is a multi-talented performer of Congolese descent, and the network who's sponsoring his participation in this year's Eurovision is actually getting a bit of a two-for-one deal: because this song is so upbeat and summery, it's also going to be used to promote this year's World Cup, being held in South Africa. "Allez Ola Olé" is undoubtedly different from almost anything else that France has sent before, and it's also very different from anything else in the 2010 competition. This might work to France's advantage or not; it's difficult to tell. But, fortunately for Jessy, France automatically qualifies to the Final (along with Germany, Spain, the United Kingdom, and reigning champion Norway), as major donors to the EBU. To tell you all the truth, I personally didn't love this song the first time I heard it. However, in all fairness, the first time I heard it was in the middle of winter in a frigid-cold Minnesota, and the only thing I was really interested in was a cup of hot chocolate and making sure my car was running properly. Now that the weather's more comfortable, I find myself warming up to this fun soccer chant. Bonne chance!
Another interesting point about France's relationship with Eurovision is that of linguistics. Traditionally, the ESC uses both English and French as its official languages (as in, the hosts will present the contest bilingually, and points are announced in both languages), and nations are allowed to pick whichever language they'd like to sing in. As time has progressed, more countries have sent songs in English, and hosts only seem to use French nowadays as a ceremonial tool. France has held incredibly steadfast to their focus on their language's representation in Eurovision. Back in 2008, when offbeat singer Sebastien Tellier was the nation's choice, there were shocks felt all over France when it was realized that his song "Divine" was almost entirely in English. One member of Parliament made such a fuss that Tellier eventually changed a few lines of his song into French, just to appease his compatriots. (And, to tell you the truth, Tellier's lyrics were basically unintelligible anyway. He could have been singing in Malagasy, and I wouldn't have been able to tell much of a difference. But he put fake beards on his backing singers, drove on stage in a golf cart, and sucked in helium onstage. That automatically makes him awesome.) France has dabbled in other languages, however, besides just traditional French. In 1992, "Monté la riviè (Go Up the River)" was sung partially in Hatian Creole. 1993 brought Corsican to the ESC stage for the first time ("Mama Corsica"), and 1996's entry, "Diwanit Bugale (May You Blossom, Children)", was sung entirely in Breton.
Anyway, back to what France does best: big songs with bigger voices. One of France's five victories was the disputed contest of 1969, when four countries actually tied for the victory (it hadn't occurred to anyone to come up with a tie-breaking method!). France shared their victory with the United Kingdom, Spain, and the Netherlands that year, but Frida Boccara's "Un Jour, Un Enfant (A Day, A Child) was my favorite of the four. Interestingly, if today's tiebreaking rules had been in effect back in 1969, France would have won anyway! In 1977, France won its most recent title, sending Portuguese-born Marie Myriam with "L'oiseau et L'enfant (The Bird and the Child)". Another big, beautiful performance, and another victory.
Last year's entry tried to follow this beautiful old paradigm. France picked the renowned jazz-pop singer Patricia Kaas to represent them with "Et s'il fallait le faire (And If it Had to Be Done)", a lush chanson that might have been lovingly lifted from a film noir's soundtrack. However, despite the beautiful song and emotional performance from Kaas, the song only placed in 8th position.
If Patricia Kaas, a well-known and respected singer who has sold an estimated 16 million records worldwide, couldn't bring the competition back to Paris, maybe it was time for a change from France's old wheelhouse. And that's where 2010's French representative, Jessy Matador, comes in.
Jessy is a multi-talented performer of Congolese descent, and the network who's sponsoring his participation in this year's Eurovision is actually getting a bit of a two-for-one deal: because this song is so upbeat and summery, it's also going to be used to promote this year's World Cup, being held in South Africa. "Allez Ola Olé" is undoubtedly different from almost anything else that France has sent before, and it's also very different from anything else in the 2010 competition. This might work to France's advantage or not; it's difficult to tell. But, fortunately for Jessy, France automatically qualifies to the Final (along with Germany, Spain, the United Kingdom, and reigning champion Norway), as major donors to the EBU. To tell you all the truth, I personally didn't love this song the first time I heard it. However, in all fairness, the first time I heard it was in the middle of winter in a frigid-cold Minnesota, and the only thing I was really interested in was a cup of hot chocolate and making sure my car was running properly. Now that the weather's more comfortable, I find myself warming up to this fun soccer chant. Bonne chance!
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