Reanna Cruz

The 2024 winner Nemo even returned their trophy back to the EBU.

Hmm.

And the countries of Ireland, Spain, Iceland, Slovenia and the Netherlands, all Eurovision powerhouses, have withdrawn their participation from the contest.

So these are very real concerns that are impacting the general tenor around Eurovision this year and the way the competition is perceived.

Well, personally speaking, you know, I am not going to watch the competition this year.

I'm sure a lot of viewers out there are holding off as well.

There's ample reporting on the boycott in the history of Eurovision if people want to check that out.

But I feel like Eurovision is music news and we are a music podcast.

Nonetheless, we do have kind of an obligation as we have the past couple of years to sift through some of the big submissions to the competition.

Exactly.

Even if you're joining me and not watching, you'll get the gist.

And even if you don't want to listen to this podcast, you could skip to the end because we will have an unrelated bingo update for all here today.

So there's a couple things that go into judging these songs.

The showmanship of it all is definitely important.

You know, all of these songs have a visual component in the contest, and that kind of shapes people's perception of the music.

But the three musical aspects of each song are its vocal qualifications.

The song's composition, you know, is it new and exciting?

Is it pushing boundaries?

And a general impression of the song.

How does it make you feel?