The second place finish of Noam Bettan’s “Michelle” in this year’s Eurovision Song Contest came as a disappointment to me, as the song has remained a staple on my Hebrew playlist for the past few months. For the second consecutive year, Israel has placed second in the competition, which began this year on May 12 with the grand finale on May 16.
Eurovision is a music competition between countries in Europe, and also includes Israel and Australia. The contest includes two rounds: two semi-final performances by each country, where the top 10 entries move on to the next round, and the grand finale, where one winner is crowned. Points come from both a professional jury vote and a public vote.
Bulgaria’s entry, “Bangaranga” by Dara, won first place in both voting categories. According to a BBC interview with the singer, this song is about self-empowerment and being true to oneself. While the song itself was not impressive and the lyrics sounded repetitive at times, the energetic dancing and remarkable choreography made it a stellar performance that I really enjoyed watching.
I also enjoyed Italy’s “Per sempre si” by Sal Da Vinci, which was a playful and creative performance. The dancers and set felt distracting at times, but it might have been because I could not understand the Italian lyrics. The fifth place finish was not surprising to me, as the song did not sound unique, but the impressive performance made up for it.
The only thing I liked from Romania’s entry, “Choke Me” by Alexandra Capitanescu, was its captivating use of lights. The lyrics of “All I need is your love / I want it to choke me” and “Born for you to control / I want you to choke me” should have prevented the song from being allowed in the competition, and the fact that the song received third place is very surprising to me. Even though Capitanescu has defended her song, which she says is about feeling “choked” by anxious thoughts, I think the connotations of this song are still apparent.
Israel’s emotional and catchy song “Michelle” seamlessly combines Hebrew, French and English, building a beautiful medley of the languages. The song is about a breakup and encapsulates the emotional turmoil that ending a relationship brings about. Although the country’s participation in Eurovision is clouded in much controversy, including the countries Spain, Ireland, the Netherlands, Slovenia and Iceland boycotting the contest in protest of Israel’s participation, the song prevailed, taking second place.
While Bettan sang “Michelle” beautifully at the competition, the overall performance felt monotonous and ultimately disappointing. With only a large diamond for the set and a small group of dancers on stage, the performance did not give the energy that a classic Eurovision performance should.
As someone who enjoys watching Eurovision highlights after the contest each year, this year’s lineup produced impressive and unique performances, the latter of which, in my opinion, is the most important part of Eurovision.
