| ABU TV Song Festival 2021 | |
|---|---|
| Dates | |
| Final | 18 November 2021 |
| Host | |
| Presenter(s) | Azura Zainal Sharizan Borhan [1] |
| Host broadcaster | Radio Televisyen Malaysia (RTM) |
| Website | www |
| Participants | |
| Number of entries | 10 |
| Returning countries |  Kazakhstan |
| Non-returning countries |  China  Nepal  Turkmenistan  Uzbekistan  Vanuatu |
The ABU TV Song Festival 2021 was the tenth annual edition of the ABU TV Song Festival.
The non-competitive music showcase event was hosted in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia as part of the 58th General Assembly of the Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union (ABU). The program, as well as the entire general assembly, was held virtually for the second year in a row due to the COVID-19 pandemic. [2]
The show was presented in-studio by TV and radio host Azura Zainal and commercial voice-over artist and emcee Sharizan Borhan. Each participating performance was pre-recorded and aired during the live stream.
Kazakh singer Dimash Kudaibergen, who performed for Kazakhstan in the 2015 and 2019 editions made a special appearance. He performed a cover of Kōji Tamaki's 1989 song "Ikanaide" (行かないで). [3] The pre-recorded performance, also produced for the Tokyo Jazz Festival, [4] [3] was aired between the entries from Japan and Kazakhstan, the second and third participating acts, respectively.
Ten countries were represented in the ABU Song Festival 2021, the lowest number of participants to date. China, Nepal, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, and Vanuatu did not return from last year's edition. Kazakhstan returned after a one-year hiatus. [1]
| Running Order [3] | Country [1] | Artist [1] | Song | Language |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  South Korea | ITZY | "LOCO" | Korean |
| 2 |  Japan | milet | "inside you" | Japanese, English |
| 3 | Kazakhstan | Amre | "Waves of Life" | Kazakh |
| 4 |  India | Summersalt | "Public Address System of the Khasi people" | Khasi |
| 5 |  Macau | Dr. Jen | "Say You Love Me" | English |
| 6 |  Turkey | İlyas Yalçıntaş | "Come, My Sky" | Turkish |
| 7 |  Indonesia | Denny & Nonoy with Mixline Band | "Sense of Nusantara" | English |
| 8 |  Brunei | Suzan Maidin | "I’m A Woman" | Brunei Malay |
| 9 |  Malaysia | Amir Jahari | "Ingga" | Malay |
| 10 |  Vietnam | The Pentatonic | "White Snow And Red Azalea" | Vietnamese |
The ABU Song Festivals are non-competitive song concert galas based on the Eurovision Song Contest. The format consists of two shows, a Radio Song Festival and TV Song Festival, organised by the Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union (ABU).
The ABU Radio Song Festival 2012 was the first edition of the biennial ABU Radio Song Festivals, organised by the Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union (ABU). The festival took place in the KBS Hall, which is located in the South Korean capital of Seoul and coincided with the 49th general assembly of the ABU. The ABU Radio Song Festival attracted twenty-six original entries representing eighteen radio broadcasters from fifteen countries, which competed in a preliminary jury round. The juries selected thirteen entries from twelve radio broadcasters in ten countries to qualify for the final show which was held on 11 October 2012. Fifteen entries were originally selected to participate in the grand final. However, Fiji and Sri Lanka withdrew from the radio competition prior to the final show, and thus only thirteen entries participated in the competition on 11 October 2012.
The ABU TV Song Festival 2012 was the first annual edition of the ABU TV Song Festivals. The festival, which was non-competitive, took place in the KBS Concert Hall, located in the South Korean capital of Seoul and coincided with the 49th general assembly of the Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union (ABU). Eleven countries confirmed their participation in the first edition of the competition.
The ABU TV Song Festival is an annual non-competitive gala that showcases songs or instrumentals by musicians across Asia, organised by the Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union (ABU). Participating countries which have full or additional full ABU membership are invited to submit a song to be performed in front of a live audience. It is live recorded so that each of the national broadcasters may add subtitles in their respective Asian languages.
The ABU Radio Song Festival is a biennial non-competitive gala that showcases songs or instrumentals by musicians across Asia, organised by the Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union (ABU), and is based on the Eurovision Song Contest. The format consists of a non-televised semi-final and grand final which is broadcast.
The ABU Radio Song Festival 2014 was the second edition of the biennial ABU Radio Song Festivals, organised by the Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union (ABU). The festival took place on 23 May 2014 in the Sri Lankan city of Colombo. The Nelum Pokuna Mahinda Rajapaksa Theatre was originally chosen as the host venue, but was later moved to the Stein Studios. Twelve countries participated the song festival. The festival was to be originally hosted by ABC Australia however for unknown reasons this did not occur.
The ABU TV Song Festival 2013 was the second annual edition of the ABU TV Song Festivals. The festival, which is non-competitive, that took place on 26 October 2013 in the Hanoi Opera House, Hanoi, Vietnam and coinciding with the 50th general assembly of the Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union (ABU) which took place between 23 and 29 October 2013. Sixteen songs from fifteen countries participated in the second edition of the event. Brunei, Iran, Kyrgyzstan, and Thailand made their début at the festival
The participation of Indonesia in the ABU TV Song Festival has occurred eleven times since the inaugural ABU TV Song Festival and began in 2012. Since their début in 2012, the Indonesian entry has been organised by the national broadcaster Televisi Republik Indonesia (TVRI).
The ABU TV Song Festival 2014 was the third annual edition of the ABU TV Song Festival. The festival, which is non-competitive, took place on the 25 October 2014 at Sands Theatre in Macau and coinciding with the 51st General Assembly of the Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union (ABU) which took place between 22 and 28 October 2014. Twelve countries confirmed their participation. The Maldives, Turkey as well as the host country Macau made their début at the festival. Afghanistan, Kyrgyzstan, Iran, Malaysia, Singapore, and Sri Lanka all withdrew from the festival.
The ABU TV Song Festival 2016 was the fifth annual edition of the ABU TV Song Festivals. The event, which is non-competitive, took place in Bali Nusa Dua Convention Centre, Bali, Indonesia, on 22 October 2016. Fourteen countries have confirmed their participation. Tunisia made their debut at the festival, while China and Sri Lanka returned after a one-year absence and a two-year absence respectively. Myanmar and Vanuatu have both stated that they do not intend to make their debut at the festival. India, Malaysia, and Turkey have withdrawn from the contest.
The ABU TV Song Festival 2015 was the fourth annual edition of the ABU TV Song Festivals. The event, which is non-competitive, took place in Istanbul, Turkey and coinciding with the 52nd General Assembly of the Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union (ABU) which was scheduled for 28 October 2015. Twelve countries have confirmed their participation.
The ABU Radio Song Festival 2016 was the fourth edition of the ABU Radio Song Festivals, organised by the Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union (ABU). Originally a biennial event, the festival organisers changed its format to an annual festival commencing from 2014. The festival took place on 26 April 2016 in Beijing, China. Thirteen songs from ten countries took part in the festival. The hosts China, along with Macau, Nepal, Romania, and Turkmenistan all made their début in the festival. Brunei had withdrawn from the festival stating that they had not received an invitation to participate from the broadcasting union. Indonesia failed to qualify from the pre-selection stage of the festival.
The participation of Kazakhstan in the ABU TV Song Festival has occurred seven times since the inaugural ABU TV Song Festival began in 2012. Since their début in 2015, the Kazakh entry has been organised by the national broadcaster Kazakhstan Radio and Television Corporation (KRTC). In 2020, Kazakhstan withdrew from the festival, but then came back the following year.
The ABU International Dance Festival 2017 was the inaugural ABU International Dance Festival, which took place in Shilpakala Vedika, in Hyderabad, India on 15 January 2017.
Kazakhstan participated in the Junior Eurovision Song Contest every year from their debut in 2018 to 2022. Khabar Agency (KA), an associate member organisation of the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), is responsible for the country's participation in the contest. The 2018 contest marked the first time that Kazakhstan has participated in any Eurovision event.
The ABU Song Contest 2020 was set to be the inaugural edition of the ABU Song Contest, to be held in Qingdao, China. The contest was due to consist of a semi-final on 16 April 2020 and a final on 18 April 2020. It was expected to become the first ever televised and big-scale music competition across the Asia-Pacific region and beyond since the ABU Golden Kite World Song Festivals which were held between 1989 and 1991. The fate of the contest remains unclear.
The ABU TV Song Festival 2020 was the ninth annual edition of the ABU TV Song Festivals.
The ABU TV Song Festival 2019 was the eighth annual edition of the ABU TV Song Festivals.
The ABU TV Song Festival 2022 was the eleventh annual edition of the ABU TV Song Festivals.
