Belarus in the Eurovision Song Contest 2007

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Eurovision Song Contest 2007
CountryFlag of Belarus (1995-2012).svg  Belarus
National selection
Selection processEurofest 2007
Selection date(s)Semi-final:
15 December 2006
Final:
22 January 2007
Selected entrant Dmitry Koldun
Selected song"Work Your Magic"
Selected songwriter(s)
Finals performance
Semi-final resultQualified (4th, 176 points)
Final result6th, 145 points
Belarus in the Eurovision Song Contest
◄2006 •2007• 2008►

Belarus participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2007 with the song "Work Your Magic" written by Karen Kavaleryan and Philip Kirkorov. The song was performed by Dmitry Koldun. The Belarusian entry for the 2007 contest in Helsinki, Finland was selected through the national final Eurofest 2007, organised by the Belarusian broadcaster National State Television and Radio Company of the Republic of Belarus (BTRC). The national final was a televised production which consisted of a semi-final and a final held on 15 December 2006 and 22 January 2007, respectively. Fifteen competing acts participated in the semi-final where three entries qualified to the final: one entry selected by a public televote and two entries selected by a seven-member jury panel. In the final, the jury panel selected "Work Your Magic" performed by Dmitry Koldun as the winner.

Contents

Belarus was competed in the semi-final of the Eurovision Song Contest which took place on 10 May 2007. Performing during the show in position 4, "Work Your Magic" was announced among the top 10 entries of the semi-final and therefore qualified to compete in the final on 12 May. It was later revealed that Belarus placed fourth out of the 28 participating countries in the semi-final with 176 points. In the final, Belarus performed in position 3 and placed sixth out of the 24 participating countries, scoring 145 points.

Background

Prior to the 2007 Contest, Belarus had participated in the Eurovision Song Contest three times since its first entry in 2004. [1] Following the introduction of semi-finals for the 2004, Belarus had yet to qualify to the final. The nation's best placing in the contest was thirteenth in the semi-final, which it achieved in 2005 with the song "Love Me Tonight" performed by Angelica Agurbash. In 2006, Belarus failed to qualify to the final with the song "Mum" performed by Polina Smolova.

The Belarusian national broadcaster, National State Television and Radio Company of the Republic of Belarus (BTRC), broadcasts the event within Belarus and organises the selection process for the nation's entry. Since 2004, BTRC has organised a national final in order to choose Belarus' entry, a selection procedure that continued for their 2007 entry. [2]

Before Eurovision

Eurofest 2007

Eurofest 2007 was the national final format developed by BTRC to select the Belarusian entry for the Eurovision Song Contest 2007. The competition consisted of a semi-final and final held on 15 December 2006 and 22 January 2007, respectively. Both shows were hosted by Denis Kurian and Olga Schlager and broadcast on the First Channel and Belarus TV as well as online via the broadcaster's official website tvr.by.

Competing entries

Artists and composers were able to submit their applications and entries to the broadcaster between 25 October 2006 and 20 November 2006. [3] At the closing of the deadline, 66 entries were received by the broadcaster. Auditions were held between 29 November and 1 December 2006 at the Youth Variety Theater in Minsk where a jury panel was tasked with selecting up to fifteen entries to proceed to the televised national final. The jury consisted of Mihail Finberg (chairman of the jury, director of the Belarusian State Academic Symphony Orchestra), Vladimir Rylatko (deputy head of the Belarusian Ministry of Culture), Vasily Rainchik (musician/composer), Alexander Tikhanovich (national final project manager), Denis Shpitalnikov (head of music and entertainment programmes of BTRC), Anatoly Yarmolenko (director of the ensemble Syabry) and Yadviga Poplavskaya (singer). [4] Fifteen semi-finalists were selected and announced on 5 December 2006. [5]

Semi-final

The televised semi-final took place on 15 December 2006 at the Republic Palace in Minsk. Prior to the semi-final, a draw for the running order took place on 14 December 2006. [6] Three songs qualified to the final. The fifteen competing entries first faced a public televote where one song advanced: "Angel mechty" performed by Dmitry Koldun. An additional two qualifiers were selected from the remaining fourteen entries by the votes of jury members made up of music professionals: "How Long" performed by Diana Gurtskaya and "Super Star" performed by The Project.

In addition to the performances from the competitors, the show featured guest performances by 2003 Belarusian Junior Eurovision contestant Volha Satsiuk and 2006 Belarusian Eurovision contestant Polina Smolova. [4]

  Public vote qualifier  Jury qualifier

Semi-final – 15 December 2006
DrawArtistSongSongwriter(s)TelevotePlace
1Anna Sharkunova"Sorvatsya i vniz" (Сорваться и вниз)Vitaly Penzin, Vladimir Kubyshkin5538
2Borneo"Fingertips"Aleksey Charykov6936
3 Dmitry Koldun "Angel mechty" (Ангел мечты) Dmitry Koldun, Denis Lis4,4121
4Lena"Call Me (September 11)"Sergey Zhdanovich, Evgeny Melnikov4679
5Svayaki"Smačny miodzik" (Смачны мёдзік)Aleksey Zaitsev1,1495
6Irina Yarina"Korotkiy dozhd" (Кроткий дождь)Leonid Shirin, Yarik Rakitin8114
7Dali"Mechtai so mnoy" (Мечтай со мной)Victor Rudenko14213
8Natalia Tamelo"So Badly High"Leonid Shirin, Andrey Kostyugov5857
9 Litesound "Summer Trip"Dmitry Karyakin, Vladimir Karyakin1,9992
10The Project"Super Star"Bagrat Vartanyan1,2884
11Oleg Karpenko"I Feel Good Tonight"Roman Kozyrev3915
12New Generation"Belarus"Aleksey Kravchenko17112
13 Diana Gurtskaya "How Long" Karen Kavaleryan, Kim Breitburg 1,5823
14Natalia Lapteva and XXXLight"I Don't Know"Natalia Lapteva33411
15Victor Pshenichniy"Sooner or Later"Alexander Nabeev46210

Final

The televised final took place on 22 January 2007 at the Sports Palace in Minsk. Prior to the final, Dmitry Koldun opted to change his song as the national final rules set by BTRC allowed for the finalists to completely change their candidate songs. The votes of jury members made up of music professionals selected the song "Work Your Magic" performed by Dmitry Koldun as the winner.

In addition to the performances from the competitors, the show featured guest performances by former Belarusian Eurovision contestants Aleksandra and Konstantin (2004), Angelica Agurbash (2005) and Polina Smolova (2006), former Belarusian Junior Eurovision contestants Ksenia Sitnik (2005) and Andrey Kunets (2006), former Eurovision Song Contest winners Carola (1991) and Marie N (2002), 2006 Latvian Eurovision contestants Cosmos and 2006 Russian Eurovision contestant Dima Bilan. [7]

Final – 22 January 2007
DrawArtistSongSongwriter(s)
1 Diana Gurtskaya "How Long" Karen Kavaleryan, Kim Breitburg
2 Dmitry Koldun "Work Your Magic" Karen Kavaleryan, Philipp Kirkorov
3The Project"Super Star"Bagrat Vartanyan

Preparation

The official music video of the song, filmed in February 2007 and directed by Oleg Gusev, was presented to the public on 8 March 2007 on the First Channel. The concept of the video was based on the music video of the song "Jaded" by American band Aerosmith. [4] [8]

Promotion

Dmitry Koldun made several appearances across Europe to specifically promote "Work Your Magic" as the Belarusian Eurovision entry. Between 3 February and 5 March, Dmitry Koldun performed "Work Your Magic" during the Greek, Irish, Macedonian, Montenegrin and Spanish Eurovision national finals, and the presentation shows of the 2007 Cypriot and Bosnian Eurovision entries . In February and April, Koldun participated in promotional activities in Russia where he performed the Russian version of "Work Your Magic", titled "Day mne silu", during the Channel One programmes Novye pesni o glavnom and Vysshaya liga, as well as during the NTV programme Glavniy Geroy. [9] Between 13 and 15 April, Koldun performed during events which were held in Antwerp and Brussels, Belgium, as well as appearing during the RTL 4 programme Life & Cooking in The Netherlands. In addition to his international appearances, Dmitry Koldun also participated in promotional activities in Belarus where he performed during the Za Nezavisimuyu Belarus event, which was at the Minsk Hero City Obelisk in Minsk on 25 March. [4]

At Eurovision

Koldun performing during the Eurovision Song Contest 2007 Kolduneurovision2007.jpg
Koldun performing during the Eurovision Song Contest 2007

According to Eurovision rules, all nations with the exceptions of the host country, the "Big Four" (France, Germany, Spain and the United Kingdom) and the ten highest placed finishers in the 2006 contest are required to qualify from the semi-final in order to compete for the final; the top ten countries from each semi-final progress to the final. On 12 March 2007, a special allocation draw was held which determined the running order for the semi-final on 10 May 2007. Belarus was drawn to perform in position 4, following the entry from Cyprus and before the entry from Iceland.

For the Eurovision Song Contest, Dmitry Koldun performed under the artistic name of Koldun, which is the Russian word for "magician". Accompanying Koldun on stage were two male dancers: Alexandr Bodyanski and Fredrik Olofsson, and two female dancers: Natalia and Ilona Donchenko, along with Mariam Merabova providing backing vocals. [10]

At the end of the semi-final, Belarus was announced as having finished in the top ten and subsequently qualifying for the grand final. This marked the first time that Belarus qualified to the final of the Eurovision Song Contest from a semi-final since the introduction of semi-finals in 2004. It was later revealed that the Belarus placed fourth in the semi-final, receiving a total of 176 points.

Shortly after the semi-final, a winners' press conference was held for the ten qualifying countries. As part of this press conference, the qualifying artists took part in a draw to determine the running order of the final. This draw was done in the order the countries appeared in the semi-final running order. Belarus was drawn to perform in position 3, following the entry from Spain and before the entry from Ireland. [11] Belarus placed sixth in the final, scoring 145 points, which is the best result for Belarus to date. [12]

Voting

Below is a breakdown of points awarded to Belarus and awarded by Belarus in the semi-final and grand final of the contest. The nation awarded its 12 points to Moldova in the semi-final and to Russia in the final of the contest.

Points awarded to Belarus

Points awarded by Belarus

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Belarus in the Eurovision Song Contest</span> Overview of Belarus participation in the annual song contest

Belarus has participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 16 times since making its debut in 2004. The country's first appearance in a final was in 2007, with the song "Work Your Magic" performed by Dmitry Koldun, placing sixth. This remains Belarus' only top ten placement. Belarus also qualified for the final in 2010, 2013, 2014, 2017 and 2019.

Belarus participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2006 with the song "Mum" written by Andrey Kostyugov and Sergey Sukhomlin. The song was performed by Polina Smolova. The Belarusian entry for the 2006 contest in Athens, Greece was selected through a national final organised by the Belarusian broadcaster National State Television and Radio Company of the Republic of Belarus (BTRC). The national final consisted of a semi-final which was a televised production and an untelevised final held on 10 February 2006 and 27 February 2006, respectively. Fifteen competing acts participated in the semi-final where the top three entries as determined by a public televote qualified to the final. In the final, an eight-member jury panel selected "Mama" performed by Polina Smolova as the winner. The song was later retitled for the Eurovision Song Contest as "Mum".

Belarus participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2005 with the song "Love Me Tonight" written by Nikos Terzis and Nektarios Tyrakis. The song was performed by Angelica Agurbash. The Belarusian entry for the 2005 contest in Kyiv, Ukraine was selected through a national final organised by the Belarusian broadcaster National State Television and Radio Company of the Republic of Belarus (BTRC). The national final consisted of a semi-final which was a televised production and an untelevised final held on 25 December 2004 and 31 January 2005, respectively. Fifteen competing acts participated in the semi-final where the top three entries as determined by a public televote qualified to the final. In the final, "Boys and Girls" performed by Angelica Agurbash was initially selected as the winner by a jury panel, however the singer opted to withdraw her song and the replacement entry, "Love Me Tonight", was announced on 18 March 2005.

Lithuania participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2007 with the song "Love or Leave" written by Julija Ritčik. The song was performed by the band 4Fun. The Lithuanian broadcaster Lithuanian National Radio and Television (LRT) organised the national final "Eurovizijos" dainų konkurso nacionalinė atranka in order to select the Lithuanian entry for the 2007 contest in Helsinki, Finland. The national final took place over six weeks and involved three different competitive streams: entries performed by newcomers, semi-established artists and established artists. In the final, eleven artists and songs remained and the winner was selected over two rounds of public voting. In the first round, the top three were selected to qualify to the superfinal. In the superfinal, "Love or Leave" performed by 4Fun was selected as the winner with 23,888 votes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dmitry Koldun</span> Belarusian singer

Dmitry Aleksandrovich Koldun is a Belarusian pop singer.

Belarus debuted in the Eurovision Song Contest 2004 with the song "My Galileo" written by Aleksey Solomaha, Alexandra Kirsanova and Konstantin Drapezo. The song was performed by Aleksandra and Konstantin. The Belarusian entry for the 2004 contest in Istanbul, Turkey was selected through a national final organised by the Belarusian broadcaster National State Television and Radio Company of the Republic of Belarus (BTRC). The national final consisted of fifteen competing acts participating in a televised production where public voting selected the winner. "Moy galiley" performed by Aleksandra and Konstantin was selected as the winner with 2,311 votes. The song was later retitled as "My Galileo".

Belarus participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2008 with the song "Hasta la vista" written by Eleonora Melnik and Taras Demchuk. The song was performed by Ruslan Alekhno. The Belarusian entry for the 2008 contest in Belgrade, Serbia was selected through the national final Eurofest 2008, organised by the Belarusian broadcaster National State Television and Radio Company of the Republic of Belarus (BTRC). The national final was a televised production which consisted of a semi-final and a final held on 21 December 2007 and 21 January 2008, respectively. Fifteen competing acts participated in the semi-final where four entries qualified to the final: one entry selected by a public televote and three entries selected by a nine-member jury panel. In the final, the jury panel selected "Hasta la vista" performed by Ruslan Alekhno as the winner.

Belarus participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2009 with the song "Eyes That Never Lie" written by Petr Elfimov and Valery Prokhozhy. The song was performed by Petr Elfimov. The Belarusian entry for the 2009 contest in Moscow, Russia was selected through the national final Eurofest 2009, organised by the Belarusian broadcaster National State Television and Radio Company of the Republic of Belarus (BTRC). The national final was a televised production which consisted of a semi-final and a final held on 15 December 2008 and 19 January 2009, respectively. Fifteen competing acts participated in the semi-final where the top five entries as determined by a jury panel qualified to the final. In the final, public televoting selected "Eyes That Never Lie" performed by Petr Elfimov as the winner with 11,475 votes.

Belarus participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2010 with the song "Butterflies" written by Maxim Fadeev, Robert Wells and Malka Chaplin. The song was performed by the band 3+2 featuring Robert Wells, who were internally selected by the Belarusian broadcaster National State Television and Radio Company of the Republic of Belarus (BTRC) to represent the nation at the 2010 contest in Oslo, Norway after broadcaster All-National TV (ONT), which was to take over BTRC, failed to receive EBU membership. 3+2 and the song "Far Away" were initially announced as the Belarusian entry on 25 February 2010, however the band opted to withdraw their song and the replacement entry, "Butterflies", was announced on 19 March 2010.

Belarus participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2011 with the song "I Love Belarus" written by Evgeny Oleynik and Svetlana Geraskova. The song was performed by Anastasia Vinnikova, who was internally selected by the Belarusian broadcaster National State Television and Radio Company of the Republic of Belarus (BTRC) to represent the nation at the 2011 contest in Düsseldorf, Germany. Anastasia Vinnikova and the song "Born in Byelorussia" were initially announced as the Belarusian entry on 28 February 2011, however the song was reworked and retitled as "I Am Belarusian". The song was later disqualified and the replacement entry, "I Love Belarus", was announced on 14 March 2011.

Belarus participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2012 with the song "We Are the Heroes" written by Vladimir Karyakin and Dmitry Karyakin. The song was performed by the band Litesound. The Belarusian entry for the 2012 contest in Baku, Azerbaijan was selected through the national final Eurofest 2012, organised by the Belarusian broadcaster National State Television and Radio Company of the Republic of Belarus (BTRC). The national final was a televised production which consisted of a semi-final and a final held on 21 December 2011 and 14 February 2012, respectively. Fifteen competing acts participated in the semi-final where the top five entries qualified to the final. In the final, "All My Life" performed by Alyona Lanskaya was initially selected as the winner following the combination of votes from a jury panel and public televoting, however the entry was later disqualified due to vote rigging and replaced by runner-up "We Are the Heroes" performed by Litesound.

Belarus participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2013 with the song "Solayoh" written by Marc Paelinck and Martin King. The song was performed by Alyona Lanskaya. The Belarusian entry for the 2013 contest in Malmö, Sweden was selected through a national final organised by the Belarusian broadcaster National State Television and Radio Company of the Republic of Belarus (BTRC). The national final consisted of ten competing acts participating in a televised production where "Rhythm of Love" performed by Alyona Lanskaya was initially selected as the winner following the combination of votes from a jury panel and public televoting, however the singer opted to withdraw her song and the replacement entry, "Solayoh", was announced on 7 March 2013.

Belarus participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2014 with the song "Cheesecake" written by Yuriy Vashchuk and Dmitry Novik. The song was performed by Teo, which is the artistic name of singer Yuriy Vashchuk. The Belarusian entry for the 2014 contest in Copenhagen, Denmark was selected through a national final organised by the Belarusian broadcaster National State Television and Radio Company of the Republic of Belarus (BTRC). The national final consisted of fourteen competing acts participating in a televised production where "Cheesecake" performed by Teo was selected as the winner following the combination of votes from a jury panel and public televoting.

Belarus participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2015 with the song "Time" written by Uzari, Gerylana and Maimuna. The song was performed by Uzari and Maimuna. The Belarusian entry for the 2015 contest in Vienna, Austria was selected through a national final organised by the Belarusian broadcaster National State Television and Radio Company of the Republic of Belarus (BTRC). The national final consisted of fifteen competing acts participating in a televised production where "Time" performed by Uzari and Maimuna was selected as the winner following the combination of votes from a jury panel and public televoting.

Belarus participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2016 with the song "Help You Fly" written by Viktor Drobysh, Alexander Ivanov, Timofei Leontiev and Mary Susan Applegate. The song was performed by Ivan, which is the artistic name of singer Alexander Ivanov. The Belarusian entry for the 2016 contest in Stockholm, Sweden was selected through a national final organised by the Belarusian broadcaster National State Television and Radio Company of the Republic of Belarus (BTRC). The national final consisted of ten competing acts participating in a televised production where public televoting selected the winner. "Help You Fly" performed by Ivan was selected as the winner with 23,167 votes.

Belarus participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2017 with the song "Story of My Life" written by Arciom Lukjanienka. The song was performed by the band Naviband. The Belarusian entry for the 2017 contest in Kyiv, Ukraine was selected through a national final organised by the Belarusian broadcaster National State Television and Radio Company of the Republic of Belarus (BTRC). The national final consisted of fourteen competing acts participating in a televised production where "Historyja majho žyccia" performed by Navi was selected as the winner following the combination of votes from a jury panel and public televoting. The song was later retitled as "Story of My Life" for the Eurovision Song Contest, while the band was renamed as Naviband.

Belarus participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2018 with the song "Forever" written by Kirill Pavlov and Yevgeny Matyushenko. The song was performed by Alekseev. The Belarusian entry for the 2018 contest in Lisbon, Portugal was selected through a national final organised by the Belarusian broadcaster National State Television and Radio Company of the Republic of Belarus (BTRC). The national final consisted of fifteen competing acts participating in a televised production where "Forever" performed by Alekseev was selected as the winner following the combination of votes from a jury panel and public televoting.

Belarus participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2019 with the song "Like It" written by Yulia Kireeva, Viktor Drobysh and Zinaida Kupriyanovich. The song was performed by Zena, which is the artistic name of singer Zinaida Kupriyanovich. The Belarusian entry for the 2019 contest in Tel Aviv, Israel was selected through the national final Nationalny Otbor, which was organised by the Belarusian broadcaster National State Television and Radio Company of the Republic of Belarus (BTRC). The national final consisted of ten competing acts participating in a televised production where a jury panel selected "Like It" performed by Zena as the winner.

Belarus originally planned to participate in the Eurovision Song Contest 2020 with the song "Da vidna" written by Uladzislaŭ Paškievič, Valeryja Hrybusava and Mikita Najdzionaŭ. The song was performed by the band VAL. The Belarusian entry for the 2020 contest in Rotterdam, Netherlands was selected through the national final Nationalny Otbor, which was organised by the Belarusian broadcaster National State Television and Radio Company of the Republic of Belarus (BTRC). The national final consisted of twelve competing acts participating in a televised production where "Da vidna" performed by VAL was selected as the winner following the combination of votes from a jury panel and public televoting.

Belarus had originally planned to participate in the Eurovision Song Contest 2021 in Rotterdam, Netherlands. They internally selected Galasy ZMesta as their representative, initially with the song "Ya nauchu tebya ", but the entry was deemed ineligible to compete by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) due to violation of the contest's rules against political entries. After their replacement entry "Pesnyu pro zaytsa " was also deemed ineligible, Belarus was disqualified from the contest on 26 March 2021. This was the first time Belarus was absent from the contest since the country's debut in 2004. Belarus was originally set to compete in the first half of the first semi-final on 18 May 2021.

References

  1. ↑ "Belarus Country Profile". EBU . Retrieved 7 November 2014.
  2. ↑ Floras, Stella (29 September 2008). "Belarus: Welcome to the Eurofest project!". ESCToday. Archived from the original on 1 October 2008. Retrieved 29 September 2008.
  3. ↑ Holyer, Steve (25 October 2006). "Belarus jury to decide for 2007". Esctoday.
  4. 1 2 3 4 "Belarus 2007 - News archive".
  5. ↑ Klier, Marcus (5 December 2006). "Belarus: songs announced". Esctoday.
  6. ↑ "The order of performers of the semifinal of the National TV music project "EuroFest" (qualifying stage for "Eurovision-2007" song contest) is determined". BTRC. 15 December 2006. Archived from the original on 23 February 2007. Retrieved 5 July 2021.
  7. ↑ "Eurofest final live on the First Channel". BTRC. Archived from the original on 22 January 2007. Retrieved 5 July 2021.
  8. ↑ "Dmitry Koldun – Belarus". Eurovision 2007 – 2008 – 2009 weblog. Archived from the original on 28 May 2007. Retrieved 5 July 2021.
  9. ↑ "Russia 2007". Archived from the original on 19 April 2007.
  10. ↑ "Work Your Magic". Six On Stage.
  11. ↑ "Semi-Final of Helsinki 2007". European Broadcasting Union. Archived from the original on 22 April 2021. Retrieved 22 April 2021.
  12. ↑ "Grand Final of Helsinki 2007". European Broadcasting Union. Archived from the original on 22 April 2021. Retrieved 22 April 2021.
  13. 1 2 "Results of the Semi-Final of Helsinki 2007". European Broadcasting Union. Archived from the original on 22 April 2021. Retrieved 22 April 2021.
  14. 1 2 "Results of the Grand Final of Helsinki 2007". European Broadcasting Union. Archived from the original on 22 April 2021. Retrieved 22 April 2021.
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