Peter Urban | |
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 Urban at the Deutscher Radiopreis in Hamburg, 2016 | |
| Born | 14 April 1948 |
| Occupation(s) | Musician, radio presenter |
| Known for | German commentary for the Eurovision Song Contest (1997–2009; 2010–2023) |
Peter Urban (born 14 April 1948) is a German musician and radio host. He is best known for being the German commentator for the Eurovision Song Contest between 1997 and 2023, except in 2009 because of illness. [1]
Urban attended the Gymnasium Carolinum in Osnabrück and the Artland-Gymnasium in Quakenbrück. [2] He then studied English literature, sociology, and history at the University of Hamburg. In 1977, he earned his doctorate with his thesis "Rolling Words - The Poetry of Rock: Texts of Anglo-American Popular Music."
Since 1973, he has been working for the Norddeutscher Rundfunk (NDR). [1] . Additionally, he has realized various music projects as a rock musician and composer, including his band Bad News Reunion and the LP "Götz George Reads Charles Bukowski" (1978). [3] In 1988, he took on a position as an editor in the music department of NDR.
From 1995 to 1998, alongside his role as a music editor and presenter, Urban also served as the station voice of NDR 2. In 2003, he became the responsible editor for the programs "Nachtclub" and "Nightlounge" on NDR Info. At NDR 2, he hosted the show "NDR 2 Soundcheck Neue Musik," for which he personally curated the music program. In September 2016, the show was named after him and has been called "NDR 2 Soundcheck - The Peter Urban Show" ever since. [4]
From 1997 to 2023, he provided commentary for the Eurovision Song Contest on German television, with the exception of 2009 due to health reasons. [5] [6] [7] In 2007, he also commented on the Eurovision Dance Contest in 2007. In 2011, he was a member of the jury for the Live Entertainment Award, and in 2012, he served as a juror at the Jewrovision in Munich.
In 2013, Urban retired as an editor. However, as a freelance contributor, he continues to host his show on NDR and is part of the moderator team for the program "Nachtclub" on NDR Blue. In 2015, he co-commentated the Webvideopreis 2015 with the German web video producer HandOfBlood. [8] Since 2021, the show "Urban Pop - Musiktalk mit Peter Urban" has been airing on NDR Radio, featuring him as the host.
Germany has officially participated in every Eurovision Song Contest since its inaugural edition in 1956, except in 1996 when its entry did not qualify past the audio-only pre-selection round, and consequently was not seen in the broadcast final and does not count as one of Germany's 66 appearances. No other country has been represented as many times. Along with France, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom, Germany is one of the "Big Five" countries that are automatically prequalified for the final, due to being the largest financial contributors to the European Broadcasting Union (EBU). The final is broadcast in Germany on ARD's flagship channel, Das Erste.
Germany participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2004 with the song "Can't Wait Until Tonight" written by Stefan Raab. The song was performed by Max. Songwriter Stefan Raab represented Germany in the Eurovision Song Contest 2000 with the song "Wadde hadde dudde da?" where he placed fifth in the competition. The German entry for the 2004 contest in Istanbul, Turkey was selected through the national final Germany 12 Points!, organised by the German broadcaster ARD in collaboration with Norddeutscher Rundfunk (NDR). The national final took place on 19 March 2004 and featured ten competing acts with the winner being selected through two rounds of public televoting. "Can't Wait Until Tonight" performed by Max was selected as the German entry for Istanbul after placing first in the top two during the first round of voting and ultimately gaining 853,688 votes in the second round.
Germany participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 1999 with the song "Reise nach Jerusalem – Kudüs'e Seyahat" written by Ralph Siegel and Bernd Meinunger. The song was performed by the group Sürpriz. The German entry for the 1999 contest in Jerusalem, Israel was selected through the national final Countdown Grand Prix 1999, organised by the German broadcaster ARD in collaboration with Norddeutscher Rundfunk (NDR). The national final took place on 12 March 1999 and featured eleven competing acts with the winner being selected through public televoting. "Hör den Kindern einfach zu" performed by Corinna May was originally selected as the German entry for Jerusalem after gaining 32.6% of the votes, however the song was disqualified for having been released in 1997 by another act and replaced with runner-up "Reise nach Jerusalem – Kudüs'e Seyahat" performed by Sürpriz.
Germany participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2003 with the song "Let's Get Happy" written by Ralph Siegel and Bernd Meinunger. The song was performed by German pop singer, Louise Hoffner, more commonly referred to as Lou. The German entry for the 2003 contest in Riga, Latvia was selected through the national final Countdown Grand Prix Eurovision 2003, organised by the German broadcaster ARD in collaboration with Norddeutscher Rundfunk (NDR). The national final took place on 7 March 2003 and featured fourteen competing acts with the winner being selected through two rounds of public voting. "Let's Get Happy" performed by Lou was selected as the German entry for Riga after placing second in the top three during the first round of voting and ultimately gaining 38% of the vote in the second round.
Germany participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2001 with the song "Wer Liebe lebt" written by Gino Trovatello, Matthias Stingl and Eva Richter. The song was performed by Michelle. The German entry for the 2001 contest in Copenhagen, Denmark was selected through the national final Countdown Grand Prix Eurovision 2001, organised by the German broadcaster ARD in collaboration with Norddeutscher Rundfunk (NDR). The national final took place on 2 March 2001 and featured twelve competing acts with the winner being selected through two rounds of public televoting. "Wer Liebe lebt" performed by Michelle was selected as the German entry for Copenhagen after placing first in the top three during the first round of voting and ultimately gaining 36.6% of the votes in the second round.
Germany participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 1998 with the song "Guildo hat euch lieb!" written by Alf Igel. The song was performed by Guildo Horn. The German entry for the 1998 contest in Birmingham, United Kingdom was selected through the national final Countdown Grand Prix 1998, organised by the German broadcaster ARD in collaboration with Norddeutscher Rundfunk (NDR). The national final took place on 26 February 1998 and featured eleven competing acts with the winner being selected through public televoting. "Guildo hat euch lieb!" performed by Guildo Horn was selected as the German entry for Birmingham after gaining 426,050 of the votes.
Germany participated in and won the Eurovision Song Contest 2010 with the song "Satellite" written by Julie Frost and John Gordon. The song was performed by Lena. The German entry for the 2010 contest in Oslo, Norway was selected through the national final Unser Star für Oslo, organised by the German broadcaster ARD in collaboration with Norddeutscher Rundfunk (NDR) and private broadcaster ProSieben. The national final featured 20 competing artists and consisted of five heats, a quarter-final, a semi-final and a final held in February and March 2010. Contestants were selected to advance in the competition via public televote. Two contestants qualified to compete in the final where the winner was selected over two rounds of voting. "Satellite" performed by Lena was selected as the German entry for Oslo after placing among the top two during the first round of voting and ultimately gaining the most votes in the second round.
Germany participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2000 with the song "Wadde hadde dudde da?" written and performed by Stefan Raab. The German entry for the 2000 contest in Stockholm, Sweden was selected through the national final Countdown Grand Prix Eurovision 2000, organised by the German broadcaster ARD in collaboration with Norddeutscher Rundfunk (NDR). The national final took place on 18 February 2000 and featured eleven competing acts with the winner being selected through public televoting. "Wadde hadde dudde da?" performed by Stefan Raab was selected as the German entry for Stockholm after gaining 882,569 of the votes.
Germany participated in and hosted the Eurovision Song Contest 2011 in Düsseldorf with the song "Taken by a Stranger" written by Gus Seyffert, Nicole Morier and Monica Birkenes. The song was performed by Lena, who previously represented Germany in the Eurovision Song Contest in 2010 and won with the song "Satellite". In addition to participating in the contest, ARD and NDR also hosted the Eurovision Song Contest after winning the competition in 2010. ARD and NDR announced on 30 June 2010 that they had again selected Lena to represent Germany at the 2011 contest in Düsseldorf. A song selection entitled Unser Song für Deutschland was organised by ARD in collaboration with NDR, and consisted of two semi-finals and a final held in January and February 2011. The selection featured twelve competing songs with six songs competing in each semi-final; the top three songs advanced to the final via public televote. In the final, the winning song was selected through two rounds of public televoting. "Taken by a Stranger" was selected as the German song for Düsseldorf after placing among the top two during the first round of voting and ultimately gaining 79% of the votes in the second round.
Germany participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2012 with the song "Standing Still" written by Steve Robson, Jamie Cullum and Wayne Hector. The song was performed by Roman Lob. The German entry for the 2012 contest in Baku, Azerbaijan was selected through the national final Unser Star für Baku, organised by the German broadcaster ARD in collaboration with Norddeutscher Rundfunk (NDR) and private broadcaster ProSieben. The national final featured 20 competing artists and consisted of five heats, a quarter-final, a semi-final and a final held in January and February 2012 2012. Contestants were selected to advance in the competition via public televote. Two contestants qualified to compete in the final where the winner was selected over two rounds of voting. "Standing Still" performed by Roman Lob was selected as the German entry for Baku after gaining 50.7% of the votes in the second round.
Germany participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2013 with the song "Glorious" written by Yann Peifer, Manuel Reuter, Andres Ballinas and Tony Cornelissen. The song was performed by Cascada. The German entry for the 2013 contest in Malmö, Sweden was selected through the national final Unser Song für Malmö, organised by the German broadcaster ARD in collaboration with Norddeutscher Rundfunk (NDR). The national final took place on 14 February 2013 and featured twelve competing acts with the winner by the votes of a five-member jury panel, a radio vote and a public televote. "Glorious" performed by Cascada was selected as the German entry for Malmö after gaining the most points following the combination of votes.
Germany participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2014 with the song "Is It Right", written by Elżbieta Steinmetz, Frank Kretschmer and Adam Kesselhaut. The song was performed by Elaiza. The German entry for the 2014 contest in Copenhagen, Denmark was selected through the national final Unser Song für Dänemark, organised by the German broadcaster ARD in collaboration with Norddeutscher Rundfunk (NDR). The national final took place on 13 March 2014 and featured eight competing acts, one of which was selected through a Club Concert wildcard round. The winner was selected through three rounds of public televoting, and "Is It Right" performed by Elaiza was selected as the German entry for Copenhagen after gaining 55% of the votes in the third round.
Germany participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2015 with the song "Black Smoke", written by Michael Harwood, Ella McMahon and Tonino Speciale. The song was performed by Ann Sophie. The German entry for the 2015 contest in Vienna, Austria was selected through the national final Unser Song für Österreich, organised by the German broadcaster ARD in collaboration with Norddeutscher Rundfunk (NDR). The national final took place on 3 March 2015 and featured eight competing acts, one of which was selected through a Club Concert wildcard round. The winner was selected through three rounds of public televoting, and "Heart of Stone" performed by Andreas Kümmert initially announced as the German entry for Vienna after gaining 78.7% of the votes in the third round, however the artist immediately forfeited his victory upon the announcement. The confirmation of national final runner-up "Black Smoke" performed by Ann Sophie as the German entry occurred during a post-show press conference. The unprecedented withdrawal of Kümmert garnered international media interest.
Germany participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2016 with the song "Ghost" written by Thomas Burchia, Anna Leyne and Conrad Hensel. The song was performed by Jamie-Lee. The German entry for the 2016 contest in Stockholm, Sweden was selected through the national final Unser Lied für Stockholm, organised by the German broadcaster ARD in collaboration with Norddeutscher Rundfunk (NDR). The national final took place on 25 February 2016 and featured ten competing acts with the winner being selected through two rounds of public voting. "Ghost" performed by Jamie-Lee Kriewitz was selected as the German entry for Stockholm after placing first in the top three during the first round of voting and ultimately gaining 44.5% of the vote in the second round.
Germany participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2017 with the song "Perfect Life" written by Lindsey Ray, Lindy Robbins and Dave Bassett. The song was performed by Levina. The German entry for the 2017 contest in Kyiv, Ukraine was selected through the national final Unser Song 2017, organised by the German broadcaster ARD in collaboration with Norddeutscher Rundfunk (NDR). The national final took place on 9 February 2017 with the winner being selected through four rounds of public televoting. "Perfect Life" performed by Levina was selected as the German entry for Kyiv after gaining 69% of the votes in the fourth round.
Germany participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2018 with the song "You Let Me Walk Alone" written by Michael Schulte, Thomas Stengaard, Nisse Ingwersen and Nina Müller. The song was performed by Michael Schulte. The German entry for the 2018 contest in Lisbon, Portugal was selected through the national final Unser Lied für Lissabon, organised by the German broadcaster ARD in collaboration with Norddeutscher Rundfunk (NDR). The national final took place on 22 February 2018 and featured six competing acts with the winner selected by the votes of a 100-member Eurovision panel, a 20-member international jury panel and a public televote. "You Let Me Walk Alone" performed by Michael Schulte was selected as the German entry for Lisbon after gaining the most points following the combination of votes.
Germany participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2019 with the song "Sister" written by Laurell Barker, Marine Kaltenbacher, Tom Oehler and Thomas Stengaard. The song was performed by the duo S!sters, consisting of Laurita Kästel and Carlotta Truman. The German entry for the 2019 contest in Tel Aviv, Israel was selected through the national final Unser Lied für Israel, organised by the German broadcaster ARD in collaboration with Norddeutscher Rundfunk (NDR). The national final took place on 22 February 2019 and featured seven competing acts with the winner selected by the votes of a 100-member Eurovision panel, a 20-member international jury panel and a public televote. "Sister" performed by S!sters was selected as the German entry for Tel Aviv after gaining the most points following the combination of votes.
Eurovision Song Contest 2020 – das deutsche Finale live aus der Elbphilharmonie was a one-off music competition in the Eurovision format, organised and broadcast by the German broadcaster Norddeutscher Rundfunk (NDR). It served as an alternative for the Eurovision Song Contest 2020, which was planned to be held in Rotterdam, Netherlands, but was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Germany participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2022 in Turin, Italy with the song "Rockstars" performed by Malik Harris. The German entry for the 2022 contest was selected through the national final Germany 12 Points, organised by the German broadcaster ARD in collaboration with Norddeutscher Rundfunk (NDR). The national final took place on 4 March 2022 and featured six competing acts with the winner being selected through online radio voting and public voting.
Rick Jurthe, known mononymously as Ryk, is a German singer, songwriter and music producer.
Media related to Peter Urban (moderator) at Wikimedia Commons| International | |
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