In the lead up to the Portuguese national selection we had the honor to sit down with PerpĂ©tua to talk about their participation in Festival da Canção, what the band’s members are doing when they aren’t making music and so much more. We hope you enjoy!
Hi Perpétua, it’s great to have the chance to chat with you. To start off, can you give us a quick introduction of who you are for those who might not be familiar with you?
Hello! Thanks for the opportunity to talk with you! We are Perpétua, a band from Ílhavo, a little city near Aveiro.
Now, the name Perpétua is certainly intriguing! Would you mind sharing the inspiration behind this unique name choice?
Truth is that the story behind the name is not that interesting. We were together for a few months, had already written some songs, and we couldn’t come up with a name that satisfied us all. One day, we just decided to search for plant names and Perpétua came up. It also resonated with us because one could interpret it in some different ways. Perpétua can be a flower, it is also a first name and it is also an adjective that can be translated to “perpetual” or “everlasting”. This kind of ambiguity is something we all like.
For people who aren’t familiar with your music, how would you describe your overall sound?
In our one and only (yet) full length album we tried some different approaches. If someone listens to Esperar Pra Ver, there are a few genres that can be identified, such as Dream pop and Disco. Right now, we are preparing our second full length album and we are leaning more into that Disco territory and also channeling that 80’s Pop mojo into our sound.
To get to know you guys better, let’s talk about your life outside of music. How has being a part of Perpétua influenced your personal relationships and daily life outside of music? Does collaborating as a group bring you closed together?
We are not a professional band, so each one of us has other occupations outside of music. Xavier (bassist) started studying again and does some freelancing work in audio and visual production, Rúben (drummer) has his own studio and is a Music teacher, Beatriz (singer) is also a Music teacher, and Diogo (guitarist) is a Philosophy teacher. Being in a band with full-time jobs (or close to it) is definitely challenging. Scheduling became very hard and sometimes we don’t have as much time to dedicate to the band as we would like. However, it has certainly helped us when it comes to dealing with life, since it still teaches us how to navigate through adversity, rejection and joy. It also teaches us the need to make compromises, so everyone can enjoy their own path.
To be performing at this year’s Festival da Canção must feel extremely special. How does it compare to other performances and jobs you’ve all done in the past?
It’s very challenging, but we are making sure we enjoy every step of the process. Since we are still kind of unknown, we weren’t sure if we were ready for this kind of leap, but receiving the invitation put those doubts aside and we are embracing this experience with every fiber of our being.
Let’s talk about your entry, “Bem Longe Daqui”. Tell us about your feelings towards the song and how you produced it. Was it originally created for Festival da Canção or did you think it would be a good fit for the competition after it was written?
As we were already in the process of making a new album, we had some songs almost ready. When confronted with the option of making a new one, just for Festival da Canção, we always came back to this one, since we didn’t feel anything new we were doing could top it. So we thought this song represented us as a band and could be a good fit for the contest. We made some necessary adjustments and got to this result.
How has your preparation for Festival da Canção been going so far? Are you starting to feel confident and ready for the competition?
We can’t hide the fact we are nervous, because we haven’t had so many eyes on us in any point of the band’s life. However, we are confident in our song and the freshness it can provide. We hope the song resonates with the people at home and that they feel the same way about it.
While Festival da Canção is a competition, have you had the chance to listen to other artists’ entries, and if so, do you have any favorites?
We have already listened to the other songs and can’t stress out enough the amount of sheer talent that is present in every entry. Right now, our favorites might be “Doce MistĂ©rio”, “Quarto para Um”, “… Pelas Costuras ” or “Grito “. Still, we could pick any song from the group.
We are a few weeks away from your appearance in the first semi-final. How would you sum up your plans for the live show’s staging and general performance in just one sentence?
We can say that our performance will be honest, staying true to who we are, and nostalgic!
As we come to the end of our interview, is there anything you’d like to say to your fans and supporters here at ESCUnited?
We would appreciate that you would give us a chance, check us out, listen to our songs and follow us on our social media so you don’t miss a thing! Every ounce of support is very appreciated and gives us the strength to carry on! 🙂
Thanks so much, Perpétua! We wish you the best of luck in Festival da Canção!
Perpetua will be competing in the first semi-final of Festival da Canção on February 24th. You can keep up with their journey to the national selection here and check out the rest of their discography on YouTube or Spotify.
If #YOU want to support PerpĂ©tua’s pathway to Eurovision 2024 make sure you tune in to their semi-final on Saturday February 24th and vote!
