Andria Putkaradze has won Season VII of popular Georgian talent show Ranina, and as is the case the last six seasons, will represent Georgia at Junior Eurovision 2024 in Madrid, Spain.
Putkaradze beat out Sandro Gurgenadze and Barbara Morgoshia in the three competitor Semi-Final, bringing the ten week, four round, one Semi-Final and Final marathon to a close.
Given the Final was shown today, Georgian Independence Day, the three competitors performed songs composed by Gogi Dolidze. Zviad Bolkvadze opened the show with “Love will Reign in This World,” a poignant message considering the troubles rumbling not just in Georgia but all over the world.
Putkaradze, who had earned the nickname “The Bee” as a play on his last name, won over the judges with his performance of “They Will Grow Up Again.”
The song Putkaradze will perform in Madrid has yet to be announced, and will be internally selected by Georgia Public Broadcasting.
The performances of the final were judged and the winner ultimately decided by Dato Evgenidze, Nato Metonidze, and the Final’s guest judge, composer and conductor Nikoloz Rachveli.
Hosted by David Aladashvili, with Ranina 2022 finalist Vache Ghviniashvili as co-host and green room interviewer, this is the seventh time that Ranina will be used to select Georgia’s representative at Junior Eurovision. The song is usually released close to the European Broadcasting Union deadline, with the songwriter selected internally (more often than not, it’s serial JESC winning songwriter Giga Kukhianidze).
The best performance by Georgia in the Ranina era is Mariam Bigvava, who came in 3rd at Junior Eurovision 2022 with “I Believe,” one year after Niko Kajaia’s 4th place with “Let’s count the Smiles.”
Last year, 1TV mixed up the formula slightly by pairing Season 6 winner Anastasia Vasadze with Season 5 finalists Nikoloz Kharati and Oto Bazerashvlili on “Over the Sky.” Georgia came in 14th, equaling their lowest ever placement of Giorgi Rotiashvili’s “We Need Love” from 2019.
Overall, Georgia has the joint most wins with France among Junior Eurovision nations with three victories (all Kukhianidze compositions) in 2008, 2011, and 2016.
Do #YOU agree that Andria Putkaradze is the right choice for Georgia? Or do #YOU feel that your favorite was unjustly eliminated? Let us know in the comments, in our forum, or in our social media.
