Ruth Lorenzo will fly the Spanish flag in Copenhagen with Dancing in the rain after a close vote in ¡Mira quién va a Eurovisión!
There has been a heated debate on who should have been representing Spain in this year’s Eurovision Song Contest but the waiting has come to an end and it will be Lorenzo’s power ballad representing the Iberian country in May.
Anne Igartiburu – the hostess of the NF – opened the show with Copenhagen’s mermaid and together they danced to a Eurovision medley. Igartiburu covered some of the most important Eurovision classics in the style of Petra Mede in Malmö last year. Following this introduction, she went on to introduce the jury, the voting system and the five candidates. All five artists sang one part of their entries first, one after the other. This would be used as a short recap to be played between all five individual performances. The lines were open before the singers took to the stage individually so this short video was reportedly used as a fair measure to ensure transparency in the voting. On the other hand, the jury was made up of three important figures in the Spanish music industry – Mónica Naranjo, Merche and David Bustamante. Naranjo has often come in first in polls as the Eurovision fans’ hot favourite. Merche entered the Spanish NF in 2001 and Bustamante took part in Eurovision 2002 as a backing vocalist. All three were eager to praise the hopefuls for their talent and hard-working spirit.
The first entry to be sung during the live show was Brequette’s Más(Run) (More/Run) As expected, she gave an emotional performance which received fervent cheers from the audience thus proving her popularity with the fans. It would later become the jury’s favourite – they highlighted Brequette’s ability to convey emotion in her singing.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3kG24J4n7ug
La Dama took to the stage in a gorgeous long white dress and performed Estrella Fugaz (Falling Star) with convincing elegance. She admitted to being nervous during the rehearsals but later she felt herself at home in Mira quién va a Eurovisión. Unfortunately she came in last but the reviews from the jury members were positive.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z-8CX2RDmlU
And then it was Ruth Lorenzo’s turn. She was standing on a platform in diva style with three backing singers. Her stunning vocals stood out and the staging fit her song perfectly. She went on to deliver the most convincing performance of the night with true passion in every single note. Having topped the Spain Itunes chart with Dancing in the Rain, she was one of the strongest contenders tonight and gained praise from both the public and jury voting ranking second and first in each respectively.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vHjMlA8QVrM
Jorge González brought the Latin vibe to the show. He put up an impressive performance where the main focus was on the staging and professional dance routine. As said before, Aunque se acabe el mundo (Even if the world ends) is an up-tempo song that stood out as the summery and danceable tune of the night. David Bustamante also noted that González is one of Spain’s young promises with a successful career ahead.
Last but not least, Raúl’s Seguir sin ti (To go on without you) marks the singer’s comeback to the Eurovision scene after 14 years. Back in 2000 he performed in the Spanish NF and was beaten by Serafín Zubiri. Having sold more than 1.8 million records, he soon became an established performer with stage presence. Bustamante remarked that he had inspired him in his early days as a singer.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sjn1CS42Eso
During the interval act, Gisela (Andorra 2008) sang a Eurovision medley of Satellite (Germany 2010), Only Teardrops (Denmark 2013), Euphoria (Sweden 2012) and Europe’s Living a Celebration (Spain 2002). Soon after the lines were closed and the jury was first to cast their votes. It was surprising to find out that the voting pattern was the same for all three: 6 points to La Dama, 7 points to Raúl, 8 points to Jorge González, 10 points to Ruth Lorenzo and 12 points to Brequette. In their view, all five were good contestants but Lorenzo and Brequette were the best. It was a tough decision – they said – Lorezo’s perfect vocals and Brequette’s emotive interpretation were both excellent. Yet, they picked Brequette as their favourite. However, the televoting determined the final outcome in what seemed a cliffhanger of a final! Ruth scored the top vote in a tie with Brequette – both had 66 – but the public’s favourite prevailed and, to her amazement, Ruth Lorenzo became the Spanish representative in the 2014 edition of the Eurovision Song Contest with her title Dancing in the Rain.
(Here is a short personal review in case you are interested)
I personally wish Ruth the best of luck for this year’s competition. All five entrants were amazing interpreters so all of my credit goes to them as well – you all tried hard, guys! Brequette was escunited’s favourite and she was one of my personal favourites too. I am sure that she would have done well but she might want to try again next year. It is a matter of time : she will eventually be selected as our Eurovision entrant sooner or later. Now it is time to get behind Ruth Lorenzo – she is one of the best singers we will ever get the chance to see in the Eurovision stage for Spain. No matter what the results are, she will do us proud and I firmly believe she was the strongest act in the competition last night.
¡Muchísima suerte Ruth, te QUEREMOS! / Best of luck, Ruth, we LOVE you!
