Dante
Active member
And that's why I like sometimes so much this contest...offfff
San Marino SAN MARINO 2016 - Serhat - I Didn't Know
- Thread starter escYOUnited
- Start date
- Watchers 24
Quent91
Well-known member
This song had to qualify. So freaking good 
Too bad I gave it 0 point, but it was for the 1st version of the song. The disco version is very good and nice to listen to ! The performance on stage was also successful. The girls tried so hard, even more than the Serhat himself
Too bad I gave it 0 point, but it was for the 1st version of the song. The disco version is very good and nice to listen to ! The performance on stage was also successful. The girls tried so hard, even more than the Serhat himself
Quent91
Well-known member
wow, he speaks French !
Thursday is the perfect day for me to review this year's Sammarinese entry
Serhat - I Didn't Know
Status: Interesting, great job!
Song: After Ralph Siegel's departure and the announcement that a Turkish singer would represent the oldest republic in the world, I wasn't really confident about San Marino's future entry. I indeed expressed my concerns in this thread about those changes because 1) I genuinely enjoyed Siegel's compositions (from "The Social Network Song (oh-oh-uh-oh-oh)" to "Chain Of Lights") and as San Marino have little money, I feared they would end up getting an uninteresting and hopeless entry, 2) the fact that - for the first time ever - the artist to represent them would have absolutely no connection to them or Italy made me think of who would actually benefit from that opportunism. Actually, I thought we would have a cheap song sung by a desperate "singer" (a la Eduard Romanyuta), which in the end, thankfully didn't happen! As Serhat (aka the sugar daddy or Turkish delight) said it himself, "I Didn't Know" is a modernized disco song dealing with an unexpected love story. It starts off by a short and slow intro with backing vocalists' harmonies before Serhat starts singing or "speaking". This is peculiar for people who aren't accustomed to that, generally in pop songs, spoken parts are often found at the beginning or during a bridge, while in "I Didn't Know", this is how the verses were designed. I admit I have been kind of distracted by that at first, but I got used to it after a few listenings, it's kind of crooner-sounding (if that makes sense). The first verse builds up and leads to a very well done transition with typical disco sounds and rhythmics, which prepares the listener to the chorus that's about to kick off. Serhat finally sings, helped with a handful of female backing vocalists who brang more depth and punch to the most important part of the song. The chord progression there is absolutely remarkable, it almost sounds like a melody Serge Gainsbourg could have composed, the variations around the main theme are rich and the phrasing is unique for a Eurovision entry, we don't hear that often. The transition to the second verse is led by the backing vocalists again, who are eventually omnipresent and essential to the mood of the song, that part - cleverly done - helps not to lose the momemtum of the chorus while making the song catchier overall. I'm pleasantly surprised by that effort from San Marino, it was different, retro yet modern-sounding and musically solid in its category. I don't know the original ballad version, but I have to say I really like the version they went for.
Voice: Serhat's "spoken singing" was on point during semi 1, I think his vocals were very close to the studio version. The female backing vocalists also did a hell of a good job at slaying their parts and backing him up during the chorus. I have nothing more to say in the vocal department, voices were balanced and steady, 'twas all good.
Staging: Thierry Mugler was responsible for the staging, which was quite surprising imo, I guess it's the first time that a fashion designer actually supervises the way a Eurovision act should look apart from clothing. Apparently, Mugler's original project was too big, I wonder what he had in mind because if his first idea has been abandoned with such a high technology-equipped stage... it was certainly really complex. However, the final staging was right up my alley because it wasn't over the top or kitsch like it could have been, it was surprisingly classy. I really liked the backdrops with moving blue/yellow/purple dots and stars which suited the disco theme perfectly without being "in your face", the colour scheme was indeed very Mugler. Guys, just go re-watch the performance for the backdrops! It was constantly changing: from orange reflective shapes to gold falling stars, a disco ball suddenly appears under slight amounts of brown and red lights... OMG that's how you do it! Everything looked so expensive! Serhat wore a very fitting burgundy suit and hat that made him stand out from the background, he was both hot and classy. The backing vocalists were wearing close-fitting and shiny silver dresses, skirts and suits, reminding us of disco era in an edgy way, again without being too much. Finally, I genuinely appreciated the use of space and camera angles. The dance routine was also great, it brang an added artistic value to an already very artistic performance, no need for holograms or projectors.
Outcome: San Marino failed to qualify for the final, which isn't that surprising considering it's San Marino and they performed between two memorable and more popular acts: Armenia and Russia. Yet people enjoyed the performance very much as it just missed out on the televoting top 10, of course the flop juries ranked them second to last or something... No comment. Eventually, San Marino got 12th place, which isn't bad at all considering their chances of doing well. Personally, I think it was worth the final for sure (and a final mid-table placing perhaps), people like to criticize San Marino - as if they're bringing the worst songs ever each year - because liking so-called irrelevant countries isn't trendy, ya know.
Anyway, I'm glad they beat 6 songs of the semi, they definitely didn't deserve less points than they received. In my personal ranking, "I Didn't Know" is around 12th place out of 42, which is not far from my top 10. I genuinely appreciated their effort (once again) and hope they won't withdraw due to EBU's idiocy and biases. I'm aware that, with Siegel out, San Marino could be like a lottery now, but I want to see what they'll propose in the future, I'm sure they can qualify again Anyway, well done Serhat!
Serhat - I Didn't Know
Status: Interesting, great job!
Song: After Ralph Siegel's departure and the announcement that a Turkish singer would represent the oldest republic in the world, I wasn't really confident about San Marino's future entry. I indeed expressed my concerns in this thread about those changes because 1) I genuinely enjoyed Siegel's compositions (from "The Social Network Song (oh-oh-uh-oh-oh)" to "Chain Of Lights") and as San Marino have little money, I feared they would end up getting an uninteresting and hopeless entry, 2) the fact that - for the first time ever - the artist to represent them would have absolutely no connection to them or Italy made me think of who would actually benefit from that opportunism. Actually, I thought we would have a cheap song sung by a desperate "singer" (a la Eduard Romanyuta), which in the end, thankfully didn't happen! As Serhat (aka the sugar daddy or Turkish delight
) said it himself, "I Didn't Know" is a modernized disco song dealing with an unexpected love story. It starts off by a short and slow intro with backing vocalists' harmonies before Serhat starts singing or "speaking". This is peculiar for people who aren't accustomed to that, generally in pop songs, spoken parts are often found at the beginning or during a bridge, while in "I Didn't Know", this is how the verses were designed. I admit I have been kind of distracted by that at first, but I got used to it after a few listenings, it's kind of crooner-sounding (if that makes sense). The first verse builds up and leads to a very well done transition with typical disco sounds and rhythmics, which prepares the listener to the chorus that's about to kick off. Serhat finally sings, helped with a handful of female backing vocalists who brang more depth and punch to the most important part of the song. The chord progression there is absolutely remarkable, it almost sounds like a melody Serge Gainsbourg could have composed, the variations around the main theme are rich and the phrasing is unique for a Eurovision entry, we don't hear that often. The transition to the second verse is led by the backing vocalists again, who are eventually omnipresent and essential to the mood of the song, that part - cleverly done - helps not to lose the momemtum of the chorus while making the song catchier overall. I'm pleasantly surprised by that effort from San Marino, it was different, retro yet modern-sounding and musically solid in its category. I don't know the original ballad version, but I have to say I really like the version they went for.Voice: Serhat's "spoken singing" was on point during semi 1, I think his vocals were very close to the studio version. The female backing vocalists also did a hell of a good job at slaying their parts and backing him up during the chorus. I have nothing more to say in the vocal department, voices were balanced and steady, 'twas all good.
Staging: Thierry Mugler was responsible for the staging, which was quite surprising imo, I guess it's the first time that a fashion designer actually supervises the way a Eurovision act should look apart from clothing. Apparently, Mugler's original project was too big, I wonder what he had in mind because if his first idea has been abandoned with such a high technology-equipped stage... it was certainly really complex. However, the final staging was right up my alley because it wasn't over the top or kitsch like it could have been, it was surprisingly classy. I really liked the backdrops with moving blue/yellow/purple dots and stars which suited the disco theme perfectly without being "in your face", the colour scheme was indeed very Mugler.
Guys, just go re-watch the performance for the backdrops! It was constantly changing: from orange reflective shapes to gold falling stars, a disco ball suddenly appears under slight amounts of brown and red lights... OMG that's how you do it! Everything looked so expensive! Serhat wore a very fitting burgundy suit and hat that made him stand out from the background, he was both hot and classy. The backing vocalists were wearing close-fitting and shiny silver dresses, skirts and suits, reminding us of disco era in an edgy way, again without being too much. Finally, I genuinely appreciated the use of space and camera angles. The dance routine was also great, it brang an added artistic value to an already very artistic performance, no need for holograms or projectors.Outcome: San Marino failed to qualify for the final, which isn't that surprising considering it's San Marino and they performed between two memorable and more popular acts: Armenia and Russia. Yet people enjoyed the performance very much as it just missed out on the televoting top 10, of course the flop juries ranked them second to last or something... No comment. Eventually, San Marino got 12th place, which isn't bad at all considering their chances of doing well. Personally, I think it was worth the final for sure (and a final mid-table placing perhaps), people like to criticize San Marino - as if they're bringing the worst songs ever each year - because liking so-called irrelevant countries isn't trendy, ya know.
Anyway, I'm glad they beat 6 songs of the semi, they definitely didn't deserve less points than they received. In my personal ranking, "I Didn't Know" is around 12th place out of 42, which is not far from my top 10. I genuinely appreciated their effort (once again) and hope they won't withdraw due to EBU's idiocy and biases. I'm aware that, with Siegel out, San Marino could be like a lottery now, but I want to see what they'll propose in the future, I'm sure they can qualify again Anyway, well done Serhat!
GianlucaTomoe
Banned
Wow, what a very interesting review... Not
Dutchball
Active member
You could also, you know, leave tuorem alone if you're just going to bash him just because you don't like his opinion
(goes for any other forum member by the way)
GianlucaTomoe
Banned
You could also, you know, leave tuorem alone if you're just going to bash him just because you don't like his opinion
(goes for any other forum member by the way)
His opinion on the song is ok, but he shouldn't accuse EBU, the juries or the fans who don't like the Sammarinese entries of being biased against San Marino when it's actually not true. These are lame and futile accusations. When one decides to like a bad song, he has to live with the fact that not everybody agrees with him.
Dutchball
Active member
Agree for EBU biases but it's also about the new voting system.
disagrees with it because it basically loses it's televoting power and it's understandable they don't like that. And yeah jury hate is unnecessary but it indeed seems like it's popular to dislike small countries :?.
RainyWoods
Croak-kay
Well, why not engage in a respectable discussion and share your opinion? Instead you instantly go in for the attack, being rude to someone who means no harm and who has taken the time to write a long and detailed post, sharing their opinion. It's the whole point of the forum. You don't have to agree but show some respect. That was very mean spirited of you. It feels to me you're just looking for a fight here. Good manners go a long way.
lavieenrose
Albania Superstar
Ok, maybe I should precise that "EBU's biases" was referring to the new voting system that creates a televoting score for microstates (which could be considered unfair to them) and the fact that San Marino had not been informed about that (along with 50% of the participating countries).
When it comes to people's attitude towards San Marino, I think that posts in their past threads are telling, people almost feel ashamed of even admitting they like the song or they feel obliged to mention they like it in an ironic way. Of course, everyone's allowed to dislike their songs - each to their own - but I feel like it's easier to criticize them because almost no one expects anything good from them, like nothing could change that. Just my feeling when reading reactions when Sammarinese entries were revealed, "Crisalide" seemed to be the exception.
As for juries, I fail to understand how this could be the second worst song of the night, but oh well :?
But again, that's just my opinion and I wanted to share it with you guys. Peace
When it comes to people's attitude towards San Marino, I think that posts in their past threads are telling, people almost feel ashamed of even admitting they like the song or they feel obliged to mention they like it in an ironic way. Of course, everyone's allowed to dislike their songs - each to their own - but I feel like it's easier to criticize them because almost no one expects anything good from them, like nothing could change that. Just my feeling when reading reactions when Sammarinese entries were revealed, "Crisalide" seemed to be the exception.
As for juries, I fail to understand how this could be the second worst song of the night, but oh well :?
But again, that's just my opinion and I wanted to share it with you guys. Peace
GianlucaTomoe
Banned
No no, even if it could seem like that, once that I replied about what I felt it was wrong in that post, there's no reason to panic anymore and say that I always search for the fight. As tuorem says now, peace
AdilHassani
Member
It's the god of music the genius of the era
lavieenrose
Albania Superstar
I have done NOTHING in my life to deserve something this perfect. Martha and Serhat for Record of the Year. Martha and Serhat for Contemporary Christian Album of the Year. Martha and Serhat for the Nobel Peace Prize.
JonnyWest
Member
This is great! 
I love it
I love it