Junior Eurovision 2022: What We Know So Far (Before The Show)
- Dec 2, 2022
- 19 min read
Updated: Dec 11, 2022
As I write this, we're less than 2 weeks away from Junior Eurovision 2022 now. Nonetheless, if you've missed some or all information about the contest, you can read about it here.
Host Country: Armenia
They won last year. It wasn't always the case that the winning country would host, but it has been the case since 2019.
Host City: Yerevan
It came as little surprise when the capital city was confirmed as the host city of the next Junior contest just two days after Malena's victory.
Host Arena: Karen Demirchyan Sports and Concerts Complex
Same location as in JESC2011.
Slogan: Spin the Magic
The theme art as shown here features a spinning top, as does the trailer for the event. The AMPTV CEO says that the spinning top "perfectly reflects the values of Junior Eurovision - everyone is united around the idea of magic, music and joy, and at the same time presenting a different song and performance." 16 spinning tops have been produced in the colours of the flags of each participating country.
Stage: circular design surrounded by neon lights; audiences directly standing next to stage rather than simply on the sides
That's the best description I can give from looking at the renders. Here's a leaked video of the completed stage, as well as the LEDs and lighting in the UK's staging during the stand-in rehearsal:
The construction of the stage commenced on 10/10, with Marvin Dietmann (Chief Director of JESC2022) having been present in the Karen Demirchyan Sports and Concerts Complex on that day alongside David Tserunyan. Marvin Dietmann also confirmed later that the stage rehearsals began on the 29th last month.
Hosts: Iveta Mukuchyan, Garik Papoyan, Karina Ignatyan, Robin the Robot
The first three were announced in a special video on the 18th. Mukuchyan participated in adult Eurovision for Armenia in 2016 with LoveWave. Papoyan is a comedian, presenter, Aram MP3's songwriter in 2014, and the 2022 Armenian spokesperson in Turin. Ignatyan represented Armenia in Gliwice-Silesia in Junior Eurovision 2019.
It was also announced that Malena will "join the Junior acts throughout their time in Armenia", although it seems that this will not entail a direct co-hosting role.
On the 1st this month, it was announced that Robin the Robot would be joining the aforementioned three as a co-host. Robin is an artificial intelligence that was developed by Expper Technologies based in Yerevan aimed at comforting and supporting hospitalized children, and was featured by TIME Magazine as one of the top 100 best inventions of 2021.
Opening Ceremony: 5 December, Republic Square, Yerevan
During the ceremony, the Christmas tree lights in the square were turned on. There was also a draw for the running order positions of the opening country, the closing country, and the host country as usual. After the draw, the previous winners and several previous Armenian JESC entrants also came on for a showcase, although it appears most of them were not singing live.
It was hosted mainly by Dalita (Armenia JESC2011), Hamlet Arakelyan (TV presenter, radio host), while Aram MP3 (Armenia ESC2014) conducted a short interview with Malena in English but otherwise spoke mostly in Armenian.
Tickets: between 5000 and 30000 Armenian drams (12-75 euros) for the live show, and between 3000 and 20000 drams (8-50 euros) for the jury show
Started to go on sale on 15/10. If you're reading this and they're not sold out, you can order tickets now at https://www.tomsarkgh.am/en/event/46096/Junior-Eurovision-2022.html, although there are only tickets for the standing fan zone in the middle and the left tribune for seats. The right tribune is not available for seating at all. Also the tickets are released in phases.
Interval Acts: presentation of Malena's new song, Rosa Linn singing new version of Snap, reunion of previous victors
Malena's new song is named "Can't Feel Anything", lyrics by Rosa Linn, and will be performed live presumably for the first time on the stage in the Karen Demichyan Complex. And given past practice, it should be safe to assume that she will also perform Qami Qami. Rosa Linn recently performed a new version of Snap featuring Armenian traditional instruments, and will be performing this version in Yerevan as well.
It was also announced that most previous Junior Eurovision winners have been invited to attend the 20th anniversary of the event. The following winners are confirmed to appear:
Bzikebi - Georgia 2008
Ralf Mackenbach - Netherlands 2009
Vladimir Arzumanyan - Armenia 2010
CANDY - Georgia 2011
Gaia Cauchi - Malta 2013
Vincenzo Cantiello - Italy 2014
Destiny Chukunyere - Malta 2015
Mariam Mamadashvili - Georgia 2016
Viki Gabor - Poland 2019
Valentina - France 2020
Malena - Armenia 2021 (obviously)
And as such these are the confirmed non-appearances:
Dino Jelusić - Croatia 2003 (reason: USA tour)
Maria Isabel - Spain 2004 (reason: pregnancy)
Ksenia Sitnik - Belarus 2005 (confirmed by AMPTV)
Tolmachevy Sisters - Russia 2006 (reason: no invitation)
Alexey Zhigalkovich - Belarus 2007 (confirmed by AMPTV)
Anastasiya Petryk - Ukraine 2012 (reason: outside of Ukraine, document registration isuses)
Polina Bogusevich - Russia 2017 (reason: no invitation)
Roksana Węgiel - Poland 2018 (reason: schedule conflicts due to contractually obligated activities)
The last time all previous winners were brought together was in 2010 in Minsk. Non-attending previous winners will have their songs performed by a children's choir, such as "Ti Si Moja Prva Ljubav" (2003), "My Vmeste" (2005), "Vesenniy Jazz" (2006) and "S Druz'yami" (2007).
Giorgi Shiolashvili from Bzikebi also posted an Instagram story, showing that Bzikebi, whose members are now all 21 years old, in fact worked with Giga Kukhianidze (producer of many Georgian JESC songs including 2021 and 2022) to create an updated version of "Bzzz", the song with which Bzikebi won in 2008, which will be performed live at Junior Eurovision, and was performed at the opening ceremony. Vladimir Arzumanyan, now 24, also recorded a new version of "Mama", likewise also performed at the opening ceremony. It is unknown whether other previous JESC victors have plans to re-record their winning songs, although judging by the audio at the ceremony it appears Gaia Cauchi has done so, while Ralf Mackenbach has not.
Interestingly, although Polina Bogusevich has publicly said multiple times that she did not receive an invitation, the head of AMPTV, Hovhannes Movsisyan, reiterated during a press conference that all previous acts had been invited.
Budget: almost 13 million Euros
€12,981,370 to be exact. This figure includes VAT, and corresponds to roughly 5.3 *billion* Armenian drams. This figure is comparable to the costs of the ADULT contests of Oslo 2010 and Stockholm 2016. In 2011, their hosting costs were only around 2 million Euros.
Voting Changes: registration?
Question mark there, because it only applies to UK viewers, which is certainly not the sole readership of my blog. It has been reported that viewers of Junior Eurovision in the UK will have to register a BBC account before they can vote on Sunday. This may be a pilot scheme for everyone in the future to have to register before they are permitted to vote in JESC, much like how the 2022 Australian televote was done via an online credit card platform as a prelude to the 2023 ROTW vote. Martin Osterdahl had previously hinted at potential changes to the JESC voting system, and depending on its results a registration system may be rolled out to all potential Junior Eurovision voters across the world in a future edition of JESC.
Non-participating Countries: Australia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Greece, Iceland, Israel, Montenegro, Norway, Russia, Slovenia, Sweden, Wales
During a press conference, Martin Osterdahl says that the EBU are receiving "interest from a few other countries that are not in Yerevan", and that he is personally "having a dialogue with some of the countries in northern Europe", and he is "hopeful that they will join eventually". It should be reminded that in Paris, Osterdahl was openly talking about the EBU having negotiations with the BBC for the UK to return to JESC, and look where we're at now.
Germany is still broadcasting the show despite their absence due to a "creative break" and travel restrictions. They also tentatively plan to return to the contest in 2023, potentially marking the first-ever contest with all five members of the Big Five present. Martin Osterdahl is also "confident" that Germany will return in 2023.
RÚV (the Icelandic broadcaster) also said that they are still interested in the contest, and would in fact like to hold a pre-selection show, but will need more time to develop their participation. Nonetheless, Iceland is sitting out the 2022 contest, and a post from the Junior Eurovision website reveals that unlike last year, they will NOT broadcast Junior Eurovision, with or without a delay.
Participating Countries: Albania (Kejtlin Gjata - Pakëz Diell), Armenia (Nare - DANCE!), France (Lissandro - Oh Maman !), Georgia (Mariam Bigvava - I Believe), Ireland (Sophie Lennon - Solas), Italy (Chanel Dilecta - Bla Bla Bla), Kazakhstan (David Charlin - Jer-Ana), Malta (Gaia Gambuzza - Diamonds In The Skies), Netherlands (Luna - La Festa), North Macedonia (Lara ft. Jovan and Irina - Životot E Pred Mene), Poland (Laura Bączkiewicz - To The Moon), Portugal (Nicolas Alves - Anos 70), Serbia (Katarina Savić - Svet Bez Granica), Spain (Carlos Higes - Señorita), Ukraine (Zlata Dziunka - Nezlamna), United Kingdom (Freya Skye - Lose My Head)
Worth noting that the UK is not only returning, but they are also broadcasting the show on *BBC One*, on which day there happens to be no World Cup match. Likewise, Italy is broadcasting the show on Rai 1. So the UK is returning, but Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Germany and Russia are not. Skip past this section if you would like to check the running order. All rehearsal photo rights go to the EBU and to Corinne Cumming, the photographer.
On the representatives and their songs:
Albania: went back to Junior Fest, which was broadcasted on 25/10. On 28/9, the full participant list was revealed, and the selection was filmed on 24/10. Ultimately, the winner of the selection was a girl named Kejtlin Gjata, with a song named "Pakëz Diell", or 'a little bit of sun' in Albanian, written by her and Edri Muça. The first rehearsal for Albania took place on the 6th, and featured Kejtlin mostly static with a white/pink dress singing using a mic stand. Here's a photo of that:
The second rehearsal took place on the 8th, which featured Kejtlin singing flawlessly.
Armenia: a series of auditions were conducted. The selected representative from the applicants was announced to be 14-year-old Nare (two syllables), full name Nare Ghazaryan. The song which will represent the host country was revealed on 12/10, and is named "DANCE!". It was composed and written by Grigor Kyokchyan and Nick Egibyan. The choreographer for the live performance is expected to be the same as that for the music video, that is Hovhannes Sargsyan. On the 7th, the host country was the last country to have its rehearsal. It featured 4 dancers alongside Nare, all of which donned extremely glittery outfits. There will also be bursts of pyro during the performance. Here is a photo from the rehearsal:
The second rehearsal was held on the 9th, and it featured fun choreography, Nare wearing a purple body suit, and singing the final high note very well.
France: on 28/10, France Televisions announced that the French representative to Yerevan will be 13-year-old Lissandro, with the song "Oh Maman !". Lyrics once again by Barbara Pravi, who also penned Bim Bam Toi (2019) and J'Imagine (2020). Choreography by Sabrina Lonis, who has choreographed every French JESC performance since 2018. The French delegation (including Valentina) set off on the 4th, and met up with Carlos Higes from Spain in Paris. On the 7th, France had their first rehearsal. Lissandro dons a sparkly black jacket, accompanied by 4 dancers at times. Pyro is also used. Here is a photo from the rehearsal:
France had their second rehearsal on the 9th, with Lissandro showing off his great stage charisma.
Georgia: Mariam Bigvava won the usual Georgian JESC selection of Ranina, and became the first confirmed representative for the 2022 contest. It was also reported that the songwriter is Giga Kukhianidze, who also wrote many other Georgian JESC entries. Lyrics by Beni Kadagidze and Iru Khechanovi. I Believe was then released on the 8th. The song is a power ballad in D minor, with motifs relating to war and peace. The song is bilingual, in both Georgian and English. A Georgian news program on the 1st revealed that rehearsals are in full swing, with Mariam being joined by four dancers. The Georgian delegation, including all previous winners, arrived in Yerevan on the morning of the 4th. On the 7th, Georgia had their rehearsal, with the main colour scheme being black and red. One shot involves Mariam kneeling at the centre while the four dancers each hold up a hand in her direction. Interestingly, at least for this rehearsal, it seems that they are dressed rather casually - in a t-short or hoodie. Here's a photo from the rehearsal:
In the second rehearsal held on the 9th, Mariam and her dancers put on their intended outfits. It features a squared hat, inspired by traditional Georgian dresses. Mariam's outfit also features two Georgian lines on the chest, which are lines from a medieval Georgian poet Shota Rustaveli, and reads as follows:
"(A friend should spare himself no trouble for his friend's sake.)
He should give heart for heart,
love as a road and a bridge."
Here's a look at those outfits:
Ireland: the winner of the Irish selection in the end was Sophie Lennon, who actually comes from Northern Ireland, and shortly afterwards an Irish-language song was composed for her, named "Solas", or "light" in Irish. Ultimately, the song was released on TG4 on 8/11. The song was written by Niall Mooney, Jonas Gladnikoff, MaJiKer, Hannah Featherstone and Ken McHugh. The Irish delegation left for Yerevan from Dublin around noon on the 4th. On the 7th, Ireland had their first rehearsal. The lighthouse in the music video was displayed briefly on the LED screen, however it appears there will be no dress change. Here is a photo from the rehearsal:
Sophie herself has now said though that in fact a prop as well as an extension to her dress had been planned, however so far UPS has not delivered it to Yerevan, and TG4 have been contacting them for more information. In the second rehearsal however, it was revealed that a pair of wings had been planned, but after two run-throughs those wings were scrapped, as they did not open properly, Sophie did not look comfortable wearing them and it did not fit the scene according to the press. Nonetheless, Sophie now dons an extra cape under which the wings were supposed to go, as follows:
It was reported however that unfortunately Sophie had come down with a sore throat and chest infection, although she nonetheless gave an excellent rehearsal and jury final performance.
Italy: on 3/11, it was announced that Chanel Dilecta will be representing Italy with the song "Bla Bla Bla". This song was released a week later. The track was written by Marco Iardella (who had worked on Italy JESC2016-19 and 2021), and the lyrics were written by Carmine Spera, Fabrizio Palaferri (who had also worked on Italy JESC2016-19 and 2021) and Angela Senatore. The Italian delegation arrived in Yerevan on the 4th, and it appears Chanel will be accompanied by 4 dancers. Italy had planned to have their first rehearsal on the 6th, however for an unspecified reason it was pushed back to the 7th. This rehearsal featured 4 dancers, a very colourful palette coming together to form a little face with yellow and pink glasses and green lips, as well as at one point a large sunflower on the LED screen, which was also a theme in the music video. Here's a photo from that rehearsal:
On the second rehearsal on the 8th, the footage revealed very fun colours and vibrant choreography. Unfortunately the accredited press reports that she did not do her whistle note perfectly at the jury final.
Kazakhstan: David Charlin was the highest-ranked eligible participant in a Kazakh song contest called "Baqytty Bala". His song, named "Jer-Ana" or "mother Earth" in Kazakh, was composed by two well-known composers, one of which is Hamit Şanğaliyev, who also co-wrote Armanyñnan Qalma (KZ 2019) and Forever (KZ 2020). David is now learning the Kazakh language, as he is actually of Armenian origin but living in Almaty, and the song features Kazakh-language lyrics. Jer-Ana was released on 6/11.
On 30/11, David Charlin became the first participant to set off for Yerevan, and arrived on the 1st this month. It was revealed by Khabar that Ilyas Tumarbayev and Jan Mukanov will direct the performance, while Mira Bergen will be David's stylist. No dancers are expected. On the 4th, Charlin filmed his postcard in front of an electronic screen, wearing a long blue coat and holding a similarly coloured spinning top. Many were unsure of how the staging would look since the music video was largely 3D animations, but it appears that David will be fully dressed in white, while the backdrop shows scenes such as industrial pollution, nature scenes and burning forests, reflecting the theme of Jer-Ana, mother Earth. Other shots have also shown him kneeling down on one leg at some point during the performance. Here's a photo from his first rehearsal taken on the 7th:
The second rehearsal on the 9th revealed David's strong vocals despite singing at a high pitch, as well as a dramatic staging with smoke on the ground. It also appears David's hair was dyed a light grey.
Malta: Gaia Gambuzza won the selection MJESC with her song "Diamonds In The Skies". A slight revamp of the song was later released. The song was composed by Matthew James Borg. In an Instagram post, Gaia revealed that she will be joined by two dancers in Yerevan, named Leah and Daisy, just like the MJESC performance. The choreographers will be Daphne Gatt and Clayton Mifsud, who also choreographed the music video. The Maltese delegation left for Yerevan on the afternoon of the 4th. Although the initial performance in MJESC was much more teal in colour, they seem to have abandoned that concept entirely for Yerevan and went for a more silvery, robotic theme with blue and pink motifs, although the initial 2 dancers remain as 2. Here's a photo from the first rehearsal taken on the 6th:
On their second rehearsal on the 8th, the footage shows Gaia's good vocals and futuristic-themed staging. Choreography largely remains the same from MJESC.
Netherlands: they used their usual Junior Songfestival for the selection. Ultimately, "La Festa" sung by Luna won the selection with maximum points, so Luna will be representing the Netherlands in Yerevan. The track was composed by Robert Dorn. The Dutch delegation left for Yerevan on the morning of the 3rd, and arrived in the evening. From the photos that were taken, it appears the colour scheme, outfits and props will remain exactly the same as that in Junior Songfestival, although it appears some LED graphics have been added, including one shot with large block letters saying "La Festa" in a cartoon font, as seen below:
Their first rehearsal took place on the 7th. The second rehearsal for the Dutch took place two days later, and footage shows that Luna's incredible dance moves and charisma remain for the final performance, which is further enhanced by the colourful staging.
North Macedonia: Lara and Irina were internally selected after a series of auditions. Eurovoix had initially learned that their song had been set to be released by the end of September, but the song was only released in early November, alongside the joining of a new member of the group. The song is named "Životot E Pred Mene" (Животот е пред мене), which means "life is ahead of me" in Macedonian. In addition to the initial two girls, the Macedonian entry now features a third member named Jovan, who comes in to rap for a small section of the song. The three will be joined by two dancers in Yerevan, Aleksandra and Mina. The Macedonian first rehearsal took place on the 6th, and featured several references to social media on the LED screen, including one shot saying #LoveMyGirlfriend surrounded by a swirling red and white background. Here's a photo from the first rehearsal:
Their second rehearsal took place on the 8th, and showcased Lara's good vocals as well as the fun choreography.
Poland: went back to Szansa Na Sukces for their selection. It resulted in the selection of Laura Bączkiewicz with the song "To The Moon", which was composed by Monika Wydrzyńska and Jakub Sebastian Krupski. A revamp of the song with added English lyrics was later released, and performed on The Voice of Poland. The Polish delegation left for Yerevan on the night of the 2nd. The creative director will be Konrad Smuga, who has been in this position since 2018. It was also revealed special video effects will be used at the beginning and end of the performance. The delegation has since arrived in Yerevan, and Laura has now filmed her postcard in front of an electronic screen. Laura and her dancers (which it appears there are 5) had their first rehearsal on the 6th. Going with the moon and space theme as seen in the music video, the staging appears to be very silvery and starry. At one point, the dancers hold up white balls, which some have speculated to be the same ones from Rafał (Poland 2021)'s performance in Rotterdam. Here's a photo from the first rehearsal:
The second rehearsal for Poland took place on the 8th, and it revealed a transition animation using a 3D animated Earth-like planet, as well as the space-themed staging.
Portugal: Nicolas Alves won The Voice Kids Portugal, or rather he was the runner-up because the actual winner was ineligible for JESC. He was born in England, but is not of direct Portuguese heritage but rather Brazilian (hence the Brazilian Portuguese in his song), and has only been living in Portugal since 2019. Later, RTP announced that Carolina Deslandes, Alves' mentor on The Voice Kids and runner-up in FdC2021, has composed a song for him, and that song was released on the 7th of November. The name of the song is "Anos 70", or "the 70s" in Portuguese. The Portuguese delegation left for Yerevan on the night of the 2nd. After arrival, he recorded his postcard on the 4th. On the 6th, Portugal had their first rehearsal. It appears that Nicolas will be alone on stage with a mic stand, but at some point he will have a guitar to play during the instrumental sections. Otherwise, he is dressed in a black coat, black trousers, black shoes and a white shirt. At one point the LED screen also changes to show many white crosses. Here's a photo from the first rehearsal:
Two days after the initial rehearsal, the second rehearsal took place for Portugal, and showcased Nicolas' very unique raspy vocals, as well as the vibrant LEDs.
Serbia: on 10/10, RTS announced that they have internally selected 13-year-old Katarina Savić as the Serbian representative in Yerevan. Her song is named "Svet Bez Granica" or "world without borders" in Serbian, and was composed by Ivana Dragićević. This song was revealed on 6/11, and featured Katarina playing the trombone. The Serbian delegation left for Yerevan on the morning of the 4th. Serbia had their first rehearsal on the 6th, and it appears they have brought a white "ring" prop. The general colour scheme of the performance is red, blue and black, and Katarina will have a stage partner (named Martin?) who will perform a ballet dance with her. She also starts out with a white dress, but changes to red later. Here's a photo from the first rehearsal:
On the 8th, Serbia had their second rehearsal, and it showcased Katarina's flawless vocals, as well as some robotic walking, referencing the music video.
Spain: RTVE have selected Carlos Higes as the Spanish representative after a series of auditions. Carlos had previously appeared as a semi-finalist on La Voz Kids (the Spanish version of The Voice Kids). For his track, he will have 3 backing vocalists - Roberta Fauteck, Jesús Montero and Mario Falero, and will be joined in Yerevan by 4 dancers onstage: Juan Diego, Mauro, Adrian and Felipe. The song, named "Señorita" (miss/young woman in Spanish), was released on the 3rd, and featured a mix of English and Spanish lyrics. It was also announced that Sophie-Marie Kreissl would be the Spanish staging director, after having taken on that same role in Paris. Vicky Gómez will be the choreographer, while Natalia Calderón will be the vocal coach and Raúl Amor the outfit designer. The music video was filmed in Valencia. The Spanish delegation set off for Yerevan on the 4th, meeting the French delegation in Paris during a stopover. On the 6th, Carlos filmed his postcard, and met Freya Skye backstage. And on the 7th, Spain had their first rehearsal. There were several graphics on the LED screen drawn out in neon colours, while Carlos and his dancers were dressed in white. Here's a photo from the rehearsal:
The second rehearsal two days later showed the neon LEDs in action, as well as the intricate choreography that had been created for the song.
Ukraine: "Nezlamna" by Zlata Dziunka ultimately won the junior selection by a single point. Dziunka will now represent Ukraine in Junior Eurovision 2022. It was later reported that Nezlamna is undergoing a revamp, which was released on 23/11. On 29/10, an online vote was opened for the Ukrainian public to select the 5 jurors for Yerevan. This vote ended on 2/11, although the results have not been published yet. The Ukrainian delegation left for Yerevan from Warsaw on the night of the 2nd. No dancers are expected. Speaking to Lyonya Polischuk, Dziunka revealed that the creative director this year is the same one as that from 2021. Ukraine had their first rehearsal on the 6th. Dziunka will not be accompanied by any dancers, singing alone, and on the LED screen will appear several words, some in English and others in Ukrainian. The main colour scheme appears to be orange-yellow, as if sunset-like, as seen below:
And from an Instagram story posted by Suspilne, it appears that at some point during the performance, Dziunka will be moving her non-mic-holding hand in sync with the formation of the words on-screen, as if writing out the words in real time.
Two days later, Ukraine's rehearsal was revealed, and it showed, in addition to the words in English and Ukrainian, some graphics on the LEDs such as an eagle flying as well as Zlata's good vocals.
United Kingdom: on 3/11, the BBC announced that Freya Skye, a 13-year-old, will represent the UK in Yerevan with the song "Lose My Head", which was written by Jack Hawitt, Amber Van Day and Deepend. On the 18th, Freya Skye performed the song live for the first time on the Children In Need charity show. Freya will be joined by 4 dancers: Kristen-Leigh, Meesha, India and Sorayiah, as was the case in the Children In Need performance, and the assistant choreographer is Jorge Antonio. Her vocal coach is Annabel Williams, who was also Sam Ryder's vocal coach. The performance will be staged by Dan Shipton, who, again, was responsible for Sam Ryder's performance. As seen in the leaked stand-in rehearsal footage, the lighting will be red. The British delegation left for Yerevan on the afternoon of the 4th. On the 6th, Freya filmed her postcard. And on the 7th, the UK had their first rehearsal. It appears to be largely similar to the music video (which was the intention stated by Jorge Antonio), with Freya starting out on a throne prop, but also features playing cards on the LEDs. Other shots also revealed that there will in fact be pyro during the performance, presumably during the last chorus. Here's a photo from that rehearsal:
There were rumours during the first rehearsal that Freya had not been singing live, instead relying on playback, and it was later revealed that this was due to Freya having a sore throat. As such, she did not rehearse the second time at all, but the rehearsal footage for the first rehearsal was released, showing the strong choreography, tight camera angles and fitting lighting, reflecting many elements seen in the music video. She did not appear at the jury final either, and juries will give their rating based on the playback performance, although audiences in the jury final saw Freya's second attempt on the stage which was filmed earlier on the 10th. She was audibly croaky and was clearly not feeling well vocally. We here wish her and Sophie Lennon a speedy recovery.
Running Order:
As usual, the first country, the last country and the host country slot were drawn during the opening ceremony. The full running order was released about 4 hours after the ceremony.
Netherlands
Poland
Kazakhstan
Malta
Italy
France
Albania
Georgia
Ireland
North Macedonia
Spain
United Kingdom
Portugal
Serbia
Armenia
Ukraine
Spokespersons:
Armenia: Malena (Armenia 2021, winner)
France: Valentina (France 2020, winner)
Georgia: Niko Kajaia (Georgia JESC2021)
Italy: Vincenzo Cantiello (Italy 2014, winner)
Malta: Gaia Cauchi (Malta 2015, winner)
Netherlands: Ralf Mackenbach (Netherlands 2009, winner)
Poland: Viki Gabor (Poland 2019, winner)
Portugal: Emily Alves (Nicolas' sister)
Serbia: Petar Aničić (Serbia 2020)
Spain: Juan Diego Álvarez (one of Carlos' dancers)
Not every country opts for their own unique spokesperson, in which case local children from the host city or at least country may take up the role instead, which was the case for Paris 2021.
Commentators:
Albania: Andri Xhahu (same as 2021)
France: Carla Lazzari (2021 co-host, 2019 "Bim Bam Toi"), Stephane Bern
Georgia: Nikoloz Lobiladze (same as 2021)
Germany: Constantin Zöller aka Consi (same as 2021)
Italy: Mario Acampa (allocation draw and turquoise carpet co-host in ESC2022), Francesca Fialdini
Netherlands: Bart Arens, Matheu Hinzen (2019 "Dans Met Jou")
Portugal: Nuno Galopim (same as 2019 and 2021), Iolanda Ferreira
Serbia: Kristina Radenković
Spain: Tony Aguilar, Julia Varela (both same as 2021)
Ukraine: Timur Miroshnychenko (same as 2020)
United Kingdom: Lauren Layfield, HRVY
Other Information:
The official JESC2022 album was released on 30/11. It is available now for streaming on various platforms such as Spotify.
On the 2nd this month, AMPTV and HayPost jointly announced in a press conference the release of commemorative stamps and a postcard. The stamps have a face value of 400 AMD, or just under 1 euro. This press conference was also attended by Malena.
The annual common song, named for the contest slogan, was also released on the 8th. It was composed and written by Tokionine and Rosa Linn. Coming in at just over a minute and a half in length, the initial studio cut features Malena, the current reigning winner. Over the few days leading up to the show, the various representatives have been recording their part in the song, such as Carlos Higes for Spain.
Speaking of Malena though, on the 9th she was appointed the newest UNICEF Armenia National Ambassador. The press release explains that she had attended several events which touched on topics such as child rights and support of youth in positive community engagement.
So that's what we know about the contest so far! Probably not gonna do a video for this, since I 1. have exams and and 2. find it kinda pointless to do a WWKSF about a Eurovision show more than a week AFTER the show.
Regardless, if I missed any information here, tweet me @BlueRigel4.
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