Ukraine in the Eurovision Song Contest 2020
Ukraine originally planned to participate in the Eurovision Song Contest 2020, after a year break. The Ukrainian entry for the 2020 contest was selected through a national final, which UA:PBC organised in collaboration with the commercial broadcaster STB. However, the contest was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
| Eurovision Song Contest 2020 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Country |  Ukraine | |||
| National selection | ||||
| Selection process | Vidbir 2020 | |||
| Selection date(s) | Semi-finals: 8 February 2020 15 February 2020 Final: 22 February 2020 | |||
| Selected entrant | Go_A | |||
| Selected song | "Solovey" | |||
| Selected songwriter(s) | Taras Shevchenko Kateryna Pavlenko | |||
| Finals performance | ||||
| Semi-final result | Cancelled | |||
| Ukraine in the Eurovision Song Contest | ||||
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Background
Prior to the 2020 Contest, Ukraine had participated in the Eurovision Song Contest fifteen times since its first entry in 2003.The nation had won the contest on two occasions: in 2004 with the song "Wild Dances" performed by Ruslana and in 2016 with the song "1944" performed by Jamala. Following the introduction of semi-finals for the 2004, Ukraine had managed to qualify to the final in every contest they participated in thus far. Ukraine had been the runner-up in the contest on two occasions: in 2007 with the song "Dancing Lasha Tumbai" performed by Verka Serduchka and in 2008 with the song "Shady Lady" performed by Ani Lorak.Ukraine's least successful result had been 24th place, which they achieved during the 2017 with the song "Time" performed by O.Torvald.[1]
The Ukrainian national broadcaster, National Television Company of Ukraine (UA:PBC), broadcasts the event within Ukraine and organises the selection process for the nation's entry. In the past, UA:PBC had alternated between both internal selections and national finals in order to select the Ukrainian entry. Between 2011 and 2014, UA:PBC had set up national finals with several artists to choose both the song and performer to compete at Eurovision for Ukraine, with both the public and a panel of jury members involved in the selection. NTU withdrew from the contest for one year in 2015 due to the unstable financial and political situation caused by the conflict in east Ukraine.[2][3] In 2016, NTU collaborated with the commercial broadcaster STB in order to organise a national final to select Ukraine's entry, resulting in the selection of an entry that went on to win the Eurovision Song Contest. UA:PBC's collaboration with STB would have continued into 2021.[4]
Before Eurovision
National final
The Ukrainian national final took place at the Palace of Culture "KPI" in Kyiv and consisted of two semi-finals held on 8 and 15 February 2020 and a final on 22 February 2020. All shows in the competition were hosted by Serhiy Prytula and broadcast on both UA:Pershyi and STB as well as online via NTU's YouTube broadcasts.
Format
The selection of the competing entries for the national final and ultimately the Ukrainian Eurovision entry took place over three stages. In the first stage, artists and songwriters had the opportunity to apply for the competition through an online submission form. Sixteen acts were selected and announced on 20 January 2020. The second stage consisted of the televised semi-finals which took place on 8 and 15 February 2020 with eight acts competing in each show. Three acts were selected to advance from each semi-final based on the 50/50 combination of votes from a public televote and an expert jury. Both the public televote and the expert jury assigned scores ranging from 1 (lowest) to 8 (highest) and the three entries that had the highest number of points following the combination of these scores advanced to the final. The third stage was the final, which took place on 22 February 2020 and featured the six acts that qualified from the semi-finals vying to represent Ukraine in Rotterdam. The winner was selected via the 50/50 combination of votes from a public televote and an expert jury. Both the public televote and the expert jury assigned scores ranging from 1 (lowest) to 6 (highest) and the entry that had the highest number of points following the combination of these scores was declared the winner. Viewers participating in the public televote during the three live shows had the opportunity to submit a single vote per phone number for each of the participating entries via SMS or the Teleportal mobile application. In the event of a tie during the semi-finals and final, the tie was decided in favour of the entry that received the highest score from the public televote.
The jury panel that voted during the three shows consisted of:
- Andriy Danylko – comedian and singer, represented Ukraine in 2007 as the drag artist Verka Serduchka
- Tina Karol – singer, TV hostess, represented Ukraine in 2006
- Vitaliy Drozdov - general producer of TAVR Media Radio Holding
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Competing entries
Artists and composers had the opportunity to submit their entries via an online submission form which accepted entries between 16 October 2019 and 25 December 2019. Composer and producer Ruslan Kvinta was assigned as the music producer of the show and was the lead in reviewing the received submissions and shortlisting entries to compete in the national final.[5] On 20 January 2020, the sixteen selected competing acts were announced.[6] The sixteen acts were allocated to one of two semi-finals during a draw that took place on 22 January, which was hosted by Ruslan Kvinta.[7]
| Artist[6] | Song[6] | Songwriter(s) |
|---|---|---|
| [О] | "Tam, kudy ya ydu" (Там, куди я йду) | Olha Chernyshova, Alexander Kasprov |
| Assol | "Save It" | Kateryna Taranenko, Maksym Zakharin, Anna Chernukha, Eldar Bayramov, Yan Likarenko |
| Cloudless | "Drown Me Down" | Yuriy Kanalosh, Anton Panfilov, Oleksandr Lysanskiy, Mykhailo Shatokhin |
| David Axelrod | "Horizon" | David Axelrod, Pavlo Shylko, Volodymyr Grigorovitch |
| Elina Ivashchenko | "Get Up" | Elina Ivashchenko, Vadim Lysitsa |
| Fo Sho | "Blck Sqr" | Betty Endale |
| Garna | "Who We Are" | Alyona Levasheva, Roman Nepomnyashiy |
| Gio Dara | "Feeling So Lost" | Giorgi Darakhvelidze |
| Go A | "Solovey" (Соловей) | Taras Shevchenko, Kateryna Pavlenko |
| Jerry Heil | "Vegan" | Yana Shemaeva, Roman Cherenov |
| Katya Chilly | "Pich" (Піч) | Kateryna Kondratenko |
| Khayat | "Call for Love" | Andriy Khayat |
| Krutь | "99" | Mykhailo Klymenko, Anton Babych, Maryna Krut |
| Moonzoo & F.M.F Sure | "Maze" | Oleksandr Vasetskyi, F.M.F. Sure |
| Oleksandr Poriadynskyi | "Savior" | Yana Kovaliova |
| Tvorchi | "Bonfire" | Andrii Hutsuliak, Augustus Kehinde Jimon |
Semi-final 1
The first semi-final took place on 8 February 2020. The top three entries following the combination of votes from a public televote and an expert jury advanced to the final of the competition, while the remaining five entries were eliminated. "99" performed by Krutь, "Solovey" performed by Go A and "Vegan" performed by Jerry Heil were the qualifiers. In addition to the performances of the competing entries, 2018 Ukrainian Eurovision entrant Mélovin performed the song "Oh, No!" as a guest.
| Semi-final 1 – 8 February 2020 | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Draw | Artist | Song | Jury | Televote | Total | Place | |
| Percentage | Points | ||||||
| 1 | [О] | "Tam, kudy ya ydu" | 3 | 5.46% | 2 | 5 | 7 |
| 2 | Jerry Heil | "Vegan" | 7 | 16.28% | 6 | 13 | 3 |
| 3 | Katya Chilly | "Pich" | 4 | 8.44% | 3 | 7 | 5 |
| 4 | Krutь | "99" | 8 | 22.69% | 8 | 16 | 1 |
| 5 | Go A | "Solovey" | 6 | 18.11% | 7 | 13 | 2 |
| 6 | Cloudless | "Drown Me Down" | 5 | 14.75% | 5 | 10 | 4 |
| 7 | Gio Dara | "Feeling So Lost" | 2 | 8.84% | 4 | 6 | 6 |
| 8 | Assol | "Save It" | 1 | 5.43% | 1 | 2 | 8 |
| Detailed Jury Votes | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Draw | Song | Danylko | Karol | Drozdov | Total | Points |
| 1 | "Tam, kudy ya ydu" | 3 | 3 | 3 | 9 | 3 |
| 2 | "Vegan" | 5 | 7 | 7 | 19 | 7 |
| 3 | "Pich" | 4 | 6 | 4 | 14 | 4 |
| 4 | "99" | 7 | 8 | 8 | 23 | 8 |
| 5 | "Solovey" | 8 | 5 | 5 | 18 | 6 |
| 6 | "Drown Me Down" | 6 | 2 | 6 | 14 | 5 |
| 7 | "Feeling So Lost" | 1 | 4 | 2 | 7 | 2 |
| 8 | "Save It" | 2 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 1 |
Semi-final 2
The second semi-final took place on 15 February 2020. The top three entries following the combination of votes from a public televote and an expert jury advanced to the final of the competition, while the remaining five entries were eliminated. "Bonfire" performed by Tvorchi, "Call for Love" performed by Khayat and "Horizon" performed by David Axelrod were the qualifiers. In addition to the performances of the competing entries, 2020 Czech Eurovision entrant Benny Cristo performed the 2020 Czech entry "Kemama" as a guest. 2019 Junior Ukrainian Eurovision entrant Sophia Ivanko and runners-up of Vidbir 2016 The Hardkiss also performed during the second semi-final.
| Semi-final 2 – 15 February 2020 | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Draw | Artist | Song | Jury | Televote | Total | Place | |
| Percentage | Points | ||||||
| 1 | Moonzoo & F.M.F Sure | "Maze" | 5 | 9.46% | 2 | 7 | 6 |
| 2 | Fo Sho | "Blck Sqr" | 3 | 10.77% | 3 | 6 | 7 |
| 3 | Elina Ivashchenko | "Get Up" | 4 | 10.94% | 4 | 8 | 5 |
| 4 | Oleksandr Poriadynskyi | "Savior" | 2 | 11.72% | 6 | 8 | 4 |
| 5 | Garna | "Who We Are" | 1 | 5.65% | 1 | 2 | 8 |
| 6 | Khayat | "Call for Love" | 7 | 17.87% | 7 | 14 | 2 |
| 7 | David Axelrod | "Horizon" | 6 | 11.56% | 5 | 11 | 3 |
| 8 | Tvorchi | "Bonfire" | 8 | 22.03% | 8 | 16 | 1 |
| Detailed Jury Votes | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Draw | Song | Danylko | Karol | Drozdov | Total | Points |
| 1 | "Maze" | 7 | 2 | 7 | 16 | 5 |
| 2 | "Blck Sqr" | 2 | 4 | 3 | 9 | 3 |
| 3 | "Get Up" | 3 | 7 | 4 | 14 | 4 |
| 4 | "Savior" | 4 | 3 | 2 | 9 | 2 |
| 5 | "Who We Are?" | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 1 |
| 6 | "Call for Love" | 6 | 8 | 5 | 19 | 7 |
| 7 | "Horizon" | 5 | 6 | 6 | 17 | 6 |
| 8 | "Bonfire" | 8 | 5 | 8 | 21 | 8 |
Final
The final took place on 22 February 2020. The six entries that qualified from the semi-finals competed. The winner, "Solovey" performed by Go A, was selected through the combination of votes from a public televote and an expert jury. Ties were decided in favour of the entries that received higher scores from the public televote. In addition to the performances of the competing entries, 2016 Eurovision Song Contest winner Jamala and alyona alyona performed the song "Zhali" as guests. Jury members Verka Serduchka and Tina Karol also performed during the final.
| Final – 22 February 2020 | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Draw | Artist | Song | Jury | Televote | Total | Place | |
| Percentage | Points | ||||||
| 1 | Krutь | "99" | 5 | 19.90% | 4 | 9 | 3 |
| 2 | Jerry Heil | "Vegan" | 1 | 7.00% | 1 | 2 | 6 |
| 3 | Go A | "Solovey" | 6 | 25.43% | 6 | 12 | 1 |
| 4 | David Axelrod | "Horizon" | 3 | 11.30% | 2 | 5 | 5 |
| 5 | Khayat | "Call for Love" | 4 | 20.93% | 5 | 9 | 2 |
| 6 | Tvorchi | "Bonfire" | 2 | 15.44% | 3 | 5 | 4 |
| Detailed Jury Votes | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Draw | Song | Danylko | Karol | Drozdov | Total | Points |
| 1 | "99" | 5 | 4 | 5 | 14 | 5 |
| 2 | "Vegan" | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 1 |
| 3 | "Solovey" | 6 | 6 | 6 | 18 | 6 |
| 4 | "Horizon" | 3 | 3 | 3 | 9 | 3 |
| 5 | "Call for Love" | 4 | 5 | 4 | 13 | 4 |
| 6 | "Bonfire" | 2 | 2 | 2 | 6 | 2 |
At Eurovision
According to Eurovision rules, all nations with the exceptions of the host country and the "Big 5" (France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom) are required to qualify from one of two semi-finals in order to compete for the final; the top ten countries from each semi-final progress to the final. The European Broadcasting Union (EBU) split up the competing countries into six different pots based on voting patterns from previous contests, with countries with favourable voting histories put into the same pot. On 28 January 2020, a special allocation draw was held which placed each country into one of the two semi-finals, as well as which half of the show they would perform in. Ukraine was placed into the first semi-final, which was to be held on 12 May 2020, and was scheduled to perform in the second half of the show.[8] However, due to 2019-20 pandemic of Coronavirus, the contest was cancelled.
References
- https://eurovision.tv/country/ukraine
- Україна бере тайм-аут на рік у конкурсі Євробачення. 1tv.com.ua (in Ukrainian). UA:PBC. 19 September 2014. Retrieved 20 December 2015.
- "Eurovision 2015: Ukraine announces exit". bbc.com. BBC News. 19 September 2014. Retrieved 20 December 2015.
- "UA: ПЕРШИЙ і СТБ продовжили співпрацю з проведення нацвідбору на Євробачення ще на три роки". 17 October 2018.
- "Eurovision 2020 - Go_A (Ukraine / Украина)". ESCKAZ. Retrieved 8 February 2021.
- Santos, Pedro (20 January 2020). "Ukraine: Meet the contestants for Vidbir 2020". eurovisionworld.com. Retrieved 21 January 2020.
- "Результати жеребкування півфіналістів нацвідбору на Євробачення-2020". eurovision.ua (in Ukrainian). 22 January 2021. Retrieved 8 February 2021.
- Groot, Evert (28 January 2020). "Which country performs in which Eurovision 2020 Semi-Final". eurovision.tv. European Broadcasting Union. Retrieved 28 January 2020.
External links
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Note: Entries scored out are when Ukraine did not compete | |||||||||||