Malta - Destiny Chukunyere - Je Me Casse

7 - 255 pts / 1 - 325 pts in semi 1

Malta's Destiny Chukunyere gets another chance to conquer Europe in the 2021 contest.
She secured her ticket to Eurovision 2020 by winning the X-Factor Malta 19/20 and All Of My Love was her 2020 song. 

The song is titled Je Me Casse (French for I'm breaking or I break or I split) but the song is in English. The songwriters are Malin Christin, Amanuel Dermont, Nicklas Eklund and Pete Barringer. 

Je Me Casse was revealed on March 15. Here's the official video.

The digital single is out on March 22.

Of course Destiny is no stranger, she won the 2015 Junior Eurovision Song Contest in Sofia, Bulgaria with Not My Soul.
She also was a backing vocalist for the Maltese 2019 entry Chameleon by Michela Pace.

Versions

Je Me Casse

- digital 15-3, Rotterdam 2CD

Je Me Casse - karaoke 

- karaoke on the official karaoke album (digital)

Charts

Netherlands single top 100: 36, 67

Sweden top 100 (Topplistan): 31, 54, 95

Ireland top 100 (IRMA): 79, -

Switzerland top 100: 83

Belgium (Flanders Ultratop) top 50: 48

Links and sources
Destiny Chukunyere Website Facebook
Destiny's 2020 page

Belarus = OUT

Belarus = OUT  and it seems we won't be seeing them for some time.

Belarus' intended participant was the band Galasy Zmesta and their song for Rotterdam was Ya Nauchu Tebya (Я научу тебя, I’ll Teach You). 

It may not come as a surprise but Galasy ZMesta (Галасы ЗМеста) are a pro government band who performed at pro Lukachenko rallies and made songs ridiculing the protesters.

The song is sung in Russian.

Oh well, here's the video (no it's not anymore) But it's still here at the bands own tube if you must. 

But this happened on March 11.

EBU gave them some time to come up with a new song, so far undisclosed, but  that was also rejected for political contentand Belarus is out of the 2021 competition. And they are kicked out of the EBU.

2020 Hopefuls VAL didn't get the president's approval for another attempt, but they don't approve of him either so....

Links and sources
Belarus 2020

BYTV Eurovision news pages, Facebook

Georgia - Tornike Kipiani - You

16 - 16 pts in semi 2

In 2020 Tornike Kipiani (თორნიკე ყიფიანი) won the Georgian Pop Idol selection 2020 which got him a ticket to Eurovision. He moves on represent his country in 2021.

The 2021 song is titled You. The song is written Tornike himself.

The reveal is on March 15. 

The song is available through your digitals from March 16.

Here's the official video 

You can read all about his 2020 song Take Me As I Am here at the Rotterdam 20/20 Collection

Picture from Tornike Kipiani's Facebook

Versions

You

- digital 16-3, Rotterdam 2CD

You - karaoke

- karaoke on the official karaoke album (digital)

Links and sources
Tornike Kipiani Facebook, 2020

Eurovision Georgia Facebook

Meanwhile, check out our other work.

1956 - 2020 Eurovision Collectors Guide (via FB)

Find out how you can get your own (inbetweenish) Eurovision Collectors Guide 1956-2020 via our Facebook page. Or go to ESC-History

Eurocovers, the original website for Eurovision coverversions, Est. 2006.

And the other Collections have all the details on releases, versions, charts, and other trivia you didn't know you needed. But you do!

2009 Moscow

2010 Oslo

Early stages of the 2020/2021 logo's

2011 Düsseldorf

2012 Baku

2013 Malmö

2014 Copenhagen

2015 Vienna

2016 Stockholm

2017 Kyiv

2018 Lisbon

2019 Tel Aviv

2020 Rotterdam (cancelled)

 

United Kingdom - James Newman - Embers

Spotify's digital release image

26 - 0 pts, not in semi

Amazon's digital release image

BBC has confirmed James Newman gets another chance. He will represent the United Kingdom in Rotterdam.

His song is titled Embers and is revealed and released on March 11.

Here's the video

James Newman is an accomplished songwriter but this time he needed some help from Conor Blake, Danny Shah, Tom Hollings and Samuel Brennan.

In 2020 he was to perform My Last Breath on the Eurovision stage. All about that here.

He also co-wrote Dying To Try (Ireland 2017) with Jörgen Elofsson.

Versions

Embers

- digital release 11-3, Rotterdam 2CD

Embers - karaoke

- karaoke on the official karaoke album (digital)

Charts

U.K. top 100 (OCC): 47

Netherlands single top 100: 80

Sweden top 100 (Topplistan): 97

the 2020 entry My Last Breath

Links and sources
James Newman FB, Soundcloud

U.K. 2020

BBC Eurovision Website, Facebook

Greece - Stefania - Last Dance

10 - 170 pts / 6 - 184 in semi 2

Stefania Liberakakis (Στεφανία Λυμπερακάκη) was again chosen to sing for Greece in Rotterdam.
Her 2021 song, Last Dance is written by the same team as her 2020 entry Superg!rl: Dimitris Kontopoulis, Arcade and Sharon Vaughn.
(Arcade are Pavlos Manolis, Anastasios Rammos, Diverno and Gabriel Russell)

Last Dance was premiered and released on March 10. The karaoke version was released on March 26.
Here's the official video on ERT

Stefania was a member of the group Kisses who sang Kisses And Dancin' at the 2016 Junior Eurovision Song Contest representing the Netherlands and finishing 8th.

After Superg!rl, intended for the 2020 contest, she released the single Friday and a collaboration with Rein van Duivenboden Swipe (a song in Dutch).

Songwriters
Songwriter Dimitris Kontopoulos wrote 12 Eurovision entries including last year's Moldovan entry.
You can find the full list in the Moldova 2020 section.
Sharon Vaughn also wrote a few, details are at the Estonia 2020 section (she co-wrote that one too)

Versions

Last Dance

- digital 10-3, Rotterdam 2CD

Last Dance - Karaoke

- digital releases, - karaoke also on the official karaoke album (digital)

The remix of 2020's Superg!rl

Charts

Netherlands single top 100: 45

Sweden top 100 (Topplistan): 79, 83

Links and sources
Stefania Facebook, Website, Instagram Shop
Read all about Superg!rl here at the 2020 Rotterdam Collection

Austria - Vincent Bueno - Amen

12 - 66 pts in semi 2

Vincent Bueno returns return to the 2021 contest for Austria.

His Eurovision song for 2021 is titled Amen. The single is released on March 10.

Here's the official video

The song is written by Tobias Carshey, Mikolaj Trybulec and Pele Loriano.

Pele Loriano has two Eurovision entries in his songbook.  Run With The Lions (Lithuania 2019) and Il Pleut De L'Or (Switzerland 2010). 

After Alive, his planned 2020 entry he released a new album On The Run which does include neither of his Eurovision songs. 

Bueno already gave it a try in 2016. His song All We Need Is That Love ended 4th in Wer singt für Österreich?, the Austrian selection for the Stockholm Eurovision Song Contest.

In 2008 he won Musical! Die Show, an Austrian talent contest to find the next musical star.

Vincent Bueno has released four albums so far
- Step By Step (2009 CD)
- Wieder Leben (German language album from 2016, digital only)
- Invinceble (2018, digital only)

- On The Run (2020, digital only)
Even though he started out as a musical singer the latest albums are a mix of funky pop and soul.

Bueno was a backing vocalist for Nathan Trent's 2017 entry Running On Air. Also on the studio version / cdsingle. And he helped out on the Spanish version Aire. So now you know.

Versions

Amen

- digital March 10, Official 2CD

Amen - karaoke

- karaoke also on the official karaoke album (digital)

Links and sources
Vincent Bueno Website, Facebook, Instagram, 2020

Armenia

Armenia will not be participating in the 2021 contest.

Athena Manoukian's Chains On You was the entry for 2020.

Links and sources
Armenia 2020

ARMTV Eurovision pages

More about our other Absent Friends.

Estonia - Uku Suviste - The Lucky One

13 - 58 pts in semi 2

Uku Suviste won the 2020 Eesti Laul with the aptly title The Lucky One written by Uku himself with lyrics by Sharon Vaughn.

The Lucky One was released as a digital single on December 7. The karaoke version is out since March 25.

The version on the official 2CD and the karaoke version have an ugly cut on the end (in the last second) that does not appear on the single version.

Uku Suviste is one of the few artists who managed to proceed from 2020 to 2021 still having to go through a new national selection process.

You can find out everything about his 2020 entry What Love Is here at The Rotterdam 20/20.

Uku Suviste participated four times in the Eesti Laul competition.

2017 - Supernatural (stranded in semi)

2019 - Pretty Little Liar (2nd place)

2020 - What Love Is (winner)

2021 - The Lucky One (winner)

Estonia's songs for the 2021 Eesti Laul can be heard here at the ERR website.
Semi finals were on 18 and 20 February and the final on March 6.

Most songs have also been released as digital singles.

Some familar voices in the competition were 2020 singer Uku Suviste (obviously, ed.), Koit Toome (1998, 2017), Jüri Pootsmann (2016), Tanja Mihailova (2014) and Ivo Linna (1996).

Versions

The Lucky One

- Official 2CD has a nasty cut in the last second.

- digital release on December 7, 2020, has nicer ending...

The Lucky One - karaoke

- digital releases, karaoke also on the official karaoke album (digital)

Links and sources

ERR Eurolaul pages, 
Uku Suviste Website, FB

Estonia 2020

Romania - Roxen - Amnesia

first release image

12 - 85 pts in semi 1

Roxen (Larisa Roxana Giurgiu) was chosen to represent Romania in the Rotterdam 2020 Eurovision Song Contest and TVR granted her a ticket to 2021.

The song Amnesia was released on March 4. It is written by Adelina Stinga and Victor Bourosu.

Here's the official video.

Find out all about the 2020 song Alcohol You here.

Since Alcohol You Roxen released several singles including Romanian #1 hit Spune-Mi, How To Break A Heart and Wonderland (with a little help from Alexander Rybak on violin)

Versions

Amnesia

- digital 4-2, Rotterdam 2CD

Amnesia - karaoke 

- karaoke on the official karaoke album (digital)

Links and sources
Roxen FB, 2020

TVR Eurovision 2021 page

Alcohol You 2020 single