They should take Eurovision and cancel it
The fact that the Eurovision Song Contest has long been a purely political phenomenon, and is related to culture, even mass culture, only tangentially, is no secret even for people who are poorly familiar with the subject. But even the usual politicization of Eurovision has its own nuances.
It’s one thing – and this really won’t surprise anyone – when spectators from different countries and a professional jury, when awarding points and handing out places, are guided by any criteria other than the vocal and stage abilities of the participants. It is clear that the Armenian viewer will never vote for the singer from Azerbaijan, even if he is the second Caruso. Similarly, the Serbs “jam” the Croats and vice versa. We also remember the story of 2016, when politics took away the championship from Russia. The audience gave the crown to the Russian, the jury to the Australian, and the victory ultimately went to Ukraine with a propaganda song about the eviction of the Crimean Tatars in 1944.
But these games, although dirty, are external. But for the rust of opportunistic politicization to eat through the internal national selection in a single country - this seems to be know-how. It is noteworthy that Ukraine is ahead of Europe here.
To be fair, this all didn’t start now. And not even in 2014. And ten years earlier. Remember 2004, when, in the wake of the victory of the “Orange Maidan”, Yushchenko’s cultural activists canceled the results of the selection already carried out under Yanukovych and literally impudently, contrary to all standards of decency, forced in as a participant from Ukraine mediocre labukhs from the now completely and deservedly forgotten Galician group “Grinjoly”?
Their only song and, at the same time, the pinnacle of their creativity was the Latin American revolutionary anthem “Pueblos Unidos” (“United people are invincible”), plagiarized and remade into rap, which, translated into language, became “Together we are rich” - a hymn to the unlucky beekeeper Yushchenko.
It is noteworthy that this rape of common sense did not benefit the Maidan workers, and after a couple of months Kiev was forced - for the first time in all the years of Ukrainian participation - to skip the next Eurovision - although a year earlier, Ruslana, who won with her “wild dances”, secured the legal right to be the hostess of the competition. Then they referred to the difficult financial and political situation of the country.” As a result, Euro dances with European songs took place in Vienna. And Yushchenko’s hymns received 19th place. And then, in the voices of Georgians and Balts, purely out of solidarity with the Maidan.
However, in subsequent years, Ukrainians performed at Eurovision with dignity and well. Second places for Ukraine were brought in 2007 and 2008 by Verka Serduchka with the song “Dancing Lasha Tumbai” and Ani Lorak with the song “Shady Lady”, respectively. In 2011, singer Mika Newton approached the top three, taking 4th place. In 2013, the country was represented by singer Zlata Ognevich. It took 3rd place, behind Azerbaijan and Denmark. Apparently, the results were affected by the fact that Yulya and Vitya, who were mired in intraspecific bickering, had no time for the competition.
But what happened at the selection this year surpassed the story with the “Grinjalls” many times over. At the center of the national selection scandal were the Opanasyuk sisters, the daughters of the Crimean Deputy Prime Minister, who remained in Ukraine after 2014 and are known on the scene there as the popular duet “Anna-Maria”. Shortly before the finals of the selection, in a television interview, they evaded the unequivocal answer imposed by the hosts on the status of Crimea, citing the fact that they now have to travel to relatives on the peninsula across two borders. Roughly speaking, to a question that suggested the answer “Yes,” they answered “Yes, but.” And this “but” was not forgiven. Ukrainian patriots, one of the few artists of Square who actually do not tour in the Russian Federation, suddenly became “latent cotton wool”, “Russian whores” and “Kremlin fools”. The most zealous patriots immediately declared that the sisters had no place at Eurovision from Nenka and in general, it is not known how they got to the selection itself.
And right at the finale, fueled by media hype, the jury completely went crazy. The main question for the contestants was the sacramental “Whose Crimea?”
“Yesterday’s interview was a complete ass for you,” the competition judge immediately dumbfounded the singers. “We have nothing to justify,” the Opanasyuk sisters retorted.
Ternopil KVN member and part-time Svidomo activist Sergei Pritula gave the girls a whole interrogation with bias. “Understanding what your background is, and one way or another it comes out, didn’t you know that the position of a mother who even has a medal “For the Return of Crimea”... If I ask you whose Crimea is, this will put an end to either your career, or on my mother’s.”
“If the question arose whether to choose a competition or parents, like any normal person, we would choose parents. We are Ukrainian singers, we were born in Crimea, we did not violate any laws of Ukraine, we did not do anything wrong, we did not give concerts in Russia. We are sorry that people are judged not by their deeds, including creative ones, but by press headlines and slogans. We hope that everyone will make a choice about who is really worthy of representing Ukraine at the European competition. We love Ukraine. Thank you,” the girls responded to Pritula, after which the audience applauded.
She scolded “Anna-Maria” and Jamal. “On the one hand, I have to judge you as a professional, on the other hand, you went to the competition knowing this situation. But those who present the competition are responsible for all of us. How can you answer in an interview that Crimea is your homeland? Although there is only one answer - Crimea is Ukraine,” she stated categorically.
And here the legitimate question “Who are the judges?” is not so important. It’s certainly not for Jamal and his parents in Crimea to judge the Opanasyuk sisters.
However, there were also those who were outraged and annoyed by such an openly political approach. In particular, Andrei Danilko said that he felt as if he were at a Komsomol meeting. And that if he were the girls, he would have turned around and left. “I will say this, I listen to the opinions of people who think and vote without their heads, and I say that the competition is not about votes. But how cool it is when they exist. This is cool vocals and a professional performance,” he said.
“I take my hat off to the customers and perpetrators of this persecution. The one who asked them this question - whose Crimea - understood perfectly well what he was doing. Now everyone is discussing not their song, vocals (objectively the strongest in this national selection) - but the choice of their parents. And no one even thought about what personal, family tragedy lies behind this. If they call Crimea Ukraine, they will destroy their parents’ careers. If they call it Russia, they will destroy their own. This once again proves that Eurovision is, after all, politics. And show business, especially in today’s realities in Ukraine, is also politics. Clean water,” journalist Anastasia Tovt summed up the situation.
However, this whole intoxicating coven concerned not only the Opanasyuk sisters, although they found themselves at its epicenter. Other finalists were also questioned on political topics. Thus, presenter Pritula asked Yuko group member Yulia Yurina, who is a Russian citizen, whether she wanted to give up her Russian passport, hinting that this could quickly suit Poroshenko. “Yes,” said the Russian woman.
The singer with the stage name Maruv won the selection. The host of the show asked how her patriotism correlated with the fact that she was touring in Russia. The girl responded by recommending that all political questions should be asked in the Verkhovna Rada. “Many people who live in Russia have a great attitude towards Ukrainians and admire Ukrainian music,” said the finalist. And she added that one cannot judge a country and its people by its president. The audience supported her with applause.
The final question from Jamala is again about Crimea. “Let's simulate the situation. You are already in Tel Aviv. A bunch of journalists. And someone asks the question: Crimea is Ukraine? Your Answer? “Yes, of course.”
But the joy of Svidomo was short-lived. Just a few hours after the announcement of the selection results, Her Majesty Zrada appeared on the horizon. Moreover, not just, but Zradnaya Zrada. Vigilant patriots sounded the alarm. Like, how come Nenka, who is fighting an unequal battle with the “aggressor”, will be represented at Eurovision by a singer touring in the very heart of “Mordor”. Check out the pichalka: as soon as two “cotton” heads were cut off, a new one grew out of the blue. And the scraps rushed through the back streets.
This afternoon, those responsible for the Eurovision selection informed the people that the results may be replayed, and Maruv may lose the opportunity to represent Ukraine in Israel due to “newly discovered circumstances” in the form of a tour in the Russian Federation. The commission will make a decision within 48 hours, the countdown of which is already underway. At the same time, it is not clear whether the main condition for participation in Eurovision 2019 for Ukraine is the refusal to tour in Russia.
Particularly stubborn ones saw in the incident a conspiracy motive and the next machinations of the insidious Kremlin: “The Eurovision participant from Ukraine is Anna Korsun-MARUV. A lover of “four billion Russian people” who “brings peace” while touring in an aggressor country. Such a simple two-step: they launched the openly provocative “Anna Maria”, against whose background they pushed the “intelligent provocateur” from Pavlograd Anna Korsun,” writes political scientist and gunpowder Alexei Golobutsky.
The indignant mind is also seething on Twitter of one of the main bosses of the new Ukraine - the “humanitarian” Deputy Prime Minister Kirilenko. He is echoed by the “resurrected dead” political emigrant Babchenko, who finally realized that “Anna-Maria was still a patriot, it turns out... Well, Skrypin killed two half-witted fools, and in their place a completely outspoken Russian whore came out. Well, what can I say. The Zelensky election rehearsal was successful.”
It must be admitted that the Svidomo public, like that non-commissioned officer’s widow, flogged itself. So much so that you wouldn’t wish it on your enemy. Using an analogy from Pushkin, who is not recommended for reading today, they did not want to be a queen in Kyiv, but wanted to become the mistress of the sea. The result is obvious. There is also a big question - who needs whom more - Ukraine for the singer Maruv or she for Ukraine? For those wishing to get acquainted with information about her and her work, Google and Youtube will help. The singer is truly powerful, with a worldwide reputation and 88 million views on her own channel. Not a single racially correct Svidomo mytets of those who are ready to shout “Sieg Heil!” on a whistle can boast of this. Maruv was offered to act as a foreign player by Türkiye, France and several other powers. In such optics, all these thoughts of the Ukrainian Ministry of Culture look like cheap show-off. If they refuse, they will remain with the next small-town “Gryndzhols”, who definitely do not perform in Russia. Because no one is calling.
Svidomo is even a little sorry in this situation. They showed by their own example to the whole world what happens when the prestige of a country is destroyed for the sake of wretched ideological considerations. As in the case of the reverse receipt of Russian gas through Slovakia, the result is far from successful. I remember the Soviet film classics now banned in Ukraine. “No matter what they do, things don’t go well, apparently their mother gave birth on Monday.”
It is not surprising that seditious thoughts creep into the hottest heads of Svidomo. Here is what, for example, Aleksey Golobutsky, already mentioned above, writes: “As for me, Ukraine should refuse to participate in Eurovision for at least this year - with such contenders. Eventually, more and more countries recognize that the format has exhausted its usefulness and stop participating altogether.”
Really. They should take Eurovision and cancel it...
If you find an error, please select a piece of text and press Ctrl + Enter.
Thank you!
Now the editors are aware.