Eurovision Song Contest - could Australia win?

[Warrigal]

We have a songbird in the 2016 Eurovision Song Contest.
She is gorgeous to boot and she has made it through to the finals.

Australia has copped some criticism in recent days for it's participation in the Eurovision Song Contest - not least from the show's British commentator, Graham Norton, who told the UK's Sun "I just do not understand why they are in the Eurovision Song Contest. Get rid of Australia."

In spite of this minority of critics though, Australia's 2016 artist Dami Im has so far blown audiences away in rehearsals where she delivered a powerhouse performance of her anthem 'Sound of Silence'.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jA16qQA4ik0

Do you reckon she has a chance?

 

[Falcon]

She's cute....but, why is she SCREAMING?

 

[Guitarist]

I have no idea if she has a chance or not since I haven't heard any of the other contestants for comparison.

I didn't listen to the whole thing -- I didn't hear any screaming.

Just curious -- how did she qualify for a EUROvision competition? Um ... Australia's not in Europe. Or did they make this oldie?

 

[Warrigal]

Australia made a guest appearance in 2015 and apparently we have been invited to become honorary Europeans because the contest has a huge following in this country. We are very multicultural and our SBS TV channel always broadcasts the contest live.

If we want to watch the final we will have to rise very early on Sunday morning - around 5.30 an in the eastern states.

 

[SeaBreeze]

I think she has a good voice, but I don't particularly care for the song she's singing. Like Guitarist said, hard to judge without seeing the others in the contest.

 

[Warrigal]

She did exceptionally well. She won the jury votes by a huge margin. Each country has a panel that allocates points and they are not allowed to vote for themselves. Australia came first and Ukraine was second. Then there is a viewers' vote and Ukraine won that decisively to win the overall contest.

http://www.sbs.com.au/programs/eurovision/article/2016/05/13/eurovision-2016-and-winner

 

[vickyNightowl]

Warrigal,did you like the song that won?
I read somewhere that it was a 'grieving' song and there was some controversy about it I think.

Greece kept getting worst and worst with the songs they were sending.

 

[Warrigal]

I couldn't really relate to it but the Europeans did. Also there was a political undertone in that Russia was the favourite going in but Ukraine picked up a lot of popular support with a song that was a reference to forced displacement of people from Crimea during WW II.