Special: From Junior to Eurovision? [Part 2]

Junior Eurovision is a contentious point for many Eurovision fans. Some hate it, some love it and some could not be more indifferent about it if they tried. For me, I am a fan. Something I have always wondered is that with all this wealth of youth talent floating around Europe, no singer has competed in both contests as main singer. In this summer series I shall discuss the kids who have graced the Junior stage who I think deserve a shot at the real deal.

 Dorijan Dlaka – FYR Macedonia [14 years old, eligible in 2014]

Now it may be somewhat of an odd choice to put someone who finished at the bottom of the table on this list, but to all those naysayers I will just say this, you’ve never met Dorijan Dlaka.

This kid at only 14 years old absolutely radiates charisma and is professional as they come. Possibly one of the most awkward times in any guy’s life is the moment in puberty when your voice breaks. Most of us are lucky enough to have this happen in the comfort of our homes and endure a small amount of playground ridicule until it happens to the next guy, but Dorijan? He had it happen the week he was to represent his country in an international song contest.

At Eurovision we’ve had singers cancel entire press conferences and all interviews due to a rehearsal they’ve not been happy with. What did Dorijan do? He strutted into that press room, smiled and said they were “working on a minor problem”. He then spent the next few days re-learning the song in some lower tones all the while having as much fun as he could.

We journalists love it when the singers in our beloved contest are likeable, and they don’t come much more likeable than Dorijan Dlaka.  This is a kid the media would love at Eurovision and when there’s upwards of 40 singers every year, you need someone who can cheer for, that combined with the fact he really is a darn good singer, with the right song he could make a significant dent on the scoreboard.

Dorijan @ Junior 2011:

Dorijan singing ‘Fairytale’ @ the 2010 jESC preselection:

English version of his jESC entry ‘Till The End of Time’:

Previous Editions:
Part 1 - Dino Jelusic

We’ve had a few suggestions for singers coming up, some I had planned on and some that have been brought to my attention. Feel free to comment again below!