Germany reveal all the important details ahead of ‘Unser Song 2017’

We are now just over a week away from Germany selecting their entry for the 2017 Eurovision Song Contest. As previously announced, the German broadcaster has chosen a new selection format for this year. The format, Unser Song 2017, sees Germany move back towards the selection processes from 2010 and 2012. These selections were aimed at newcomers to the music industry. The German selections from 2013 to 2016 consisted of several famous artists. Unser Song 2017 will take place in Cologne on 9th February.

The five participating artists

For Unser Song 2017, ARD have whittled down 2,493 applicants to just five. The five competing artists are as follows:

• Axel Feige
• Felicia Lu Kürbiß
• Helene Nissen
• Levina
• Yosefin Buohler

Initially, Sadi was announced as one of the five finalists. However, following personal issues arising from press stories in German media, he chose to withdraw. Yosefin Buohler was immediately chosen as his replacement.

How the show will work…

As with recent national finals, ARD have chosen to use a multi-round format with artists and songs being eliminated throughout the show. In addition, the voting results will be decided solely by a national televote. However, international fans will be able to cast a vote via the official Eurovision app. The international voting will open on the day before the show following the conclusion of rehearsals. All songs will then be made available to app users. These votes will then be announced during the show to advise the German public as to which artist and song has the most international appeal.
Today, the German broadcaster explained exactly what will happen in each of the four rounds. Throughout the show an expert panel will also be on hand to cast their opinions and advise the German public on who to vote for. The panel members will be Lena Meyer-Landrut, Tim Bendzko and Florian Silbereisen.

Round one

The first round will be the “cover round”. Each of the five artists will perform a cover version of their choice. Following this round, two artists will be eliminated.

Round two

The second round will see the remaining three artists sing one of the two pre-selected Eurovision songs, more on these further down this article. The German public will then choose two of the three artists to progress to the next round.

Round three

The penultimate round will see the remaining two artists sing the second of the two pre-selected Eurovision songs. The public will then vote between all four Eurovision song performances these two artists have given.

Round four

The final round will consist of the two combinations that received the most public votes in round 3. This could be the same artist with both of the Eurovision songs, or both artists with the same Eurovision song, or both artists with different Eurovision songs. Another round of voting will then commence to determine which artist and/or song will win the ticket to Kyiv.
While this may seem complicated, it follows a similar format to what Germany used to select their Eurovision entries in 2014 and 2015. For example, Ann Sophie sung Jump The Gun in round 1 of 2015’s selection. After getting enough votes to progress to round 2, she performed her other entry Black Smoke. Viewers then chose Black Smoke as Ann Sophie’s best entry and she went on to win the final in memorable circumstances.

What are the two pre-selected Eurovision songs?

ARD have selected two songs for their finalists to sing during the final. It has now been revealed that these songs are titled Perfect Life and Wildfire. Perfect Life has been composed by Lindsey Ray, Lindy Robbins and Dave Bassett. This all-American team have been responsible for several international smash hits, like Skyscraper, between them. This includes composing for artists such as Demi Lovato, Selena Gomez, Jason Derulo and Elle King.
Wildfire has been composed by British-Norwegian team Tofer Brown, Marit Larsen and Greg Holden. Marit Larsen is one of Norway’s most popular musicians. In fact, Marit had a #1 hit in Germany in 2009 with her single If A Song Could Get Me You.
Are you excited for Unser Song 2017? Do you think Germany can reclaim the success they had between 2010 and 2012? Let us know using the comments section below and via our Facebook and Twitter pages @escXtra!