The Voice of Georgia came to its conclusion last month, with Iru Khechanovi being selected as the winner. As a result, she was also announced as Georgia’s representative for Eurovision 2023. Iru’s had a very tight turnaround to create a song she can take to Liverpool, but it seems that we may be able to hear the result of her hard work very soon!
Georgia’s song to be released in the next “few days”?
Having been selected on February 2nd, Iru and her team had less than six weeks to write and record her Eurovision entry before the deadline in mid-March. Understandably, she got into the studio right away to get to work, and it seems that the song has come together pretty quickly! At the end of February, Iru stated on social media that the “final touches” were being made to the song that she will take to Liverpool in May.
There’s now been a more recent update, with Iru posting on Facebook that the music video for her Eurovision entry will be released in the next “few days”. In her update, she also mentions that she and her team have been on a very busy schedule to get to this point.
More details about the songwriting team
The team working on Iru’s Eurovision entry includes Giga Kukhiadnidze, who is perhaps best known for writing all three of Georgia’s winning Junior Eurovision songs. One of these winning entries was Georgia’s 2011 Junior entry ‘Candy Music’ by the band Candy, which included Iru herself! Having won Junior Eurovision with this song, Iru will be joining a select group of artists such as Malta’s Destiny and Greece’s Stefania, who’ve competed at both the junior and senior Eurovision contests.
Iru and Giga have a recent history of working together as well, having collaborated in writing ‘I Believe’ for Miriam Bigvava, which was Georgia’s Junior Eurovision entry in 2022. The pair have also worked together on some of Iru’s recent solo releases, such as ‘იდეა / Idea’, which was released in January this year. Could this be a suggestion towards the genre and direction of her Eurovision entry, or will we hear something completely different?
Growing anticipation for Iru’s Eurovision entry
The name or genre of the song that Iru Khechanovi will perform at Eurovision 2023 hasn’t yet been revealed. However, when asked whether the song would show off her voice on an episode of the Official Eurovision Song Contest Podcast from February, Iru said the following:
“Of course! Yes the voice, and the choreo, and everything! I just want it to be the best song from Georgia.”
The Official Eurovision Song Contest Podcast (Steve Holden)
As we shared in our latest XTRA Odds article, the high anticipation for Iru’s song from fans has been reflected by the bookmakers, with Georgia’s 2023 entry currently sitting in the top 10 to be the winner of Eurovision. Of course, we’ll be closely monitoring this as news of the Georgian entry continues to be released!
Georgia in the Eurovision Song Contest
Georgia are going into 2023 looking for a reversal in their Eurovision fortunes, as the country hasn’t qualified for a final since 2016 when Nika Kocharov & Young Georgian Lolitaz finished 20th with ‘Midnight Gold’. Their previous best results are a pair of 9th place finishes in both 2010 and 2011, with ‘Shine’ and ‘One More Day’ respectively. Iru Khechanovi will perform in the second half of the second semi-final on May 11.
What are you hoping Georgia’s 2023 entry will be like? Let us know! Be sure to stay updated by following @ESCXTRA on Twitter, @escxtra on Instagram, @escxtra on TikTok and liking our Facebook page for the latest updates! Also, be sure to follow us on Spotify for the latest music from your favourite Eurovision acts. As well as YouTube to see our reactions to the news in the run up to the 2023 Eurovision Contest.
