It’s fair to say this year’s Eurovision artists have developed a special bond in the run up to Kyiv, as many travelled to various preview events which took place all over Europe in the lead up to the main event itself. These parties have not only given local fans a slice of the Eurovision experience, its also allowed the artists to bond with one another – something that has become apparent in the photos & videos which popped up on social media over the past few weeks.
Some of this year’s artists have taken things even further by collaborating with one another. Earlier this month at the London Eurovision Party, we saw Spain’s Manel Navarro share the stage with the UK’s Lucie Jones for a stripped back performance of Martin Garrix & Bebe Rexha’s ‘In The Name of Love‘ – one of the biggest selling songs of last year. Watch the peformance below:
While in Madrid for Spain’s pre-party, Ireland’s Brendan Murray teamed up with Austria’s Nathan Trent for an acoustic rendition of 90s classic ‘Baby One More Time’, originally performed by Britney Spears.
Manel is definetely king of the duets however as, in Tel Aviv, he also shared the mic with Nathan & Bulgaria’s Kristian Kostov for a cover of ZAYN’s ‘Pillowtalk’
“Pillow talk” (live from Israel)
Feat @upTrent & @KristianKostov_ pic.twitter.com/tbEJV9LMcK
— Manel Navarro Music (@ManelNMusic) April 13, 2017
And most recently joined forces with Sweden’s Robin Bengtsson for a magnificent cover of John Mayer and Tom Petty’s “Free Falling“.
That’s not to say that other acts didn’t get involved in the action – Backstage in Amsterdam, we were treated to a group session which involved a host of this year’s acts including JOWST (Norway), Anja Nissen (Denmark), Kristian Kostov (Bulgaria), Nathan Trent (Austria), Naviband (Belarus) Valentina Monetta & Jimmie Wilson (San Marino).
#Bulgaria‘s @KristianKostov_ performs ‘Impossible’ with @robinbengtssons , @anja_nissen, @JOWSTMUSIC, @navimuz and @upTrent #Backstage #AMS pic.twitter.com/56d8zKoDMD
— BNT Eurovision BG (@bg_eurovision) April 9, 2017
Not sure about you guys but that group performance definitely has us screaming for a Eurovision equivilent of Band Aid – make it happen!
I think we can safely say that this year’s artists are an incredibly tight unit – possibly the closest we’ve ever seen. Without making this sound incredibly corny, taking everything out of the equation – pre-contest favourites, betting odds and any political issues that are ongoing, what we have here are perfect examples as to why the Eurovision Song Contest was originally commissioned – to unite a group of nations through the power of music.
Cue group hug gif
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