Las Ketchup became a worldwide sensation after their 2002 song, The Ketchup Song (Asereje), became an unprecedented hit! They went on to represent Spain in the Eurovision Song Contest in 2006, with Bloody Mary. Now, in an interview with Spanish newspaper El Mundo, Pilar, Lola, and Lucía have talked about their Eurovision experience.
To 2006 Europe, Las Ketchup tasted sour. After a disappointing performance on stage in Athens, they finished 21st with only 18 points (12 of which came from Andorra). Their performance featured them spinning on office chairs, asking for “Un bloody mary, por favor”, whilst two dancers with shaved heads gave us a rather ill-fitting choreography. Most of us were left wondering what we’d just watched!
Las Ketchup look back to 2006
Doing so badly in Eurovision, after having a massive hit worldwide, is bound to leave an artist with mixed feelings towards Eurovision. However, Las Ketchup have revealed that there were other negative parts of their Eurovision experience.
Lucía in particular seemed to be quite vocal about her experience:
“I do not remember it as too good an experience. Not just because of the result, but because of everything. The song, the costumes…if it were up to us, we would’ve chosen another song and costumes. It’s something we were made to do, we didn’t get to pick.”
Pilar added that, although the fans and the Eurovision bubble were wonderful, their time on stage was made even more difficult when their in-ears stopped working and they were unable to hear themselves singing!
“We had a technical problem on stage, and we couldn’t hear anything. Our time on stage was really bad, but it was worth it to meet all the fans and have the experience!”
Lola sums up their experience by saying:
“They treated us very well. It was a very strong experience. I had never been to Eurovision or knew anything about it. But in the end, the results were not good, although it seemed rather fitting.”
“We were prepared to fall.”
Las Ketchup say that even before performing, they knew that it was going to be difficult to match the success of The Ketchup Song (Asereje).
“From the first moment, we knew that what goes up most come down. We were more prepared to fall than to climb, and we got through it pretty well.”
The composer of Bloody Mary has previously stated that if Las Ketchup had committed more to their career, then they might’ve done better in the long run. To this, Pilar argues:
“No, our success wasn’t maintained because of a bump between record companies. Only The Ketchup Song (Asereje) was promoted, and everything else stopped.”
Lola democratically adds:
“I don’t agree, but I don’t want this to turn into a war. Each of us had our own experience and have our own memories. I respect everybodies opinions!”
Nevertheless, Las Ketchup went on to appear in Melodifestivalen 2016, one of the biggest Eurovision national finals, singing The Ketchup Song (Asereje)!
What do you think of this news? Did you like Las Ketchup’s Bloody Mary? Should they have had more input in their performance? Let us know in the comments below!
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