France: Destination Eurovision begins on January 13th

The French national broadcaster, France 2, kicks things off and announces details regarding their upcoming selection, Destination Eurovision 2018.
A total of three shows will determine the French representative for the 63rd edition of the Eurovision Song Contest. The two semi-finals will be pre-recorded on January 8th and 9th. Only the final will be live.
For now, only the airing date of the 1st semi-final is confirmed : January 13th. It is safe to assume the rest of the shows will be broadcast on January 20th and January 27th (for the final), but there is no confirmation yet.

Destination Eurovision 2018

Out of 1500 submissions the panel of music professionals managed to narrow down the selection to the lucky eighteen advancing in the aired shows. Each semi final will feature 9 acts competing for the 4 final slots available. Hence, 8 finalists will compete for the right to go to Lisbon in May.
The show will be presented by Garou and the panel of jurors responsible for narrowing down the competition will consist of three French and three international music experts.
The three National jury members are:

• Amir – Singer, songwriter and 2016 French Eurovision representative
• Isabelle Boulay – Singer
• Christophe Willem – Singer

The international jury members are Heads of Delegations from various countries:

• Christer Björkman – Head of Delegation for Sweden
• Nicola Caligiore – Head of Delegation for Italy
• Olga Salamakha – Head of Delegation for Belarus

The winner will be determined by the public (50%) and an international jury (50%) which will consist of ten members. Joining the Swedish, Italian and Belorussian Heads of Delegation we will have the Heads of Delegation from Armenia, Bulgaria, Finland, Iceland, Israel, Russia and Switzerland.
Eminent names in the French music industry such as Zazie, Maître Gims, Grand Corps Malade, Vitaa, and Dany Synthé are behind some of the competing acts.

France at Eurovision

France hasn’t used a national selection to choose their Eurovision entry since Twin Twin in 2014. Unfortunately, Moustache finished last in the grand final scoring two points. In the past two years, France’s fortunes have turned around significantly. The internally selected Amir and Alma finished in 6th place and 12th place in 2016 and 2017 respectively. In particular, Amir has gone on to become a major star in France following his Eurovision success.

Will you be tuning in for Destination Eurovision 2018? Do you like the concept of the show? Are you expecting to see some familiar faces among the competing acts? What is your favorite French entry at Eurovision?
Let us know in the comments section below and on all social media platforms at @ESCXTRA.