Switzerland will be using an internal selection for their 2019 Eurovision Song Contest entry. SRF, the Swiss broadcaster, have announced they will no longer use the Die Entscheidungsshow national final.
Instead of Die Entscheidungsshow the broadcasters will be looking to a 120 member jury to select the song to send to Israel in 2019. The jury will be made of 100 selected members of the public and 20 industry experts. The two juries will have equal 50/50 say in the outcome.
In cooperation with Digame, a 100-member public panel will be put together according to selected criteria. Those interested in being a public jury member will be able to apply at the end of August. The 20-member international expert jury will be made up of former members of the respective countries’ juries.
Switzerland starts their search September 1st
Songwriters, producers and artists will be invited to submit their song from September 1st. These songs will not be made available publicly at any point in the selection. The submission window will close on October 1 at which point the two juries will be invited to listen to all of the songs. The Swiss broadcasters; SRF, RSI, RTS and RTR will have the ability to add wildcard entries to the selection. SRF have yet to confirm a date for when the selection process will finish and the chosen entry announced.
The right change of direction?
Zibbz were chosen to represent Switzerland at the 2018 Eurovision Song Contest in Lisbon. Their song ‘Stones’ did not manage to qualify for the Grand Final in a very competitive first semi-final. Switzerland it seems has taken some inspiration from Germany who will again use a public & expert jury to select their potential Eurovision entries. This year Germany achieved their best result since their win in 2010, placing 4th in the Grand Final of the 2018 Eurovision Song Contest with Michael Schulte’s song ‘You Let Me Walk Alone’.
What do you think of this new format? What are your hopes for Switzerland in 2019? Did you think they should have qualified in 2018? Let us know!
