Could Germany be changing up their selection method for 2019? Back in September, it was revealed that NDR were starting to assemble their ‘Eurovision jury‘. Later that month, the broadcaster gave more details as to what they were looking for from submissions. Now, could it be that Germany will be placing the song itself at the forefront of its search? This is what German media are reporting.
According to German site ESC Kompakt, the broadcaster is making more changes that previously anticipated. After two years of artists being selected through a multi-stage process before the songs, the process was changed this year. For Unsur Lied für Rotterdam, it’s all about finding an ‘ESC-ready’ song from the jump. A ‘suitable’ artist for this song (or songs) will then follow.
As previously reported, the song and artist combinations have been evaluated by a ‘Eurovision jury’ and an expert jury. Post-shortlisting, between 20 and 50 songs were in the running. Whether or not these songs will be presented in a national final is yet to be fully confirmed, but it is expected. Perhaps NDR will shake things up further by opting for their first internal selection since 2009?
Germany’s Eurovision journey
During the 2010s, Germany experienced many highs and lows in Eurovision. After winning in 2010 and two more top 10 finishes in 2011 and 2012, Germany found itself struggling and even placing last twice, in 2015 and 2016. However, in 2018, Germany changed their selection process, leading to Michael Schulte’s shock forth place in Lisbon.
However, the same process did not work in 2019. The duo S!sters represented Germany in Tel Aviv, achieving a disappointing 25th place with only 24 points. Over 1,000 artist applied to be Germany’s artist for 2019, so what went wrong? The sequence of events preceding Unsur Lied was a very long and convoluted process of songwriting camps and a multi-stage shortlisting. Will these changes be enough to repeat their success from 2018? Time will tell…
Are you excited about these changes? Who and what would you like Germany to send next year? Let us know in the comments and on social media @ESCXTRA. Be sure to stay updated by following @ESCXTRA on Twitter, @escxtra on Instagram and liking our Facebook page for the latest updates.
