After a few years of a fairly active BBC as a result of a return to a national selection process in 2016, British Eurovision fans find themselves in a position they haven’t found themselves in since 2015… January and a very silent BBC.
UK fans eagerly awaiting… ANYTHING
Since finishing in last place in Tel Aviv, we’ve had one slice of news from the UK broadcaster. Yes, back in September, the BBC revealed that they would be teaming up with BMG to “select a song with broad international appeal and securing an artist who embodies the spirit and values of the Eurovision Song Contest”.
Step forward Fleur East
Now, as always, Eurovision fans are eagerly hoping the BBC will pull out all the stops and select a fantastic performer and a fantastic song. As a Brit myself, I’ve been hoping for the exact same. So there I was, reading my Twitter feed this evening when I saw this little tweet from former X Factor star Fleur East:
As soon as any British musician teases an announcement or makes an unexpected schedule change to their music release strategy in Eurovision season then, of course, us British fans leap to only one conclusion! Yes, Fleur is obviously delaying her brand new album by a month because she needed to time the release to sync with the BBC’s entry announcement which we imagine will take place in early March!
Now, back in the real world and not our Eurovision bubble, this is very unlikely to be the case. Although, as if by magic, one Fleur fan immediately asks her if Eurovision participation would ever be on her radar. She certainly doesn’t rule it out!
Indeed, if Fleur had been selected by the BBC for 2020 we imagine she would have avoided responding to such a question altogether due to the BBC’s tendency to keep their internal selections quiet to the very last minute. However, Fleur would be the absolute perfect representative for the United Kingdom right?
Fleur and Eurovision… a match made in heaven?
After placing second on The X Factor UK in 2014, scoring an iTunes #1 hit with her version of “Uptown Funk” in the process, she stormed the charts a year later with her first post-show single, the unforgettable “Sax”.
It wasn’t long until Fleur found herself mentioned in the Eurovision media circus with numerous people comparing Belgium’s 2016 entry “What’s The Pressure?” by Laura Tesoro with Fleur’s 2015 smash hit. The comparisons began during the 2016 Eurovision pre-season and continued right up to the show itself…
It seems people can’t help but link Eurovision with Fleur. In 2017, Sunstroke Project’s “Hey Mamma” for Moldova was the Fleur track of the year:
In 2018 it was Mikolas Josef’s “Lie To Me” that received those Fleur East comparisons…
Eurovision fans are just desperate to get Fleur herself on that Eurovision stage!
Fleur’s our “Favourite Thing”!
In Eurovision: You Decide 2018, “Legends” was a firm favourite amongst Eurovision fans. Unfortunately, many believed that 16-year-old Asanda was not quite ready for Europe’s biggest music show. Indeed, fans agreed that Fleur would have been the perfect performer for the song:
Then, following a very successful appearance on reality TV show I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here!, Fleur launched a music comeback with the January 2019 release of “Favourite Thing”. Demands for Fleur to take the track to Eurovision were rife on Twitter, with some claiming it could have won the entire contest if the BBC had selected the track internally! What do you think?
Ties to BMG… the BBC’s new partner
So realistically, could the BBC internally select Fleur for the Eurovision Song Contest? Well, most notably, Fleur’s most recent single release was released by… you guessed it… BMG. BMG, who are working with the BBC on finding the UK’s 2020 entry, released Fleur’s single “Size” in November 2019 according to the label credits for the song on Apple Music.
And it’s not just me that thinks Fleur would be the ideal Eurovision performer for the UK. Fellow ESCXTRA.com team member Tim expressed the following thoughts:
Personally, I feel that Fleur East would be a great representative for Eurovision. When she was on The X Factor and she performed the cover of “Uptown Funk”, I was rooting for her to win the whole thing. I really think that having her as a Eurovision representative would be great for Fleur and get her the global promotion she deserves. If she managed to deliver a song as good as those previously released, such as on her debut album “Love, Sax and Flashbacks”, then I think she can bring something fresh to the table that actually appeals to both juries and televoters alike.
So, BBC, BMG and Fleur, let’s get you guys working together and give the United Kingdom an entry to be truly proud of. You aim to “select a song with broad international appeal and securing an artist who embodies the spirit and values of the Eurovision Song Contest” and I think nobody could do a better job than Fleur East, one of THE best and most underrated performers the UK has to offer.
Do you think Fleur would be the perfect representative for the UK at Eurovision? Let us (and the BBC!) know on Twitter @ESCXTRA!
