UA:PBC, Ukraine’s public broadcaster, have received 118 applications for the Junior Eurovision 2021 national selection. They have also revealed more details on the selection process to choose their entry for the Junior Eurovision Song Contest 2021 in Paris, France.
Three bands and 115 solo artists have expressed interest in representing Ukraine at the contest in France. The organising committee of the national selection will shortlist 12 to 16 finalists by October 5th. After initially performing their own songs in the first stage of the national selection, UA:PBC will provide the selected artists with a new original song for the final.
The Ukrainian broadcaster will this year be producing a televised final to be shown on the UA:KULTURA channel. The winner of the national selection will be decided by a combination of professional jury and online voting.
Ukraine at Junior Eurovision 2020
Oleksandr Balabanov represented Ukraine at Junior Eurovision 2020 with the song ‘Vidkryvai (Open Up)’. Ukraine reached 7th place, receiving 106 points – 52 from the juries and 54 from online voting.
About Junior Eurovision 2021
Only days after Valentina’s win, the EBU were quick to confirm that we will be travelling to France for the 19th edition of the Junior Eurovision Song Contest. The contest will take place on December 19th at La Seine Musicale. The slogan of the contest will be Imagine, and the logo was unveiled in August. At this time it is uncertain if the contest will be held in person or remotely once more. Recently the EBU outlined a series of planned scenarios to satisfy the conditions at the time.
In total, the following 19 countries have been confirmed by the EBU as taking part in the 19th edition of the Junior Eurovision Song Contest:
- Albania (RTSH)
- Armenia (AMPTV)
- Azerbaijan (Ictimai)
- Bulgaria (BNT)
- France (France TV)
- Germany (NDR/KiKa)
- Georgia (GPB)
- Ireland (TG4)
- Italy (Rai)
- Kazakhstan (Khabar Agency)
- Malta (PBS)
- Netherlands (AVROTROS)
- North Macedonia (MKRTV)
- Poland (TVP)
- Portugal (RTP)
- Russia (RTR)
- Serbia (RTS)
- Spain (TVE)
- Ukraine (UA:PBC)
Among the 19 we see returns for Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Ireland, Italy, North Macedonia and Portugal. However there are withdrawals for Australia again, and of course the expulsion of Belarus. The Junior Eurovision Song Contest 2021 will be broadcast live on December 19 and starts at 17:00 CET. Stay tuned in the coming weeks and months ahead, as broadcasters begin selecting their acts for Paris 2021!
Looking forward to finding out who will represent Ukraine? Let us know! Be sure to stay updated by following @ESCXTRA on Twitter, @escxtra on Instagram and liking our Facebook page for the latest updates! Also, be sure to follow us on Spotify and YouTube to see our reactions to the news in the run up to the 2022 national final season!
