The EBU released information on the next Junior Eurovision Song Contest, which will be held in Madrid on November 16th. 17 countries will take part, with Cyprus and San Marino returning. The EBU also gave details on the theme and visual identity of this edition.
17 countries to take part
The confirmed list of countries who will compete in November is as follows:
- 🇦🇱 Albania
- 🇦🇲 Armenia
- 🇨🇾 Cyprus
- 🇪🇪 Estonia
- 🇫🇷 France
- 🇬🇪 Georgia
- 🇩🇪 Germany
- 🇮🇪 Ireland
- 🇮🇹 Italy
- 🇲🇹 Malta
- 🇳🇱 Netherlands
- 🇲🇰 North Macedonia
- 🇵🇱 Poland
- 🇵🇹 Portugal
- 🇸🇲 San Marino
- 🇪🇸 Spain
- 🇺🇦 Ukraine
This marks the return of Cyprus and San Marino to the contest.
Cyprus was among the participants of the first edition of the contest, in 2003, and took part nine times, withdrawing before the 2018 edition. The island also hosted the 2008 contest, in Limassol, after beating Sweden and Ukraine in the bidding process.
San Marino took part in three editions, in 2013, 2014 and 2015. Their 2013 entry, Michele Perniola, ended up representing the country in the “senior” Eurovision Song Contest in 2015, with Anita Simoncini (who was part of the band representing San Marino in Junior 2014).
On the “withdrawing” side of the board, the United Kingdom will not take part this year, with the junior contest having found no broadcaster to take over.
With 17 countries, this will be the highest number of participants since 2021. Martin Österdahl, JESC executive supervisor, commented on the release:
“It’s our pleasure to be welcoming young and talented artists from 17 countries to Madrid in November for the 22nd Junior Eurovision Song Contest. We’re also thrilled to be welcoming back two countries, Cyprus and San Marino, to the competition.
It has been a long time since Spain has hosted a Eurovision event and RTVE’s excitement to be staging this year’s Contest has been infectious! We are looking forward to a wonderful week ahead of us in November.”
A new artistic identity – “Let’s Bloom”
The EBU also revealed the visual and artistic identity of the 22nd edition, which is articulated around the slogan “Let’s bloom”, with a floral identity. The slogan is a reference to the nature of the contest, in which young artists compete, artists who “blossom” on stage.
Executive Producer of JESC 2024, Ana María Bordas (who is also the Original Content Director at RTVE) gave more details on the concept:
“We have thought of a concept that, taking nature as an example, influences the idea of young artists flourishing towards a future where they can be themselves and express freely in a healthy, safe and diverse way. The aim is to walk with them in their growth and development. In short, to help them flourish and progress, by being themselves.
The concept of flowers and blooming comes from nature itself, where there is so much diversity and in which everything is important, harmonious and beautiful.”
The theme will infuse the show on many levels. The stage (inside the Caja Mágica) will have a central vertical LED screen, both a reference to the vertical growth of most plants and the shape of the smartphone screen. The slogan will also be infused in the postcards – these are the videos that introduce each performance. Each postcard will connect the theme to a JESC value, with variations of the slogan such as “Bloom in harmony”, “Bloom in diversity”, etc.
Marvin Dietmann, the artistic director for JESC 2024, also gave some more explainations:
“Our vision is rooted in the belief that diversity is the essence of beauty, much like a flourishing garden. In this creative journey, we embrace the idea that each artist, like a unique plant, contributes to the vibrant tapestry of our ‘garden of life’. Here, everyone has their place and together we grow into diverse shapes, colours and forms.
We invite our audience to trust in our vision and the future of our artists, as we embark on this transformative experience together.”
