Spain in the Eurovision Song Contest 2024

Spain was represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 2024 with the song "Zorra", written by María Bas and Mark Dasousa, and performed by themselves under their stage name Nebulossa. The Spanish participating broadcaster Radiotelevisión Española (RTVE), together with the Generalitat Valenciana, organised Benidorm Fest 2024 in order to select its entry for the 2024 contest.

Eurovision Song Contest 2024
Participating broadcasterRadiotelevisión Española (RTVE)
Country Spain
National selection
Selection processBenidorm Fest 2024
Selection date(s)
  • Semi-finals:
  • 30 January 2024
  • 1 February 2024
  • Final:
  • 3 February 2024
Selected artist(s)Nebulossa
Selected song"Zorra"
Selected songwriter(s)
Finals performance
Final result22nd, 30 points
Spain in the Eurovision Song Contest
◄2023 2024 2025►

As a member of the "Big Five", Spain directly qualified to compete in the final of the Eurovision Song Contest. Performing in position 8, Spain placed twenty-second out of the 25 performing countries with 30 points.

Background

edit

Prior to the 2024 contest, Televisión Española (TVE) until 2006, and Radiotelevisión Española (RTVE) since 2007, had participated in the Eurovision Song Contest representing Spain sixty-two times since TVE's first entry in 1961.[1] They have won the contest on two occasions: in 1968 with the song "La, la, la" performed by Massiel and in 1969 with the song "Vivo cantando" performed by Salomé, the latter having won in a four-way tie with France, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom. They have also finished second four times, with "En un mundo nuevo" by Karina in 1971, "Eres tú" by Mocedades in 1973, "Su canción" by Betty Missiego in 1979, and "Vuelve conmigo" by Anabel Conde in 1995. In 2022, RTVE placed third with the song "SloMo" performed by Chanel, while in 2023, it came 17th with the song "Eaea" performed by Blanca Paloma.[1]

As part of its duties as participating broadcaster, RTVE organises the selection of its entry in the Eurovision Song Contest and broadcasts the event in the country. The Spanish broadcaster has selected its entry for the Eurovision Song Contest through both national finals and internal selections in the past, with the national final Benidorm Fest being used since 2022. RTVE confirmed its intentions to participate at the 2024 contest on 11 May 2023, while the 2023 contest was still ongoing, announcing the organisation of the third edition of Benidorm Fest in order to select its next entry.[2]

Before Eurovision

edit
 
Nebulossa, winners of Benidorm Fest 2024, at the PrePartyES event in Madrid

Benidorm Fest 2024

edit

Benidorm Fest 2024 was the song festival organised by RTVE and Generalitat Valenciana that took place at the Palau Municipal d'Esports l'Illa de Benidorm in Benidorm, Valencian Community. Sixteen artists and songs competed over three shows: two semi-finals on 30 January and 1 February 2024, and the final on 3 February 2024, with a total of eight entries ultimately qualifying to the final.[3]

The voting consisted of televote (25%), a demoscopic panel of judges made up of a sample of the Spanish population selected by statistical and demoscopic criteria (25%), and a national and international jury vote (50%).[4]

Semi-finals

edit
  • The first semi-final took place on 31 January 2023. "Zorra" performed by Nebulossa, "Sé quién soy" performed by Angy Fernández, "Here to Stay" performed by Sofia Coll and "Bla bla bla" performed by Miss Caffeina advanced to the final, while "Me vas a ver" performed by Mantra, "Te echo de -" performed by Noan, "Astronauta" performed by Lérica and "Prisionero" performed by Quique Niza were eliminated.
  • The second semi-final took place on 2 February 2023. "Dos extraños (Cuarteto de cuerda)" performed by St. Pedro, "Remitente" performed by María Peláe, "Caliente" performed by Jorge González and "Brillos platino" performed by Almácor advanced to the final, while "El temps" performed by Roger Padrós, "Amor de verano" performed by Marlena, "No se me olvida" performed by Yoly Saa [es] and "Beso en la mañana" performed by Dellacruz were eliminated.

Final

edit

The final took place on 3 February 2024 and saw eight contestants, four having qualified from each semi-final.

Final – 3 February 2024[5][6]
Draw Artist Song Expert
jury
Demoscopic
jury
Televote Total Place
1 María Peláe "Remitente" 41 25 20 86 6
2 St. Pedro "Dos extraños (Cuarteto de cuerda)" 86 28 25 139 2
3 Angy Fernández "Sé quién soy" 63 35 30 128 3
4 Jorge González "Caliente" 49 40 35 124 4
5 Nebulossa "Zorra" 86 30 40 156 1
6 Sofia Coll "Here to Stay" 29 22 22 73 7
7 Miss Caffeina "Bla bla bla" 27 16 16 59 8
8 Almácor "Brillos platino" 51 20 28 99 5

Promotion

edit

As part of the promotion of their participation in the contest, Nebulossa embarked on a trip across the United States in February 2024;[7] they additionally attended the PrePartyES in Madrid on 30 March 2024,[8] the Euro Fest Gala in Madrid on 3 April 2024,[9] the Barcelona Eurovision Party on 6 April 2024,[10] the London Eurovision Party on 7 April 2024,[11] the Eurovision in Concert event in Amsterdam on 13 April 2024,[12] and the Nordic Eurovision Party in Stockholm on 14 April 2024[13] as well as performing at the Swedish embassy in Madrid on 10 April 2024[14] and at the Muccassassina [it] club night in Rome on 26 April 2024.[9] The duo also performed at a public "farewell party" at Teatro Albéniz in Madrid on 22 April 2024, organised by RTVE and available on its online platform RTVE Play.[15][16]

Calls for boycott

edit

At Eurovision

edit
 
Nebulossa during a rehearsal before the final.

The Eurovision Song Contest 2024 took place at the Malmö Arena in Malmö, Sweden, and consisted of two semi-finals held on the respective dates of 7 and 9 May and the final on 11 May 2024. All nations with the exceptions of the host country and the "Big Five" (France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom) were required to qualify from one of two semi-finals in order to compete in the final; the top ten countries from each semi-final progressed to the final. As a member of the "Big Five", Spain automatically qualifies to compete in the final on 11 May 2024, but is also required to broadcast and vote in one of the two semi-finals. This was decided via a draw held during the semi-final allocation draw on 30 January 2024, when it was announced that Spain would be voting in the second semi-final.[17][18] Despite being an automatic qualifier for the final, the Spanish entry was also performed during the semi-final.[19] On 4 May 2024, a draw was held to determine which half of the final each "Big Five" country would perform in; Spain drew "producer's choice", meaning that the country would perform in the half decided by the contest's producers.[20]

In Spain, TVE broadcast the first semi-final of the contest on La 2 and the second semi-final and the final on La 1 and its 4K UHD simulcast channel La 1 UHD; in addition, Radio Nacional de España (RNE) aired the final on Radio Nacional nationwide and on Ràdio 4 in Catalonia; with all the shows also broadcast internationally on TVE Internacional, and both television and radio broadcasts available online via RTVE Play.[21][22][23][24] Julia Varela and Tony Aguilar provide the Spanish-language commentary for the television broadcast,[25] and David Asensio, Sara Calvo, Ángela Fernández, Manu Martín-Albo, and Luis Miguel Montes commentated the final on the national radio broadcast.[21] In addition, and for the first time, Catalan-language dual commentary by Sònia Urbano and Xavi Martínez [es] was available for the final on La 1 in Catalonia, which was also aired on Ràdio 4.[26] As part of the Eurovision programming, the special broadcast Estoy en un buen momento: Malmö Calling, hosted by Carolina Iglesias, preceded each of the three shows,[27] and the documentary Catalunya, 12 punts, dedicated to Catalan representatives of Spain at the contest, aired on La 2 before the final.[26]

A public event, organised by RTVE, was held on the day of the final in Benidorm, featuring a live screening of the show at the Auditorio Julio Iglesias as well as performances by special guests and other activities.[28]

Performance

edit

Nebulossa took part in technical rehearsals on 2 and 4 May, followed by dress rehearsals on 10 and 11 May.[29] Their performance of "Zorra" at the contest is staged by Israel Reyes and Juan Sebastián Domínguez, and choreographed by Vero Mejías,[30] with backing singer Carmen Díaz and dancers César Louzán Ferrío and Iosu Martínez joining the duo on stage.[27] Michael Costello designed singer Mery Bas' costume, which is centred around a black vinyl corset with rhinestones, meant to evoke a dominatrix; Domínguez created the rest of the outfits, which include suits for the dancers, removed at one point to reveal high boots and also a corset underneath.[31][32][33] The staging features a sofa and lamps, meant to recreate a "cabaret atmosphere", as well as the usage of smoke at the beginning and pyrotechnics at the end.[33][34][35] Visuals include the image of the Venus de Milo, representing the epitome of classical feminity; a red lock, symbolising the passage to a liberated society; and a LED background inspired by the setting of the 1927 film Metropolis, said to give the staging a "retro-futuristic look" and to be a reference to the city of Benidorm.[34][35]

Final

edit

On 4 May 2024, a draw was held to determine which half of the final each "Big Five" country would perform in; Spain drew "producer's choice", meaning that the country will perform in the half decided by the contest's producers.[20] Spain will perform in position 8, following the entry from Lithuania and before the entry from Estonia.[36] Nebulossa once again took part in dress rehearsals on 10 and 11 May before the final, including the jury final where the professional juries cast their final votes before the live show on 11 May. They performed a repeat of their semi-final performance during the final on 11 May. Spain placed twenty-second in the final, scoring 30 points; 11 points from the public televoting and 19 points from the juries.

Voting

edit

Below is a breakdown of points awarded to and by Spain in the second semi-final and in the final. Voting during the three shows involved each country awarding sets of points from 1-8, 10 and 12: one from their professional jury and the other from televoting in the final vote, while the semi-final vote was based entirely on the vote of the public.[37] The Spanish jury consisted of Irene Garrido Pascual, Juan Manuel Pinzás Sueiro, Rosa María Comín, St. Pedro, and Gema del Valle de la Cruz.[38][39] In the final, Spain placed 22nd with 30 points. Over the course of the contest, Spain awarded its 12 points to Israel in the second semi-final, and to Switzerland (jury) and Israel (televote) in the final.[40][41]

RTVE appointed Soraya Arnelas, who represented Spain in the 2009 contest, as its spokesperson to announce the Spanish jury's votes in the final.[42]

Points awarded to Spain

edit
Points awarded to Spain (Final)[41]
Score Televote Jury
12 points
10 points
8 points
7 points   Italy
6 points   San Marino
5 points
4 points   Austria
3 points
2 points
1 point   Italy

Points awarded by Spain

edit

Detailed voting results

edit

Each participating broadcaster assembles a five-member jury panel consisting of music industry professionals who are citizens of the country they represent. Each jury, and individual jury member, is required to meet a strict set of criteria regarding professional background, as well as diversity in gender and age. No member of a national jury was permitted to be related in any way to any of the competing acts in such a way that they cannot vote impartially and independently.[43] The individual rankings of each jury member as well as the nation's televoting results were released shortly after the grand final.

The following members comprised the Spanish jury:[38][39]

  • Irene Garrido Pascual
  • Pedro Hernández Herrera (St. Pedro)
  • Juan Manuel Pinzás Sueiro
  • Rosa María Comín
  • Gema del Valle de la Cruz
Detailed voting results from Spain (Semi-final 2)[40]
Draw Country Televote
Rank Points
01   Malta 14
02   Albania 16
03   Greece 6 5
04    Switzerland 7 4
05   Czechia 9 2
06   Austria 8 3
07   Denmark 15
08   Armenia 4 7
09   Latvia 5 6
10   San Marino 2 10
11   Georgia 10 1
12   Belgium 12
13   Estonia 11
14   Israel 1 12
15   Norway 13
16   Netherlands 3 8
Detailed voting results from Spain (Final)[41]
Draw Country Jury Televote
Juror A Juror B Juror C Juror D Juror E Rank Points Rank Points
01   Sweden 16 3 5 1 21 3 8 18
02   Ukraine 12 12 20 24 19 22 2 10
03   Germany 2 15 12 16 3 6 5 19
04   Luxembourg 7 11 15 20 9 14 14
05   Netherlands[a] 19 23 19 11 5 16 N/A
06   Israel 3 25 21 25 25 15 1 12
07   Lithuania 21 18 8 5 16 13 10 1
08   Spain
09   Estonia 25 24 25 22 15 24 21
10   Ireland 11 4 4 3 2 2 10 4 7
11   Latvia 1 19 7 17 7 7 4 15
12   Greece 17 14 22 12 17 21 9 2
13   United Kingdom 13 10 9 4 8 9 2 16
14   Norway 24 17 23 21 24 25 22
15   Italy 10 8 6 10 10 10 1 7 4
16   Serbia 15 20 14 14 14 20 23
17   Finland 22 2 24 15 11 11 12
18   Portugal 14 21 3 7 6 8 3 11
19   Armenia 20 7 18 9 22 18 8 3
20   Cyprus 9 6 11 8 23 12 20
21    Switzerland 5 5 1 2 1 1 12 5 6
22   Slovenia 23 13 16 19 13 23 24
23   Croatia 18 9 10 23 20 19 3 8
24   Georgia 6 16 17 18 12 17 17
25   France 4 22 2 13 4 4 7 6 5
26   Austria 8 1 13 6 18 5 6 13

References

edit
  1. ^ a b "Spain". Eurovision.tv. European Broadcasting Union (EBU). Retrieved 9 August 2023.
  2. ^ Granger, Anthony (11 May 2023). "Spain: Eurovision 2024 Participation Confirmed as Benidorm Fest Rules Released". Eurovoix. Retrieved 11 May 2023.
  3. ^ Casanova, Verónica (26 July 2023). "Todas las novedades sobre el Benidorm Fest 2024: fechas de las galas y anuncio de artistas" [All the news about Benidorm Fest 2024: dates of the galas and artists announcement]. rtve.es (in European Spanish). RTVE. Retrieved 26 July 2023.
  4. ^ "Bases que regulan la selección de la canción y representante/s de España en el Festival de Eurovisión 2024. Benidorm Fest 2024" (PDF) (in European Spanish). RTVE. 10 May 2023. Retrieved 22 June 2023.
  5. ^ Contreras Real, Carlos (2 February 2024). "Descubre el orden de actuación de la Gran Final de Benidorm Fest 2024" [Discover the running order of the Grand Final of Benidorm Fest 2024]. ESCplus España (in European Spanish). Retrieved 2 February 2024.
  6. ^ Canto, Jesús (3 February 2024). "Nebulossa con «Zorra» gana el Benidorm Fest 2024 y representará a España en el Festival de Eurovisión" [Nebulossa with "Zorra" wins Benidorm Fest 2024 and will represent Spain in the Eurovision Song Contest]. ESCplus España (in European Spanish). Retrieved 4 February 2024.
  7. ^ Granger, Anthony (26 February 2024). "Spain: Nebulossa Complete Promotional Trip to the United States". Eurovoix. Retrieved 26 February 2024.
  8. ^ Grace, Emily (20 February 2024). "Spain: Several Artists Join The PrePartyES 2024 Line-Up". Eurovoix. Retrieved 26 February 2024.
  9. ^ a b Rossini, Federico (29 February 2024). "Eurovision 2024: i Nebulossa (Spagna) a Roma il 26 aprile" [Eurovision 2024: Nebulossa (Spain) in Rome on 26 April]. Eurofestival News (in Italian). Retrieved 29 February 2024.
  10. ^ Grace, Emily (21 February 2024). "Spain: Numerous Acts Confirmed For Barcelona Eurovision Party So Far". Eurovoix. Retrieved 26 February 2024.
  11. ^ Granger, Anthony (12 March 2024). "Spain: Nebulossa Joins London Eurovision Party 2024 Line-Up". Eurovoix. Retrieved 12 March 2024.
  12. ^ Dibben, Jazzi (27 February 2024). "Nebulossa to perform at Eurovision in Concert 2024". That Eurovision Site. Retrieved 1 April 2024.
  13. ^ @nordiceurovision (4 March 2024). "¡Hola @nebulossa_oficial! Next 14th April in Stockholm will be very 'Z0rra'. After winning the Benidorm Fest, the group will perform at Eurovision 2024 but first you can see them at the Nordic Eurovision Party". Retrieved 5 March 2024 – via Instagram.
  14. ^ Andersson, Rafaell (21 April 2024). "Eurovision 2024: Nemo, Dons and Nebulossa Perform at Swedish Embassies". Eurovoix. Retrieved 21 April 2024.
  15. ^ Mancheño, José Miguel; Solano, Cristhian (22 April 2024). "Minuto a minuto: Sigue en directo la fiesta de despedida de Nebulossa antes de viajar a Malmö" [Minute by minute: Follow live Nebulossa's farewell party before travelling to Malmö]. ESCplus España (in European Spanish). Retrieved 22 April 2024.
  16. ^ Conte, Davide (24 April 2024). "Spain: Farewell Party for Nebulossa Held in Madrid". Eurovoix. Retrieved 24 April 2024.
  17. ^ Van Dijk, Sem Anne (13 December 2023). "Eurovision 2024: Semi-Final Allocation Draw on January 30". Eurovoix. Retrieved 13 December 2023.
  18. ^ "Eurovision 2024: Semi-Final Draw results". Eurovision.tv. EBU. 30 January 2024. Retrieved 30 January 2024.
  19. ^ "Major changes for Malmö: Big Five & Sweden perform LIVE in Semi-Finals and you can vote for longer". Eurovision.tv. EBU. Retrieved 11 March 2024.
  20. ^ a b "Malmö Grand Finalists draw their halves in the running order". Eurovision.tv. EBU. 4 May 2024. Retrieved 4 May 2024.
  21. ^ a b Mancheño, José Miguel (23 April 2024). "Radio Nacional de España emitirá en directo la gran final del Festival de Eurovisión 2024" [Radio Nacional de España will broadcast live the grand final of the Eurovision Song Contest 2024]. ESCplus España (in European Spanish). Retrieved 23 April 2024.
  22. ^ "Cuándo es Eurovisión 2024: esta es la fecha" [When is Eurovision 2024: this is the date]. La Razón (in European Spanish). 23 April 2024. Retrieved 23 April 2024.
  23. ^ Mancheño, José Miguel (23 April 2024). "RTVE vuelve a relegar la primera semifinal de Eurovisión 2024 a La 2 y mantiene la segunda en La 1" [RTVE once again relegates the first semi-final of Eurovision 2024 to La 2 and maintains the second on La 1]. ESCplus España (in European Spanish). Retrieved 23 April 2024.
  24. ^ Carros, David; Mancheño, José Miguel (3 May 2024). "TVE Internacional retransmitirá en directo las semifinales y la gran final de Eurovisión 2024" [TVE Internacional will broadcast the semi-finals and grand final of Eurovision 2024 live] (in Spanish). ESCplus España. Retrieved 3 May 2024.
  25. ^ Mancheño, José Miguel (12 April 2024). "Julia Varela y Tony Aguilar comentarán el Festival de Eurovisión 2024 en RTVE" [Julia Varela and Tony Aguilar will commentate the Eurovision Song Contest 2024 on RTVE]. ESCplus España (in European Spanish). Retrieved 12 April 2024.
  26. ^ a b Farren, Neil (2 April 2024). "Spain: RTVE to Provide Catalan Commentary for Eurovision 2024". Eurovoix. Retrieved 2 April 2024.
  27. ^ a b Solano, Cristhian (29 April 2024). "Te contamos el día a día de Nebulossa en Malmö" [We recount you Nebulossa's daily schedule in Malmö]. ESCplus España (in European Spanish). Retrieved 29 April 2024.
  28. ^ Solano, Cristhian (3 April 2024). "Minuto a minuto: Rueda de prensa de presentación de Euroclub" [Minute by minute: Presentation press conference for the Euroclub]. ESCplus España (in European Spanish). Retrieved 3 April 2024.
  29. ^ "Eurovision 2024: Rehearsal Schedule". Eurovisionworld. 25 April 2024. Retrieved 25 April 2024.
  30. ^ Álvarez, Jesús (12 March 2024). "¿Cuáles son los equipos de trabajo de las diferentes candidaturas de Eurovisión 2024?" [What are the working teams behind the various entries for Eurovision 2024?]. ESCplus España (in European Spanish). Retrieved 12 March 2024.
  31. ^ Farren, Neil (22 April 2024). "Spain: Michael Costello to Design Nebulossa's Eurovision Outfits". Eurovoix. Retrieved 23 April 2024.
  32. ^ Mancheño, José Miguel (2 May 2024). "Conoce todos los secretos del vestuario de Nebulossa para Eurovisión 2024" [Find out all the secrets of Nebulossa's clothing for Eurovision 2024]. ESCplus España (in European Spanish). Retrieved 3 May 2024.
  33. ^ a b Douze Points (2 May 2024). "Erste Probe beim ESC 2024: Nebulossa mit 'Zorra' für Spanien" [First rehearsal at ESC 2024: Nebulossa with "Zorra" for Spain]. ESC kompakt (in German). Retrieved 2 May 2024.
  34. ^ a b Stephenson, James (7 May 2024). "Spain: Nebulossa Discusses the Staging of 'Zorra'". Eurovoix. Retrieved 7 May 2024.
  35. ^ a b "Nebulossa afianza su 'ZORRA' sobre el escenario de Eurovisión" [Nebulossa secure their 'ZORRA' on the Eurovision stage]. rtve.es (in European Spanish). RTVE. 4 May 2024. Retrieved 7 May 2024.
  36. ^ "Eurovision 2024: The Grand Final running order". Eurovoix. 9 May 2024.
  37. ^ "Voting Procedures 2024". European Broadcasting Union. Archived from the original on 20 May 2024. Retrieved 22 May 2024.
  38. ^ a b "Grand Final of Malmö 2024 – Jurors". eurovision.tv. European Broadcasting Union. Retrieved 23 May 2024.
  39. ^ a b "Quiénes forman parte del jurado profesional español de Eurovisión 2024 y cómo ha sido el reparto de puntuaciones". los40.com. Retrieved 12 May 2024.
  40. ^ a b c "Results of the Second Semi-Final of Malmö 2024 – Spain". European Broadcasting Union (EBU). Retrieved 12 May 2024.
  41. ^ a b c d "Results of the Final of Malmö 2024 – Spain". European Broadcasting Union (EBU). Retrieved 12 May 2024.
  42. ^ Solano, Cristhian (22 April 2024). "Soraya Arnelas será la portavoz del jurado español en Eurovisión 2024" [Soraya Arnelas will be the spokesperson for the Spanish jury at Eurovision 2024]. ESCplus España (in European Spanish). Retrieved 22 April 2024.
  43. ^ "How the Eurovision Song Contest works". European Broadcasting Union. Retrieved 22 May 2024.
  44. ^ "Statement on Dutch participation in the Eurovision Song Contest". European Broadcasting Union. 11 May 2024. Retrieved 22 May 2024.
  45. ^ "How do I vote for my favourite Eurovision song?". European Broadcasting Union. Archived from the original on 18 May 2024. Retrieved 22 May 2024.
  1. ^ The Netherlands was disqualified prior to the final.[44][45]
edit