Eurovision Song Contest 2017
The Eurovision Song Contest 2017 (shortly ESC) was the 62nd edition of the Eurovision Song Contest. It took place in the International Exhibition Centre in Kiev, Ukraine, after Jamala won for Ukraine in 2016 in Stockholm, Sweden with her song "1944".
Ukraine hosted the contest for the second time after 2005. The competition was held from 9th to the 13th; the first semifinal was on Tuesday, May 9, the second semifinal on Thursday, May 11 and the grand final was on Saturday, May 13.
Venue
The contest happened in the International Exhibition Centre in Kiev. The venue holds 13,000 people and the venue will be rebuilt for the contest.
The ESC 2005, which was also held in Kiev, took place in the Palace Of Sports. This was also a possible venue for 2017, but might not fulfill today's demands.
However, the venue must have a maximum capacity of 10,000. The venue also has to be covered and an international press centre has to be in reach. Also it must have a capacity for 1,550 journalists.
The following cities applied for being a host city:
Countries that will not participate/return/debut in 2017
- 22x20px Bosnia and Herzegovina: The Bosnian television agency BHRT announced that they are in current financial difficulties, so financing for the ESC is not possible. Bosnia returned in 2016 by getting the money of sponsors.
- 22x20px Kazakhstan: The country of Kazakhstan became an associate-member of the EBU in the beginning of 2016. Later on they said that it could be possible that Kazakhstan would participate for the first time. On the 31th of October, the date on which the list of countries taking part in 2017 was published by the EBU, Kazakhstan wasn´t named as a participating country. A reason why they did not debut was not announced.
Luxembourg: The country of Luxembourg announced that they would not return to the contest. Luxembourg last participated in 1993. Of all the countries which have taken part in the competition, Luxembourg have not participated for the longest time.
Turkey: The Turkish television TRT said that they will not be participating in 2017. They said that there are not satisfied about the voting system and the rules with the "Big-5". Turkey have not participated in the competition since 2013.- File:Flag of Slovakia.svg Slovakia: The Slovakian television RTVS also said that they will not return in 2017. A real reason wasn´t mentioned. Slovakia last participated in 2012.
Returning artists
Some artists participated in the contest before and will represent their country again or as a another role:
| Country | Artist | Participated before in... |
|---|---|---|
| 22x20px Estonia | Koit Toome | 1998 |
| Laura | 2005 | |
| File:Flag of Israel.svg Israel | Imri Ziv | 2015, 2016 (as a backing vocalist) |
| 22x20px Moldova | SunStroke Project | 2010 |
| File:Flag of Serbia.svg Serbia | Tijana Bogićević | 2011 (as a backing vocalist) |
| File:Flag of Slovenia.svg Slovenia | Omar Naber | 2005 |
Semi-Final
Portugal and Romania will return; both quit last year's contest. Bosnia and Herzegovina, who returned in last year's contest, have quit this year because of financial difficulties.
On the 31th of October 2016 it was announced by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), that there will be 43 countries to participate in 2017.[1]
First Semi-Final
The first semi final will take place on Tuesday, the 9th of May 2017. 18 countries will compete, the 10 countries with the most votes of them will qualify for the final.
The running order will be decided and announced when all the countries have selected their entry.
Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom will vote in this semi-final.
| # | Country | Artist | Song | Language | Translation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| First Half (1-9) | |||||
| 04 | 22x20px Albania | Lindita Halimi | "World" | English | |
| 03 |  Australia
|
Isaiah Firebrace | "Don´t Come Easy" | English | |
| 08 | 22x20px Azerbaijan | DiHaj | "Skeletons" | English | |
| 05 |  Belgium
|
Blanche | "City Lights" | English | |
| 07 | File:Flag of Finland.svg Finland | Norma John | "Blackbird" | English | |
| 02 |  Georgia
|
Tako | "Keep The Faith" | English | |
| 06 | 22x20px Montenegro | Slavko Kalezić | "Space" | English | |
| 09 |  Portugal
|
Salvador Sobral | "Amar pelos dois" | Portuguese | To love by the two |
| 01 |  Sweden
|
Robin Bengtsson | "I Can´t Go On" | English | |
| Second Half (10-18) | |||||
| 16 | 22x20px Armenia | Artsvik | "Fly With Me" | English | |
| 15 | 22x20px Cyprus | Hovig | "Gravity" | English | |
| 14 |  Czech Republic
|
Martina Bárta | "My Turn" | English | |
| 10 | File:Flag of Greece.svg Greece | Demy | "This Is Love" | English | |
| 13 |  Iceland
|
Svala | "Paper" | English | |
| 18 |  Latvia
|
Triana Park | "Line" | English | |
| 12 | 22x20px Moldova | SunStroke Project | "Hey Mamma" | English | |
| 11 |  Poland
|
Kasia Mos | "Flashlight" | English | |
| 17 | File:Flag of Slovenia.svg Slovenia | Omar Naber | "On My Way" | English | |
Second Semi-Final
The second semi-final will take place on Thursday, the 11th of May 2017. 19 countries will compete, the 10 countries with the most votes of them will qualify for the final.
The running order will be decided and announced when all the countries have selected their entry. After a request of the Swiss TV-broadcaster SRF, Switzerland was directly determined to participate and vote in Semi-Final 2.
France, Germany and Ukraine will vote in this semi-final.
| Draw | Country | Artist | Song | Language | Translation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| First Half (1-10) | |||||
| 02 |  Austria
|
Nathan Trent | "Walking On Air" | English | |
| 08 |  Denmark
|
Anja Nissen | "Where I Am" | English | |
| 07 | 22x20px Hungary | Joci Pápai | "Origo" | Hungarian, Romani | Origin |
| 09 |  Ireland
|
Brendan Murray | "Dying To Try" | English | |
| 04 | 22x20px Malta | Claudia Faniello | "Breathlessly" | English | |
| 06 | File:Flag of the Netherlands.svg Netherlands | OG3NE | "Lights And Shadows" | English | |
| 03 | 22x20px Republic of Macedonia | Jana Burčeska | "Dance Alone" | English | |
| 05 | File:Flag of Romania.svg Romania | Ilinca feat. Alex Florea | "Yodel It!" | English | |
| 01 | File:Flag of Serbia.svg Serbia | Tijana Bogićević | "In Too Deep" | English | |
| Second Half (10-19) | |||||
| 14 | 22x20px Belarus | NAVI | "Historyja majho žyccia" | Belarussian | Story of my life |
| 15 | 22x20px Bulgaria | Kristian Kostov | "Beautiful Mess" | English | |
| 11 |  Croatia
|
Jacques Houdek | "My Friend" | English, Italian | |
| 17 | 22x20px Estonia | Koit Toome & Laura | "Verona" | English | |
| 18 | File:Flag of Israel.svg Israel | Imri Ziv | "I Feel Alive" | English | |
| 16 |  Lithuania
|
Fusedmarc | "Rain Of Revoltuion" | English | |
| 12 |  Norway
|
JOWST feat. Aleksander Walmann | "Grab The Moment" | English | |
| 10 | 22x20px San Marino | Valentina Monetta & Jimmie Wilson | "Spirit Of The Night" | English | |
| 13 |  Switzerland
|
Timebelle | "Apollo" | English | |
Big-Five (including host country Ukraine)
These five countries are directly qualified for the final. Ukraine, as the host country, will also be performing directly in the Grand Final.
| Country | Artist | Song | Language | Translation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 France
|
Alma | "Requiem" | French, English | - |
 Germany
|
Levina | "Perfect Life" | English | |
| File:Flag of Italy.svg Italy | Francesco Gabbani | "Occidentali´s Karma" | Italian | |
 Spain
|
Manel Navarro | "Do It For Your Lover" | English, Spanish | |
 Ukraine
|
O.Torwald | "Time" | English | |
 United Kingdom
|
Lucie Jones | "Never Give Up On You" | English |
Detailed list of participating countries
| Country[2] and broadcaster | Artist | Song | Lyrics and composer | Language | Translation | Selection |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 22x20px Albania (RTSH) | Lindita Halimi | "World" | Klodian Qafoku, Gerald Xhari | English | National final | |
| 22x20px Armenia (ARMTV) | Artsvik Harutyunyan | "Fly With Me" | English | |||
| Australia (SBS)
|
Isaiah Firebrace | "Don´t Come Easy" | David Musumeci, Anthony Egizii | English | Internal selection | |
| Austria (ORF)
|
Nathan Trent | "Running on Air" | Bernard Penzian, Nathan Trent | English | ||
| 22x20px Azerbaijan (ITV) | DiHaj | "Skeletons" | TBA | |||
| 22x20px Belarus (BTRC) | NAVIBAND | "Histroyja majho zyccia" | Artem Lukjanenka | Belarussian | Story of my life | National final |
| Belgium (VRT)
|
Blanche | "City Lights" | English | Internal selection | ||
| 22x20px Bulgaria (BNT) | TBA | TBA | TBA | English | ||
| Croatia (HRT)
|
Jacques Houdek | "My Friend" | Jacques Houdek, Tony Roberth Malm, Arjana Kunštek, Fabrizio Laucella | English | ||
| 22x20px Cyprus (CyBC) | Hovig | "Gravity" | Thomas G:son, Hovig | English | ||
| Czech Republic (CT1)
|
Martina Bárta | "My Turn" | TBA | English | ||
| Denmark (DR)
|
Anja Nissen | "Where I Am" | Anja Nissen, Angel Tupai, Michael D’Arcy | English | National final | |
| 22x20px Estonia (ERR) | Koit Toome & Laura | "Verona" | Sven Löhmus | English | ||
| File:Flag of Finland.svg Finland (YLE) | Norma John | "Blackbird" | Lasse Piirainen, Leena Tirronen | English | ||
| France (France2) (Big-5-member)
|
Alma | "Requiem" | Nazim Khaled | French | - | Internal selection |
| Georgia (GBS)
|
Tako Gatschetschiladse | "Keep The Faith" | Tako Gatschetschiladse | English | National final | |
| Germany (ARD) (Big-5-member)
|
Levina | "Perfect Life" | Lindy Robbins, Dave Bassett, Lindsey Ray | English | ||
| File:Flag of Greece.svg Greece (ERT) | Demy | "This Is Love" | Dimitris Kontopoulos, John Ballard, Romy Papadea | English | ||
| 22x20px Hungary (MTVA) | Joci Pápai | "Origo" | József Pápai | Hungarian, Romani | Origin | |
| Iceland (RÙV)
|
||||||
| Ireland (RTE)
|
Brendan Murray | English | Internal selection | |||
| File:Flag of Israel.svg Israel (IBA) | Imri Ziv | "I Feel Alive" | Dolev Ram, Penn Hazut | English | National final | |
| File:Flag of Italy.svg Italy (RAI) (Big-5-member) | Francesco Gabbani | "Occidentali´s Karma" | Fabio Ilacqua, Francesco Gabbani, Luca Chiaravalli, Filippi Gabbani | Italian, English | - | |
| Latvia (LTV)
|
Triana Park | "Line" | Agnese Rakovska, Kristaps Ērglis, Kristians Rakovskis | English | ||
| Lithuania (LRT)
|
||||||
| 22x20px Malta (PBS) | Claudia Faniello | "Breathlessly" | Philip Vella, Sean Vella, Gerard James Borg | English | ||
| 22x20px Moldova (TVM) | SunStroke Project | "Hey Mamma" | SunStroke Project, Alina Galetskaia | English | ||
| 22x20px Montenegro (RTCG) | Slavko Kalezić | "Space" | Stefan Örn, Momčilo Zeković | English | Internal selection | |
| File:Flag of the Netherlands.svg Netherlands (AVOTROS) | O´G3NE[3] | English | ||||
| Norway (NRK)
|
English | National final | ||||
| Poland (TVP)
|
Kasia Mos | "Flashlight" | Kasia Moś, Pete Baringger, Rickard Bonde Truumeel | English | ||
| Portugal (RTP)
|
Salvador Sobral | "Amar Pelos Dois" | Luísa Sobral | Portuguese | To Love By The Two | |
| 22x20px North Macedonia (MRT) | Jana Burčeska | English | Internal selection | |||
| File:Flag of Romania.svg Romania (TVR) | Ilinca feat. Alex Florea | "Yodel It!" | Mihai Alexandru, Alexandra Niculae | English | National final | |
 Russia (Russia1)
|
TBA | TBA | TBA | Internal selection | ||
| 22x20px San Marino (SMRTV) | TBA | TBA | TBA | TBA | ||
| File:Flag of Serbia.svg Serbia (RTS) | Tijana Bogićević | "In Too Deep" | Borislav Milanov, Bo Persson, Johan Alkenas, Lisa Ann-Marie Linder | |||
| File:Flag of Slovenia.svg Slovenia (RTVSLO) | Omar Naber | "On My Way" | Omar Naber | English | National final | |
| Spain (TVE) (Big-5-member)
|
Manel Navarro | "Do It For Your Lover" | Manel Navarro | English, Spanish | ||
| Sweden (SVT)
|
English | |||||
| Switzerland (SRF)
|
Timebelle | "Apollo" | Elias Näslin, Nicolas Günthardt, Alessandra Günthardt | English | ||
| Ukraine (NTU) (Host country)
|
O.Torwald | "Time" | Jewhen Halytsch, Denys Misjuk, Mykola Rajda, Oleksandr Solocha | English | ||
| United Kingdom (BBC) (Big-5-member)
|
Lucie Jones | "Never Give Up On You" | The Treatment, Emmelie de Forest, Lawrie Martin | English |
An internal selection of the national TV-station is a secret selection without a national final, where the pupilarity is able to vote.
Other
- The Head of the Ukrainian national broadcaster NTU, Zurab Alasania, has withdrawn in protest to the Government’s budget for the broadcaster in 2017. For 2017, the Ukrainian Government has provided €42.8 million, of which more than €16 million will be spent on Eurovision. That leaves the broadcaster with just €7 million Euros, which is clearly too low money for other projects in the future, according to Zurab.[4]
- For the first time ever, Russia got drawn in the second semi-final. Russia always participated in the first semi-final since the introduction of semi-finals.
- Belarus will be represented by a song in Belarussian language for the first time.
- Christer Björkmann, a Swedish TV-producer for the national final Melodifestivalen and show producer of the Eurovision Song Contest 2013 and 2016, will join the Ukrainian producing team.
- For the first time ever, there will be only men who will host the contest.
Eurovision Song Contest 2017 Media
- Eurovision Song Contest 2017, Semi Final 2 Rehearsals. Photo 290.jpg
Hosts Volodymyr Ostapchuk and Oleksandr Skichko (from rehearsal)
- ESC 2017 Semi-Finals.svg
Participating countries in the first semi-final Pre-qualified for the final but also voting in the first semi-final Participating countries in the second semi-final Pre-qualified for the final but also voting in the second semi-final
- Salvador and Luísa Sobral, May 2017.jpg
Salvador and Luísa Sobral at the first semi-final winners' press conference