1. ESC Semifinal in Basel is Over: These Countries Have Advanced

On Tuesday, the 1st semifinal of the 69th Eurovision Song Contest successfully took place in the Swiss host city of Basel. The first ten qualifiers for the final round of the world's largest music competition on Saturday were determined.

15 countries participated with partly elaborate performances, but only ten received a ticket to the final. Among them was the fun group KAJ representing Sweden with their sauna song "Bara Bada Bastu," one of the top favorites for this year's ESC crown.

Favorite Sweden as Expected in the ESC Final

As in previous years, only the audience is eligible to vote in the semifinals, with the country juries joining in over the weekend. Regardless, the trio KAJ, whose members belong to the Swedish-speaking minority in Finland, was expected to make it to the final. After all, their quirky number has been stubbornly holding the top spot in the betting odds for weeks. However, the performance itself was not among the most spectacular of the evening, although a fiery sauna visit was not to be missed.

There was also reason to celebrate for the Dutch singer Claude, who relied on a lot of emotion in "C'est la vie" to sing about life. He also made it among the final 26 starters (ten from each semifinal as well as the five largest contributors to the European Broadcasting Union and Switzerland as the host country), as did the Ukrainian band Ziferblat, whose "Bird of Pray" convinced the audience with the wings of 70s pop.

Estonia's candidate Tommy Cash, whose tongue-in-cheek "Espresso Macchiato" features all sorts of Italian clichés, had already caused a stir in advance. The criticism was followed by a media-effective apology, and the singer also went on a poster campaign in major Italian cities to garner votes. This apparently paid off for the semifinals, as he advanced with his idiosyncratic performance, as did the Albanian duo Shkodra Elektronike, which combined elegiac strings with lots of percussion and electronics for "Zjerm," or Kyle Alessandro from Norway. In "Lighter," he visually relied on sci-fi elements, while the musical styles were a colorful mix.

Highly Touted Belgium Fell by the Wayside

The field of qualifiers from the 1st semifinal is completed by the Portuguese band NAPA and their singer-songwriter fare "Deslocado," classic ESC material from Poland (Justyna Steczkowska was the only solo artist of the evening and offered fire, scantily clad dancers, and oriental beats in "GAJA"), the Icelandic rap duo VÆB and their electronic number "RÓA," as well as pop celebrity Gabry Ponte. The Italian representing San Marino, who found success in the late 1990s as part of Eiffel 65, scored at the ESC with the formulaic "Tutta L'Italia."

Left behind on the track were Cyprus' Theo Evan, the Croatian candidate Marko Bošnjak, the band Mamagama from Azerbaijan, and the Slovenian ballad singer Klemen. Somewhat surprisingly, Red Sebastian from Belgium was eliminated, who was considered a sure finalist with his cool electronic number "Strobe Lights" and was expected to be among the top contenders. However, not every note was hit during his performance.

ESC Experience, Guest Appearance, and Tradition

Plenty of song contest experience is brought by Sandra Studer, who co-hosted the show with comedian Hazel Brugger. After all, she represented Switzerland as Sandra Simó in 1991 at the competition and achieved a respectable 5th place. In terms of moderation, the duo, which will be additionally supported by Michelle Hunziker in the final, delivered a confident performance - including flashy outfits and a wild musical number, where Swedish comedian and last year's host Petra Mede made a guest appearance as Wilhelm Tell.

But Switzerland, of course, also presented itself as a host with traditional elements, where alphorns, yodeling, or hammered dulcimer were not to be missed - garnished with spectacular mountain images, acrobatic dance performances, and elaborate mass choreographies. There was no shortage of tourist motifs in the "postcards" that introduced the individual acts. The motto for this year's ESC not only includes the obligatory "United by Music" but was also supplemented with "Welcome Home" - after all, the very first song contest took place in 1956 in Lugano, Switzerland.

Austria's ESC Candidate JJ is Up on Thursday

For Austria's candidate JJ, things get serious with his ballad "Wasted Love" on Thursday when the 2nd semi-final takes place in Basel. The 24-year-old is given great chances by the betting offices, as the countertenor is now considered one of the top favorites for the overall victory in the competition. ORF 1 will again broadcast live from 9 PM with the proven commentary by Andi Knoll.

The Advancers to the ESC Final 2025

The Losers of the 1st ESC Semi-Final in Basel

(APA/Red)

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