Zoë

Interview with Zoë from Austria

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ZOË {copyright: Global Rockstar}
ZOË {copyright: Global Rockstar}

Zoë was a popular act at the recent Austrian national selection Eurovision Song Contest – Wer singt für Österreich? Her song Quel Filou was very popular with fans and eventually finished in third place in the final. She is also participating in the Global Rockstar crowd funding campaign event to raise funds for releasing her forthcoming album.

Zoë has been talking to esccovers.com –

First of all we would like to congratulate you on your outstanding performances on the Wer singt für Österreich selection shows. A lot of fans were hoping you would win and represent Austria at the 2015 Eurovision Song Contest.

1. Could you give me some background on how you got involved with music?

I grew up with music, since my father was a musician and my grandfather has always been a big fan of classical music as well as the typical French chanson. I listened to music all the time and tried to imitate the Queen Of The Night, from the Opera ”The Magic Flute”, at the age of four. Therefore my passion for music has always been inside of me, and it always was my dream to become a musician myself.

2. How did you take part in the Wer singt für Österreich? Was there a casting?

When I first heard that there was a casting for the ”Wer singt für Österreich” show, I was thrilled that I was given the chance to improve myself among 120 other great artists, but I never thought that I would come that far. I always secretly wished to represent Austria at the Eurovision Song contest, but it was never something that I thought could really happen. I participated at the casting for the experience and because of my passion for music, without even thinking of having a chance to get to the next round. Therefore, I was amazed when I heard the news.

3. Who are your musical influences?

My musical influences are among todays music stars like Beyonce and Hoziar, the queen of French music: the amazing Edith Piaf. Her beautiful music is full of ”joie de vivre” but also melancholic, she is a true inspiration.

4. You perform songs in French very beautifully. Is there a reason you like to sing in French?

Thank you very much! There was truly no particular reason for singing in French at the beginning. It sort of just happened whilst writing my first song with my father who also speaks French ( we went to the same French school) . We discovered that the language fits quite well with my voice and also the type of music we like to write . I really enjoy singing in French but that doesn’t mean that I won’t write or sing in English or maybe even German … let’s see !)

5. When can we expect your album to be released and what kind of music styles can we look forward to?

My first album will probably be released in May 2015. For the moment we’re still working on the songs but it will definitely be the music style that you’ve already heard in Adieu and Quel Filou. It will remain a fresh, cheeky and playful kind of music, a mix between the Frensh chanson style and electronic beats.

6. Will there be a promo video for Quel Filou or will you instead make a video for your next single?

I do have many ideas for a Quel Filou video, but nothing is definite yet. I really enjoyed the filming of my first music video ‘Adieu, since I’m also really into acting. But for the moment we’re working on my album , and I’m really looking forward to it’s release .

7. Have you heard any of the songs from the 2015 Eurovision Song Contest yet? If so, do you have any particular favourites?

I did listen to a lot of the songs who will participate at the Eurovision Song Contest 2015, and I really like Goodbye to Yesterday’ from Estonia. But of course I support my fellow musicians , winners of the ‘Wer Singt für Österreich’ show : The Makemakes and their amazing song I’m Yours.

Thank you Zoe…we wish you lots of luck for the future and also hope to see you one day representing Austria at the Eurovision Song Contest.

 

 

 

Luara Melody/Mega Wild

Luara returns with her ‘Mega Wild’ new single

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Luara {copyright: Meech and Hollywood Hot Sauce/Mihran Kirakosian}
Luara {copyright: Meech and Hollywood Hot Sauce/Mihran Kirakosian}

It was back in 2009 that Luara Melody represented Armenia at the Junior Eurovision Song Contest with her song Barcelona, where she finished in second place. Luara has since gone on to be an outstanding success and fresh talent by releasing several hits such as Fire In Me, Story, Christmas Wish,Until We See The Sun, Escape and Fighting The Liars. Each song has shown her versatility as an artist. Luara is also a talented dancer and recently recorded her version and a dance video of the Iggy Azalea featuring Rita Ora song, Black Widow.

Luara is now back with her exciting new single called Mega Wild. It is an outstanding upbeat dance song with a very strong production. The lyric video has just been released and you can see that below. The production is by Meech and Hollywood Hot Sauce and edited by Q Burdette. The rap is provided by Mihran Kirakosian.

Source: Facebook/Luaramelody; www.esccovers.com

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mrzll0xlYOM&list=PLrir3wo7rS-rL8Dr76jrmTN29f5SdmfyH

Junior Eurovision

JUNIOR EUROVISION 2015

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Today the E B U announced that the 2015 JUNIOR EUROVISION SONG CONTEST will be held in SOFIA, BULGARIA in NOVEMBER. It puzzles me a little that such announcements are made in the high season of ADULT EUROVISION as very few people now pay attention to JUNIOR EUROVISION. So we are just mentioning it but will report more after Vienna. I can also announce that I will be attending it – it will be my first – I am not that much into Junior Eurovision but I have always wanted to go to Bulgaria and this is probably the only way to do it.

Composers

COMPOSERS PAGES – NEW DEVELOPMENTS

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From tomorrow the composer page will split into THREE, one for RALPH SIEGEL, one for BERND MEINUNGER and one for BJORN & BENNY. These three have written so many songs that to have all 3 on one page becomes a little bulky. Only these 3 will be worked on prior to Vienna and after Vienna in the quiet Eurovision period, I will start on other composers, notable those from Sweden. As you can understand, this is a long term project and it is not something that can be done overnight. But it is such fun for me, today I entered some Bjorn and Benny songs in Czech and Slovak – so exotic. There are also 12 of so by SUCHI KIDS, sung in Dutch.

Composers

COMPOSER’S PAGE

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The idea is that as many of the Eurovision composers will be listed in our library but as you can imagine, this is a huge task. Big progress has been made with that of RALPH SIEGEL and BERND MEININGER and I plan to so do BJORN & BENNY before Vienna. All others will only be looked at after the 2015 Eurovision and will work on it during the low season of Eurovision in June, July and August.

Composers, Ralph Siegel

COMPOSER PAGE – LATEST UPDATE

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The composer page is a very long term project and I have started with Ralph Siegel but he had done most of his best work with Bernd Meinunger doing the lyrics, so I have started to add him as well. But Bernd has written probably the most lyrics in the history of anybody – even outside of Eurovision and I will also list all those songs where he did lyrics to songs written by other composers. Bernd once said he has done lyrics for the entire alphabet, from singers starting with A to singers ending with Z. Hopefully some of you will also go and look at what is available so far of Bernd and celebrate with probably the best composer pair EUROVISION has ever seen.

Sophie/Imperfection

Check out Sophie and ‘Imperfection’

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Sophie {copyright: blackmusicberlin}
Sophie {copyright: blackmusicberlin}

Sophie was a contestant in the Germany Wildcard Eurovision Song Contest 2015 – Unser Song für Österreich selection. Her soulful and upbeat song was entitled Imperfection.

Sophie has released a video for Imperfection and has also been speaking to esccovers.com about her music and ambitions.

She was born on 28 April 1998 and she was inspired at the young age of 10 by the Dreamgirls movie. She decided that she wanted to be a singer at this point. She began with singing and then piano lessons. Her inspirations are soulful singers like Aretha Franklin, Tina Turner, Diana Ross, Dionne Warwick, Gladys Knight, Etta James and Whitney Houston.

Sophie’s first memorable gig was at the Spargelfest in Berlin-Schöneberg and then she became the lead singer of a school band called Encore. She loves to sing live and she also has her own You Tube channel where she posts videos of her singing and you can also follow her on her Facebook page. She has covered songs like Mercy by Duffy and Forget You be CeeLo Green.

You Tube: https://www.youtube.com/MissSophiesVoice

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MissSophieMusic

She enjoyed the experience of participating at the Germany Eurovision Wildcard selection and is now working on new song with her producer. She is also polishing her dance and singing skills at the same time. Sophie is certainly an artist to watch out for.

You can see the video for Imperfection below and the single is available though digital platforms such as iTunes and Amazon.

Source: www.esccovers.com

 

 

Ralph Siegel

RALPH SIEGEL INDEX

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The Ralph Siegel song index in the library section of the website was created 3 days ago and already it contains songs by 88 artists and a total of 223 songs/versions. Ralph has registered around 2000 songs so this can still grow a lot, but it is important to go through the CD’s one by one to make sure they are all listed. Hopefully it will be even more comprehensive by the time Eurovision in Vienna starts. I will later call for lovers of his music to tell me if there are songs missing which we can add.

2015 Eurovision Song Contest, Austria 2015 Selection, News, Sascha Reviews Vienna, Vienna 2015

SASCHA REVIEWS VIENNA…SEMI 1.1

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The final of the Eurovision Song Contest 2015 is less than 2 months away and all the songs for this year’s contest are now know. You’ll have seen the videos as they were released (you can find them all here) and I am sure you all have your own personal favourites.

Over the next few weeks, I will give you my review of this year’s entries. The views are entirely of my own personal opinion and I encourage you to share your views in the comments section. Please do try to keep your comments constructive though, rather than simply declaring your hatred for the entry.

In order to avoid personal bias, I’ve decided to review the songs based on their semi-final. So in part 1, we’re looking at the first half of Semi-Final 1 (plus 2 of the songs already qualified for the Grand Final).

Moldova Moldova I Want Your Love – Eduard Romanyuta Score
Initially this song feels familiar. It has a catchy beat and tune, but you feel like you’ve heard it before. In my opinion, it does feel slightly dated for the modern audience – although a good little pop song, a bit unremarkable. Had it been entered a few years ago, I think it would have had a broader appeal. It should however still find some fans around Europe. 7

Armenia Armenia Face the Shadow – Genealogy Score
This is a very mature song. Well produced and performed and with a lot of potential. The idea behind the band is great and the performers each very good. However I feel there may be some work to go on this song. The singers sound great individually and in harmony, but when moving from one singer to the next, their different singing voices seem to compete with one another rather than blend together. If they can better match the solo parts so that the voices have more cohesion, then this could do very well. 13

Belgium Belgium Rhythym Inside – Loïc Nottet Score
This is one of those songs that you either love or you hate. It is a style of music I quite like from time to time, but unfortunately the first time I heard it I was left underwhelmed. It has grown on me to some extent however. It is an incredibly modern and professional song and very brave of Belgium to select an entry like this. It will all depend on the staging for them in my opinion. 14

Netherlands Netherlands Walk Along – Trijntje Oosterhuis Score
I can’t help but like this song. It is very well performed and has a feel good factor that makes you happy listening to it. It is missing the wow factor though. The song is quite repetative, so you expect it to build up to something special (maybe a spectacular key change or a change in tempo) but it doesn’t quite happen. It’s likeable and should get votes, but is it enough? 15

Finland Finland Aina mun pitää – Pertti Kurikan Nimipäivät Score
This is a very difficult song to review. It is in a very specific genre and if you don’t like that style of music, you’re never going to like this song. It’s going to stand out, it’s going to cause discussions, and it probably will get votes. 4

Greece Greece One Last Breath – Maria Elena Kyriakou Score
A beautiful ballad and very “Eurovision”. Greece continues to enter good quality entries. In a year with a lot of ballads, this one should stand out a bit as it really is meant for a big stage. It ticks a lot of boxes, and assuming a good staging and performance, should to very well indeed 16

Estonia Estonia Goodbye to Yesterday – Elina Born & Stig Rästa Score
A very contemporary entry (with a retro feel) very reminicent of The Common Linnets last year. The artists have great voices and the simple staging in the national final should work well to gian votes from both the Jury and the Public. Although not one of my personal favourites, I think it will score well 15

FYR Macedonia FYR Macedonia Autumn Leaves – Daniel Kajmakoski Score
FYR Macedonia is usually one of my favourite entries every year, however I really wish they hadn’t decided to enter the song in English. The original was one of my favourites of the year. In English, I feel it gets a little lost among the other entries. It’s very pleasant to listen to, and is still a good song, but will it get the votes? 11

Australia Australia Tonight Again – Guy Sebastian Score
A very good quality song from a great singer. It’s very contemporary and something you are likely to sing along to on the radio. In my opinion, this R&B style song could be difficult to stage though. A great song also needs a great performance to get the votes. Will Australia be able to pull off a great stage performance with this entry though? I think it is likely to do better with the Juries than the televoters, but given this wildcard entry is a first, who knows what will happen? 16

France France N’oubliez pas – Lisa Angell Score
Everything you expect from a French power ballad. A very sophisticated song and performance with the potential for fantastic staging. With the right position in the final, it could do very well – particularly with the Juries 16

Fans of Eurovision Song Contest cover songs