A total of 389 songs have been received for the 2024 edition of Vidbir.
The Ukrainian broadcaster has revealed that it has received 389 songs from 288 artists for Vidbir 2024, during the submissions window that was open from August 30th to October 22nd. The long list of participants will be revealed on November 9th.
The long list of participants is expected to include up to 20 acts. These acts will need to go through an audition. On November 20th, these 20 acts will be whittled down to 10, who will go on to take part in the live national final. There will also be an online vote in which Ukrainians can vote for one of the long listed acts (who hadn’t already made the final) to advance to the live final.
Dmytro Shurov, music producer for Vidbir 2024, has mentioned there is a lot of diversity in the songs that have been submitted, and there are some hits alongside something new that could surprise everyone.
“Ukrainians, thank you for each of the 389 applications! I can already say that they feature at least four 100% hits, ten potential hits, several exciting comebacks, as well as something new that, I hope, will surprise us and the whole world. I am grateful to all musicians, producers, arrangers and authors for their efforts and heart. I know how difficult it is psychologically to be creative now, but I am proud that artists do not give up on their work but develop and move forward. Vidbir, as always, will breathe new Ukrainian music and discover those walking on the edge of modern pop culture and desperately looking for self-expression in this turbulent world.”
During the submissions window, Ukrainian broadcaster Suspline has revealed that they received 337 songs, with more than 15% of artists submitting more than one song. The predominent language of these submissions is Ukrainian, with a rate of 57.5%. After Ukrainian comes English, which accounts for 33% of the submissions, followed by 9% that are bilingual and 0.5% in other languages.
Vidbir 2024 is expected to take place in February in the format of a live televised show. As in previous years, the winner will be decided by a mix of jury vote and televote. The jury members for the national final will be decided by Ukrainians via an online vote, something which they have previously done for their Eurovision and Junior Eurovision national final jury members.
Ukraine are one of the most successful countries in Eurovision, having been present in every grand final since their debut in 2003. They also hold the record for being the only country in Eurovision to have a 100% qualification record.
Ukraine has won Eurovision three times – in 2004, 2016 and 2022. Due to the ongoing situation in the country, it was determined that the 2023 contest could not be safely held in Ukraine, so hosting duties went to runners-up, the United Kingdom, who brought the contest to Liverpool for the first time.
This year, Ukraine was represented by the duo TVORCHI, who sang their song “Heart of Steel”. They were chosen to represent their country at Eurovision 2023 via a live televised national final which was held in a Metro station, due to the ongoing situation in the country. In Liverpool, they achieved an 11th top 10 placing for Ukraine as they finished in 6th place with 243 points.
Which artists would you like to see representing Ukraine at Eurovision 2023? What genre of music would you like to see Ukraine sending to Eurovision? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!
Photo credit: Chloe Hashemi / EBU