After speculation as to whether or not they would return to Junior Eurovision, it has now been confirmed that Azerbaijan will definetley be returning to the contest this year. The news was confirmed in a YouTube video from the Azeri broadcasters official channel.
Along with confirmation of participation, it has also been confirmed that Azerbaijan will be represented by Sona Azizova, who was internally selected by the broadcaster İTV. It is not yet known how or when her song will be chosen. Sona finished in second place in this years edition of The Voice Kids in Azerbaijan.
Azerbaijan in Junior Eurovision:
Azerbaijan have only participated in Junior Eurovision on three occassions. They made their debut in 2012, where Suada and Omar finished in 11th place with their song “Girls and Boys”. Rustam Karimov came back for Azerbaijan a year later, achieving the country’s best result to date – 7th place. Azerbaijan then withdrew from the contest for unknown reasons, and did not return until 2018, when Fidan Huseynova sang “I Wanna Be Like You” in Minsk, Belarus, finishing in 16th place.
Junior Eurovision 2021:
With Azerbaian confirming their participation for this years contest in Paris, this now brings the total number of participating countries to 14. Albania and Kazakhstan have yet to make any announcements regarding this years contest, whilst Belgium, Estonia, Israel, Italy, Lithuania, Slovakia, United Kingdom and Wales have all said no to the 2021 contest.
Are you happy to see Azerbaijan back in Junior Eurovision? What kind of song would you like to see Sona at this years contest? Let us know in the comments below!
