A piece of culture, a piece of politics #6

All about the Eurovision

May 15, 2025

I think the reason I don’t like Eurovision songs that much is because they seem somewhat synthetic to my ears. They rarely reflect an emotional conflict, journey, or triumph that the artist was going through; they are made within a formula, specifically to please the audience. And yet, some songs, over the years, has proven to have some significant impact on the music world and beyond.

A piece of culture: Why Every Eurovision Song Sounds the Same (Even When They Don’t)

In a recent article published by the BBC1, music experts explain the formula for making a winning Eurovision song: the optimal beats per minute, the right keys, the correct setting of the stage, and some key words that help the song climb the favor ladder.

Add to that the restrictions imposed-up to 3 minutes, no use of lip-sync, and having an original song being published for the first time. This makes room for several repeating recognizable formulas and types of genres-it’s either a dramatic solo ballad or a group making fun of themselves on stage with outrageous outfits.

And yet, creativity and impact under these strict rules is not impossible.

In 1998, Israel won Eurovision contest with the first transgender performer ever, Dana International, and the song “Diva,” which had an upbeat rhythm and symbolized an awakening of a generation, coming out of the closet, and bringing LGBTQ+ to the mainstream.

Unfortunately, though Israel won, this acceptance was only instrumental, as laws in Israel, up to this date, still prohibit LGBTQ+ marriage and discriminate against any one-gender union and gender diversity23.

A clear line can be drawn from ABBA’s disco in Waterloo, through Dana Internationals’ dramatic Diva in 1998, and to Loreen’s winning anthem Tattoo from 2023. If I would to play for you today Diva, and Tattoo, would you recognize the Israeli and Swedish cultural origins? A lot of the originallity, diversity, and “ethnic”, authentic voices, that we would be expecting in an international song contest, are lost, or at least, masked under electronic beats trying to appeal the masses.

On the one hand, This trend reflects how electronic music cultivates fusion of technology and culture. Current social-media, networked, connected generation construct their local-global identity through electronic beats4. The traditional sounds either make room to the technology mediated culture,or at best, blend into them as background echos of local communities.

On the other hand, this is exactly what Adorno’s critique about culture industry5, and production of mass entertainment6 looks like. The Eurovision is exactly that - standardize tastes and eliminate cultural diversity.

Snap by Rosa Linn is a hybrid between electronic and coustic, that does not have distinct folklor elements connected to its origins. This song represented Armenia in 2022 Eurovision, and got to the 20th place. Few month later it became viral on TikTok and holding today more than one billion(!) streams on spotify.

A piece of politics: Why Eurovision Can’t Escape Politics — And Why That Matters

The most unhinged restriction on the Eurovision contest is the no-politics restriction. It is written pretty clear tht the Eurovision is a non political event. code of conduct put in details that the participants shall refrain from…

political promotion or related conduct, including actions, statements, or symbols during - or in relation to - the event”7

This could not be further from reality. Upon reflection, it actually makes perfect sense. How can a contest in which cheering is based on flags not be political in nature?

In her thesis, Emma Fritze (2022)8 examines Eurovision as a symbolic setup of imagined communities, relying on Benedict Anderson’s (2006) concept. In the postmodern, social media-oriented world we live in, digitally shared experiences, symbols, ideas, and performances are the glue that binds audiences together.

Armenia made a political statement in 2016 when, during a qualifying event, the lead singer Iveta Mukuchyan waved the Nagorno-Karabakh flag9. This act was highly controversial because Nagorno-Karabakh is a disputed territory internationally recognized as part of Azerbaijan but controlled by ethnic Armenians. The display was seen as a political protest, violating Eurovision’s rules against political demonstrations.

Another example is when Russia was banned from Eurovision in 2022 following its invasion of Ukraine in February of that year.

In response, Ukrainian performers made a powerful political statement during the contest, despite Eurovision’s strict rules prohibiting political messaging. At the end of their performance, the lead singer of Ukraine’s Kalush Orchestra pleaded, “I ask all of you, please help Ukraine, Mariupol. Help Azovstal, right now!”

This was a direct appeal to the international community to support Ukraine’s resistance. The Ukrainian delegation also defied the ban on political messaging by wearing T-shirts calling for the release of Azovstal defenders, which resulted in a financial fine from the European Broadcasting Union (EBU)10.

But Israel’s case is different. The political displays in Eurovision over the past two years differ significantly. While Israel is trying to send, what can be seen as, more or less, “subtle” message in its songs, expressing the grief from the October 7 massacre11, the protest against Israel’s participation is much stronger - and for good reason.

Protests against Israel vary in scope and display but are widespread across both the audience and performers, as well as in media coverage12.

Audiences have been protesting since last year, which led to this year’s strict rules of conduct that are being rigorously enforced in Basel.

Over 70 performers have signed a petition to ban Israel from participating.13

What I think, right now, is the most effective protest - is the silent protest- where media simply ignores Israel’s participation and does not give it any coverage on any platforms. Social media influencers refrain from referencing Israel, either its current song or its glorious history of performances over the years.

Here’s another point to think about:

The majority of people in Israel today appear to support vindictive violent actions, which should be condemned in every possible way.

Israeli media often constructs a false narrative by avoiding coverage of the destruction in Gaza and portraying Palestinians as demonic aggressors, rather than showing how the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) are responsible for the continuous killing of innocent lives, including women and children.

Israel has lost its moral compass, and voices calling for an immediate ceasefire are marginalized and silenced by a corrupt authoritarian regime led by figures like Itamar Ben-Gvir.

In this context, external pressure is unquestionably a crucial and necessary force for change. I can only hope these protests will bear fruit.

What do you think?

Bidish writes

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