Eurovision 2020: Hosts Revealed for Rotterdam

/ Sekhmet Morgan

Eurovision 2020 – The host broadcaster for Rotterdam, AVROTROS, has today revealed the hosts for next year’s Eurovision Song Contest. Chantal Janzen, Edsilia Rombley and Jan Smit were chosen to host the 3 events (two semi-finals and the grand final).Sietse Bakker, Executive producer, wanted three people experienced on stage and who started their careers as singers. The most famous one to esc fans is obviously two-time participant (4th in 1998, not qualified in 2007) and two-time spokesperson Edislia Rombley. After a small musical career, Chantal Janzen moved to TV acting and presenting, and was host for commercial channel RTL of Holland’s Got Talent and The Voice of Holland. She won 5 times the Televizier-Ster award for best TV presenter! Jan was chosen for his “international” career, with fame in Germany and most German-speaking countries (Belgium, Austria, Switzerland). He’s also a housename for Eurovision in the Netherlands, having been a commentator and in the committee to chose the artists since AVROTROS took over.

What do you think of this choice? What do you expect the hosting to be like in Rotterdam?

94 thoughts on “Eurovision 2020: Hosts Revealed for Rotterdam”

  4. I’m halfway through FiK 2020 songs and Albërie Hadërgjonaj – “Ku ta gjej dikë ta dua” is my fave by far!
    AWESOME!
    But majority of entries are really good! :)

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  6. Gooosh Elvana Gajta already has 170 000 views on yt! :O It will certainly be the most viewed clip on RTSH channel in a few days. I see drama & drama coming if she doesn’t win FiK!
    But I think she will.. :(
    Albania will send cheap pop too.. Pity, fiK 2020 offers much better options.. :(
    I hope jury will stop her, but WiWi guys are there, I see them voting her like crazy.. :'(

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  9. My thoughts on the Albanian songs:

    •Albërie Hadërgjonaj – “Ku ta gjej dikë ta dua” – I really like this one. Very raw and emotional. I love the folksiness at the end too. This will be nice live.
    •Arilena Ara – “Shaj” – Eh, I’m a little disappointed. It’s a nice power ballad and I think this would sound good on the Eurovision stage but I don’t find it revolutionary or anything. Was expecting something bigger.
    •Aldo Bardhi – “Melodi” – Cheap attempt at a Bruno Mars/Justin Timberlake song.
    •Bojken Lako – “Malaseen” – I don’t think I’ve ever remotely liked a Bojken Lako song and this is no different.
    •Devis Xherahu – “Bisedoj me serenatën” – Bored me to death.
    •Eli Fara & Stresi – “Bohem” – Cute and traditional. I enjoyed it.
    •Era Rusi – “Eja Merre” – I liked this one a lot. It gave me Avril Lavigne vibes, but then with a more traditional sound in the chorus.
    •Elvana Gjata – “Me tana” – Okay yeah she’s gonna win lol. I can see this making a big impression in Rotterdam. It’s a fun ethno-dance song and if people aren’t into it they’re allowed to be, but she isn’t trying to make the most beautiful piece of art ever she’s just trying to make people dance and have fun and I think there isn’t anything wrong with that.
    •Gena – “Shqiponja e lirë” – This kinda reminds me of like an Albanian version of Rasmussen from 2018. More ethno-dance and very fun.
    •Kamela Islamaj – “Më ngjyros” – A bit jazzy and that’s just not really my thing.
    •Kanita – “Ankth” – This is more like what I expected Arilena would enter with. I might like this even more than Elvana in all honesty. Exactly what I look for in an intense female ballad.
    •Kastro Zizo – “Asaj” – Don’t like his voice at all. The song reminds me A LOT of BiH 2011, which was my 2011 winner, but Kastro’s voice ruins it for me.
    •Nadia & Genc Tukiçi – “Ju flet Tirana” – This sounds like it’s from a musical. It’s very pretty but not something I think should be in Eurovision or something I’d ever listen to for fun.
    •Olta Boka – “Botë për dy” – Typical 30-something year old woman FiK power ballad. There isn’t anything to really dislike about it but I don’t love it. Not totally sold on her voice either.
    •Renis Gjoka – “Loja” – First rock song. I like it but it’s a bit repetitive. Don’t want it to win but it’s fun.
    •Robert Berisha – “Ajo nuk është unë” – This is extremely Albanian. It started out interesting and spiritual but I’m not into the chorus at all.
    •Tiri Gjoci – “Me gotën bosh” – A nice male ballad which is what I expected from him. Inoffensive but nothing too gripping for me.
    •Valon Shehu – “Kutia e Pandorës” – Eugent Bushpepa wrote this one. I think it’s the superior rock entry of the two in FiK this year, but I’m not totally sold on it. FiK doesn’t focus on staging at all but I could imagine a really cool stage show for this one.
    •Sara Bajraktari – “Ajër” – Starts out as a folksy ballad and I thought it’d turn more dramatic than it actually did. I still liked it but I wish it had a more intense chorus than it does.
    •Wendi Mancaku – “Ende” – A very nice pop ballad. I don’t think it’ll win or anything but I enjoyed it.

    1. Kanita – “Ankth”
    2. Elvana Gjata – “Me tana”
    3. Albërie Hadërgjonaj – “Ku ta gjej dikë ta dua”
    4. Arilena Ara – “Shaj”
    5. Era Rusi – “Eja Merre”
    6. Gena – “Shqiponja e lirë”
    7. Wendi Mancaku – “Ende”
    8. Tiri Gjoci – “Me gotën bosh”
    9. Sara Bajraktari – “Ajër”
    10. Valon Shehu – “Kutia e Pandorës”
    11. Renis Gjoka – “Loja”
    12. Eli Fara & Stresi – “Bohem”
    13. Kastro Zizo – “Asaj”
    14-20. Everything else

    Good job Albania, I like a lot of these songs!!!!

    Reply

  10. Hungarian government submits bill to boost grip over theaters :

    https://www.euronews.com/2019/12/09/hungary-government-submits-bill-to-boost-grip-over-theatres

    From the article :

    “According to the draft law published on parliament’s website, which the government has softened compared to an original version leaked on Friday, a new National Cultural Council will be responsible for the “unified strategic direction of various segments of culture”.

    The law says cultural organisations should “actively defend the interests of the nation’s wellbeing and development”.”

    Personal comment : I think we start getting an insight behind the general strategy that included the esc withdrawal. It is so scary to watch a country slowly through the years develop into such a dark, authoritarian entity. The language used that I quoted above is chilling.

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  11. Borrowing list from Lina for the FiK opinions :)

    •Albërie Hadërgjonaj – “Ku ta gjej dikë ta dua” – There is an old soul quality to this. I enjoy the bagpipe kick-in, but her voice doesn’t quite fit in parts. Not irredeemable but falls short
    •Arilena Ara – “Shaj” – Could have been much more. Pleasant and she sounds great, but it is not 100% there.
    •Aldo Bardhi – “Melodi” – Cheap. Probably would be better regarded five years ago or so, but it’s going to sink further, I feel.
    •Bojken Lako – “Malaseen” – So instead of dated, he tried the weird. It tries to go somewhere, but then it holds itself back. It’s a pass.
    •Devis Xherahu – “Bisedoj me serenatën” – Bored me to death. (100% agree with Lina. It’s THAT FiK song)
    •Eli Fara & Stresi – “Bohem” – Very… weird. It’s dated, but adding a Mahmood/trap rap voice. It’s very unusual.
    •Era Rusi – “Eja Merre” – Really good! But it needs more direction, at times it feels chaotic. The ethnic pop, arabic feel I am on board for, going to keep track of this one.
    •Elvana Gjata – “Me tana” – She sounds great and the song is full of potential. The eastern guitar hook is excellent. But… on times it feels empty. The revamp can perfectly make this into greatness (and I feel it could survive an English text, but given Albania’s success in Albanian, doubt they’ll go that route soon enough.)
    •Gena – “Shqiponja e lirë” – YES. I am 100% on board for this big male badarse pop. May be too patriotic, but it screams FIFA, and very fun.
    •Kamela Islamaj – “Më ngjyros” – Sennek but without fanfare. Knowing Albania, this will be podium. Decent chorus, really boring verses
    •Kanita – “Ankth” – I swore she was 16 or so. She sounds as if she was young and, to be honest, kind of green. It’s very well-orchestrated, but I don’t really crave for it.
    •Kastro Zizo – “Asaj” – lol no
    •Nadia & Genc Tukiçi – “Ju flet Tirana” – Sweet bordering on corny, if not corny at all. Genc is wrestling with her daughter vocally instead of signing a duet. Not for me.
    •Olta Boka – “Botë për dy” – She started promising and has great production, but it’s forgettable.
    •Renis Gjoka – “Loja” – Really like the organ and the vibe, but it falls too soft for my tastes. Not bad at all, though.
    •Robert Berisha – “Ajo nuk është unë” – Albanian reggaeton? LOL. It is sort of confused as it what it wants to be, it sounds both old fashioned and urban, but it comes across as half-baked.
    •Tiri Gjoci – “Me gotën bosh” – He looked the TV on May, saw Duncan winning and said “hey I can do that”. Boring.
    •Valon Shehu – “Kutia e Pandorës” – It is very promising, but I feel it dips on the chorus a bit too much and loses steam. I really want to like this and hope live has more power. If it does, I might like it more than Mall
    •Sara Bajraktari – “Ajër” – Tries to be Balkan inspired, but it’s very uninspired and vocally plain.
    •Wendi Mancaku – “Ende” – Competent modern pop ballad, and feels the most “western” of all entries. Not bad, but a bit forgettable.

    Nothing was really immediately impacting, but there are a lot of sleepers, and I feel that Albania could have something to work here and do well

    Reply

  13. Elvana Gjata has 500 000 views on yt now and 14 000 likes..

    ESC fans from different countries also post videos with their top of FiK 2020 and she is almost always on the top.. :(

    Reply

  14. Eli Fara & Stresi – “Bohem” has grown on me so much! <3

    This reminds me a bit of Greek music too, it is from Korca town, close to Greece…. :)

    FiK 2020 is mesmerizing!

    Down with Elvana Gjata!!!

    Reply

  15. 🇦🇱
    My favorites are Arilena, Elvana, Wendi, Kanita, Kamela, Tiri, and Kastro Zizo😊Among the favorites, Era’s song is very Conan Osiris inspired and Sara’s song is very much Bosnian Lejla so I had to omit them.

    Reply

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