We may have our first batch of qualifiers, but there are still 10 spots left in the Eurovision 2021 Grand Final – so tonight our remaining 17 competitors will try to wow the juries and increase their chances of making it to Saturday’s show!

JoinUs as we blog all the action from the Jury Show of the Second Semi Final. Will the hot favourites rise to the occasion? Will there be some surprises along the way? We sure hope so! Remember, regardless of how well they do tonight, all our acts will also need to impress on Thursday’s live show for the televote too!

You know the drill, hit refresh to find out our latest thoughts and comments!

LIVE BLOG STARTS HERE

We know you love Eurovision, but you’re miles too early – almost 7 hours!! Come back at 20:00 BST / 21:00 CET and catch all the action then!

There’s about 40 minutes left till show time! So don’t go too far! Remember, tonight is just as important as tomorrow for our contestants!

Goodness me, you must all be excited – we’ve had hundreds of hits already and nothing has happened yet!! 😀

Here we go!!

Break dancing and some haunting vocals to kick off the Second Semi Final tonight… before building into thumping and more modern sounds – that’s quite an attention grabber!

Hearing that audience never gets old ❤

You cannot vote for your own country… well, you can’t vote from the country you’re calling from… nuance…

Here we go!

01 – San Marino – Senhit ft. Flo Rida – Adrenalina

A bright pink house filled with wigs… who could possibly live here? It’s Senhit of course, and she’s ditched the iconostasis for something equally understated… her dancers have also changed costume, and somehow look more terrifying than before… but what a BELTER of an opening act! She’s amazing, and Flo Rida seems to be enjoying it too! The audience have gone wild for them both! If that doesn’t qualify, I’ll… I don’t know what, but I’ll do something!

02 – Estonia – Uku Suviste – The Lucky One

A red house for Uku with racing cars and clown costumes… not a horror story waiting to happen at all… for the first time in two weeks, Uku has come to life on stage and looks like he’s enjoying himself! I still haven’t entirely discounted this from qualifying, the vocals are strong, the staging is solid. Bravo Uku! So glad to see so many of you in the house – so are we!!

03 – Czech Republic – Benny Cristo – Omaga

A cream house for Benny, filled with martial arts medals. As I said ALL ALONG, put Benny in front of a live audience and watch for fireworks! Benny is finally showing us the cheeky chappy we’ve been missing in rehearsals. Vocally there are moments where it sounds like he’s free styling a little too much, but he’s having fun and it shows!

Nicky plugs the Eurovision app – loving the dress!

04 – Greece – Stefania – Last Dance

A blue house with white accessories… a subtle tribute to the Greek flag! I mean, wow… what can I say? Stefania oozes confidence, her vocals are damn impressive and this performance is sure to be a favourite with the voting public! Listen to that audience roar!! Stefania, you might have just shot yourself to the Top of this Semi Final!

05 – Austria – Vincent Bueno – Amen

Another blue house, but filled with hats this time. With every run through of this song, Vincent has given us raw emotion without being cynical with it, and tonight is no different. I suspect this could win the Jury Vote tonight, and I’d be happy if it did. We’re only 5 songs in, but they’ve all been great so far!

06 – Poland – Rafał – The Ride

An orange house with a pilot’s feel to it. There’s still a lot going on here and it doesn’t quite cover the fact that it’s all to carry the vocals. “I will make it through somehow…” those are quite the words to use, Rafał! What should be the vocal flourishes that could impress the juries are cut short and he seems to be struggling. Sorry Poland, I fear for your spot in the final after that.

Have you shared your #EurovisionChallenge yet?

Please be upstanding for Husavik! ❤

On with the music!

07 – Moldova – Natalia Gordienko – Sugar

A teal house, filled with candies… surely now would have been the time to have the candy house from Hansel and Gretel? A rather raspy beginning there for Natalia, but she soon finds her groove for the chorus – literally and figuratively! I wonder if she’s trying to sound seductive and ends up breathless instead? If that’s the case, tonight wasn’t the time to test that theory! It’s a real bop and the audience are going wild… and I suspect if it qualifies, it’ll be thanks to a huge helping of televote points…

08 – Iceland – Daði og Gagnamagnið – 10 Years

Duck eggshell green and toys for Iceland, who of course can’t be there in the arena tonight due to a positive COVID test result. Get well soon guys! This is why it’s always a good idea to give it your best shot in rehearsals… you never know what could happen! Aside from a few empty arena shots, you’d never know they weren’t there thanks the reaction of the crowd! These guys always brought the energy to rehearsals and it’s paying off tonight by the bucket – I think the audience maybe loves them even more now!

09 – Serbia – Hurricane – Loco Loco

Flamingo pink for our girl group from Serbia! Hurricane attack this song with their usual ferocity and hair flinging and the audience love it! Vocally it’s a solid run through too. I’m still on the fence about this qualifying, but they’re doing their best and it shows! They’d be the only former Yugoslav country present Saturday if they get there!

10 – Georgia – Tornike Kipiani – You

Orange house with plenty of guitars for Tornike to choose from. A very intense and personal performance from Georgia tonight. If the juries are looking for strong and accomplished vocals, they need look no further. If they’re looking for a commercial hit, then they may tune out. I love how Tornike has thrown a bit of a rock edge into his vocals tonight too! The audience are happy too! Well done Georgia!

11 – Albania – Anxhela Peristeri – Karma

Brown… grey? Maybe truffle? Dinner at Anxhela’s! And what is Albania serving tonight? Well, for a half a second I thought she was holding back vocally, but then I realise that’s to give those big notes even more power – so a smart move! Anxhela commands that stage with such power by herself and she’s one of these artists who hasn’t given a single poor run through of her song. I suspect Albania’s spot in the final is safe after that!

12 – Portugal – The Black Mamba – Love Is On My Side

Lavender and a typewriter is for Portugal. This quiet little ditty went under a lot of peoples’ radars at first (mine included!) but after tonight’s gorgeous and vocally perfect run-through, I suspect it won’t stay under the radar much longer! I can see the juries supporting this in a big way… I could see it coming in the Top 5 of the jury vote very easily, that was beautiful ❤

A little break to chat to Helena Paparizou and ask if she’s wearing underwear… umm… O… K… Helena was the first person I saw lifting the Eurovision trophy!

13 – Bulgaria – Victoria – Growing Up Is Getting Old

It’s a mint house from Bulgaria filled with plenty of paraphernalia for pets – Victoria clearly likes animals! Tonight Victoria’s vocals are crystal clear and the mood of this song sums up the hurt and uncertainty of 2020 perfectly. I’ve got goose bumps… that was sublime and I think the juries will have her in the Top 3 no question after that performance!

14 – Finland – Blind Channel – Dark Side

Purple and beer pong for Finland – awesome combination! There’s a lot of discussion going around as to whether the juries will respond to rock music, but I’m guessing there’s going to be at least one rocker per jury to make sure Finland gets at least a smattering of points. Even if you don’t usually like rock music, it’s impossible not to be blown away by the energy and showmanship of these guys! And the audience certainly agree!

15 – Latvia – Samanta Tīna – The Moon Is Rising

Royal blue in the boudoir for Latvia. Samanta gives her usual confident performance, thought tonight there were parts where she sounded off-key. I have to give her credit though, she’s swaggering on even if she is having vocal difficulties. I’m not sure how much the juries will appreciate Samanta’s unique vocal stylings… guess we’ll have to wait till tomorrow night to find out!

Two countries left – time flies when you’ve having fun!

16 – Switzerland – Gjon’s Tears – Tout L’Univers

Very blue and arty for Switzerland’s house! As Gjon hits those high notes, the audience go nuts for him! Clearly a talented singer, it feels like Gjon is playing tonight’s rendition of Tout L’Univers with exceptional beauty and he knows it. Winner for this Semi Final? Quite possibly. Winner for Eurovision 2021…. maybe! The audience are definitely on his side!

17 – Denmark – Fyr of Flamme – Øve Os På Hinanden

A blue bike garage for our last contestants tonight, Jesper and Laurits from Denmark! We’re 40 seconds in before I notice my foot hasn’t stopped tapping this whole time! It’s colourful, fun and very polished and the televote are sure to love the 80s energy. I’m wondering what juries are going to make of it? I don’t think they’ll hate it, especially as that 80s sound is very in at the moment… but will they really really love it? In about 25 hours time, I guess we’ll know for sure!

So they’ve done all they can – it’s now over to the juries! Europe (juries!), start voting now!

If I were on a jury tonight, I think Austria, Switzerland, Portugal and Bulgaria all gave exceptional and incredible vocal performances. Greece, San Marino and Finland also did stellar jobs and I also expect Albania and Iceland to do well. Estonia and Georgia could surprise everyone with a high jury score too. As things stand, I feel like Poland, Moldova and Latvia may struggle to impress the most, so will have to rely on the televote to help them into Saturday’s final. What do you all think out there in the Eurovision fandom?

So everyone! We made it through tonight with no hiccups and no need to re-record anything! Success!

As there will only be recaps, an interval act and a fake announcement of 10 fake qualifiers now, I’m going to end the blog here. Don’t want to spoil the interval acts for you, you’ll be seeing them tomorrow!

Our artists have done all they can and are most likely heading back to their hotels now to sleep. For 10 of them, tomorrow promises perhaps one of the most exciting moments of their carers and lives – but which 10 will it be?

And as always, thank you so much for your continued support. Everyone here at Eurovision Ireland really appreciates it!

Enjoy the Second Semi Final tomorrow night!

Author: James Scanlan
Source: EBU