#MALTA – LIVE BLOG of #MESC2025 from 21:00 CET

By jjs1990 on February 8, 2025 • ( Leave a comment )

Il-lejla t-tajba Ewropa u l-għodwa t-tajba l-Awstralja! Rounding off what is arguably the first Super Saturday of the 2025 season, we’re off to Malta to find out who will represent the Mediterranean’s happiest rock at this year’s Eurovision Song Contest in Basel, Switzerland – it’s time for the Malta Eurovision Song Contest 2025!!

Sit back and relax, and let Eurovision Ireland’s own James Scanlan entertain and inform you. As always, feel free to tell me what you think and give your opinions about tonight’s Final and who your favourites are! I might even shout out to you in the blog!

Tonight’s show is coming to us live from the Malta Fairs and Conventions Centre in Ta’ Qali, near the very centre of the island and will be hosted by Valentina Rossi, Davide Tucci and Pauline Agius. Over the course of two semi finals earlier this week, 24 hopefuls have been streamlined to 16 finalists all hoping to be that lucky winner who will fly the Maltese flag in Switzerland this May. In running order, they are:

Miriana Conte – “Kant”
Victoria – “Juno”
Dario Bezzina ft. Żeppi l-Muni – “Għażliet”
JVF – “Festa (No Time for Siesta)”
The Alchemists – “Rubble & Stone”
Krista Šujak – “Unheard”
Raquela – “Silenced”
Kantera – “LalaRataTakeke LalaRataKabum”
Nathan – “Concrete”
Justine Shorfid – “Still I Rise”
Adria Twins – “Qalb ma’ Qalb”
Martina Borg – “Yo Listen”
Mark Anthony Bartolo – “Hideaway”
Kurt Calleja – “Aziz/a”
Kristy Spiteri – “Heaven Sent”
Stefan Galea – “Lablab (Talk Talk)”

Tonight’s result will be decided by a mixture of jury and televote, with whoever receives the highest combined score being selected as Malta’s entrant for the Eurovision Song Contest 2025!

If you want to watch along at home (because of course you do!) you can watch HERE ON TVM ONLINE from 21:00CET / 20:00 GMT. The show is scheduled to finish at 00:00 CET/ 23:00 GMT, but let’s be real… we all know live TV rarely runs to schedule and we could well be here till Thursday!

Last year in Malmö, Malta had the honour of opening Semi Final 2, followed by the unenviable distinction of landing bottom of the pile with 13 points… their highest score being a 5 from Armenia. Can one of these 16 turn it around and bring Malta back to a Eurovision final for the first time since 2021? Let’s find out!

You know the drill: Just refresh this page to get the comments, points of view and all that Eurovision Ireland goodness you know and love!

LIVE BLOG STARTS HERE!!

Inti kmieni ħafna! Erġa lura aktar tard! You’re really early! Come back later! We know you kant wait! ;-)

Just over 15 minutes to go till show time! Have you got your Twistees and your Kinnie ready? Send some this way!!

And we’re live in Malta!

Literally 4 seconds in and we get our first advert for Hamilton Cruises… I’ve never watched a Maltese final before, but even I know the Hamilton Travel adverts are a cornerstone of Maltese Eurovision events!

OK, so I think that bit with the presenters was “join us after the break” type of deal…

Bilingualism fascinates me, hearing alternating TV adverts in Maltese and English (and sometimes in the same advert!) is so cool!

Right, NOW we’re live in Malta!! Hearing Te Deum always makes me smile <3

Dancers in gold wheel around the stage to various Maltese Eurovision classics as our 16 finalists are introduced. It’s a bit like the Eurovision flag parade that opens the contest, but everyone is Maltese!

Listen to that reaction to Mariana Conte… sounds like the audience have their favourite already!

Our hosts tonight, Valentina Rossi, Davide Tucci and Pauline Agius… no idea who those two earlier were then… I’ll go out on a limb and say Davide is the one in the middle…

You can always tell how much of a Eurovision fan someone is by how much they’re able to sing along after once you sing “Voooolaaaaaarrreeeee…” – cool to hear an entire arena get into it!

A quick introduction to our jurors for tonight, there are quite a few of them! They will provide half of tonight’s result.

So it’s finally time to get on to the songs – and for those of you waiting for *THAT* song, you’re in luck… it’s up first! ;-)

Miriana Conte – “Kant”

Everyone’s favourite 4-Letter tirade at Eurovision! It’s the big favourite tonight is opening the show and I suspect that’s very deliberate – let’s face it, the reason this song has gained notoriety could be a huge headache for censors all over Europe – but my goodness, it’s a bop! Miriana is confident, almost over confident, but owns the stage and belts out the song with aplomb. I think this will still be one to watch, even if they’ve tried to hide it in the running order by sticking it on first! The space hoppers are mental but I love it!!

Victoria – “Juno”

Wearing a metallic bodice that would be a nightmare to get through airport security, Victoria delivers a very competent and vocally assured version of Juno – presumably named for the Roman goddess. It’s standard Eurovision pop fodder, but Victoria’s strong vocals do elevate it and there are some nice flourishes both with her performance and musical rifts. My big fear for this one is that people at home are still trying to revive granny after hearing Miriana yell that word on their televisions… but juries are likely to reward her!

Dario Bezzina ft. Żeppi l-Muni – “Għażliet”

Our first song (fully) in Maltese tonight, it’s always nice to hear a country sing in its native tongue. This has a real Middle-Eastern flourish to it – after all, Maltese bears more than a passing resemblance to Arabic (they’re related after all!) but also the music and motifs of sand blowing across the stage. I like this a lot, it’s a nice fusion of very traditional sounds with a more modern beat. It has the potential to do well at Eurovision, and from the sounds of it the arena audience really liked it too!

JVF – “Festa (No Time for Siesta)”

This is a curious little number… it’s got very strong JESC vibes for me (didn’t the Netherlands even enter a song in JESC called La Festa?) which should make it a bit cloying, especially being sung by a group with that feel like a high school Glee club reunion… this being said, I actually quite enjoy it! It’s upbeat, it’s fun and easy to singalong to, which is always a plus at Eurovision! While it has the hallmarks of a summer radio hit, I feel like sending this to a competition environment in Basel might fall flat. But I love their energy and the fact it’s in both English and Maltese!

Time for an ad break – just as well, my fingers ache from trying to keep up! And there’s another Hamilton Travel advert – no doubt the second of many!!! ;-)

And we’re back in Ta’Qali – I guess that means we have the next batch of songs incoming?

“Hello to all the beautiful Eurovision fans,” – oh myyy… *blush*

A quick check in with the housemates in the Big Brother House… I didn’t realise networks still made this show!

And on with the show!

The Alchemists – “Rubble & Stone”

Maybe it’s me, but this sounds like a carbon copy of a song that Malta already sent to Eurovision! Anyone remember “Coming Home” from 2014? I can’t unhear it! The drum beat, the guitar, the vocal quality… they even look a bit like the band!! The music pauses in the same places… I can’t be the only person to think this!! It’s in no way a bad song, I’m just flawed by how similar it is to “Coming Home”!! I mean, at least that song got to a final…

Krista Šujak – “Unheard”

Šujak doesn’t strike me as a typically Maltese name – would have said Slovak or maybe Croatian! Anyway, she sings well, has a strong voice and sounds pleasant. The song itself feels like petulant teen indie “why does no one understand me” but with more sultry rifts – puts me in mind of early 2000s indie-pop. What I think this needs is more connection throughout with the camera – there’s a lot of wandering out which I get is the mood of the song, but voters need to see you! She does connect more towards the end, but I fear that’ll come to late for a voting audience. Not a bad offering though, would need work before going to Basel though.

Raquela – “Silenced”

Well now… if the song before didn’t connect enough with the camera, Raquela shows us how it is done! (Though of course I captured the picture the moment she isn’t looking…) Striking visuals combined with her strong voice and direct performance to the camera combine for a very intimate and quite tempestuously dark number. She looks like she’s having some issues with her earpiece towards the end, but doesn’t skip a note – that’s how you do it! A tad repetitive lyrically, but what a show!

Kantera – “LalaRataTakeke LalaRataKabum”

Oh wow, this is GENIUS!! Like Malta’s answer to Go_A, this combines traditional sounds with a driving modern beat. What’s more, it’s just so much fun! Feels a bit like a sea shanty, chanting, lots of instrument rifts and vocalising… and who doesn’t love shouting “HEY!” – oh Malta, you could do a lot worse than sending that to Basel! I know the fans want Kant… but Kantera could do very well at our beloved contest! Joyous, I loved it! HEY!

More adverts – you know what that means? HAMILTON CRUISES!!

YESSSS!!! Erika Vikman has triumphed at UMK and will sing for Finland!! 🇫🇮

Another result in, Ziferblat will sing for Ukraine with “Bird of Pray” 🇺🇦

And we’re back in Malta, where our hosts are signing “Together for Music”, this year’s slogan for Malta Eurovision Song Contest – signing is an incredibly important skill, I wish more people knew how to!

Nathan – “Concrete”

“I’m made of concrete, but I break easily,” crones Nathan… has anyone told him that’s generally not how concrete works? Perhaps you mean clay? Either way, don’t build anything out of him… Nathan gives a very heartfelt performance of a pop ballad with a few gospel hints which is nice. Starting off in that big wheel though, I’m immediately thinking of the Eurovision movie and waiting for it to come loose… it’s a nice song – but I think Eurovision would chew it up and spit it out. Nice doesn’t win Eurovision, it rarely qualifies either. But I enjoyed it and will look it up again after the show.

Justine Shorfid – “Still I Rise”

Justine has an amazingly soulful voice and the song is uplifting – but I’ve heard better run-throughs of this, it sounds like she’s holding back. Which feels like an odd time to do that, given tonight is the night she’ll be scored on. Staging wise, this also leaves a lot to be desired. Justine doesn’t connect well with the camera and her erratic movements mean she’s frequently out of shot (getting this picture took nearly 4/5 of the song!) meaning the audience are looking at a blank stage, the back of her head and very rarely her eyes… that’s such a shame, I know she can do better. Never mind Justine, you still sound phenomenal!

Adria Twins – “Qalb ma’ Qalb”

I see Miriana isn’t the only one serving… that was an unfortunate camera angle that was… I love the staging concept of this and I adore the fact it’s in Maltese – it was one of the songs I picked out during my first listen to snippets! Vocally, it feels like their singing in spite of each other, rather than as a cohesive duet, which makes it such a little screechy in places. Musically it’s beautiful and I’m noticing the audience are really behind all the Maltese language songs tonight – I hope you’re taking note TVM!!!

Martina Borg – “Yo Listen”

YEEESSSS!! Martina commands “yo listen” and that’s exactly what we’re going to do!! Her stage presence is fantastic and her voice is perfect for this R&B pop track, she owns that stage! Musically, it’s very 90s, but in a good retro way, not outdated. I think had Malta entered something like this in say 1995, they’d have won by a landslide. I’m not sure it’ll win by a landslide 30 years later, but it’s a solid contender nonetheless. I’m not sure it’ll win tonight, but I think this will be one to watch for being near the top! That was awesome Martina, thank you!

While we watch some more Maltese adverts, I can check the news and confirm Tautumeitas have won Supernova, so it’s “Bur Man Laimi” for Latvia!! 🇱🇻 I love this one too!!

HAMILTON CRUISES!!! Wonder if they’ll give me a freebie if I keep plugging them?

And we’re back in Ta’Qali – I love how my ear is tuning to Maltese more and more and I’m picking up a few words… my friend Ken in Malta will be proud!

Mark Anthony Bartolo – “Hideaway”

Sat among a field of white lilac (botanists out there, feel free to correct me!) Mark gives us quite a folky guitar pop song. His beaming smile and energy as he bounces around the stage are immediately endearing, which I think makes up for some of the notes that went a little astray here and there. Again, a perfectly pleasant song, but I fear in a stellar competition like Eurovision, this would struggle to stand out. There are such things are good songs that are not good competitive songs, and I feel we’ve seen a few in Malta tonight.

Kurt Calleja – “Aziz/a”

Kurt Calleja is a born showman and I’ve often said when Malta win, they need to consider letting him host. He’s been to Eurovision before and so knows how this works, which is why he’s performing what’s a bit of a clunker of a song and making the best of it. Sorry, it sounds like it was written by a rhyming dictionary and no song should ever have the word “anaesthesia” in it… also, why is he dressed like a flasher?! As I said, he’s a talented performer and so he’s making it look better than it is but yeah… sorry Kurt, this song does nothing for you. Feels a bit like lad’s night out karaoke.

Kristy Spiteri – “Heaven Sent”

From the moment the show started tonight, I feel like this is the song TVM would like to win… having Kristy walk onto stage to the song that nearly won Eurovision for Malta felt like a little nudge for the viewing public, as does its position in the running order. I can see why they’d want her to go, it’s an upbeat song and the the faux opera is memorable, but I’m not sure it adds much to the song… which is a amusing play on words that gets steadily less impactful as she warbles through. It’s not terrible by any stretch of the imagination, It’s just not not as strong as I suspect some parties think it is. If this goes to Basel, I don’t see it breaking out of a semi final easily.

Stefan Galea – “Lablab (Talk Talk)”

Stefan sings straight down the camera, which you how much I bang on about that being important! The issue is, it veers a little towards smarmy, rather than endearing. I think the screens in the dancers’ hands are a nice staging concept, but I feel like that’s doing all the heavy lifting for this song. Aside from the music having some nice traditional flourishes and a hint of techno, it feels all style and no substance. Visually a great end to tonight’s songs, but musically, lyrically and vocally… not so much…

So there we have it! One of those songs will represent Malta at the Eurovision Song Contest – but which one? Before I have to plug Hamilton Travel again, I’ll summarise my thoughts – brb!

As much as I think the fans think Miriana has this sown up, honestly I kant (lol) see this winning. I think its position in the running order will undermine it and I also see jurors largely steering away from it. Shame, as I think Kant and Ich Komme from Finland would have made a lovely post-watershed moment for the contest!! So who is going to take the win? I suspect jurors will go for Kristy Spiteri and the public with go for Miriani Konte – which I think depending on what levels of points they both get, could see someone like Kantera come straight up the middle. Dario Bezzina, Martina Borg, Raquela and JVF might also be ones to watch, but not sure I see them as winners, more rounding off the Top 5/6.

Curiously, the Maltese audience seem to love songs in Maltese, but traditionally juries in Malta have favoured English. Maybe something bilingual like Festa or Aziz/a could be a nice compromise… though I suspect the later would be a compromise that suits no one!

And we’re back at the Malta Eurovision Song Contest – just in time for the voting lines to open for the public to chose their favourites!

After a recap, we’re back to adverts telling me to go to Dubai… I better finish the blog first, otherwise Staggy will be cross…

HAMILTON TRAVEL!! sponsored by EurovisionIreland (not really!)

Time for another recap in Malta, guess that means the voting window will close soon – so if you’re in Malta, hurry up and show your favourites some love! <3

…3 …2 ….1 …ZERO! Malta, stop voting now! Your Eurovision fate is sealed – did you make good choices? ;-)

More adverts, guess the juries are still deliberating…

I haven’t been to Malta for 15 years… which sounds unreal! Time for a return trip, I think! I need more Twistees!!

Valletta is a gorgeous city too… perhaps a new chapter for Europe in a Day?

Oh I love live television… the whole country is watching, say something!! XD

And while we wait for a results to be announced, we have Ramires Sciberras performing – you may remember he represented Malta at the Junior Eurovision Song Contest back in November. A lot of people, me included, overlooked “Stilla ċkejkna” at the time, but it finished 5th!!

I do love Green Rooms at National Selections, they’re so different country by country. Some are a riot, others very reserved. Malta seems to be a mix, lots of flag waving and cheering, but a fair few faces that scream “Am I still here?”

As is often the case with many national selections, the interval act blows several of the actual contestants right out of the water! Fun fact: Maltese women can fan lights behind them, not unlike a peacock (not really)

Alexander Rybak dashing my hopes that this show is going to end in the next 8 minutes… also, how was this 16 years ago now?!

Alexander Rybak plugging his tour to Malta and championing all the people working backstage to make shows like this happen – hear, hear Alexander!

“And tonight, may the best song win!” – yes Alexander… any chance you can get off the stage so we can find out who it is?

Sarah Bonnici, winner of last year’s Maltese national selection singing a far catchier song with a motorbike on stage. Always curious how a lot for a lot of Eurovision singers, their contest song is one of the least interesting things in their repetoire!

Now she’s singing Angel, which is scientifically proven to be the best thing Malta have ever sent to Eurovision <3 🇲🇹

Now that tango infused arrangement of Loop was great! Someone once compared Loop to Austria’s We Will Rave claiming that if I liked one, I should like the other… I’ve never heard the similarities myself!

DON’T YOU DARE GO TO ADVERTS, WE’RE ALREADY 15 MINUTES OVERSCHEDULE!!! I mean…. here are some adverts…

Malta know the contest starts in 90 days, right? Good, just checking…

And we’re back – does that mean results are incoming? Nope, but apparently sandwiches are!

Here come the jury results!

As suspected, first juror awards 12 points to Heaven Sent

Kant briefly in the lead before another 12 for Heaven Sent

Another 12 for Heaven Sent from Juror #3 – their lead is growing!

Kant picking up a lot of 10s, Heaven Sent getting all the 12s so far.

First 12 points for Kant from Juror #5

Kristy Spiteri has an 8 point lead over Miriana Conte – still close and a lot to play for!

Yet another 12 for Heaven Sent

I love how the hosts look like they’re presiding over a trial at the international courts, not at a entertainment show!

12 points for Juno

Heaven Sent in 1st, Kant 2nd and Juno 3rd after the jury vote – still relatively close, I don’t think it’s Kristy’s just yet!

Now for the televote:

10 points for Concrete – after nothing from the jury!

Not many points for Martina Borg, which surprises me!

The scoreboard keeps cutting away to the Green Room too quickly and I don’t know my numbers in Maltese, so I can’t tell you who’s getting what at the moment!

Only 16 televote points for Kurt Calleja…

4 acts left waiting for their results…

85 points for Kantera!!! They’re currently in the lead!

94 points for Kant, putting Miriana ahead!

Can Kristy shift Miriana off the top spot??

No it kant! Miriana is off to Basel!