EUROVISION'S 150 MOST INFLUENTIAL SONGS. This post: 2016.  More: tomorrow.

EUROVISION

1956-2022

THE MOST INFLUENTIAL SONGS

(in chronological order)

 

This year’s Contest will see the 70^th song declared a winner. Caffè Lattè lists all of the past winning entries and other songs that have had a lasting impact on the Eurovision Song Contest.

2016

Sweden’s sixth win brought the Eurovision Song Contest back to Stockholm. A new procedure was introduced: the results would be announced separately. First, individual countries would report on the jury votes, followed by the televoting results. These would be revealed starting with the country with the lowest score from the juries. This was introduced to enhance the excitement during this stage of the evening.

Australia was invited to compete again but had to qualify during one of the semi-finals. Portugal withdrew. Three weeks before the start of the Contest, Romania was forced to also withdraw because of unpaid EBU debts. Bosnia & Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia and Ukraine returned. This increased the number of competitors to 42.

 

1944 Jamala

Ukraine

Ukraine won in 2004 with “Wild Dances”. Its 2016 entry was vastly different, referring to a dark time in history when Stalin deported Crimean Tartars to Central Asia. Despite its political theme, the EBU allowed the song to compete and, ultimately, win. Jamala gave Ukraine its second ESC win. “1944” scooped up 534 points. This is the first entry sung in Crimean Tartar (and in English).

 

SOUND OF SILENCE

Dami Im

Australia

Russia, Australia and Ukraine emerged as the strong contenders during the evening.  Australia was permitted to compete again and has done so every year since, expanding the Eurovision family beyond Europe. Australia’s participation was later guaranteed up to 2023. Dami Im won her semi-final (beating Jamala) and collected the most votes from the juries in the Grand Final. She finished the night in second place with 511 points. This remains Australia’s best ESC result.    

 

YOU ARE THE ONLY ONE

Sergey Lazarev

Russia 

“1944” came second in the jury and public voting. Russia was the televoter favourite. Despite outrage against Vladimir Putin, there can be no denying that the stage presentation for “You Are The Only One” raised the bar. The audience was left in disbelief with Sergey Lazarev’s delivery and the breathtaking use of technology. Russia finished with a combined score of 491 points, landing it in third position.

 

IF LOVE WAS A CRIME

Poli Genova

Bulgaria

“If Love Was A Crime” was Poli Genova’s second attempt at Eurovision. She had competed in 2011. Bulgaria withdrew in 2013 but was back for the 2016 Contest. The empowering song gave Bulgaria its best ever result at Eurovision. With 307 points, Bulgaria ended the night ranked fourth.