World Hit Festival 54 - La Cañada, Achaean Rep.|DRAFT THREAD

by **Achaean Republic** » Sun Sep 13, 2020 7:32 am

WHF NETWORK | OOC THREAD | IC THREAD

CITY AND STAGE DETAILS

Welcome to the Draft Thread of the 54nd World Hit Festival! This will be the place where nations will work and post on their entry that I (the host) will then eventually transfer to the IC thread once it opens. The final deadline for posting entries will be Sunday, September 27, 2020 at 6:00 PM EST/11:00 PM BST, with the Live Allocation Draw being held shortly thereafter, at 6:30 PM EST/11:30 PM BST and the IC thread up 24 hours later. However, nations are free to make minor edits to their entries as I transfer them to the IC thread. There will be a 24-hour grace period after the entry posting deadline for nations to ask for edits as I complete the IC thread. After September 28, 2020 and the completion of the IC thread, all entries are considered final and unchangeable.

For this thread, you can use any format that you wish when posting your entry. The only things that will change as it is transferred to the IC thread will be the header (which will act as a link to your postcard and will be located at the top of your entry) as well as the text being aligned to the center for uniformity's sake. Otherwise, the host nation will not alter the RP aspect in any major form, but minor additions are liable to be made that will only come at the very end of your entries. That said, a few requests would facilitate the transfer process:

Please leave translations at the end of your post under a single spoiler.
If you are currently working on an entry, please put Work-in-Progress or WIP on the top of the entry or on a spoiler. This makes it easier to track which countries have completed their entries based on WHF standards.

As written by Kalosia for WHF26: The host (Achaean Republic) reserves the right to make alterations to your RP when copying it over to the IC thread. However, these alterations will be limited to cleaning up the formatting as well as adding (not deleting) RP regarding the situation in the arena (i.e. how the audience reacted). Substantial/major alterations will not be made without written permission, and any further changes to an entry within the IC thread will only be done upon written request by the user behind it, and with host discretion.

WHF Schedule: Unless altered otherwise, please review the below schedule for the upcoming World Hit Festival below:

What is a Complete Entry?: A complete entry, by technical definition, is an entry on the draft thread with a usable tune and a complete set of lyrics (all stanzas, verses, and etc. covered). Which means, I can transfer a post with just pure lyrics onto the IC thread and mark it as a complete entry. However, I encourage all nations to put in RP to your entries. It makes the entry look far more complete than just lyrics on the page, and while it won't guarantee higher points, it will signal to the WHF community that you are putting in effort than just beyond lyrics. However, since time is often a crunch (aka me every WHF so I relate). What will not be transferred is an entry with incomplete lyrics, just a header, or one considered too low-effort or inappropriate for the standards of WHF.

Additional Information on Headers: You are encouraged to include the names of your song's IC producers and IC lyric writers. This information will go on your header. I will supply the header template used by Euskirribakondara and Normandy and Picardy (which will be replaced by a graphical header on the IC thread). I encourage you to use the below header to place on the top of your entry, as this information will be useful for IC thread preparation. Just make sure to delete any topics you don’t need.

OFFICIAL HEADER:

Code: Select all: [align=center][blocktext][box][size=250][b]XX[/b][/size] [size=200][color=gold][b]NATION_NAME[/b][/color] [color=#0070b8][b]ARTIST_NAME - "SONG_TITLE"[/b][/color][/size] [b]Language(s):[/b] LANGUAGE_HERE [b]Title Transcription:[/b] TRANSCRIPTION_HERE [b]Title Translation:[/b] TITLE_IN_ENGLISH_HERE [b]Tune:[/b] [url=YOUTUBE_LINK]RL_ARTIST - RL_TUNE[/url][hr][/hr][color=#858282][b][u]Entry Specifics[/u][/b] [b]Trigramme:[/b] YOUR_3_LETTER_TRIGRAMME_HERE [b]Lyrics:[/b] LYRICISTS_HERE [b]Music:[/b] MUSICIANS_HERE [/box][/color][/blocktext][/align]

As a final aside, please help yourselves to this very handy Spanish phrasebookif you would like to incorporate greetings and courtesies in your RP. Be mindful, however, that there are slight pronunciation differences between Castillan Spanish and Latin American Spanish; regarding the latter, do note that Achaean Spanish is influenced by Caribbean Spanish (namely, the Spanish spoken in Cuba, Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico and coastal Colombia and Venezuela). You can use this article summarizing the Caribbean dialect if you would like to understand more about Achaean Spanish diction and speech patterns and incorporate it into your RP.

WORLD! START POSTING NOW!

by **Achaean Republic** » Sun Sep 13, 2020 7:35 am

Please review the stage Information as presented on the Official Host Welcome Package; in particular, the staging information:

In addition, you can check how the stage works through the links below. Note, however, that this edition’s stage is smaller than the ones in previous editions. But use this to your advantage in order to create an intimate performance that captivates voters across the Multiverse! Remember we’ll have every resource needed in order to make your entry successful, so don’t hesitate to ask (and have large deep, large wads of cash in your pockets!)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pNtqSdvFFps
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x7bG3bKE7VA
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tdA8OgkdQco

by **Scotatrova** » Sun Sep 13, 2020 1:32 pm

XX
Scotatrova
Maria Flauírnse - "No Escape"
Language(s): English
Tune: Victoria - alright
Entry Specifics
Trigramme: SCT
Lyrics: Maria Flauírnse
Music: Aaron Morterero, Graciela Garrido

The performance begins with the camera panning down from above to the main pentagon LED screen. The screen is displaying the image of looking through a window. Outside the window, its storming. Rain splashing against the pane and the occasional flash indicating lightning. Through the blurred glass, faint outlines of trees can be seen swaying back and forth. The camera then backs away before Maria comes into view. Wearing nothing but black pants and a black trenchcoat with a white shirt underneath, she has her head held slightly down, eyes closed.

Help, I
Just can’t seem to get away
From all this noise
Screaming in my head like a siren
And it wont stop

As the opening vocals begin to indicate the song has started, Maria opens her eyes as she starts the song. The camera keeps its positioning, not moving in the slightest bit. The same can be said about Maria, who doesn't break her gaze from the camera while she continues singing. The screen behind her continues with the same repeating imagery of a storm, which reflect in the way she sings her lyrics. She sings somewhat timidly, as if there's something holding her back, or perhaps, something keeping her trapped. As she sings "And it won't stop", she shakes her head side to side as if reliving an uncomfortable memory.

I give it all I can
It keeps getting louder
Finding myself in an endless fog
In a roomful of thoughts
All of them are fighting
Everything I do, there’s no escape

She continues on with the same motions well into the second verse. As she begins the third line, she stops moving her head, but looks out toward the audience. The look on her face resembles a deer in headlights. Lost, and confused. While continuing on with the lyrics, it can be seen that she's lost in her thoughts. Her performance displays it around, as Maria starts to walk across the stage, carefully monitoring her surroundings as she does so. As she walks, the camera follows her in a 360°angle as she slowly prances around the stage.

I try to forget all the things that I’ve been through
But to no avail
I try to move past all the bad memories I
Have locked up inside
But there is no escape
No matter what I try there is no escape
These little doubts in my head give me no escape, escape, escape, escape

Maria puts her free hand on her head as she spins in place. With the trenchcoat not fully closed up all the way, it twirls with her as she does so. The LED screen depicting the raging storm suddenly stops with one bright flash. As soon as it flashes, several lights shine down from above, encapsulating her. They spin in a circular motion around her as she continues performing. Maria looks at them and tries to back away, but finds that there is nowhere to go. Confronted with this, she stands in place as she sings, carefully monitoring the situation but clearly confined. There isn't much for her to do aside from perform as best as she can under this new circumstance.

Alone
In this expanding darkness
All that I feel, I can’t explain
But its as if all I love, I can’t reach

The encircling rays of light begin to move in closer and closer. They do so at a slow pace, so Maria is able to see what is happening. As they move in closer, she lifts her arms up to her so that they don't touch the lights, but at a certain point there isn't much for her to do. Finally, faced with being touched by the lights, Maria looks up toward the aerial camera toward the ceiling. She has a look of worry on her face. There is nowhere to go, and her eyes indicate she's screaming for help. Then, she shuts her eyes and the lights dissipate.

I try to forget all the things that I’ve been through
But to no avail
I try to move past all the bad memories I
Have locked up inside
But there is no escape
No matter what I try there is no escape
These little doubts in my head give me no escape, escape, escape, escape

Once the lights vanish, she opens her eyes. Water begins to start dripping down from the ceiling. First, in an inconsistent pattern, but eventually into a continous light shower. Maria holds her free hand out, embracing this new freedom, while still holding the mic with the other. Once again she spins in a circle, but this time with more, free, expressive movements. She now has a smile as her face, and looks up towards the ceiling, appreciating the release she now feels.

As I came up for
Air I realized
I was still trapped below,
Screaming for help

I try to forget all the things that I’ve been through
But to no avail
I try to move past all the bad memories I
Have locked up inside
But there is no escape
No matter what I try there is no escape
These little doubts in my head give me no escape, escape, escape, escape

As the song comes to end, Maria keeps on dancing to herself on stage in the water. Compared to her earlier performance, she isn't so restrictive in her movements. She twirls her head and arm around with a smile on her face, continuing on with the final lyrics. While she sings the last lyrics, she looks up again at the ceiling and with the final "escape" she lets the microphone down to her side. She looks toward the camera that's directly at the front of the stage and lets out a smile. The lights then fade out for around 5 seconds before coming back on, and the audience erupts in applause. Soaked and with a smile, she waves out to the audience. "Gracias La Cañada!"

by **Beepee** » Sun Sep 13, 2020 4:17 pm

XX
BEEPEE
ASHI N - "WALK A MILE"
Language(s): English

Tune: Kim Begović - Rhythm Back to You
Entry Specifics
Trigramme: BPE
Lyrics: Otto Tune
Music: Otto Tune

BEEPEE AT WHF

Beepee, the proud yet incompetent nation, has performed admirably over its previous four attempts at World Hit Festival. Despite a faltering start to its WHF experience where the nation failed to qualify to the grand final at the 50th Edition, confidence and self belief have grown over the cycles and Beepee now flourishes in it's distinct style walking a line between cringy and downright dreadful.

Beepeeans take much pride in the last three entrants and were delighted to qualify for the grand final last cycle in Bovingdon, Britonisea. Indeed, as a result of qualifying for the final, Britney C, the pride of Mela Leuca, was welcomed home with a 'victory style' parade through the central business district, despite finishing 15th.

Past Results

WHF50 "Inside Me" Eileen Dover - DNQ
WHF51 "Love Me" Betty Wont - 5th
WHF52 "Little Bird" Mike Oxlong - 14th
WHF53 "Sing Along With Me" Britney C - 15th

Although other nations often bristle at the musical choices, and naive lyrics, Beepeeans take the competition most seriously.

This cycle, Beepee will be represented by newcomer to the international scene Ashi N

ARTIST BACKGROUND

Ashima Noggin, who goes by the stage name Ashi N, was born 4th September 1993 in Silver Wattle Bay, Beepee.

Trained at the prestigious Conservatorium of Music, Ashima honed her craft, graduating with honours in Bouzouki and Baglama.

In February of this year, she released her eponymous debut album with a mixture of new tracks in English and Beepish and covers of famous Achaean pop tracks including AmbiDextra's "Al Amanecer" (To the Morning), Narinho's "Tabacaria" and Martina Jara's "¿Por Qué?".

The album was released to mixed reviews:

Rolling Stains Magazine Review:

ASHI N - ASHI N

☆☆☆☆☆

Newcomer Ashi N's debut album suffers from a split personality, in an album that promises much but ultimately fails to deliver.

The opening track, a cover of AmbiDextra's Al Almanecer,never seems to the rise to the same standard as the original. However, it remains a strong opening standard in comparison to tragic Show Me Your Souvlaki, Look at my Loukoumades and Spin me like your Spanakopita. The album reads like a delicious Greek restaurant menu.

However, Ashi N hits her straps with ¿Por Qué?, although, and in keeping with the food theme, Ashi N's pronunciation make it sound like she's fat-shaming the listener.

The album itself closes on a sour note with It's Gonna Get Mezze, which is a childish and immature piece of drivel.

Tabacaria clearly shows Ashi N's ability to cross genres, but without better writing Ashi N is likely to be consigned as a one album wonder.

Ashi N was chosen to represent Beepee at WHF54 after an internal selection.

Otto Tune, songwriter and lyricist behind Beepee's last entry Sing Along With Me was also chosen to write this cycles entry.

Otto describes the song as an 'empowerment song' of learning to honk your own horn, even when others are putting you down.

JOURNEY TO LA CAÑADA

For the first time, Ashi was going to leave Beepee and see the world, and she couldn't imagine a more exciting venue than the City of Caves.

A lack of direct flights between Beepee and the Achaean Republic meant that BONC had to charter a plane especially for the trip however a mistake by a junior booking clerk meant the plane was only chartered to Ciudad de Corola.

Landing in Corola, Ashi was amazed by scale of the metropolis which is much larger than her hometown.

Leaving the airport she jumped a cab to the train station to catch a train to La Cañada. On arrival Ashi learning the next train is at 9am, she beds down in a local hotel.

The next morning, an unseasonably cold September morning, Ashi catches the train and sits in her third class cabin.

A young man joins her, sitting in the seat opposite. He is neither particularly handsome, nor striking different. His only noticeable feature is his average-ness. It is unlikely that one could find anyone more average.

Ashi inspected him, his dark hair and olive skin. Perhaps twenty-eight she thought. She could tell he wished to talk, but he appeared nervous and hesitant to strike up a conversation. She gazed out the window

"Dreich." She said, as neither a question nor a statement.

"I'm sorry".

"Dreich. Miserable. The weather.", she said in short bursts, before turning back to him.

"I imagine it will be cooler in La Cañada. The days are always cooler there from what I recall."

"You're returning there?"

"Oh yes, but it has been many years."

The conversation continued, and the man told of La Cañada, the caves, the history, places to see and visit. He answered her questions genuinely and with humour.

She told him of her excitement a the upcoming Festival, her passion for music, her optimism and fears for the show.

He told her of his story of how he had met the great love of his life at the Carnival in Corola, and that he followed him to Santa Ana. But that his loves wealthy family did not approve of a 'poor little creole boy' from Corola. Whilst they had tried to make it work, their differences in class and standing meant they had to part ways.

Ashi could tell that there was genuine sadness in her companions face when he talked of his lost love. She offered him consolation, which he accepted freely.

The pair continued in their cabin talking amicably. Ashi ordered food from the dining cart and the two feasted on local delicacies, as conversation returned to the man's lost love. He informed Ashi that he was travelling to The City of Caves to make his fortune and improve his standing to win back the heart of his lost love.

It was reaching 11pm, the sun had long since vanished from the sky and the moon struck eerie shadows over the forest outside the train window. But the pair continued to talk, eventually the train began to pass the outskirts of a town which grew more dense.

"La Cañada." he said, nodding as the train pulled into the station.

"La Cañada." She repeated, disappointed that her new friend would soon be parting ways.

The pair began to collect their belongings, silent now for the first time since they met. Ashi unfolded a carnation pink shawl from her bag and swept it over her shoulders. As she untucked her hair caught under the scarf, she discovered her friend had gone. She quickly rushed to cabin door and looked down the passageway, but he was nowhere to be seen. A wave of melancholy washed over her, as she finished packing,

As she disembarked the train the cool night air sent a chill through her and she clutched her shawl tightly. It was certainly cooler in La Cañada.

THE CAVES OF LA CAÑADA

La Cañada is famous internationally for its gorgeous scenery, its nature and its complex and elaborate cave system.

The schedule of WHF is such that there is very little spare time for artists, between the rehearsals, wardrobe fittings, choreography lessons, local and international press interviews and side concerts. Despite this, Ashi was keen to see the wonders of the region.

She sat in her ample hotel room skipping through the welcome pack and her schedule. She was delighted to find that there was one free day, when she was not required. This, she determined, would be her day of exploration and discovery.

As Ashi read through tourism brochures of the area, she read of the La Cañada Caves National Park. It piqued her interest. She read of the local wildlife and the limestone aquifer caves.   One of the most famous of these caves, Cueva del Pentágono, which serves as inspiration for the staging at this cycles WHF.

Ashi considered other adventures, perhaps a trip to one of the many shops or the local museums. However, none interested her as much as the thought of some spelunking. She contacted her hotel from desk and booked a car and tour of Cueva del Pentágono.

Ashi's anticipation he as the morning of her adventure arrived.   Despite some tiredness from the strains of performing and rehearsals, she was awake before the dawn. She packed some provisions, a warm jumper and began her drive to the National Park.

The drive didn't take too long, only a few hours. As she left the bustling and cosmopolitan metropolis, past the suburbs with their mixture of traditional and modern housing estates, on past the farms and small holdings, she drove down into the canyon. The sides were steep and the road winding. She continued through a canopy of trees, before the vista opened into the broad base of the canyon.   Ashi was awestruck by the magnificence of the view.

A short drive further she reached a small rangers hut where a friendly ranger directed her to the tour departure point. She arrived with plenty of time, and took some photographs of the local flora.

As the time for the tour approached a small collection of locals and tourists gathered, no more than five or six.

A genial ranger introduced himself and informed the group they'd be heading into the caves.   He noted there would be some low areas where the visitors would have to duck to get through the system and provided them with hard hats. He explained the significance of the Caves, their importance in forming part of the Greater Corola Acquirer system, cleansing the water as it flows to the mighty Guadalupan River.

The ranger stood before the entrance to the impressive Cueva del Pentágono, its five sided entrance, towering behind him.

The group entered the cave. The base of the canyon was cooler than the rest of the city, but in the cave there was a warmth a little trapped sunbeam perhaps.

As the group walked deeper into the limestone cave, the light stone lit by electric light, Ashi could see massive stalactites and stalagmites.   Water dripping from the roof bringing minerals and diluted stone and creating spectacular columns and pillars.

As she looked along the walls of the cave Ashi saw the tiny cemented remains of tiny fossils. Corals, strachiopods and croinids, Ashi was informed by the Ranger.   She ran her fingers one the walls wondering what the world must have looked like then.

She allowed her mind wander, as the Ranger continued pointing out the various features of the cave.

Ashi followed the group as they ducked under a giant shelf. Millions of tonnes of rock above their head.   As she looked at the floor she could make put the patters of waves of erosion from the water in the caves.

Eventually, the shelf rose away and Ashi was able to stand upright again. The space opened into a giant cavern. The cavern was many hundreds of feet high.   The lights highlighted the spectacle. Veins of blue, orange and black swept across the cavern.

It was awe inspiring.

The Ranger informed the group they would now experience scientific darkness. The way they had walked in was such that outside light could not penetrate, without the electric lights the cavern would be dark. He walked over the electrics box and switched off the lights.

Ashi felt herself gasp, quietly to herself, as the whole cavern went dark. No light. It was a strange sensation. Even after a few seconds, she could feel uneasy.   However, after the fear passed she felt a warmth and comfort in the dark.

The Ranger turned the lights on again and there was a collective murmur of relief from the visiting group.

The Ranger lead the group back out of the tunnels. What had seemed like a ten minute tour had taken almost three hours.

Ashi thanked the Ranger for the tour and headed to the gift shop to purchase some mementos of her visit. She spent some time choosing gifts for her family and getting postcards of the national park and the caves.

She had enjoyed her day relaxing in the Caves, but now the work towards trying to perform well at the WHF truly began.

Beepeean Televisual Commentary

Again, Hugh Jakeman (actor, thespian, lush) provides a cool and contemporary commentary for Beepeean viewers and over the interwebs.

Now then it's time for the Beepeean entry, "Walk a Mile" and I know the feeling. It's about that far to get to the bar in this place. This venue is huge, half the audience can't see this show I tell you.

Ashi N is singing for us this time, and she can fairly belt out a tune.

We've gone upbeat this year and we'll be hoping the international juries want to tap their high heels along to this.

Here she comes a vision in emerald green...l let's cheer her on in word and gesture.

PERFORMANCE

Ashi will be joined on stage by two backing artists, Otto Tune and Ivor Biggun

As the postcard ends, the stage is set in darkness.

Ashi stands centre stage with Otto and Ivor to the rear of the stage at either side, both dressed in cream cotton trousers and emerald green t-shirts to match the emerald green of Ashi's outfit.

From the darkness the music begins and Otto and Ivor begin to hum. Just as Ashi begins to sing the first line, the set lights in golden hues.

The camera focuses on a head shot of Ashi as she sings.

I tried my best, but it wasn't enough, ooh
I tried my best, but our love turned to dust,
Now I can't believe you're judging me,
You gotta stop it now,
No I cannot change it, I can't change the past

As she sings "love turns to dust", the camera pams to a full body shot, and Ashi pulls out some glitter from a hidden pocket in her dress, and sprinkles it on the floor.

As she sings "No, I cannot change it...", Ashi lifts her hand up yo the sky before swooping it down as she continues....

In my Louboutins,
Or these new Jimmy Choo's,

As she sings the above, the camera follows Ashi's sweep and focuses on her dangerously high stiletto heels.

With the end of the bridge, the camera angle pulls out to a full stage shot and the stage set lighting turns the colour of Louboutins sole, and begins flashing in different hues as Ashi continues the chorus.

Just walk a mile in my shoe--------s
Just walk a mile in my shoe--------s
Just walk a mile in my shoes
Just walk a mile in my shoes

As she sings the chorus, and Otto and Ivor provide depth to the vocals by harmonising, Ashi walks, nay stomps, to the front of the stage. Squeals of joy from the audience can be heard as she slays her way to the front of the stage. And particularly as she growls the third line of the chorus.

The camera focuses, once again, on the face of Ash, as she sings the second verse.

As she sings "You're hurting me", a small lock of hair falls across her face, which she brushes elegantly way tucking it to the side.

You'll never know, how you're hurting me now, yeah
You'll never know, 'cause you don't give a damn
There's no empathy 'tween you and me
You can't take it back,
No you can't undo it, it don't work like that

As she sings the second verse there seems to be an anger and aggression in her voice which works well with the song. As she finishes the verse, the camera pulls out slightly; as she sings "It don't work like that", Ashi wags her finger at the camera scolding the audience and winks.

As Ashi sings "it don't work like that", Ivor cascades an ooohh, which seems to work surprisingly well.

Ashi continues...

In my Louboutins,
Or these new Jimmy Choo's,
Just walk a mile in my shoe--------s
Just walk a mile in my shoe--------s
Just walk a mile in my shoes
Just walk a mile in my shoes

As the second chorus begins, it is Otto and Ivors turn to strut to the front of the stage, positioning themselves slightly behind Ashi. The audience squeaks with delight as the see the two backing performers also wearing high heeled stilettos. Whilst Otto seems less comfortable in the heels, it is the more muscular Ivor who televisual viewers will find amusing as he teeters in the heels.

The final chorus begins and Ashi sings.

In my Louboutins,
Or these new Jimmy Choo's,
Just walk a mile in my
Just walk a mile in my
Just walk a mile in my shoe--------s
Just walk a mile in my shoe--------s
Just walk a mile in my shoes
Just walk a mile in my sho------e--------s
Just walk a mile in my shoes.

As Ashi sings, she struts in her heels walking back and forward again, stepping in time to the music. The camera cuts between a number of angles and distances. Otto and Ivor provide echoing "Just Walk a Mile" throughout this chorus which adds some vocal interest to what could be a simplistic lyric.

As she sings her final line, Ashi turns and walks back and choregoraphically clotheslines the two backing singers. Otto and Ivor fall to the floor (semi-dramatcally) and Ashi turns back to the camera and audience and smiles.

The song now over, Otto and Ivor return to their feet and the three performers take a bow.

Ashi shouts "Thank you La Cañada, thank you", although her microphone isn't at her mouth and its only picked up in the general concert hall microphones. The three walk of stage, happy with their performance and await the completion of the Festival.

Beepeean Televisual Commentary

As the song ends, for Beepeean televisual viewers and for those watching on the interwebs, Hugh Jakeman returns to he airwaves.

"Well you don't get many of the them to the pound. An interesting choice there, I'm not sure how the more conservative nations will take to that, but enjoyable none the less. And to the two eejits I say "never wear heels on a soggy lawn".

Now that we're out of the way, I'm going to open the red wine which, thanks to budget cuts, this year comes from a box! The horror!"

by **North Alezia** » Sun Sep 13, 2020 4:34 pm

XX
North Alezia
Lisa Ammah-Andrews - "Searching For Home"
Language(s): English
Title Transcription: -none-
Title Translation: -none
Tune: Diana Wang - Home

Entry Specifics
Trigramme: NAZ
Lyrics: Lisa Ammah-Andrews / Hanna Aisyah
Music: M. Halbiq Canersham

96% complete lol

ARTIST INFORMATION

Lisa Ammah-Andrews is a North Alezian singer and actress. She was born in Cherinsey, Talen, Bristol in 16th of February 1995. She is the only child of a British father (Daniel Guernsey Andrews) and an Alezian-Arab mother (Naqlainah Isrannul Ammah). Lisa's religious life is a little bit unique, since her father is a Protestant Christian and her mother is a Muslim. (Lisa goes with Christianity when she chose) Even though that's the story, Her family stability is pretty strong. With Lisa coming along to help in church activities, and also at some occasions she came to her parents house to help her mother making cookies for Eid.

Lisa finished her compulsory tertiary education with a degree on Classical Music and Musical Theory in the University of Zafizamarrah. Now, she works as a singer and an actress with her debut album "Superdelishlovishdovey" hit North Alezian charts and stays at 6th on her peak. She also works as an actress working on several films and even did her own stunts due to her strength (she might not look like it but she can beat up two strong men at the same time) and her flexible body. Her latest work is the 2020 recreation of the film "Run Run" (A popular film in North Alezia made and premiered on 1963). She represented Bristol back in AleziRadio Song Festival (ARFos) 2015. Her song " Take That One Chance" got last in the National Final. When she tried again recently, she didn't got the win she imagined but she's still happy that she got the ticket to Achaean Republic after earning 2nd.

Lisa is married to Aaron McConnaught just literally six months ago, both are mucisians, and created a band called MEETME and actually tried to represent Bristol in Alezimania Season 2, but Aaron got sick before the final and thus ABA Bristol called Lisa to represent Bristol herself for ALEZIMANIA Season 2 . And fun fact, Mina Al-Diyyah actually works as the MC on her reception.

TUNE: Diana Wang - Home[/align]

(After the postcard got put aside, Lisa stands on a dark stage with audience applausing her, some even shouted the classic "YOU GO SHAMAL!!!". Silence. The viewers got to see their singer from Camera 4. Lisa stands on the center of the big stage, the stage was still pitch black, few seconds of silence then the first piano tunes starts, and the stage was only lighten up by a single overhead LED lamp. Between the darkness, we can see Hadlan holding and raising Nurul up while Nurul spins. Seconds after that, the two stepped aside for the main act. Lisa walks to the front between the two dancers.)

Walking on the path, back and forth
I passed out on the path full of truth
I don’t know how I can stay alive
I don’t know ‘bout life

(The lights starts to get lighter and the view changes to Camera 1. Lisa walks forward while holding on to the microphone.)

Even though they broke my heart,
I’ll stand up and then I’ll make a brand new start
I might not look like in the part
But I won’t go and retreat

(The camera view changes to Camera 2.)

I don’t care if it is hot
I don’t care if it is cold
I don’t care if I’ll rot
I know I have strong emotions,
I’ll put my life to motion,

(The view changes to Camera 11. All lights shines directly at Lisa and other direction, the backing singers starts to spread their hands and starts to sing, The backing dancers started to dance accordingly, where Hadlan and Nurul spins facing against each other and spinning to opposite directions. No pyrotechnics are found for now)

Cause baby,
I am me and I’ll go and try
Even though sometimes I might sit down and cry
All I can do is to try and pray
I’m searching for home…

And even though it’s hard and the terrains rough
I know that I have a huge heart that is tough
All I can do is to try and pray
I’m searching for home…

(The view changes to Camera 4, and it zoomed its view so the viewers can look at Lisa more thoroughly. Back home in Bristol, people are supporting her and Aaron shouted "YOU GO LISA!" at the screen. Obviously Lisa can't hear him supporting, but Lisa knew that her husband is currently back home supporting her. Lisa keeps singing beautifully. The backing dancers keep spinning on their position and ends up facing the same way together. The front.)

I’m searching fo-o-o-o-o-o-o-or
Ho-o-o-o-o-o-o-ome
(searching) Ho-o-o-o-o-o-o-ome

(The lights are dimmed for now. The view changes to Camera 8. Where a guy started to walk near Lisa and then slowly further away from her. Lisa faced the camera and smiled. Then she faced the front audience again. The backing dancers started to spin back to the center and they positioned themselves behind Lisa.)

Walking on the path, back and forth
I passed out on the path full of truth
I don’t know how I can stay alive
I don’t know ‘bout, 'bout life

(Then, the view changes to Camera 2, where we can see the entire stage with Lisa and her backings.)

Well I
I’m still walking on
To the home where I can stand and sleep on
So I know that the game’s on
I keep moving on, and on

I don’t care if it is hot
I don’t care if it is cold
I don’t care if I’ll rot
I know I have strong emotions,
I’ll put my life to motion,

(Once again, the view changes to Camera 11 and it's all the same. All lights light up without any pyrotechnics. But this time, the dancers started to get near each other and spins until the end and finally holding each others hands.)

Cause baby,
I am me and I’ll go and try
Even though sometimes I might sit and cry
All I can do is to try and pray
I’m searching for home…

(We got a closed-up zoomed view of Lisa from Camera 4.)

And even though life’s hard and the terrains rough
I know that I have a huge heart that is tough
All I can do is to try and pray
I’m searching for home…

I’m searching fo-o-o-o-o-o-o-or
Ho-o-o-o-o-o-o-ome
(searching) Ho-o-o-o-o-o-o-ome

Searching for home

(Lisa walked backwards, got down on her knees, and closed her eyes.Smoke starts to come out While the small instrumental plays, Lisa prayed inside her heart that she can move hearts of so many people. And her dancers did the same thing behind her. Seconds before the reff, Lisa stood up and her backing dancers jumped backwards, and the screen got white for a few seconds)

(Lisa ran back to the front part of the stage. Lisa faced her head upwards and raised her right hand while her left hand holds her mic. with Camera Z giving the viewers some dramatic prespective. When she sung the final reff, fire flares shoot downwards.)

Cause baby,
I am me and I’ll go and try
Even though sometimes I might sit down and cry
All I can do is to try and pray
I’m searching for home…

And even though life’s hard and the terrains rough
I know that I have a huge heart that is tough
All I can do is to try and pray
I’m searching for home…

I’m searching fo-o-o-o-o-o-o-or
Ho-o-o-o-o-o-o-ome
(searching) Ho-o-o-o-o-o-o-ome

(Lisa sat down on her knees for her final line, while her dancers stands behind her again, faced backwards and holding each others hands.)

Searching for home

(Lisa stands up again and finally shouted what every North Alezian shouted after each international performance... "Gracias! Gracias Acaya! Thank You! Syuukran Kasiiiraaaa!" The audience especially those who come to support Lisa all the way shouted and applauding Lisa like crazy. Lisa returns backstage and sits on the green room seat.)

by **South Alezia** » Sun Sep 13, 2020 4:51 pm

XX
SOUTH ALEZIA
KAY WATTEFS - "I HATE EVERYONE"
Language(s): ENGLISH
Title Transcription: -NONE-
Title Translation: -NONE-
Tune: (unknown) - YOU ARE AN IDIOT REMIX

Entry Specifics
Trigramme: SAZ
Lyrics: Kay Wattefs
Music: Kay Wattefs

(Slowly and wobbly, Kay descends from the sky... The camera zooms at her face. Kay "raised" her head, faced the camera in a truly scary dark stuff, and said)

So let us win, now

(Slowly again, the strings got cut. Oh no. Kay fell face down lol.)

I hate everyone! (15x)

(The camera zooms to her head again, muffled, Kay said while raising her hand)

So let us win, now

(Kay didn't do any kind of dance. She just lay down there like any classical South Alezian singer (except for Tulsi Vasarao that is), and on the screen appears a list of words which are apparently name of the countries, plus a large rolling text that write "I HATE EVERYONE" blinking each split second. It does mention a lot of countries, even those who don't even participate! There's just a lot of them that listing them here is impossible...)

I hate everyone!
hahahahahaha
hahahahahaha

I hate everyone!
hahahahahaha
hahahahahaha

(Can it, can it, can it, can it)

I hate everyone!
hahahahahaha
hahahahahaha

I hate everyone!
hahahahahaha
hahahahahaha

I hate everyone!
I hate everyone!
I hate e- I hate e-

So let us win, now

(Again, the list of countries rolls like what you see in credits. the name "North Alezia" is apparently bigger in size and highlighted in red.)

I hate everyone!
hahahahahaha
hahahahahaha

(The song is so bad that the upgraded version of Kay Wattefs destroyed her own voice box... Luckily her cosmetic shape isn't affected. So when South Alezia got their much deserved 5 points, viewers won't have to sleep with nightmares included after looking at Kay's "hot and beautiful" face)

Note: This is only a joke, I didn't mean to spread hate or any similiar negative activities.

by **Achaean Republic** » Sun Sep 13, 2020 7:25 pm

XX
Achaean Republic
Beauchamp - "Escóndete de Mí"
Language(s): Spanish
Title Translation: Hide Yourself From Me
Tune: Ricardo Arjona- Sobrevivirás
Entry Specifics
Trigramme: ACH
Lyrics: Ezequiel Beauchamp, Ricardo Rawson, David L. Vega
Music: Ezequiel Beauchamp, Ricardo Rawson, David L. Vega

The last time Ezequiel Beuchamp had a hit of crystal meth was on Room 106 of a seedy motel somewhere in the Corola suburbs. He didn’t remember how he got the money to buy the meth or who did be buy it from—it just so happened that he had aluminum foil, a meth pipe, and some matches he stole from a Wal-Mart as a cheap heat source. He had a small lamp in the dimly lit bedroom, close to the TV screen showing some also-ran Mexican telenovela. He slowly placed the faint crystal in the pipe. He ignited the match and turned the pipe above it with his right hand, watching as the solid crystal distorted itself into rods of gray smoke. His eyes were fixated on the smoke and not on his burning fingers nor on the corroding pipe. He held the pipe in between his thumb and two other fingers and put the pipe near his gritted teeth. Despite using it for a few years now (and he swore to his friends he only “partied” like that at least once or twice), his teeth weren’t broken, nor his gums consumed by the drug—barring a few cavities behind his molars. But when he inhaled the fresh contents of the pipe, oh did it felt like meeting a good friend!

Oh, did Ezequiel miss the confidence, the power, the euphoria of a friend like Tina would give! Tina and him needed to roll on the river a bit more and not just on a party or after a crappy hookup on the villa with a stranger from the ambiente It would turn him into a sex demon and fill him with a desire to cavort in orgies for at least four days. It would rid him of his troubles and empower him to blunt his inhibitions and ponder bizarre philosophies that amount to nothing but make him even more high and stupid. He would feel cold when it’s hot (and it’s always hot in Achaea) and hot when it’s cold (which is why he once bought 300 corcinos’ worth of ice bags to put in his bed while high, risking shock and hypothermia). How good is meth making it feel! He was closer to God, the Virgin, the saints, the angels above, the Devil and his demons below! What was the point of sleeping when he could be awake and let the world know of this amazing portal to the netherworlds!?

The last thing he remembers is pulling his foreskin with his thumb while jumping up and down the bed.

When he regained consciousness, he was in a hospital bed somewhere in central Corola with his family and his ex-boyfriend, Milton Casiano, beside him. Looking down a few inches, he had a large feeding tube in his mouth after he got his stomach pumped for the third time and, in his drowsy state, he couldn’t help but notice Milton’s glassy eyes. His father, Calixto Beuchamp was there, taking a break from tending to his artisanal sugar cane plantation back in Orongumilá. His mother, middle school teacher Carmen Cruz, was slowly resting beside him. It meant so much that his family was there—after all, he was an only child and he never thought he would still be worthy of their love. But Milton…oh, Milton, what didn’t he do to him to break his poor, little heart?

Years after this final rock bottom (for there were many peaks and valleys in his addiction), Beauchamp used his self-imposed tragedies to write Speed, his second feature-length album and first one under the AS1 brand. His song, Escóndete de Mí (“Hide Yourself from Me”) had some airplay on the radio until it was handpicked by Tamar de Andrade and the Achaean delegation to succeed The Intermissión’s victorious Quédate in home soil. It was an honor and a pressure to play for his compatriots in an international stage, but it was the first time since his final meth relapse that he would play in a musical competition.

Shortly after the Achaean postcard concluded with much fanfare from the home crowd as expected, the cameras turned back to the stage. One could hear the incessant rhythms of the crowd cheering on for the host nation. They would shout ¡Dale que tu puedes! (“You can do it!”) and Fueguero, carajo!, the somewhat untranslatably vulgar adage for Achaeans worldwide. Flags were being waved, and expectations were placed on Beauchamp’s shoulders to deliver an even more stunning performance like the one The Intermissión did one edition ago in Britonisea. He did meet the band in private moments before the entry, though, and had a chance to get a one-on-one pep talk from the group members. “Don’t forget your audience.” “It’s important to pace yourself, but also to sound convincing.” “Put God forward,” said Marianne in Spanish. This last phrase made Ezequiel cringe. “Put God forward…” “Put God forward…” Wasn’t this eerily similar to the second thing they would say when going to Narcotics Anonymous? We came to believe that a Power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity. He said that, he believed, a few times when he visited a 12-step meeting early in his recovery. Spiritual, but not religious, he would say, even though he grew up Catholic. He even joined a quick prayer session, that was very nice of them. But he tried to focus on the competition. Or so he dismissed.

Beauchamp wore a thick blue-black lumberjack shirt with some washed denim jeans be bought at an outlet store in Corola and some white sneakers with short white socks. He was sitting at a reupholstered counter stool, surrounded by the keyboard player to his left, the cellist, the three backup singers and harmonizers (incidentally, all three are La Cañada locals), a bass player, a drummer and…a plant someone brought from their house. The fragmented background behind them shows an open recording studio, much like the promotional music video for the song. He took deep breaths, each one deeper than the last, trying to steady his nerves and grab the microphone in his right hand (he’s a lefty). Beside him, a combination acoustic-electric guitar that always makes his appearances in concerts and music videos. He doesn’t play it much nowadays, but he liked to keep it close to him as good luck charm of sorts. He would need it even more.

Camera Z showed the full setup of the stage at a distance, swinging side to side to appreciate the fulness of it. To the viewer at home, the performers looked like ants on a near-circle, congregating in song. From the distance, one could see Beauchamp sitting on the stool, nervously tapping his feet to the rhythm of the song, just like he did at rehearsals to steady his nerves and not think of the past. Or Milton. Always Milton. He could never stop thinking about that poor fool Milton. He must’ve been somewhere in the crowd waving his flag, shouting his pride despite his many broken hearts. Or somewhere alone or with his family in Corola, cheering on to him, that poor fool. He was the reason Ezequiel was alive. He was the nature of the song. And that was the inescapable thought that plagued him oh so much. As he sang the first stanza, he tried to keep the angle of his voice looking intently at the camera (namely Camera 5, swerving from left to right and fixated on the singer’s countenance), trying to engage with his eyes and express his regret to the audience—[i]Milton—as if he were truly listening to the beat of his heart.

¿Dónde está el corazón
Que tantas veces yo lo he rasgado?
Yo perdí la razón:
¿Por qué has de volver a mi pasado?
No lo mereces, no
Mira, pues, los rasguños en mi mano

Ezequiel met Milton at a local bar in Corola’s Barrio Tercero. He was drinking a Budweiser after work, and this young, tanned man drinking a small glass of scotch. They stroked up a conversation after Milton noticed Ezequiel had a guitar near his booth and revealed their interests in music. They loved classical prog rock. They enjoyed reading about Continental philosophy and had an interesting discussion on Tolstoy and the Dark Knight of the Soul, as fellow Catholics would explain. Ezequiel would regale Milton with stories of life in the sugar cane fields of Orongumilá, where his father worked as a modern-day capataz in the plantations, while Milton revealed to Ezequiel a little about his relatively obscure life in San José de Capernaúm, a small city in Northern Corola. They immediately hit it off—and in bed, but not for the reasons you’d think. In the throes of passion, Ezequiel hid some sores in his body. He didn’t do it then, but he totally did. How did Milton, smart man that he was, never recognized early on that Ezequiel had those sores was beyond him.

Beauchamp reminded himself of the first meeting as he sang those verses, still sitting on the counter stool. Camera 1 circled above them, the LED floor below them slowly expanding itself into a wooden floor that somewhat contrasted with Beauchamp’s guitar. Beauchamp himself was singing with his eyes closed, a common trademark of his intense concentration. He needed to live the words for a moment, breathe the despair in his tone as he wrote it while on rehab, with a couple of IVs coursing through his body at once. Crooning to the music, the still wind blowing behind him. He wanted him close, but now he has to push him afar—like he always did with the people he loved.

Confundí el amor
Con cristales que queman hasta el alma
No pierdas tú la fe
Y quiersa poner en mí tus palmas
Lo hiciste una vez
Era yo un pobre endemoniado

He wasn’t an addict. Or so he said to himself. He only smoked the crystals once in a while, whenever he was feeling horny and loose and wanted to loosen up for sex. One hit of the pipe was enough to last for a few minutes, but those minutes would last into hours as he smoked more and more. He smoked while having sex without protection, without any care in the world even if his endowments were flopping up and down, without caring for the purity of the drug. He hid the broken molars from Milton’s face. He hid the smell of smoke and euphoria whenever he kissed Milton, whenever he took a swig of whiskey to calm down his nerves before any conquests behind Milton’s back. And for some reason, Beauchamp’s charm was more than enough cover for his many failures, his many setbacks—and nevertheless, Milton kept loving him as if he never learned how to love himself. Even when he caught Milton ass-up and face-down, smoking meth under a lightbulb, three sleazy men taking turns behind him. Milton kept loving him for some reason.

Beauchamp stood up from his chair and held his microphone tightly, snug in his chest. He still left a bit of breathing room to expand his gruff voice. Camera 4 glided from left to right, passionately yet quietly singing with his eyes closed, eyes opened, eyes closed and back open with an impassioned sense of regret. Regret, that was the word. He showed regret to the times lost, the moments wasted, the friendships broken, the bridges burnt. As much as he wanted people around him, he couldn’t feel that he needed to push them away—if only for their own good. They don’t know what they’re dealing with. They don’t know what he’s been through himself. The guitar barely knows, and he hasn’t played it in a while—and it sits alongside him, prominently facing the camera.

Y escóndete de mí
No te puedo hablar
Sé que quieres amarme, yo sé
Que el amor para ti
Lo podrás encontrar
Pero en mis brazos por favor

Camera 3 peered above Beauchamp and the Achaean performers, the LED screen below them showing the cracked and faded wooden floor, laden with unpolish surfaces that the singers “stepped” on, a few wine (or blood?) stains, water stains and white, dusty crystals around the floor that looked quite like peppermint gum or even laundry detergent. It felt as if nobody bothered to clean the floor, or at least mop it up. Kind of like the floor at that hotel Beauchamp lived through his last overdose. ¡To expose his most vulnerable pain—Milton!—to his own demons! Just like the footsteps surrounding him—what were those footsteps in black, surrounding him?

La pureza en tu ser
No quiero que en mí se contamine
Perdí todo el poder
La suciedad en mí no te domine
No lo hagas otra vez
Distánciate de mí, estoy podrido

The first time Ezequiel left rehab, he returned to his Corola apartment and found it empty and devoid of life. There were no signs of Milton’s exquisite cooking, or Milton’s cat Putty that always purred beside him and made Ezequiel smile even though he was allergic to and ended sneezing up a storm, or Milton’s color-by-numbers easels he kept scattered around the living room table. There was no home—it was just an empty shell. Not even a note. Not even a pencil. Nothing. The wind was only blowing on some dirty sheets and a sole broken meth pipe on the bed. He knew what Milton was saying to him. He definitely knew.

He thought back of that tense, self-imposed moment as Camera 7 circled around his perimeter, respecting that sacred two-meter distance. Circling around him, the backup singers beautifully harmonize their melodies. The musicians were focused playing (or at least miming their movements while reading their music sheets on their iPads. The guitar was still, laying on the side of the couch, waiting to be played. The LED behind him kept the static imagery of a recording studio, while the floor below him would keep showing footprints and boot prints and mold and unbuffed surfaces. All he wanted to do is portray the collusion of sadness and self-pity in his actions.

Y escóndete de mí
No te puedo hablar
Sé que quieres amarme, yo sé
Que el amor para ti
Lo podrás encontrar
Pero en mis brazos por favor

They always say that drug addicts have an unenviable mixture of shamelessness and self-pity. They are shameless enough to expose their bodies and torture their brains with dopamine receptors, yet they imbue themselves with relentless bouts of self-pity whenever fixes don’t go their way. Through his music, Beauchamp clearly understood the dynamics between shamelessness and self-pity whenever he had to fight for his life every time he entered one of those expensive residential treatment programs in Malibu. Whenever he used his queerness as a cover for his momentary bouts of hypersexuality. Whenever Milton, equally disgusted yet entranced by Ezequiel’s mysterious aura, kept going back to him whenever he at least paid lip serve to the area of recovery. This time, the last time, he finally realized the desperation.

That is the moment he grabbed his guitar and started playing it, once the violin was placing one of its very sweet notes. Just like the first days after getting out of rehab, when no one would approach a tormented man who just burned all his bridges into a musical career and didn’t even have the money to go back to school as he promised his parents for the umpteenth time before wasting his loans on copious meth binges. The guitar became his comfort, his emotional sustenance, his attitude. The guitar humbled him; the many-time college dropout was finally confronted on his own nothingness on stage, in front of screaming fans in a voracious Achaean home crowd cheering on for his success. There was only so much he could handle in one time.

Ya viene el ocaso
Me tengo que marchar
Quisiera hablar unr ato
No te confundas más

Camera 1 above him expanded from his head to the stage, while Camera Z took a view of the stage and Beauchamp looking so minuscule around it, feeling engulfed by the love and appreciation—and, perhaps, his redemption. Can this be it? Can this be the validation of the self-imposed horrors he’s been through? Oh, if Milton were there to comfort him! If Milton were there and he wouldn’t shoo him away anymore! But he needed to. His bulging black eyes looked pleadingly at the camera to the people around the Multiverse and the people at home. But mostly, he wanted to sing to Milton who must’ve been far away to keep his distance and stop saving him—now he has to prove he has to save himself.

Y escóndete de mí
No te puedo hablar
Sé que quieres amarme, yo sé
Que el amor para ti
Lo podrás encontrar
Pero en mis brazos por favor

The music stopped and Beauchamp immediately cupped his hands in his face, a pandemic no-no he allowed himself to have because he just poured his heart and soul into a three-minute performance that would be judged into the eyes of the world. He wanted to cry at that moment, but he couldn’t distinguish if the drop streaming down his left cheek was a teardrop or a runaway bead of sweat caked with makeup. In his eyes, he gazed over the adoring crowd, shouting Fueguero, carajo! behind their cotton-poly masks and cheering on in many languages, but mostly in Spanish. The cameras filmed Beauchamp bowing and greeting his public. “Gracias! Muchas gracias, Acaya!,” he greeted the crowd. “Fueguero, carajo! Thank you!,” he bellowed before leaving the stage.

by **Pemecutan** » Sun Sep 13, 2020 7:32 pm

XX
PEMECUTAN
PUTU SUTHA - "SAHABAT SEJATI"
Language(s): Bahasa (Indonesian)
Title Transcription: -
Title Translation: True Friend
Tune: Mukai Taichi - Hero
Entry Specifics
Trigramme: PCU
Lyrics: Putu Sutha
Music: Ketut Ari Atmaja, Pande Putu Wijaya

Entry Selection Process

Pemecutan can be said as a fresh newcomer in World Hit Festival competition. Debuted in 53rd edition, the country made a shocking result by advancing to Final stage after finishing 1st in the Second Semi Final Group. In the Final, they finished at 6th, a great result for a newcomer.

Following their previous success, PRIA (Pemecutan Recording Industry Association) in collaboration with Ubung Broadcasting Company (UBC) conducted an internal selection for the 54th World Hit Festival which will be held in La Cañada, Achaean Republic. From numerous songs, the organizer selected 5 songs that they see fit for the competition before being sent to online voting. The vote lasted for a week throughout the country (including the new annexed territory, Soracana Islands). The result was officially announced two days after the vote was closed. The winner is Putu Sutha with his song Sahabat Sejati (True Friend).

During the interview, Putu Sutha feels shocked with the result as he is not anticipated that he will win. On the other hand, he also feel honor for being selected.

Artist Information

Putu Sutha Wijaya, known for his stage name as Putu Sutha, was born at Ubung around 34 years ago (15 September 1986). He begin his professional career in 2004 after winning a national singing competition.

Putu Sutha has shown an interest in music from young age. He pursue his hobby in singing during his school years. He joined Music club in his middle and high school years. He was known to represent his school at Ubung Students Sports and Arts Festival, an annual sports and arts festival which held by the city of Ubung for students of middle school and high school. Putu Sutha actively entered in Male Single and Choir category of the festival throughout 6 years spanned. He won 4 times, 3 as Male Single and 1 from Choir category.

He took a break from college to compete in the 3rd edition of Akademi Pemecutan (Pemecutan Academia), a national singing competition (Idol-like singing competition) which was broadcasted by GBC (Giri Broadcasting Company). He ultimately win the competition and also given a record deal from the sponsor. After the win, he had to divide his time between his professional career and his education.

After his two failed albums, he decided to focus on his education until his graduation. His record deal was also canceled because of his bad albums sales. He still continue to singing off stage while taking care of his family business. His singing career turn better after he released his third album in 2010 (4 years after his last album) independently. The album gets a mild success but become a new sensation in online streaming. For this success, he received a nomination for Best New Artist at Chakra Music Award in 2011. He continued to create his music independently and release his singles online. In late 2015, DMC Records approached him for a 5-years record deal which he happily agreed. His highest success was in the year of 2017, when he was nominated for 3 awards at Chakra Music Award, all in Pop category.

Putu Sutha is came from a business background. His father is the owner of WiTex, a well known textile company in Pemecutan. Fortunately, his choice to focus on his singing career professionally is being supported by his family. Rumour says that his contract in DMC is being extended after he is being selected as Pemecutan representative in 54th World Hit Festival.

Song Information

The song, Sahabat Sejati (True Friend) is included in Putu Sutha's latest album, Teruntukmu. The album is his 7th album and the second under DMC Records. It was released in December 2019 with the first single, Karna Ku Bisa.

Sahabat Sejati is the second single that was released under the album. The song was released in mid-August 2020. The song went viral after the video of the song was released. There is a speculation over the end of the music video where Putu Sutha is hugging a man. On an interview, it is revealed that the man he was hugging in the music video is his long time friend and high school mate. Putu Sutha is initially dedicated the song for his long time friend for his support and encouragement during his hard time which is basically what is the song meaning is.

Although already being clarified, but the speculation remain still. It is based on the second bridge of the song's lyric, "Walaupun diriku berbeda" (Even though I am different), which makes the speculation doesn't goes off. The rumour remain still as Putu Sutha also not clarifying about this. But no matter what the controversies surrounded the song, it is become Putu Sutha's most successful song. The selection of the song as Pemecutan entry to the 54th World Hit Festival also increase the song's and the album's sale.

Road to La Cañada

Following the performance night, Putu Sutha decided to go to La Cañada earlier than the show day. He prepare everything that he needed together with his manager and his crew. A representative from PRIA will also follow suit to accompany him throughout the competition. This will ensure overall support from the organization for Pemecutanian delegation in the competition.

Exactly 10 days before the show day, Putu Sutha, his manager, crew and PRIA representative are departed from Ubung-Satria International Airport for their destination Ciudad de Corola, the capital of Corola State in which the host city is located. The flight took several hours. They have to transit one time before heading to Achaean Republic. After a long flight, they finally arrived at Ciudad de Corola. They then charter a mini bus that will drive them to La Cañada, the host city.

Arriving at La Cañada, they feel fascinated with the surrounding. The city have a great view, a combination of classic and modern touch. On the first day, they decided to take a rest to replenish their energy after a long and tiring journey. The second day, they decided to take a look at the city. Visiting the most iconic part of the city including the phenomenal cave. They are visiting the festival venue during the third day. Seeing the last preparation of the show night and familiarize with the stage. They are also being introduced to the back singers and the band.

The next three days are fill with rehearsal whether with the band and the back singers or staging act rehearsing. Putu Sutha change his staging act several times to get the best way to perform. He is a renowned perfectionist especially when it comes to live performance. He also having a talks with the stage manager over the camera sequence, the lighting's and others.

He take a break from a hefty rehearsal and try to enjoy the city again. Fortunately, the weather is quite similar with Pemecutan although Ubung have a higher humidity. But the similar condition makes him easier to adjust with the weather here. He is also taking an interview with local and international media. The festival is very famous. It drive the media attention to this little city.

Following the performance day, he is back to rehearse again. Perfecting his vocal, checking the wardrobe, finalizing the stage act and the last rehearsal with a complete band and back up singers. He rehearsing several times until he is satisfied. Putu Sutha then take one day break before the performance night.

At the preparation room, Putu Sutha is adjusting his outfit while the make up artist doing her job for a simple make up and hair do. For tonight's performance, he choose to wear a brown long sleeve shirt with batik pattern vest combine with maroon trouser and brown fedora hat. He is also take his acoustic guitar with him for tonight's performance. His room door is being knock. One of the stage crew ask him to go to the stage as his performance slot is near.

Putu Sutha accompanied by his manager is following the stage crew walking quite a distance from the preparation room to the stage. He is ask to wait at one the corner on the back stage while the hosts are still talking to the current performer. Putu Sutha is getting nervous as it is his first international performance. The hosts then introduce the next performer which is Putu Sutha. The postcard is being display. The stage goes dark after the postcard display. Putu Sutha walk to the center of the stage while the stage crew are preparing his performance property.

The light suddenly back on as Putu Sutha playing his guitar for the song intro. There are only the head spotlight that shine from above and 2 stage spotlights from his back which gives a glowing aura around him. Camera 1 and 2 give a view from above and shifting to other cameras along the stage to give a circling view of Putu Sutha. The audiences gives a welcoming applause as he begin to sing.

Putu Sutha sing the first verse. He is sitting on a stool gracefully with a guitar on his lap and a microphone attached to his ear for a better movement. The first verse is only accompanied with a simple guitar.

Ku telah terbiasa dalam kesendirian
S'lalu saja ku pendam segala apa yang kurasakan
Disaat engkau datang merangkul tanpa tanya
Tak dapat kulukiskan getaran yang tak pernah ku kira kan ada

The drum give another beat to the music as Putu Sutha begin singing the first bridge. The back lights are also goes on and gives an interchange lights colors. Another stage spotlight give a light descending from above. While Camera 4 took a zoom out to give a wider view. Camera 7 and 8 together give the side view of Putu Sutha.

As he sing the first chorus, the front stage spotlight shine upward, making the stage brighter. Camera 4 moves sideways to give a good look of Putu Sutha. While the other cameras gives a good view of the audiences who is getting moved by the song.

Hadirmu membawa harapan
Buatku selalu bertahan
Walau banyak penghalang yang datang
Kuingat s'lalu ada mu bersama
Membuat ku mampu berjuang

Dan lagu ini persembahan ku dari hati
Tak pernah cukup t'rima kasih yang ku ucapkan
Dan diri ini beruntung dapatkan seorang berarti
Tak terpungkiri
Kaulah satu
Sahabat sejati

The lights getting dimmer as Putu Sutha sing the second verse. The headlights gives a wider light while the back lights still give an interchange lights colors. The other stage lights are off. Camera 5 and 6 gives a wider view of his performance from the side of the stage. While the audience cameras give a good look of how the audiences are getting hook by his performance even though most of them don't understand the lyric.

Pandangan yang berbeda s'lalu saja kan ada
Tak pernah ku hiraukan ejekan yang selalu terdengar
Ku coba tuk bertahan walau hati terluka
Teringat s'mua kata darimu dorongan tuk selalu melangkah, yeah

Camera 4 again show a close up look of Putu Sutha as he sing the second bridge. The backlights dance away following the beat of the music together with the front stage spotlights giving a brighter view. Camera 10 and 12 gives a closer look of the audience who are swaying following the music vibe.

Putu Sutha down from the stool and walk to the front as he sing the second chorus. He walk energetically from side to side as the cameras following his every movements. He still able to control his voice even though he is singing while moving quite fast from side to side which makes the audiences give a round of applause.

Walaupun diriku berbeda
Kau s'lalu kan ada disana
Berikanku segala nasehat
Agar ku dapat selalu bertahan
Jalani hidup ku yang berat

Dan lagu ini ketulusanku ku dari hati
Tak pernah lelah t'rima kasih kan ku ucapkan
Dan diri ini kan berikan sesuatu yang berarti
Karna ku tahu
Kaulah satu
Sahabat sejati

Putu Sutha standing at the center of front stage while he singing the coda. The cameras shifting one to another to give a 360° view of Putu Sutha's close up look. While the lights getting dimmer again to give an intimate atmosphere. The audience are moved by the deep expression from Putu Sutha which is captured by the cameras.

Tak pernah lelah dirimu hadir tuk jadi penyemangat ku
Tak akan kubiarkan siapapun menyakitimu, ku lindungimu
Ku kan menjaga dirimu seperti kau jagaku
Tak kan ada yang jadi gantimu...hu uh...

Putu Sutha hit the high note at the end of the coda clearly as all the lights are back on and the audiences give a round of applause. He sing the last chorus wholeheartedly which send chills to the audience. Camera 4 took a zoom out to give a wider view. Other camera took the view of Putu Sutha from every angle. Camera 9 and 11 also captured the cheering audience for the performance. Until suddenly all the lights are off with only one headlight shine on him. The music also goes off with only the sound of Putu Sutha's acoustic guitar that can be heard.

Dan lagu ini persembahan ku dari hati
Tak pernah lupa segala doa yang kupanjatkan
Dan diri ini kan jadi seorang yang paling berarti
Hanya untukmu
Satu satunya
Sahabat sejati

Camera 4 zoom in to Putu Sutha, giving a close up look of him while he is playing his guitar for the ending. The shoot descending from his face into his guitar until the sound is ended and the lights goes off.

A round of applause can be heard throughout the hall with some of them gives a standing ovation for the performance. The stage lights are lighten back and Putu Sutha is bowing for the positive reaction from the audience. The hosts are coming to the stage. They are giving a quick hug for Putu Sutha and congratulate him for his performance. They wish him a good luck and ask the audience for another applause. Putu Sutha is.bowimg again before turning to the backstage.

At the backstage, he is approaching his manager who give him a big hug and congratulate him for his performance. He feel relieved after the performance. A stage crew then escorted him and his manager back to the preparation room.

by **Kalosia** » Sun Sep 13, 2020 8:29 pm

XX
Kalosia
Arnoud Beumont - "Vivu"
Language(s): Kalosian
Title Translation: Alive
Tune: MIKA - Dear Jealousy
Entry Specifics
Trigramme: KLS
Lyrics: Arnoud Beumont, Nikolo Ferer
Music: Gregoriu Tavolo, Luiž Salvator, Mikel Kartas

Although Radiu-Televižio Kalosia initially announced that there would be some sort of national selection contest for the 54th World Hit Festival, they later announced that the entry was to be internally selected and that a national selection would happen "when it happens" due to a few logistical issues behind the scenes that required time to resolve.

Later, RTVK went ahead and announced that singer and stage actor Arnoud Beumont would represent the island nation at the 54th World Hit Festival in La Cañada, Achaean Republic.

Born in Kafalon on June 6th, 1997, the Cafalonesque singer had always exhibited an interest for the performing arts. Throughout high school, he was very active in theatre productions and went on to study at the University of Kasin, where he graduated in 2018 with a double degree in Theatre Arts and Music. That same year, Arnoud came out as gay. This makes him the first Kalosian WHF act to openly identify as LGBT+ at the time of the contest.

Following the completion of his studies, Arnoud found employment in theatre productions in Kasin, although while writing his own music in his spare time along with his colleagues in the musical theatre scene. He started self-publishing his songs in early 2019, although most of his songs did not receive widespread mainstream attention until recently.

Of course, with productions cancelled or postponed in February, Arnoud was one of many artists in his field that was left with plenty of free time, and like many of his peers, this left him with time to pursue personal projects, although many of his colleagues looked for temporary employment in non-artistic fields, and some even did both. Most theatre performers in Kasin, including Arnoud, were lucky enough to be temporarily subsidised by the Kasin Council of Fine Arts. In this period, Arnoud was able to focus on his musical projects, and he and some colleagues wrote together this piece called "Vivu".

Vivu loosely translates to 'alive' (which is the artistically-chosen official translation of this title, although literally it is "I live"). The song is quite philosophical, pondering upon what it means to be alive, what it means to have a purpose. The song concludes with Arnoud declaring that he does, in fact, have a purpose. Being openly gay, perhaps this could also be interpreted as being a song of accepting one's true self as well. References to the performing arts backgrounds of Arnoud and the other songwriters are made as well throughout the song, and so could make a wonderful piece for a musical theatre production.

Such a production, however, would take much more hard work than a few guys with some free time could do during a pandemic. So they submitted it to RTVK to be considered for the World Hit Festival.

With restrictions gradually being relaxed, Arnoud traveled to La Cañada with a larger than previous delegation, including 4 backing singers who were also theatrical artists in their own right. With their experience in theatre production, they are able to put for us quite the show.

Arnoud was drawn to perform after the Scotatrovian act Maria Flauírnse. She had performed a rather lowkey track, and the contrast between the rather chill entry with Kalosia's dramatic number allowed both songs to stand out in their own right. Fans hoped that the energy that Arnoud would server on stage would make the song stand out and attract the attention of millions of voters from across the multiverse.

As the postcard came to an end, the stage was dark. The camera started off at the top of the stage, where, at the same time Arnoud sang the opening line of the song, text appeared.

Who am I? In life, here I am.

As the text faded, the camera then moved downwards to reveal a 3-walled enclosure similar to this (but without the art — it was plain white). Kneeling at the bottom of it, with a spotlight shining on him, was Arnoud.

Ťiz san ja?
Ula vitë, ki sto ja

As he sung the next part, we could see that he was wearing a white denim jacket on top of a black t-shirt and white pair of pants. If you looked closely you could notice a rainbow wristband on his right arm, a subtle declaration of his identity.

Komuz pošu ja
Seľerë komë la mareá?
Në lašeru la notë
A kontrolarë mi

Slowly, Arnoud got up, the camera moving up following him as he did so. The atmosphere was rather cautious and quite tense, with the relative emptiness of sensory stimulation leaving viewers to focus on the main thing going on stage, i.e. Arnoud.

Komuz pošu ja
Dormirë komë la nevë?
Në mi lašeru a skoľerë
E diventa nintë

Now it switched to camera 4, which circled the stage in this next part. As that happened, while Arnoud held the mic in his left hand, on his right he started snapping to the rhythm, and while that was happening the background lights, in red, were flashing in sync. As we got a wider view of the stage, audiences at home got to see that as of right now, it was just Arnoud on stage, alone in that semi-box.

Ma esëz lo aše, aše ad ešisterë?
Komë li milioni di stele u ťelu
Ja voľu anki a briľarë

He continued to snap to the rhythm until the second line of the next part, at which a camera closed up on him as he stood there, looking into the camera with determination.

Ed au ja, au ja, au un skopu
Perki vivu ja di kestu motu
Lo es “facio ergo sum”

The camera quickly zoomed out and excitedly, Arnoud jumped a little forward (though not too much as to leave his little box). As the chorus kicked in he became quite energetic, grooving to the beat. At the same time, the lights in the background were also flashing to the beat and overall being as energetic as both Arnoud and the song was. He also made some gestures as he sang, for example retracting his right hand, forming it into a fist and bringing it over his heart as he sang the second line. The backing singers also make their first appearance here, at the end of the last line, although they are only heard and not seen. At this point they are hidden out of sight, although they will not merely be static for the whole performance — you'll see.

Vivu ula luž e u l’oskurita
Vivu ula vož di mia identita
Vivu pela gwerë e serenita
Ja vivu (E ki sto ja)

When the chorus kicked in above, the stage was illuminated in a mixture of red and white, although red dominated. Here, it is the case too. Honestly, one could imagine the scene as something akin to Benjamin Ingrosso's May 2018 performance of Dance You Off, just without the lights in the wall directly behind, in this case, Arnoud. There were indeed a few camera angle switches, but all of them kept a close eye on Arnoud, closing up on him or at least showing no more than the waist up.

Kantu komë li eki traversu la notë
Baľu kola lunë ula primaverë
Amu le poéme uv oñë šenë
Ja vivu

As the song transitions into the first post-chorus, the stage becomes slightly dimmer as red lights dominate the stage illumination, although the stage isn't exactly dark. In the next part Arnoud sings that his passion is a treasure, no wonder his eyes light up and he sings passionately with emotion. His years studying theatre and acting sure paid off! He continues to dance to the beat and make gestures that somewhat reflect what he sings, for example wide arms when he sings that the whole world is a stage.

Tudo lë mondu es un, balku,
E pašio mia es un tesoru
E oñë žornu ja dakordu mi kë vivu ja
E kë ki sto ja

It's almost like he's getting carried away by the energy of this song — even his legs are shuffling left and right! In the second line of the next part he extends his hand towards the camera and after he sings that line, talking about how life isn't a mistake when you are there to smile, Arnoud winks flirtatiously.

E kestë vitë n’es un, spaľu,
Kadë tu daj mi un sorisu
E oñë žornu ja dakordu mi kë vivu ja
E kë ki sto ja

As we return to the calmer verse, the lights stop being as energetic as they were, opting to be static. Likewise, Arnoud briefly froze before making movements that were slower, much more cautious than before.

Komuz pošu ja
Abandonarë soñi moji?
La vitë n’es una prova
Ma lo es lë gran final

And then again he started to snap to the beat, and so did the lights. Slowly, that tension was being rebuilt. Slowly, that climax was returning.

Ma esëz lo aše, aše, aše a soñarë?
Komë li milioni di stele u ťelu
Ja voľu anki a briľarë

Again, Arnoud stopped snapping at the end of the first line of the next part. As he sings the remaining two lines, he looks deeply into the camera with a smirk on his face.

Ed au ja, au ja, au un skopu
Perki vivu ja di kestë motu
Lo es “facio ergo sum”

Quickly and rapidly, the close-up camera whooshes away, switching to a medium shot angle not too far away from Arnoud. The lights are back in its full red-and-white dynamic excitement, and the camera angles too are dynamic and moving. Once again, Arnoud was grooving to the beat very energetically, allowing his entire body — shoulders, arms, feet, etc — to move and experience the energy of the song.

Vivu ula luž e u l’oskurita
Vivu ula vož di mia identita
Vivu pela gwerë e serenita
Ja vivu (E ki sto ja)

But of course Arnoud had to be passionate. After all, isn't this song about his passion for life? Trying to prove to us that he's alive, of course he needs to be lively! In fact, in this next part, he sings that he laughs at the face of tragedy, that he cries to feel human, and that he wants to show the whole world who he is. And this performance is him, showing the whole world who he is.

Ridu di tude moje tražedié
Planǧu per sentirë mi humano
Mošu tudo lë mondu ťi san ja
Ja vivu

As the song transitions back into the post-chorus, the stage doesn't really become any dimmer. Red lights continue to dominate the stage illumination although there are white lights as well. Arnoud continues to sing passionately with emotion while he dances to the beat and again makes gestures that match the energy and meaning behind this song. He sings that the world is a stage, but honestly? This stage is his world right now.

Tudo lë mondu es un, balku,
E pašio mia es un tesoru
E oñë žornu ja dakordu mi kë vivu ja
E kë ki sto ja

Arnoud is pouring his heart out and giving it all in for this performance of a lifetime. It is for moments like this that he stays alive, as he declares to the world: "Every day I remind myself that I'm alive and I am here."

E kestë vitë n’es un, spaľu,
Kadë tu daj mi un sorisu
E oñë žornu ja dakordu mi kë vivu ja
E kë ki sto ja

Briefly, the lights fade out and at the same moment the camera fades to black transitioning into a close up of Arnoud. There is a single spotlight on him as he begins the middle eight.

Ki sto ja!
Ula vitë, ťiz san ja?
Ja në lašeru li altri
Kontrolarë soñu miu (Oh, vivu ja)

Slowly, the camera zooms out slightly. Arnoud is more energetic and more emotional than ever, that it wouldn't be surprising if he were to break into tears by the end of this song. Towards the end of this next part, one might notice that the walls appear to be moving, as if slowly falling.

Ki sto ja!
Semprë meľu, semprë novu
Oñë žornu, oñë minuto
Sto kañandu, vivu ja (Oh, vivu ja)

Switching to Camera 4 as it circles the stage, you could see that the walls were indeed slowly falling as can be seen in the depiction above, uncovering the four (female) backing singers wearing white, almost ecclesiastical robes, standing in a semi-circle on the stairs at the back of the stage, harmonising using voice filters that make it sound as if an entire choir was backing Arnoud. Spotlights were shining dramatically on each of them. This right here was the climatic moment of the song, giving millions of viewers across the multiverse goosebumps as Arnoud declares to the world: "Here I am and here is my voice!"

Ki sto ja!
Ki sta vož mia!
Perki vivu di miu koru
Di mia identita (Oh, vivu ja)

And finally Arnoud resolves that he will show the world who he is — just like he's been doing here, on the La Cañada stage. With nothing to hold him back, Arnoud gives the audience his all as the middle eight reaches its end. Right after singing the last line, Arnoud runs and jumps off of the half-box that he had been in for the past 3 minutes, signifying that he was breaking free from the chains that had bound him, from the limitations of the world that stopped him from showing the universe that he is who he is, and that he was here to stay.

Ki sto ja!
Kapiskiz tu, ki sto ja?
E mošeru tudo lë mondu
Kë kestu es ťi san ja

With the full view of the stage uncovered, the ever-vibrant lights were now supported by the LED background, that was showing a red-black gradient that repeatedly swept the screen (similar to the ESC performances of Bulgaria in 2016 and Sweden in 2019). Arnoud was again carried away by the beat, shuffling his feet, moving every limb, throwing in some shoulder movements and hand gestures, and grooving to the rhythm.

Tudo lë mondu es un, balku,
E pašio mia es un tesoru
E oñë žornu ja dakordu mi kë vivu ja
E kë ki sto ja

Overall, Arnoud having a wonderful time. He may be performing in a "cave" but he has tore down the walls that held him back, be it the the doors of his closet, the barriers of Kalosian LGBT+ representation at the World Hit Festival, or even the literal walls that were lowered a few moments ago as part of the performance. As the post-chorus continued, Arnoud took the liberty of taking a few steps around the front of the stage, roaming around the edge, surrounded by audience members reaching out their hands toward him. He does at some point extend his hand, acknowledging them and interacting with these World Hit Festival fans from all over the multiverse. Towards the end of the next part though, he quickly dashes back to the space of the "box" where he was during the first 3 minutes of the performance.

E kestë vitë n’es un, spaľu,
Kadë tu daj mi un sorisu
E oñë žornu ja dakordu mi kë vivu ja
E kë ki sto ja

Once Arnoud gets there, he turns around quickly and then slowly kneels, bringing him back to the beginning of the performance. The background screen turns off and the stage lights dim too, save for a white spotlight on Arnoud, giving the atmosphere a darkly glowing red aura. Camera Z, located in front of the center of the stage (in respect to its position on the rails), starts off the next part with a wide shot but zooms in towards Arnoud, eventually getting close enough where we can see his face clearly. It's just him alone now delivering the final couple of lines to the song, the same way he did when he began this song.

Tudo lë mondu es un, balku,
E pašio mia es un tesoru
E oñë žornu ja dakordu mi kë vivu ja
E kë ki sto ja

As the song ends, he can be seen giving a confident and satisfied smirk. He killed it! The audience went wild, cheering for him as the venue lights came back on. He got up, took a bow, and then took a few steps forward while saying: "Here I am — this is who I am! Thank you Achaea! I love you! ¡Muchas gracias!"

A few moments later, Arnoud exits the stage as crew come to unload the large panels to clear the stage for the setup of The Fall and The Rise, the next act to perform, representing Teesdexxia.

by **Fromulya** » Sun Sep 13, 2020 8:34 pm

XX
Fromulya
Cut Aisyah Nurramadhani - "Ihsan"
Language(s): Indonesian (Standard)
Tune: Mauvais Œil - Mektoub
Entry Specifics
Trigramme: FRM
Lyrics: Cut Aisyah Nurramadhani
Music: Teuku Imran Abdiansyah

When Fromulya qualified to the grand final of the 53rd World Hit Festival in Bovingdon, Britonisea, it took many by surprise. Indeed, the ballad was quite typical of what Fromulya would send, only to flop time and time again. What was different this time, and how could Fromulya — far from being a fan favourite — qualify from a semifinal considered more competitive?

Some may argue that it was the influx of culturally-similar nations, such as North Alezia and Eraman, whose populations share similar music tastes to the Fromulyans. While this may be true in explaining the relatively successful result Fromulya gained during the final, many of these nations competed in the other semifinal, and thus were unable to vote Fromulya into qualification. Perhaps there was just something about the performance on that fateful night in Bovingdon that touched the hearts of the millions of voters around the multiverse.

Well, after the delegation returned from Bovingdon, the bosses at TVRF were rather intrigued at how to follow up with that result. After some intensive searching and lobbying, they managed to enlist producer Teuku Imran Abdiansyah to engage in the task of writing a track that showcases Fromulyan culture in a way that is up to international standards. And he did just that.

Teuku Imran hails from Pasai Darussalam, a province of Fromulya known for its considerable cultural influence from lands it has historically traded with. Merchants from Arabic ports, and Sanskrit-speaking traders, all saw Pasai as the gateway to trade with the rest of Fromulya. In the song he wrote for the World Hit Festival, Teuku Imrah takes this into consideration, with hopes that this kind of sound would be more accessible to foreign audiences.

He was given the freedom by TVRF to propose suitable singers, and he made a point to only nominate voices native to the region. Eventually, fellow Pasaian musician Cut Aisyah Nurramadhani was selected to represent the republic at the World Hit Festival. Originally, the working title of the song was "Sulaiman", and the song was in praise of the Prophet Solomon, sending the message that humanity today ought to take example from the figure. However, despite Cut Aisyah's agreement with the message, she found the lyrics to be unsuitable for an international competition, and was able to negotiate that the lyrics be changed with her own written lines.

Thus, the Fromulyan entry is titled "Ihsan", which is a common male name in Fromulya, but which etymologically means "the best". Cut Aisyah sings about how she wants to win Ihsan's heart, but it can be also interpreted that she wants to win "the best heart" for herself. It is not clear whether there is an identity behind the titular character, but some speculate that it might be a domestically-known celebrity or even a boy in the neighbourhood where Cut Aisyah lives.

Following its release, the track became a minor hit within the country, although the WHF performance is expected to draw attention to the song both domestically and internationally, and the result it gets in La Cañada may determine its fate on the Fromulyan charts. So let's talk about that.

The Fromulyan delegation sough to go big, hoping that there was a larger momentum going on in regards to its WHF results and that, if pulled off well, the entry may be well received in the eyes of the world. During rehearsals, critics — particularly those more familiar with the different song contests and festivals of the world — compared the performance to Sertab Erener's May 2003 performance of her song Every Way That I Can in Riga, Latvia.

For the big night, Cut Aisyah was wearing a traditional-inspired dress fit for a bride, also seen below.

Fromulya was drawn as the penultimate act, performing right after Lilou from Normandy & Picardy. Cut Aisyah was too busy preparing for her own performance to pay attention to the performance preceding her, but she did see clips of the performance and was well aware of how dramatic it was. How do compete with such a deeply touching performance? But Cut Aisyah was determined to give her all, hopefully getting people back on their feet with her track.

As the postcard finished playing, the stage was dark. As the song began playing, some lights dimly lit the stage in gold illumination, particularly the singer. The camera was also zoomed in on Cut Aisyah, starting from the bottom and slowly working its way up towards the head. As soon as we could see her face, she started singing.

Oh for the record, the first word of the singer's name starts with a ch- sound and rhymes with the English word soot.

Dalam berpasangan, kita mencari isyarat

The camera quickly and dramatically zoomed out, and the lights began becoming more active and dynamic.

Yang ditinggal oleh mereka

Now the camera angles begin to change but are still at a considerably close distance to Cut Aisyah, who continues to carry the song with a smile, knowing that she's about to impress the world.

Terlahir fasih bicara bahasa qalbu
Kita sendiri memaknai cinta

Now the lights dimmed again, but this time the camera slowly panned up close to what seemed to be some people kneeling still. The tension was building in the arena, but all was to be unveiled soon.

And then the chorus broke out. The stage became fully illuminated again, and the camera, which continued to focus on those people, showed that they were in fact dancers performing a traditional dance (see gif above).

Bagaikan kain, hati penuh sulaman
Dengan namamu, kau lelaki idaman
Kebaikanmu, tanpa imbalan
Ku sangat ingin memenangkan hati Ihsan

Now the camera switched to shots of other backing performers on stage performing instruments. They took a band setup similar to that in a qasidah performance, though the clothes they were wearing were rather similar to the dancers. They were scattered throughout the stage, and the camera closed up on them one by one, at an intimate angle that highlighted the quality of music that Fromulya was presenting this edition.

As we return to the verse, the camera shows Cut Aisyah as she takes a few steps around the stage, singing this next part. We get to see here what the background screens looked like — the centre pentagonal piece displayed a gold sketch of Pasai Darussalam's Great Mosque on a black background, while all the other screens displayed sketches of the region's traditional architectural style, particularly the distinctive roof designs, also in gold on a black background.

Terik hari, sejuk malam
Dan perasaan itu ada
Kita ungkap yang di dalam
Hal yang tak bisa kita raba

Cut Aisyah comes to a stop but the song continues to build. She sings her words quite poetically, from the bottom of her heart for sure (she wrote them and all that). In the last line of the next part, everything seems to pause for a second as Cut Aisyah declares, "yes, this is love!"

Yang hilang dalam perkataan
Muncul di dalam perbuatan
Inilah pembuktian diri
Betulkah ini cinta? Sungguh ada!

Now Cut Aisyah can be seen grooving to the beat as she is singing. Various members of the audience can be seen getting up and dancing along to the song.

Bagaikan kain, hati penuh sulaman
Dengan namamu, kau lelaki idaman
Kebaikanmu, tanpa imbalan
Ku sangat ingin memenangkan hati Ihsan

Now the camera switched to wider shots, panning across the whole stage, showing the audience enjoying the song, and showing Cut Aisyah dancing along to the beat as well. The dancers continued doing their thing. The dance they were doing had many moves, as you can see below, so there was never a dull or overly repetitive moment with them.
At the same time, several shots and panning of the audience is shown, with members of the crowd seen dancing to the song, particularly fans from countries whose music is culturally similar, though all kinds of fans were in on the fun. Finally, the dancers were shown once again, but suddenly they all brought their bodies to their thighs (reminiscent of prostration) and the lights seem to go out.

In this next part, the lights were indeed dim, except for a spotlight on Cut Aisyah. A camera from far away gradually zoomed in on Aisyah as she continued to sing, and as the tension in the arena continued to build.

Hasrat yang ada padaku semakin ada
Bagai air pasang yang tak kunjung reda
Kau tak seperti yang lain, kau berbeda
Kaulah lelaki yang sangat istimewa

A single shot of pyrotechnics erupted from the perimeters of the stage and then all the lights came back on. Cut Aisyah continued to dance around the stage, gradually making her way to the back of it, to behind where the backing singers were. Speaking of them, the backing singers now resumed their dancing, and one may notice that their moves were now more relaxed as the initial nervousness they may have had faded away, leaving on the stage some very proud and excited dancers.

Bagaikan kain, hati penuh sulaman
Dengan namamu, kau lelaki idaman
Kebaikanmu, tanpa imbalan
Ku sangat ingin memenangkan hati Ihsan

As the song reached its home run, there was more excitement than ever among all the performers on stage. Throughout this part, Cut Aisyah made her way behind the dancers. After the last line of this last part, Cut Aisyah was behind the dancers. The former finished singing, the latter stopped dancing, and they all struck a pose. Likewise, the backing musicians stopped playing as well. The camera which showed an angle in front of them dramatically zoomed out and another shot of pyrotechnics shot out the perimeter of the stage.

Bagaikan kain, hati penuh sulaman
Dengan namamu, kau lelaki idaman
Kebaikanmu, tanpa imbalan
Ku sangat ingin memenangkan hati Ihsan

The crowd went wild. After a few seconds, the dancers got up, they all formed a line (with Cut Aisyah in the middle) and held hands as they took a bow. Cut Aisyah brought the mic to her face and said to the audience: "Thank you Achaean Republic! Muchas gracias from Fromulya!" and then all the performers promptly left, with grins on all their faces, so that the stage could be set up for the next entrant. There was only one entry left to go. As Sivartti Yataroo and Hajimee Heikkinen from Tödlichebujoku walked onstage, Cut Aisyah and her entourage walked off with a sense of accomplishment.

They did themselves — and Fromulya — proud, for sure.

by **Skanden** » Sun Sep 13, 2020 8:41 pm

XX
Skanden
Caterina Marza - "Intrattienimi"
Language(s): Italian, Spanish, Swedish
Title Translation: Entertain me
Tune: Rainych - Iwanai no
Entry Specifics
Trigramme: SKN
Lyrics: Fernando Giulianotti, Giacomo Ferrero, Santiago di Mariá
Music: Alessandro Paggi, Cristoforo Ladini, Paolo Benedetto

Caterina Marza is a 19-year old singer and model hailing from the Italian-speaking regions of Skanden. Her modelling career started at the age of 16 and throughout the years she has become yet another social media influencer. With the advent of short video sharing platforms in the past few years, she herself joined and became popular there, a "tick-tock star" as you hear some kids say.

She... has only recently become a singer. After uploading a few videos of herself singing in her room while playing a ukulele, the posts got decent reception and she got herself signed with a label. She has done a few covers of songs, but the song we're about to hear is, in fact, her first original song.

The song was initially released as a single, with no connection to any song competition. It was a minor summer hit in the Italian-speaking parts of Skanden. Originally, the song was entirely in Italian, with a few words in English and French during the rap verse.

Building off on the momentum of this song's relative success, her record label was able to lobby Skandens Television into sending her to the World Hit Festival. Since SKT Italiano was the only branch interested in fielding a contestant, she was able to win the ticket to La Cañada without a hitch.

It was decided that, since she was representing the Union of Skanden at a prestigious international event, she ought to do so accordingly. Two of the choruses were changed into Swedish, the federal language of Skanden, as a result. Because the host country of the festival spoke Spanish — a language that is also spoken in Skanden — the lyricists of the original Italian version invited their colleague Santiago di Marià to change parts of the song into Spanish as well, in an attempt to please the local population.

As a result, the song is performed mainly in Italian with lines in Spanish and Swedish, and with a few words in English and French. This makes it Skanden's most multilingual entry since Një Këngë Fituesi at WHF30. Although this was never revealed to the press, Caterina was not very familiar with these languages and dreaded having to relearn the lyrics. The language-switching was a particular annoyance; it took her several tries to nail the transition from Italian to Swedish and back into Italian. Frankly, she's still nervous about it and is worried she won't be able to pull it off during the grand final. Nevertheless, she was publicly very positive about her opportunity to travel to La Cañada for such a big event.

For the big night, Caterina is joined by 4 female backing performers wearing white swimsuits. She herself is wearing a metallic, almost chromatic bathing suit, making her the star of the show. To complete the look, Caterina and the backing performers are all wearing shades, although Caterina's pair is rose-tinted and has heart-shaped frames.

Skanden was drawn to perform 16th, following the entry from North Alezia. As Lisa Ammah-Andrews got of the stage, Caterina Marza walked on. It was her time to shine.

As the postcard came to an end, Caterina took a deep breath. This was it. In the dark, she took her place, sitting on a white poolside lounge chair. There were 5 of them lined up in the middle of the stage, with Caterina taking the middle one and on both sides, 2 backing performers took one each. These backing performers were backing singers, but all the performers on stage had choreographed moves. Because all of them were wearing headsets rather than holding handheld mics, the backing performers came off as backing dancers who sing rather than backing singers who move.

As the song began, the lights came on, bathing the stage in a purple, turquoise, and bright orange illumination. The background LED screens displayed 80s-style patterns as well as palm trees, all in that same colour scheme. There was a very 80s feel to it, though it was rather in line with current trends, as there seems to be an ongoing revival of 80s pop cultural styles.

The camera was rather blurry at first, so you could only see an array of colours, but gradually as the intro progressed the camera unblurred and, just in time for her to start singing, you could eventually see Caterina, looking straight into the camera, holding an opened book in hand. The book was a pretty pastel pink, although that did not matter as much in the grander scheme of things.

È un giorno altro
Sotto lo sole stesso
Ed io sto annoiata
Intrattienimi

Gradually, the camera zoomed out, introducing the audience watching at home to the backing performers, and showing the full staging of the entry. The performers were pretending to read into books of their own, whose covers were also pastel and consistent with the overall aesthetic of this staging.

Vieni a baciarmi
Qui a bordo piscina
E perché tu non vieni
A compiacermi

Of course, the camera did not stop here. Camera 4 slowly rolled down the stage's perimeter, encapsulating the general lazy summer mood that this song was trying to convey. When it eventually changed to other camera angles, they typically were non-static, moving angles. But because these angles moved so slowly, they weren't exactly dynamic, or at least what one images to be dynamic.

Bajo el sol sediento
El dia esta cansado
Y estoy aburrida
Entretenerme

¿Porque no me besas?
Y dame manos esas
Tocando mis caderas
Y complaceme

Caterina promptly closed her book, sat up, and sang into the camera, using a medium shot on her as she got up on her feet.

Sembra molto tempo fa
(Come un anno)
Quando mi hai mostrato
Il tuo corpo grande

She put her book down on her lounge chair. The camera changed angles and you could see that the backing performers had followed suit, getting up, and were mimicking her moves. Caterina slowly walked forward, leaving the chairs behind, and her girls followed suit.

E l’estate è stata
(Oh, tanto così)
Come una casa vuota
Senza fiato e senza vita

They continued walking to the front of the stage, slowly and relaxedly. Caterina had to relax, even if her nerves wanted her to do otherwise. Weirdly enough, she was. With so much going on, it made no sense to try to process the fact that millions of people from across the multiverse had their eyes on her. It was enough for her to simply focus on the song.

Che cosa voglio che abbiamo?
Cosa vuoi tu? Lo possiamo
Fare liscia come le labbra tue
Ancora per un po’

Starting the last line of the last part, she rapidly made some dance moves, bringing us back into the chorus. For this chorus, the choreography was rather fast-paced. It involved her swaying her hips, shaking her glutes, twisting her legs, and turning her upper body in various ways that made for a rather catchy routine.

È un giorno altro
Sotto lo sole stesso
Ed io sto annoiata
Intrattienimi

It was so catchy that, if you were watching at home and had kids or young children at home, they'd probably be tempted to attempt to mimic the dance moves themselves. Of course, the simplicity of catchiness of the dance moves was intentional — how else was it to become viral on social media? The song was actually written with that in mind, and as soon as it was released this was how Caterina promoted her song — by doing this particular set of choreography in different locations — her house, the airport, Corola, even the caves of La Cañada — and sharing these videos to social media, challenging others to do the same wherever they are. And now, she was repeating them on the World Hit Festival stage itself, a bigger platform that a social media star could possibly achieve on their own.

Vieni a baciarmi
Qui a bordo piscina
E perché tu non vieni
A compiacermi

Now for the Swedish part. Caterina had tried not to worry too much about this transition. At this point she was quite used to it. In broken Swedish, with the same kind of accent someone unaccustomed to the language would have, here she goes:

Under den grå himlen
Den skiner inte solen
Och jag är så uttråkad
Underhålla mig

Hey, not bad! And to think she has to pull this off while repeating the same dance moves... safe to say, people who weren't aware of this language change were impressed, particularly those who understood was she was saying. Well, Caterina kept going. She has one more verse in Swedish before an even more intimidating transition. But she got this. As long as she went with the flow and relax, it won't be a big deal.

Ge mig dina armar
I alla dina kramar
Är jag nån som du vill ha?
Så kom rör mig nu

With confidence, Caterina took a step forward as she switched gears again and started rapping mainly in Italian. She turns to her right, walking to the left (audience's left) of the stage, with a camera zooming in on her from that direction. She raps directly into the camera, and with the angle closing up, we don't get to see what's going on onstage, or what the backing performers are doing.

Fammi portare questi bicchieri
Gioca la tua magia just like this
Ho una bottiglia alta di vino
Voglio io bere il tuo dolce, dolce gusto

I have to say, it does look like Caterina is starting to have fun on stage. She kinda looked like she was at the club, grooving to the beat. At this point, she stopped walking and looked ahead at the audience. Her voice reflected poise, yet her bold gestures emitted sass.

Like it, love it, questo è
Un amore più grande
Boy, stop playing, prendimi
Togliti la timidezza

Now she turned back and walked towards the opposite direction, back to the center of the stage. A camera was looking at her in the direction she was facing too, just like earlier. Caterina's energy was definitely building up here, as she continued to nail the rap verse, giving the entry the oomph it needed.

Shut it, stop it, scusami
Sfogati, mon bel ami
Say to me now, I’m your woman
Non avere i rimpianti

As Caterina arrived in the center of the stage, she looked forward. Two of the dancers came to her carrying a white bathrobe, which she put on. The backing dancers then went back. The camera zoomed out, and now we saw a completely different set. Towards the end of the next part she kept singing but turned back and walked to what awaited her.

Tutto va bene quando I have you with me
Dammi un sorriso e balla con me
Can’t you see I’m sad perché il cielo è grigio?
Ma ho bisogno solo di te, ragazzo

So it was a scarlet fainting couch/chaise longue/divan, surrounded closely with fake indoor plants (like this), but spray painted in gold, creating a super luxurious feel. The lights were no longer heavily tinted, illuminating the stage well, while the background showed a chromatic texture similar to the colour(s) of Caterina's swimsuit.

Caterina and her performers did the iconic dance once again.

È un giorno altro
Sotto lo sole stesso
Ed io sto annoiata
Intrattienimi

Vieni a baciarmi
Qui a bordo piscina
E perché non tu vieni
A compiacermi

Caterina went and lay down on the chair, posing as if she was at one of her many photoshoots. The backing dancers surrounded her like servants. At this point there wasn't much movement except for the dynamic camera angles. It reflected well on the general lazy mood of the song, but it was also as if Caterina was saying to her lover: "What are you waiting for? Come on in, entertain me!"

Dia esta cansado
Y estoy abburida

¿Porque no me besas?
Tocando mis caderas
Y complaceme

With Caterina no longer having to focus on anymore movements, she could relax and focus on her vocals.

Ooh… hoo hoo…
Huh huh, huh huh, huh hu~h
Ooh… hoo hoo…
Huh huh, huh huh, huh hu~h

The stage lights started to dim, and a camera zoomed in on Caterina from the front of the stage.

Ed sto annoiata
Sotto lo stesso sole
Y estoy abburida
Entretenerme

By now the LED screen was off too, and in terms of illumination there was this blue tint to the stage. The audience sensed that the song was coming to an end, so they all cheered for her. Caterina, hearing this reaction, grinned as she finished off with the final vocalizations of her song.

Na nana~
Huh huh, huh huh, huh hu~h

Aaaaand cut! The song was over, the audience cheered, and Caterina got up. So did her backing performers — they formed a line. Caterina waved excitedly towards the audience and blew kisses at them. "Grazie mille! Thank you very much! I love you!" Caterina exclaimed. With Lilou from Normandy & Picardy coming up to perform next, she and her girls promptly left the stage as the set was to be changed.

Caterina breathed out a sigh of relief. Not only was her performance over, but — bar the highly unlikely possibility that she won — Caterina will never have to perform this multilingual monstrosity ever again. As an Italian speaker, she was very happy with sticking to just one language.

by **Malta Comino Gozo** » Mon Sep 14, 2020 4:15 am

XX
Malta Comino Gozo
BRADLEY GAUCI - "YOU"
Language(s): English
Tune: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uKXLwcIXlqo The Cool Quest - Temporary
Entry Specifics
Trigramme: MCG
Lyrics: BRADLEY GAUCI
Music: BRADLEY GAUCI

Bradley Gauchi was born in Gozo in Malta Comino Gozo. He is 32 years old and is a professional model, singer and Instagram sensation. As a model, he landed the cover of Lewin magazine and was scouted by the prestigious Malta Comino Gozoan Elite Model Management. He is a keen singer and has had mild success in his home islands and is a popular singer and club goer. Having released 3 singles in the past his previous hit singles, Dial me, Shirtless and These Looks aren't Just For Show, have all achieved top 5 successful across the country as well as charting in various Top 40's oversees.
He is more famous oversees for his modelling work. His rippled physique and looks attracting the attention of everyone.

Bradley and the Malta Comino Gozoan delegation took the long 12 hour flight to The Achaean Republic. The nation was a long time friend of Malta Comino Gozo with the two nations being allies and well known friends in the music universe. The team flew two weeks before the competiion and had a few days to get over the jet lag. The landed in the stunning city of Corola before taking a coach to La Cañada mid morning. The team spent most of the long flight sleeping. It was a scorching day and the beautiful limestone buildings glistened in the heat. In this heat even the trees appear defeated. Leaves that should be firm and upward tilting droop, flaccid as old lettuce. Mid September in Achaean Republic were the months of subtropical heat waves, shockingly humid afternoons and soulful melodies of cicadas. The heat would bounce off the streets, and cause an illusion of wavering images. They were one of those days when a neckerchief wasn't such a bad idea – a day when the perspiration would surface on your forehead, your cheeks, the bridge of your nose, and run in rivulets down your face until you became sodden. They were one of those days when even the well turned-out dandies could not conceal the massive sweat pits on their sophisticated dress shirts. Furthermore, they were one of those days where every single bird, leaf, cloud and town inhabitant would succumb to the dastardly talons of indolence. Bradleys pink t-shirt clung to his muscles. He and the team made their way to the lovely luxury hotel. They would spend the next few day checking out the sights and rehearsing.

The postcard ended. The cheers cooled down. The camera has a bright 80s style filter on it, creating a retro but playful atmosphere. The camera steadily pans downwards onto Bradley who is stood mid stage. He has a drummer back right and guitarist back left and 2 baking singers one male one female. He's wearing a white summer shirt and pink chino shorts and loathers. His hair is gelled high like in the above pictures. He has some stubble. He has a big smile on his face. The background is a cartoony clear blue sky with a bright green grass bottom. There is a small tree to the left that gently rocks in the breeze. He is tapping his foot to the beat as the camera pans down. As he sings "Uhh" he briefly looks to the camera on his his left and nods once, before turning back to face the camera facing head on again. As he sings "be" he briefly looks to the camera on his his right and nods once, before turning back to face the camera facing head on again.

Words can't say how you thrill me
Uhh
Words can't say
How sweet it will be, be
You and I together in the park

He sings with passion to the front facing camera. He shakes his finger in front of his face before turning to face a camera on his right and waving.

Words can't say say say say say
How you take me
Words can't say say say say say
How you take me

The background changes to a a giant kissing lips before changing to a pulsating yellow speakers. They vibrate along. He whips the mic out of the microphone stand as the camera pans out and follows him as he playfully moves to the right side of the stage. He points to the camera before spinning on the spot and walking with glee in his step to the left hand side of the stage

So lets just kiss again
Your tasty lips touching mine
How it makes me feel
You and I
You and I together in the night

Bradley jumps up and down to the beat throwing his free hand around and does some up and down dolphin motions with his hands while grinning to the camera. He makes his way back to the centre stage. There is a aerial shots of main stage, audience and LED back screen.

So lets just kiss again
Your tasty lips touching mine
How it makes me feel
You and I
You and I together in the dark

The camera cuts back to close shot of Bradley as he mimes a heat beating. The background spawns more grass and flowers as the scene becomes more colourful. The camera cuts to a few shots of the stage the drummer and guitarist. It then cuts to the backing singers who raise their arms out in front as the sing.

Words can't say how my heart beats
Words can't say
How your hands teach
You and I
In the park after dark

The camera cuts to a view of Bradley and the backing singers who raise their arms out in front as the sing. He then runs his hand over his hair and winks as he sings "How you soothe soothe soothe me".

How you soothe soothe soothe me
Words can't say
You'll never leave me me me
You and I
Lovers in the park

The special effect camera shows various summer objects floating around such a cocktail, a coconut and a palm tree. The background is a neon pink. Bradley spins slowly on the spot looking upwards before gently swaying playfully before he jumps up and down to the beat as the chorus hits throwing his free hand around and does some up and down dolphin motions with his hands while grinning to the camera. He makes his way back to the centre stage. There is a aerial shots of main stage, audience and LED back screen.

So lets just kiss again
Your tasty lips are touching mine
How it makes me feel
You and I
You and I together in the dark

The 80's filter fades and Bradley marches to the right following the camera as it backs out. He is grinning. He bops up and down to the beat. He then crouches slightly and makes his way back to the middle. The background to a a giant kissing lips before changing to a pulsating yellow speakers. The backing singers dance up and down. Bradley points in left and right to the cameras and the suddenly a lady walks in shot from the left, (Its his real life girlfriend.) in a pink flowery summer dress. She is smiling. Bradley stretches a hand out towards her ad she playfully walks towards him. Bradley sings towards her sensually.

So lets just kiss again
Your tasty lips are touching mine
How it makes me feel
You and I
You and I together in the dark

He takes her by the hand and the pair spin and dance before he bends her right over at the end of the song suspending her near the ground and kisses her on the lips.

So lets just kiss again
Your tasty lips are touching mine
How it makes me feel
You and I
You and I together in the dark

The crowd erupts with cheers! "Thank you!!" Achaea he screams. Flags can be seen waving frantically and excitedly as the team walk of stage.

by **Normandy and Picardy** » Mon Sep 14, 2020 4:33 pm

XX
Normandy and Picardy
Lilou - "J'ai le droit aussi"
Language(s): Normand French
Title Translation: I have the right too
Tune: Yseult - "Corps"
Entry Specifics
Trigramme: NPR
Lyrics: Lilou Bassala
Music: Lilou Bassala

The album cover for Lilou's most recent album, "Des larmes, ce sont pas suffisantes" (Tears are not enough), from which her WHF entry is taken

As the title of her most recent album, seen above, might suggest, life has not been handed on a plate to Lilou Bassala. The pure expressions of pain, loss, confusion, and the smallest twinkling light of hope, breaking through the pitch-black of life, that comprised her third studio album, and by far her most personal yet - especially given, unlike her previous albums, she is the only credited musician for every single song within the album, and she produced the majority of it herself too, a far cry from the large songwriting teams that had, in a sense, suffocated her as she tired herself out searching for that moment of success, that chance to break out of the quotidienne and become a star, which had always been her dream, just as for many little girls - had, unlike efforts before, finally given her a moment in the spotlight. Nominations at the Cherbourg College Music Awards, the most prestigious in Normandy and Picardy, for Best Newcomer - a title that naturally stung a little, but which she appreciated nonetheless - and Album of the Year, marked a definite highpoint of her career. TV channels started asking for interviews. She had a top 5 single with the song, "Noire/Blanche", a song discussing her awkward position as a black woman in an overwhelmingly white country, and her experiences when writing previous albums in which discussions of her heritage were drowned out by the usual love songs pushed on her. Now, she felt, she finally had a voice, and some people were listening to the daughter of immigrants from the former Normand colony of Marche-Nouvelle, the child who had been made fun of at her rough primary school on the ages of Caen, the young woman who had been abused and then blamed for bringing it upon herself, and now the proud 33 year-old woman making sure her voice was heard, no matter how many feathers it ruffled in what, sadly, remains in places a hostile environment for someone like her. It was in this environment that Lilou had had to live every day of her life since she had been born, and which she spoke out against in an album whose very title was an assault on even those of a more liberal disposition - for Lilou, it is not enough for people to give their tears and condolences, they must act, they must make themselves heard. And she had firmly done that.

Indeed, had she released her album any other week, she might have even made the number one spot, but this was taken by an album by Normand artist Gerard Arduane, who had just, in many ways, shared the sense of being agonisingly close to the crowning point of a career; he had just missed out on winning the 53rd World Hit Festival held in Bovingdon, Britonisea, losing out on a tiebreak for first place. It was a position that Normandy and Picardy had been in before, and it stung just as much as the first time it had happened, when Normandy and Picardy had just been pipped to the post by Euskirribakondara. Even Simone Derrida, the normally unphased Head of Delegation, who had, when she started her role just a few contests ago, had never imagined that Normandy and Picardy would come so close to winning again, and indeed coming twice for a second time in a row. Whilst it was no secret that the broadcaster had developed plans to host the contest in Amiens, Picardy, if they won the contest, the thought had seemingly never crossed Simone's mind, or such was the impression that she had given to people asked afterwards. In many ways, she carried on as normal anyway, returning as part of the delegation alongside Gerard, and returning to her role as head of cultural programming for SRNP and radio host on SRNP Radio 3. She had a remarkable way at just being able to seemingly just return back into the clockwork of her life, as if the contest had never happened. Yet, this time was, for her, slightly different. To come 2nd once had been a wonderful surprise. To do so again, and to come so close, was genuinely painful. She felt now an enormous burden falling down upon her; she felt she had to deliver a win. Simone had even considered resigning her role as Head of Delegation at this point; there was no way, she thought, that she could possibly deliver again without causing disappointment. It would be a lot easier to fall down than to make that final step up to the top.

She was, however, convinced to stay, partly by her friends who encouraged her as always, partly by institutional pressure within SRNP, and partly simply because she told herself she needed to do this, and sod thinking about coming first (as much as others might expect her to be pushing for this very goal). All she could do was to carry on doing what she had already done, and simply hope to present the best of Normand and Picard talent, as she saw it. And so, she carried on the same way she always had, promoting artists via her radio show, using her contacts within the music industry to reach out to potential acts, whether she explicitly mentioned the contest or not. Indeed, although she seemed to be able to switch off from the contest, in a way it was constantly in her mind, a constant preoccupation niggling away at her. A wonderful opportunity to sample the absolute top of the talent available presented itself to her when she was invited onto the jury that would decide the winner of the year's Cherbourg Music Awards. Many had been surprised she had never been invited onto the jury before, given the fact that no matter who you are in the industry in Normandy and Picardy, you at least know someone who knows her, and indeed Simone had an incredible ability to seemingly be in a million places at once. In any case, from her position on the jury, she hoped that she might find her act, and the song that would next represent Normandy and Picardy.

The competition was especially fierce this year, especially for the Album of the Year category. 5 outstanding albums had made the shortlist from across the industry, with Picard Folk and Normand language rap from the banlieues of Rouen coming alongside, as aformentioned, Lilou and her album. Simone had only just listened through the album once before the final jury meeting occured, the very night before the announcement of the awards themselves, but she had very quickly fallen in love; how had she not heard this before? Long hours awaited the group of 20 assembled in the Grand Hall of the Cherbourg College of Music, where the awards would be announced in only 24 hours time. Drinks had been provided. They would be needed. The hours dragged by as they listened and discussed the minute details, and whittled things down. Best Male and Female Act, and Best Band, had all been decided relatively quickly, and after an hour and a half finally there was agreement on the song of the year too, but it was the Album and Newcomer categories that proved to be the most difficult. Midnight passed, and little progress had been made, and yet, just as she had felt just after that fateful night in Bovingdon, a sense of crushing pressure came down on Simone and the rest of the jury. Eventually, a form of compromise was agreed. The night of the awards show. Lilou was the only black artist nominated in any category, and was one of a very small handful of black artists and members of the Normand cultural industry who had been invited to the awards ceremony; yet this alone was lauded across the night as "A victory for progress and diversity". Lilou herself felt angry about this, but she tried to keep her calm. She had been touted as the favourite to win Best Newcomer, if nothing else. That award came and went, given to Picard electronic musician Michelle Lefebvre. And then came the Album of the Year award. The announcement. Tears. She had won it. She had done it. She ran up to the stage as an angry Manuel Foulquier reportedly stormed out. This of course didn't matter.

A few months later. A radio studio in Rouen. SRNP Radio 3. And Simone Derrida introducing Lilou Bassala as the next act to represent Normandy and Picardy at the World Hit Festival. In just a few weeks time, she would be jetting of to La Cañada in the Achaean Republic, and representing the country where she had been born, where she had grown up, and where now she finally felt, to some extent, welcome. She had chosen a song that had been a title track from her album named "J'ai le droit aussi" (I have the right too). When talking about the choice of track, Lilou told Simone:

This is just a song for anyone who has ever felt excluded, felt as if they don't fit in, and no matter what they do they can never be accepted. It's for everyone who has to hide an aspect of themselves, keep something hidden, even from the people they most dearly love, even the people who brought them into this world and brought them up. This is for everyone who has struggled with what it means to be themselves... Society has a way of throwing people to the side, making us hide who we are behind a mask, and when it does want to see us makes us live as charicatures, hiding ourselves. This is for anyone who has ever felt that way.

It is this message that Lilou will be bringing to the Francisco Calderón Sports Palace in La Cañada. Whilst the song is all in French, previous Normand entries have shown that this is clearly no barrier to understanding across the Multiverse, and the Normand delegation were clearly hoping the same would be true again. Following that interview, everything sped up massively. Finalising staging plans, which Lilou had been at the centre of planning, as usual with Normand entrants; Simone always ensured they had a great amount of artistic freedom.

Before she knew it, Lilou was walking off a plane, the sun beating down heavily on her - it was certainly a lot warmer in the Achaean Republic than back home in Normandy and Picardy for this time of year - and onto the runway at Corola-Gudalupana International. Their flight had come in late, and the Normand delegation, larger than it had been for previous contests due to the lifting of restrictions by the Normand government making it easier, meaning also that Lilou would have a shorter quarantine team on her return (not, of course, that she really was thinking about that at this point), was now worried about making sure the transport they had arranged to get them into La Cañada was still available; they were several hours late, after all. So, with some running about, whilst other members tried to make sure that the special equipment for the performance that had been sent in ahead of them had actually arrived - the haulage company had been unusually quiet in this regard - the panicked mob of a delegation rushed through the airport. Luckily, their planned transport was still available, and so, crammed into a few cars, Lilou, Simone, and the rest of the delegation travelled along the highway towards La Cañada. Whilst the schedule was going to quickly become hectic, Lilou was luckily able to find some time to explore the city; Simone had ensured she would be able to have some sort of a break and enjoy the city, a luxury that had not been enjoyed by Gerard in Bovingdon. There wasn't going to be enough time for the famous caves which La Cañada is known for, and indeed has even designed this contest around, but that didn't really bother Lilou; it wouldn't've been her thing anyway. She instead explored the heritage of the city itself and its creole structures, which in part reminded her of her grandparent's home in Marche-Nouvelle which she had visited a few times as a child. She was also able to sample local delicacies, and take in the general atmosphere, before she was rushed into rehearsals, interviews, and a whole maddening world. The day she spent exploring seemed to have happened a million years ago, and now the night of the final itself was very quickly approaching...

As Caterina Marza, the act from Skanden, left the stage, Lilou still didn't quite know what to expect. She hadn't really been paying attention to the entry, but she was sure it was good, much like all the songs had been so so far. She had wanted to watch, but obviously she was preoccupied with her own last minute preparations. A producer nodded. Walking. Silence. A moment. Then the opening piano notes played. Suddenly, it all became very, very real for Lilou, sat among a sea of smoke in the middle of the stage in a country very far from her little house in Caen. Smoke whisped around her as she sat there, vulnerable, wearing a very simple, blank garment, one which in a way hid her body in the way that, in every moment of her life, she had to hide herself, and yet still presented even in this bleakness a blank canvas, something that could be painted upon, upon which colour could come and a new character emerge. Not that it was frumpy, indeed it was rather form-fitting, but you get the idea. For now, however, all that could be seen, as a very faint white spotlight shone down, was Lilou, sat with her knees bent, as the smoke whisped around her as aformentioned and a series of irregularly shaped shards that had been brought in by the Normand team. At the moment, these remained eerily dark, in a sense only visible due to the slight reflection of the spotlight, the screens acting as a mirror. The opening camera shot, done by camera Z as in the diagram so kindly provided by Ach, began to the left of the stage, such that most of this could be seen, and panned around towards the middle. With the light coming down slightly from the left too, this indeed allowed for this mirror effect to work somewhat, with Lilou ever so faintly reflected in its surface. These 'shards' as they will be referred to from now on had been placed behind her, forming a very shallow curve, and leaving the pentagon screen as the back of the stage shown. And so, the opening instrumental consisted of a very slow panning shot as described, the flickering of the spotlight, becoming slightly stronger, and then the flickering to life of the LED strips around the pentagon too, as if they were neon lights flickering on.

Just before Lilou began to sing, there was a fade into a closer camera shot using camera 4, looking straight towards Lilou, who in turn looked up towards it, and the pentagon framing her. Tightly holding onto her microphone with one hand, as if holding on for dear life, so as to not show the shaking that would betrary both a deep emotional sentiment and a realisation of her position, she began to sing, channeling this sense of vulnerability into her words. The image in a way appeared rather bleak, the black and white powerfully contrasting, the almost deafening like of anything else, and the piano alone pounding away, hauntingly. But, of course, Lilou and the Normand delegation were hoping that the beauty in this desolation might be found, as the smoke curled and whisped, playing with the flickering rays of light and dancing around Lilou as she sang.

Quelques jours, j'imagine
Qu'j'ai le droit d'être heureuse
Mais puis j'me souviens
Que je suis moi-même, calleuse
La reflection étonnante
Combien de temps elle restera?
Parmis ces mensanges
Je vis ma propre vie

As the song swelled into the prechorus, yet still ultimately powered by the simple combination of vocals and piano, at once delicate and strong, there was a temporary switch to a higher up shot done by camera one, slightly zoomed in, looking down at an angle towards the stage, showing Lilou and the shards from above, drifting amidst an ocean of smoke, trundling down the sides of the stage and, again, at once suffocating and vivacious. The shards ultimately remained, for the moment, as mirrors, as the white light gained slightly in strength. A switch to a closer shot, slightly lower down and done by camera 2, with lens zooming effects used to actually look as if all that has happened was the camera getting closer (and indeed, camera 2 did lower a little bit too). At this point, beneath the smoke, rings of white started to radiate out across the LED floor, not really changing much but providing a highlight underneath Lilou, helping push back the darkness a bit.

Je suis completement fou?
Mais tes mots, qu'est-ce que veux-tu dire?, aaah
Ce sont vides, ce donnent cries
J'ai la tete qui tourne et chancele, aaah
Mais je peux pas refoule moi-même

Going into the chorus, there was a fade into a shot on stage level done by one of the cameremen with a steadicam, looking from the right towards the left of the stage with quite a tight shot, to show Lilou and one of the shards framing her. Lilou turned to face this camera a little bit and moved herself up a little bit as she sung, whilst the shard began to slowly flicker into life, as an image almost appeared to be 'sketched' into existence, with the outlines first, broad pencil strokes, and the more intimate details slowly building up and helping the image come together. Lilou continued to sing, the camera shot slightly zooming in and looking beyond her at the screen, as what emerged was a zoomed in image of one of Lilou's eyes and the lashes, eyebrow, and the surrounding skin.

Et alors, je vole
Mais mes chaînes lourdes ne jamais lâchent
Et je m'enfuis
Seulement pour un instant avant qu'ils m'empechent
Je suis libre
Mais je vis toujours en servitude
Je suis moi-même
Pas d'habitude

Some of the lights died down as the next verse began, and the rings on the LED floor dissolved away, allowing the darkness to creep forward once again. Yet only slightly, for now, with a wider shot, it could be seen that all of the shards had too come to life with their own drawings of various parts of Lilou's face, shards and aspects of herself, broken up, spread around her, reflecting her broken identities, having to mean many things to different people and never quite managing to build up who you really are yourself. Then there was a shift to a shot from further out, panning slowly around the stage, showing the lips which began to tremble, the eye that blinked, as the smoke almost looked as if it was threatening to swallow Lilou up, leaving nothing but these crude parts of herself behind, mere simulacra in a sense of the real Lilou, pouring her heart out in front of millions of prying eyes, an audience, hopefully, finally watching her rather than her shadow, which stretched out in front of her (due to the position of the main spotlight shining down on her, as aformentioned).

Je me tiens sur la pointe des pieds
Et je fais une pirouette
En spectacle, je me donne
Mais je me cache dedans
Dans les yeux des autres
Je me trouve, je trouve la vide
Ils applaudissent l'ombre
Plutot qu'ils me regarderont

Towards the end of the verse just gone, the camera had zoomed in towards image of Lilou's eye in the mirror shown during the chorus. From this, with the work of some after effects, this eye mixed with Lilou's, and from this mixture Lilou's in turn emerged, arising out of this conference between the drawing and the real, and in a sense breaking through. From this very zoomed in position on her eye, the camere zoomed out slowly to show Lilou's face. As she sung, waves of anguish rushing across her face, looking straight out into the camera, towards the whole entire multiverse and their eyes, a single, golden tear began to slowly wind its way down her face, a burst of colour, of prideful colour, amongst this wider scene. Otherwise, for the rest of the prechorus, the scene remained like this, close and intimate.

Et j'ai pu pas trouver les mots donc j'ai gardé le silence, aaah
Mais je lutte tous les jours, toutes les nuits, en tous les instants, aaah
J'en ai assez d'affrontements

As the chorus began, not much really changed, except the view showed of the stage was one that was slightly further out, and as the chorus progressed, a series of different shots at different angles and distances away from the stage were used to add some sense of movement. Meanwhile, the golden teardrop that had ran its way down Lilou's face was joined by one in the background image of the eye, falling to the bottom of the shard, then another, then another, such that the gold in fact began to rise up, drowning the eye, and this was joined by the other three shards too, until by the end of the chorus they were all this sort of mucky golden colour, almost obelisks now, surrounding Lilou, casting their glow down and inwards towards her.

Et alors, je vole
Mais mes chaînes lourdes ne jamais lâchent
Et je m'enfuis
Seulement pour un instant avant qu'ils m'empechent
Je suis libre
Mais je vis toujours en servitude
Peut-être j'existe
Mais ça ne veut rien dire pour moi du tout

As the chorus ended, and Lilou began to hum away, a cameraman on stage, again using a steadicam, began a slow, close circular shot around her, which then turned forward to show the audience who at this point had been encouraged to turn on the flashlights on their phones, and then in a sense corkscrewing up and out, before fading back into a close up shot of Lilou, on the floor with her, a moment just of her singing the final chorus to the camera with just a single spotlight shining on her, the gold on the screens having faded away back into blackness. Then, as the final piano instrumental began, the fingers racing along the piano, the camera view too raced up to a shot looking down from the front onto the stage as a ring of lights begins to form around Lilou, appearing to form a prison cell around her. She reached out to the light, the beams playing through her fingers, all with an almost childlike sense of naivety in a way. The camera view, having begun from its high vantage pointm slowly moved between this image of a strange wonderment with a cage at once real and unreal, wider shots of the stage, but also on the shards which had returned to their role as mirrors, reflecting her from all sides, at once more real, and yet still only partial images. Still, they were, in a way, something closer to reality, truly reflecting her character. Meanwhile, some of the lighting units around the background screen twinkled, a constellation shining down too upon the stage, fading slightly brighter and less bright, almost presenting the image of a dark night sky shining down on Lilou, whilst the 'cage' slowly began to flicker, almost as if it was beginning to run of of power, lifting, freeing her but leaving her to what? As this occurred, she then seemed to curl into the fetal position as the lights, still dying, with what appeared to be their last effort, closed in on her, and when they finally met at her position, they finally died, leaving only the darkness, as the instrumental began to draw to its conclusion. A camera shot from above showed Lilou huddled together, the smoke finally beginning to hide her away, wisping and curling, its gnarled fingers drawing her in. Behind her, in the pentagon which had remained dark all the way, a ray of light shone through. A door seemed to have opened. An exit, a way out. Where will it lead? For now, that will have to wait, as the song came to an end, but the promise of hope, despite all the pain, and even if at the last gasp, and simply a glimpse, had made itself known.

Ouais, ouais, ouais...

Et alors, je vole
Mais mes chaînes lourdes ne jamais lâchent
Et je m'enfuis
Seulement pour un instant avant qu'ils m'empechent
J'ai le droit aussi-si, si
D'être heureuse
De n'être personne pour une journée, ouais

With that, the song and the performance were over. It had been the longest five minutes of Lilou's life, and now she could sit, relax, and enjoy the show, not that there were many acts left. Or well, she could, once she'd picked herself up and left the stage. She let out a shout of "Merci Aquéa! Merci tout le monde", one which betrayed how exhausting the experience had been for her, as she looked at the dizzying array of people before her and, just avoiding being completely confused, made her way backstage, whilst preparations for the next act from Fromulya, the first she would be able to watch properly, were made. She seemed to remember liking the song when she was listening to the studio versions beforehand, and so looked forward to it. A drink was in order. Definitely...

by **Britonisea** » Tue Sep 15, 2020 9:23 am

XX
Britonisea
Jordan Hamilton & Nicholas Leblanc - "No More"
Language(s): English
Tune: Marco Mengoni - Hola (I Say) feat. Tom Walker
Entry Specifics
Trigramme: BRI
Lyrics: Jordan Hamilton, Nicholas Leblanc, Kordian Blake, Louise Hamilton
Music: Kordian Blake, Yvette Samuels

Jordan Hamilton & Nicholas Leblanc will represent Britonisea in what will be the nation's 34th participation at the World Hit Festival with their song, "No More"...

After winning the 52nd World Hit Festival for what was the seventh time, Britonisea decided to host the 53rd World Hit Festival for what would be the first solo hosting BVC has done of the World Hit Festival for six editions. The plan for Britonisea being able to host the Semi-Finals was to have each of the shows take place in different cities, using a similar format to that of Vha Mehlodhivestoile, by making the stage very simple but effective (all of the bells and whistles of a normal WHF standard stage, but with a plain LED screen and floor - which for most delegations is more than enough). It was hoped that Britonisea perhaps have a show in the North, the East and the South/West, perhaps having the Grand Final in the capital, Doportedas. However due to the COVID-19 pandemic, with tests reaching nearly 150k cases, it was decided that the quaint seaside town of Bovingdon would get the chance to host - with the town receiving the honour of hosting the largest World Hit Festival to date which no one would have believed a year ago. That being said, the Bovingdon World Hit Festival was seen as a rather successful one. Although only 3.5k fit into the audience, way less than what BVC wanted, looking on the brightside, BVC managed to recooperate a lot of money spent by having people pay for packages to stay in Bovingdon for a longer period of time whilst giving them three star quality accommodation. The COVID pandemic which had really showed down in the nation hardly interefered with the programme, but some argue that the Doportedas Authority figures rising slightly had something to do with it. For the record, it was much lower than the disastrous effects of the aftermath from when Boschke hosted WorldVision, with Boschke's Authority seeing over 12k cases in the two weeks after compared to Doportedas Authority's 2k. The hosting was a rather successful one which lead to the first ever tiebreak for first place we have seen in many editions. It lead to an Achaean Republic win which was their first and which lead to Britonisea sending an entry to their nation.

Britonisea's BVC has made it clear that as long as a Briton is overseer, Britonisea will not be taking any breaks at the World Hit Festival and despite Britonisea falling once again to the right handside of the scoreboard, but with 24 points. While the score was the second worst rank out of a total of 19 of the last participations, the mask of hosting the Festival at the same time obviously softened the blow for the representative, Andres Cesare and the fact that there were 33 nations participating in total so Britonisea's ranking wasn't that bad overall. Moving into the 54th World Hit Festival, Britonish Officials felt as though their song for the 52nd World Hit Festival set the bar for Britonish entries higher than they have been in the past, with every nation ranking that entry in the top 10 out of 24 nations, bar Skanden and probably one other nation. BVC wanted to continue doing well to keep the fans watching the World Hit Festival but weren't sure where to go from here. Feeling immense pressure to do well at the 54th World Hit Festival due to Britonisea having won all even editions since the 46th World Hit Festival (the broadcaster didn't win 44, but won 42), the broadcaster wanted to live up to said expectation, but they felt as though that this could now be the experimental phase for Britonisea to go crazy. Britonisea had reached Euskirribakondara's total and was one behind the all-time winning total of eight set by Izmedu at the 49th World Hit Festival by only a point. So when deciding who will go to the World Hit Festival, the broadcaster thought what types of acts have they not sent to the World Hit Festival before and then they thought of Jordan and Nicholas.

Jordan and Nicholas don't particularly have a long history with one another. Both singers knew each other from the Britonish version of The Voice where the pair participated in the same edition and got to the live rounds. In what was a very interesting addition to The Voice, they decided to have a duo section, with the pair of them singing the same song together with one of the judges suggesting that they should form a duo together.

It was time for Britonisea to perform their song in what was the third Novapax song in a row after Estogium and Togonistan. Jordan and Nicholas walked onto the stage, both wearing similar attire - a clean white shirt with jean trousers and a jacket, with Jordan wearing a blue version of Nicholas' black. Not much was happening on the stage in terms of staging, except this contraption that BVC decided the wanted on the stage. It was a few lights, maybe 50 bulbs per row and there was enough rows for it to be around 2 metres. As the postcard finished and the audience cheered, it was time for the performance. At the start you could see nothing but darkness and heard nothing but silence. As the music came on, the bulbs behind them slowly flickered on with only the centre few turning on. The person who started singing was Jordan Hamilton who would look at the camera was a smothering look.

Give me a second, I need some time to gather all my thoughts
I need space so I can breathe, I want time alone, forgive me
It's all so... confusing, I have got to come to terms with it, I'm sorry dear
Don't expect to hear back from me, just turn around and walk away
I'm saying, "No more, no more", oh I can take this no more
Saying, "No more, no more", I am your fool no more

Throughout the section before, Jordan was smirking a bit when he sang certain lyrics, but his eye contact was fixated on the beckoning camera. It was a rather intimate setting for Jordan as he had his peice-to-piece with the camera. As the higher pitched, slightly louder voice of Nicholas came in, there was another shot of Nicholas coming in from behind the stack of bulbs that was on the stage. With a cute expression, he slightly smiled as he started singing the song. He didn't want to give too much energy into singing this part of the song as he knew that the big bit was coming in later on. The lighting brightened a tad as he made his way more comfortable into centre stage.

No more will I ever let myself be treated this way,
Let you run away with my heart,
You've stolen everything that I've got, I say no more.
I take comfort in believing what goes around comes around,
When the shoe is on the other foot,
You will then realise, the pain you caused to me

As Nicholas continued singing the back end of the chorus, "I take comfort etc", the bulb display started doing ripples with said ripples also showing on the abstract LED screens which you could see when the camera did a far away shot of the stage. On the LED there were tiny little tungsten coloured circles which made the ripple effect look as though it continued on from the bulb prop design. While many might have thought that the music would go back to Jordan, Nicholas continued to sing the song, taking it through the verse. As the strings brought the song back down to the verse, Nicholas suddenly went lower after taking a deep breath. You could see Jordan walk into frame, slowly nodding his head along with the song.

The world keeps on spinning, I have got to move forward
And put the bad thoughts of the past to the back of my mind
Oh I'll recover one day, don't you worry about that
I've got the support I need, but I'm not sure whether you can say the same dear

I let you come into my life and then you destroyed it,
So was this your plan from the start? More fool me, I suppose I
Will never let no one treat me in the way that you did dear
When the shoe's on the other foot, don't coming running back oh

As Jordan went into the bridge of the song, the lights slightly dimmed as the instrumentation was paired back. There was then another close up and candid shot of Jordan singing towards the camera with Nicholas being in the background slightly blurred out.

This will be the last time, oh that you will see me
Can you hear me singing "no more, no more"
No more, no more ay
No more, no more ay
No more, no more ay
No more, no more ay

They then sang the last chorus together with the pair of them interweaving their vocals to make polyphonic rhythms. To the back of them, you could see pyrotechnics going off with BVC opting to use a golden pyro shower to make the end look a lot more fancy along with the powerful vocals of the male vocalists. They sounded fantastic together.

No more will I ever let myself be treated this way,
Let you run away with my heart,
You've stolen everything that I've got, I say no more.
I take comfort in believing what goes around comes around,
When the shoe is on the other foot,
You will then realise, the pain you caused to me

(No more, no more) This will be the last time, (No more, no more) oh that you will see me
(No more, no more) Can you hear me singing "no more, no more"
(No more, no more ay)
(No more, no more ay)
(No more, no more ay)
(No more, no more ay)

No more

At the end of the song, Jordan and Nicholas hugged one another and smiled before turning and thanking the audience, "Thank you very much!" they both shouted before we move to what was happening next on the stage.

by **Estogium** » Tue Sep 15, 2020 9:42 am

XX
Estogium
Georgina - Knagater Deseu
Language(s): English, Britonish
Translation Rise Above
Tune: Srbuk - Half a Goddess
Entry Specifics
Trigramme: RWH
Lyrics: Georgina
Music: Edna Parish, Sean Barker-Phillips

Georgina will be flying the Estogian flag in Achaean Republic: Georgina will be singing her uptempo banger, "Knagater Deseu" in La Cañada. This is the first song Estogium has sent that contains Britonish since World Hit Festival 46.

Estogium's performance as of late has been relatively okay, peaking at the 52nd World Hit Festival where Estogium managed to reach the podium for the first time since the 48th World Hit Festival. Off of the success at the 52nd World Hit Festival, Estogium decided to enter the 53rd World Hit Festival which was being held for the seventh time in the neighbouring nation, Britonisea. There was excitement as Estogium thought that this could be the time in which they could finally take the gold and bring the World Hit Festival back to the nation after 5 editions. Estogium has yet to the World Hit Festival but on two occasions has come very close to winning. As the Estogian act was revealed, there wasn't as much hype as the edition before with some people suggesting that RVC took a risk not sending the 52nd World Hit Festival act the the 53rd World Hit Festival. Many thought that due to Estogium's previous record at the Festival; especially the Semi-Finals in which Estogium has come 5th and 2nd on the last two occasions, Estogium would be able to swim through the Semi-Finals easily, despite having a relatively weak song. Estogium was drawn to participate in the 1st Semi-Final once again, with Britonisea there in that Semi-Final to support the nation. However, as more and more nations were being announced as qualifiers, Estogians were coming to the realisation that for the first time ever, their nation would be banned from participating in the Grand Final of the World Hit Festival. After a while the confirmation that Adelene would not be making it to the Final, she recalled herself sitting in the Greenroom both crying to herself wondering what exactly she did wrong. It was confirmed that she had placed 12th in the Semi-Final of 16, with only 8 points by her side. Many thought that Estogium was being underrated as per usual, but some thought that Georgina's position was correct. As Adelene returned home to Estogium, while most people congratulated her from trying, some people were left angry at the Estogian efforts, and sent hate to both Adelene and the broadcaster. The broadcaster says that they are trying to win the World Hit Festival, but they don't necessarily know how. RVC said that they'd be going for a different route next edition, the Festival is only "a bit of fun at the end of the day".

With that being said, RVC opened applications for both WorldVision and World Hit Festival as the broadcaster is in charge of both acts and picks from one pool. Estogium's song pool isn't as wide as neighbouring nation, Britonisea - who's nearly double Estogium's population total. RVC received a few songs that they were happy with, but announced their withdrawal from the WorldVision Song Contest due to very poor results there and other problems that weren't explained. RVC said that the World Hit Festival would be their main priority for the 54th and 55th editions to try and find their footing before it gets too late. As the broadcaster sorted through some of the entries, they remembered that their 3rd placed entry was quite upbeat and edgy, two things that can actually take a nation to the left hand side of the scoreboard and even challenge a win. Most of the songs that RVC received were ballads, from both genders, and so RVC had to cancel out a lot of songs which they argued all sound the same. However, they noticed that four songs were songs that they thought the broadcaster could get behind. One of those songs were written by Edna Parish and Sean Barker-Phillips, with the song called "Knagater Deseu" - a Britonish language song which translates to "Rise Above" in English. At the time, the song was written completely in Britonish and the singer was only a demo version, not intended to be the World Hit Festival act. RVC decided to bring in Edna and Sean for a chat about their song, with both of them saying that they had somebody in mind to sing the song, which they can arrange for them to sing in person. RVC agreed but said that they were working on a tight schedule. In a few days, Georgina was introduced to the RVC officials. The RVC officials noted that Georgina seemed very confident, sure of herself and looked perfect for the role when thinking about how the song sounded. Edna and Sean said that Georgina would perform two versions of her song, one in English and Britonish, and one solely in Britonish. They said that they wanted Britonish to be heard no matter what, which RVC agreed with. After singing both versions of the song, the RVC officials thought that the match between "Knagater Deseu" and Georgina was perfect, preferring the English/Britonish mashup as it seems cooler and more edgy but more people across the globe would be able to understand what she was singing.

Georgina was thus picked to represent Estogium at the 54th World Hit Festival in Achaean Republic, who had at the time recently confirmed that they would be hosting. With the coronavirus figures in Estogium dying completely (well, at the time she was picked), going to Achaean Republic wasn't going to be an issue for Georgina whatsoever. Georgina is a 28 year old woman from Darlington, the capital of the country. She usually works in a tech firm as a manager, with her job mostly being sat down looking at innovative projects from people who just wanted a chance. Georgina felt like when she was singing her songs to the RVC officials, her role was completely swapped and only acted how she felt people acted towards her - excited and energised about her project, which indeed she was. Preparing for the World Hit Festival was a lot for Georgina. She had to take extended leave from her workplace despite her job piling on the pressure especially after the pandemic. She felt as that after working through much of the summer, not being able to enjoy it, Georgina decided to take the leap of faith and accept Edna and Sean's proposal. Flash forwards and Georgina was on an aeroplane to one of the major Achaean Republic cities. She felt as though this was her time to shine and to hopefully help her nation's performance.

And so her time on the stage to perform was here. She felt quite excited about coming onto the stage but she did feel the nerves. This was the performance that could decide how her country sees her. She was hoping for the win, of course, she was, but she would be happy if she placed on the left hand side of the scoreboard. What she did not want to do was a flop as badly as Estogium has been flopping in both the World Hit Festival and WorldVision Song Contests. "Knagater Deseu", she thought, was definitely a song that the crowd would get behind when she was performing it and thought that as she performed it, she would be able to go come into her own skin. It was time. You could hear the people cheering as we had one of Achaean Republic's fruity and thoughtful postcards playing. Georgina ran onto the stage and got herself ready to start the song. Georgina was wearing something that she thought would fit well with the song, opting for a holographic jacket wearing short black clothes beneath it which you could see as the jacket was transparent. She had dancers, female dancers, on both sides of her wearing a similar outfit to her but obviously a little toned down from her to keep that attention on here. Georgina wasn't particularly a fan of having abstract LEDs behind her and wished that it was just one screen similar to how it was back in Bovingdon. However, she was happy that the broadcaster hosting was able to accommodate to how she wanted her performance to look on this grand stage. She stood in front of the main pentagonal LED screen, with the other two dancers, socially distanced from her, stood in front of the stairs.

The lights were rather lowkey, with RVC opting for a purple and pink, with hues of dark blue being thrown in because why not. There were silhouettes of palms trees and whatnot in the main colours of the lighting too making it look perhaps just as tropical as the setting outside of the arena. The performance was about to start as Georgina put on a pair of sunglasses, before popping out a dark lipstick, smoothing it over her lips in a mirror that she got from inside her trousers. She quickly tucked them both away as the lights went down when the cameras came into the live arena. The few thousand in the arena cheered as it was time for Estogium to perform on the stage. After the audience died down, the music started, with the colours fading it once again. You could hear the sound of Estogian men shouting out into the audience which ignited cheering from the audience members. The men then started to say Britonish charms very quietly as camera Z, as they call it in Achaean Republic, was stationary in position, facing towards the centre of the stage where Georgina was standing with her hands sassily on her hips. The camera slowly moved inwards before Georgina smiled, with her pearly whites contrasting with the dark lipstick she was wearing. The camera sped up as it got closer to her before it stopped suddenly. Georgina quickly placed the microphone up to her mouth and started singing...

I am a queen seven days a week
There ain't no stopping me, oh.
Keeping you on your toes, you can't find me,
I'm a woman of mystery.
My heart is not for you, there is no key
You can't make your way to me
I know you know nothing but how to win
Well boy that's about the end

As Georgina started singing, the camera was never really on her for a long period of time. The camera went from one person on the stage to the other, especially when the dancers next to her - both of whom had microphones on them - would sing in between each of the lines Georgina was singing. As the cameras sharply cut from one shot to another, they all looked at the lens with a slight smile. Georgina, who was slightly facing towards one side of the arena, had turned herself completely around to face the main audience in front of her. As she started singing the line of her song, "I am a queen", her raincoat slightly fell off her shoulder and she started grinding - lowering herself slightly as she sang the next few sentences. There were some shots through camera three, which was used for special effects which RVC thought was pretty cool. There were some shots of Georgina from above slightly, with Georgina being surrounded by money and gold bars around her. As Georgina looked up at "You can't make your way to me" before moving her lips over her teeth. She then quickly snapped her neck forward where another camera caught her. The dancers moved in the shot as Georgina took a few steps forward.

The colours remained the same throughout the verse until we hit the pre-chorus in which some of the lights around the arena got slightly warmer for those watching. There was a camera which poked its head from the floor, lifting itself upwards to point towards Georgina and her dancers. She lifted her free arm in the air and she moved her head back, rolling her eyes in enjoyment as her song hit a euphoric note. As we continued into the pre-chorus, we heard some Britonish from those behind her, "Knagateus eyk vhe soile" (Rise like the sun), with some members of the audience cheering at the sound of Britonish which hadn't been sent to the World Hit Festival for quite some time. Georgina smiled as she rose with her queendom, with the LED's behind her having an woosh effect of a silhouette of ancient ruins behind her from the palm trees that were once on the LED screen behind her.

My queendom's rising (Knagateux eyk vhe soile)
The choir's singing (chanteux mehlodhis gloires)
The people, they're cheering (wilkomeux'un neue'aube)
Na vhostes tuereux requoile, vhe phuter tes hurge

However, the LED behind her didn't only change once! As she went through the lines, switching between English and Britonish, the LED behind her changed each time. As we moved to "Chanteux mehlodhis gloires" (singing songs of praise), there was an outline of a choir with their hands in the air, still with the lighter colours and theme as before, swooping from the ancient ruins before. As they moved onto the next line, "wilkomeux'un neue'aube" (Welcoming a new dawn), we then saw an outline of people together in one ground, but the camera was positioned to make it looked as though they were tiered behind her in what was a low angle shot. She looked down and smiled once again as she sang the final line of the pre-chorus in Britonish, twisting her wrists and shaking her hips the Britonish language flew out of her month.

There was silence for a bit as all of the colours in the stage quickly seeped away. All you could see was flashing white lights now amongst a black backdrop. As you saw the flashing lights, you could see Geogina moving and doing a series of movements with the girls behind her. She gazed upon them for a quick second and they looked back and nodded, obviously signifying them. The male backing vocalists came in with full force by the time Georgina then came in to sing her bit of the song. Similarly to this section in Oscar Zia's "Human" at Melfest 2016, along with the beat of the drum right before the chorus, the camera quickly cut forward and backwards along with each bang of the drum and to spice it up, they even included completely different shots of the dancers too to make it look even crazier.

Blink and you'll miss her, she's gone
The future's here, oh believe what you hear
Prepare yourselves for a new dawn
Blink and you'll miss me, I'll fly,
High in the sky, such a feast for the eyes
Got my army by my side
A forced not to be reckoned with... so bye!
Knagater, oh ma gens! Knagater deseu vhes autres,
Knagater, oh ma gens! Knagater deseu vhes autres!

After the crazy camera shot, Georgina and the dancers started grinding near each other - but not touching one another (close enough to look like they were dancing together). The cameras were going from different positions in the hall which fit in with the fast-paced music which needed dynamic camera shots like the ones RVC was providing to make the performance look even better than it actually was. Fire plumes shot from the sides of the stage as the three on the stage started dancing. Georgina stuck her tongue out as she felt the beat of the song go through her body. She was singing with some strength as well, she wanted to put forward how important she was now she has her queendom. As she sang the lyrics, "high in the sky,", Georgina looked up into the sky before looking back down for "such a feast for the eyes", with the camera quickly zooming into the eye in which she pointed towards, with the next shot fading out from their hair (which was dark) to quickly swerve round to see the behind shot of the three dancers from an aerial view and the audience they were performing in front of. Georgina was really getting into the song that she was singing - she felt like it was her last ever performance of the song.

As she kept on repeating the word, "Knagater", she kept on bending over before (with her free arm), lifting it into the air with the dancers behind her copying her actions but obviously with both hands since they both were free. The LED screens below showed a similar screen to how it was before with silhouettes of people rising behind her and waving a flag in the air, filled with the blue, pink and purple colour theme on the stage. It was then the end of the chorus with Georgina taking a power stance as the wind machines blew her hair over her shoulder. You could hear the horns, which were slightly louder in the live performance. Georgina quickly turned around to her right, where she was joined by another camera going straight into the next verse...

The world's waiting for my presence...exciting
No, no, no, no more hiding.
Boy, you better step aside and give way, don't steal my limelight
Bow your head to me out of courtesy and get used to it
Hope you know I ain't going nowhere,
Boy, I am here to stay.

My queendom's rising (Knagateux eyk vhe soile)
The choir's singing (chanteux mehlodhis gloires)
The people, they're cheering (wilkomeux'un neue'aube)
Na vhostes tuereux requoile, vhe phuter tes hurge

As she started singing the second verse of the song, Georgina was walking and talking with the dark colours from right at the start of the song reappearing on the screens below her. The two dancers were following Georgina behind her, looking at one another, putting their hands to their mouths, chatting and twirling their hands and Georgina was singing into the camera which was moving outwards. As Georgina sang, "No, no, etc", Georgina moved her index finger in a "no" expression, with the camera focusing on that before panning slightly upwards back to her face. As Georgina continued singing and reached the line, "don't steal my limelight", for a split second, the whole stage plunged into darkness with Georgina having a literal lime light pointed on her with her looking upwards as though she was praying. A long shot of the arena broke this camera shot, as we could see the thousands of people cheering Georgina and her two-woman dance crew on. As we moved into the pre-chorus once again, a similar thing to the first time happened with the LED's behind her but this time a steadicam joined her on the stage circling around her and the two other dancers who all were facing away from each other in a triangle in the middle of the stage where they were all at.

As they all sang the last line, the two dancers were once again flanking Georgina as the steadicam made its quick departure from the stage. You could hear the faint sounds of the Estogian chants in the background as we moved into the chorus with the lights going back to black once again with flashing white lights behind them. The girls all got their lipstick out of their pockets before putting it on their lips as the fans came on with full force here. They all then struck a pose and waited for the main section of the chorus in which Georgina started singing. What happened on the stage during the chorus was similar to what happened the first time around, with Georgina dancing in the middle of the stage how she sees fit as the cameras whizzed around her....

Blink and you'll miss her, she's gone
The future's here, oh believe what you hear
Prepare yourselves for a new dawn
Blink and you'll miss me, I'll fly,
High in the sky, such a feast for the eyes
Got my army by my side
A forced not to be reckoned with... so bye!
Knagater, oh ma gens! Knagater deseu vhes autres,
Knagater, oh ma gens! Knagater deseu vhes autres!

With camera Z being RVC's best friend during this performance, the broadcaster decided to opt for this camera at the end of chorus two. As the last two lines were being sung, we kept on going back to camera Z, who was zooming in before fading to black over and over again for a few seconds, going closer and closer to Georgina's face each time we cut to it. As Georgina sang the last line of the chorus, she held out her hand which stopped the camera from starting over again and zooming in. It was now time for the for Georgina's personal favourite part of the song - the dance break.

As you could hear the faint male voices singing, the lights started to flash again behind her, but the colours on the LED remained the same. You could also see the use of lasers too. The three women who were on the stage all walked in a circular way, all clapping their hands in the sky as they listened to the build up of the dance break. Suddenly, there was a snap in the song before Georgina and the dancers went into full dance sequence mode which looked edgy and funky especially with the blinding flashing lights which accompanied the dance moves.

[DANCEBREAK]

Blink and you'll miss her, she's gone
The future's here, oh believe what you hear
Blink and you'll miss her, she's gone
The future's here, oh believe what you hear
Blink and you'll miss her, she's gone
The future's here, oh believe what you hear
Blink and you'll miss her, she's gone
The future's here, oh believe what you hear

oooooo
oooooo
oooooo
oooooo

Georgina sweeped her hair behind her shoulders again after one could see her getting her breath as she went into the final chorus of the song. She looked back towards the dancers behind her slightly. The lights returned to how it was for a chorus, but this time with added pyrotechnics, such as gazers shooting up gas and whatnot. It was a fun and crazy atmosphere which the cameras did a perfect job of capturing on screen.

Blink and you'll miss her, she's gone
The future's here, oh believe what you hear
Prepare yourselves for a new dawn
Blink and you'll miss me, I'll fly,
High in the sky, such a feast for the eyes
Got my army by my side
A forced not to be wreckened with... so bye!
Knagater, oh ma gens! Knagater deseu vhes autres,
Knagater, oh ma gens! Knagater deseu vhes autres!

At the end of the song, there was a huge bang - a pyrotechnic blast. The song immediately finished with a huge audience applause. "Thank you everyone! Gracias!" Georgina shouted into the air to the sound of the horns.

---

by **Kyritakia** » Wed Sep 16, 2020 2:26 am

XX
Kyritakia
Akira - "Dans tills du är död"
Language(s): Swedish, English
Title Translation: Dance 'till you're dead
Tune: Oomph! - Sandmann
Entry Specifics
Trigramme: KYR
Lyrics: LYRICISTS_HERE
Music: MUSICIANS_HERE

by **Nekoni** » Wed Sep 16, 2020 2:52 am

XX
Nekoni
Bloodsport - "tbc"
Language(s): English
Tune: My Chemical Romance - House of Wolves
Entry Specifics
Trigramme: NEK
Lyrics: LYRICISTS_HERE
Music: MUSICIANS_HERE

by **Togonistan** » Fri Sep 18, 2020 10:43 am

XX
Togonistan
Anahera - "Calm Silence"
Language(s): English
Title Transcription:
Title Translation:
Tune: Kari Kimmel - ''Cruel Summer'' (Extended)
Entry Specifics
Trigramme: TGN
Lyrics: Anahera
Music: Eliah Hamous

Anahera is representing Togonistan in the 54th World Hit Festival

Anahera is a 24-year old Togonistani singer born in Ascendia. Music has had an important place in her heart since childhood, as she studied in a music-oriented school. However, she gained wider popularity after participating in the 2nd season of The Voice: Togonistan, where she ended up on 4th place. 1 year later, she signed a contract with a local label Amstaff Records, and released her first solo album.

Anahera got approached by Lucky 7 to represent Togonistan in the 46th World Hit Festival, the first orchestral edition held in Izmedu, with a song ''Ata Murore''. However, due to management and communication errors in the broadcaster headquarters, Togonistan withdrew their entry on the last minute, thus crushing Anahera's WHF hopes.

3 months ago, she contacted a singer, songwriter and music producer Eliah Hamous for a joint project. Anahera's father had passed away due to heart attack, and she wanted to write a song to honour his memory. Eliah agreed and thus, in the following month, they released ''Calm Silence'' which was a calm ballad. Due to previous ties with the broadcaster, Eliah was able to contact Lucky 7 and sent a demo version to them. After short consideration, it was agreed that the song is going to represent Togonistan in WHF 54.

The song went through a slight rewamp during the preparations for World Hit Festival, which included extending the song's length from 2minutes 30seconds to 4 minutes. Also, Grace Lekker was invited on board to provide backing vocals for the chorus.

''I am very excited to represent my homeland here in La Cañada, and I am incredibly grateful to have received another chance to be part of the spectacular show that is World Hit Festival'' Anahera said in an interview given before the concert.

Performance:

Anahera is standing in the middle of the stage. She is wearing a long grey dress. Her hair are set loose and are somewhat messy, with parts of it partially covering her eyes. She clings onto a microphone stand in front of her. Stage is rather dark, with beams of cold light constantly sliding across her face after a certain interval. She puts her mouth close to the microphone and starts singing, with camera taking multiple close-up shots of her.

Hot summer breeze and the tides are turning
I am on my own
Trying to smile, but I feel so empty and gone

Just me and my thoughts, as I sit here alone
And I'm on my own
I'm lighting a candle
For you to see which way to go

More light beams appear and start rotating around the stage, while background LED screens show a bunch of stars in night's sky. The whole stage blends into a play of twirling lights, breaking the darkness here and there.

It's a calm, calm silence
Me and not a single soul
It's so calm, calm silence
At the dawn

Lights go off, and for a moment, only the dots of night's sky at the background are seen. Then, the LED screens go black again and beams of light start sliding across the stage once again.

The street's full of people, going their way
But you're not here
I carry through day
All the way until the dawn

The stage lights up in a bright yet cold colour scheme, a mixture of white and lighter tone of blue. Background graphics show a blue smoke twirling around, as Anahera sings the shorus. The camera takes a far away shot on the stage, before it starts rotating around Anahera. Halfway through the chorus, Grace Lekker is seen at the far back on the stage, bit offset to the left, wearing the same outfir as Anahera as she sings the backing vocals. However, Anahera is in the spotlight, as she sings the chorus while slightly shaking over her body and fighting the emotions.

It's a calm, calm silence
Me and not a single soul
It's so calm, calm silence
Me and not a single soul
It's a calm,
(it's a calm)
calm silence
(calm calm silence)
But you're gone
Me and not a single soul

For a moment, lights go out and Anahera stands in a single spotlight. Each background screen shows a burning candle.

Just me and my thoughts, as I sit here alone
And I'm on my own
I'm lighting a candle
For you to see which way to go

Stage lights up again and the smoke graphics re-appear on the screens. The stage floor fills with smoke, as the final chorus is being performed. Also, some wind appears, making Anahera's hair wave in the wind. She clings to her microphone and closes her eyes as she sings.

It's a calm, calm silence
Me and not a single soul
It's so calm, calm silence
Me and not a single soul
It's a calm,
(it's a calm)
calm silence
(calm calm silence)
But you're gone
Me and not a single soul

By the end of the final chorus, most of the smoke had faded away from the stage and the camera takes a top-down shot on the stage. Stage floor displays graphics of a twirling tornado, and Anahera stands in the middle of it. The tornado gains more and more speed, until it suddenly falls apart. Split second later, lights in the arena go completely off, thus ending the performance.

Crowd in the arena starts applauding and cheering, as lights go on again. Anahera is seen covering her mouth and some tears come from her eyes. She barely manages to say ''Thank you!'' to the audience, before leaving the stage.

by **Teesdexxia** » Sat Sep 26, 2020 3:57 pm

XX
Teesdexxia
The Fall and The Rise - "Hear Me"
Language(s): English
Tune: The Cranberries - Zombie
Entry Specifics
Trigramme: TDX
Lyrics: Dorian O'Rourke
Music: Dorian O'Rourke

The Fall and The Rise

"The Fall and The Rise" are a Teesdexxian rock band, chosen to represent Teesdexxia at WHF 54 in the Achaean Republic with their song "Hear Me". The band has members from across the nation, all with a common working class background, whom formed a band after meeting at a local record store's small music convention in Port Clarence.

Lead singer Dorian O'Rourke spoke about the song's meaning in a TV interview, saying that the song is about the decline of a their hometowns, and those in power, no matter their party affiliation, did nothing to try and help, also reflecting on the long term affect this has had on the towns people and societal issues that have arisen in the once proud working class towns.

The camera fades into the beginning of the song with a view of the floor of the stage, a dirty brown and with bits of rubble scattered across it. Once the music really kicks in, the camera quickly changes to a wide shot of the stage, with the spotlights all flashing rapidly. As the guitar motif plays, the camera fades into a shot of singer Dorian, who sings directly into the camera from a slightly to the right angle, red paint on her hands and blue on her fingertips.

Red and blue fade into grey,
Another day forgotten,
Mental violence ends in silence,
How did we become so rotten?

Onto the next verse, the camera pans out from Dorian and then begins to pan around the stage and the band.

We were proud, I avowed with my head in the clouds,
Do you see, do you see all that’s happening?
There’s no change only lies,
Only lies and goodbyes,
Do you see, do you see, we were trying.

In the chorus the spotlights flash again, though not as intensely as in the intro, and the shots change from ones of the different band members performing and of the stage as a whole.

Do you see, do you see?
Hear me, hear me, hear me-e-e.
What do you see? Do you see?
Hear me, hear me, hear me-e-e.
Oh (du-du-dudu-du)

On the second set of verses, the staging is much like the first, Dorian singing directly to the camera, in a way that almost seems as if she were pleading with the viewer, before the camera changes to pan out on the full band.

No way to fan the old blaze,
Glory days are over,
And a rope, a loss of hope,
Left to become rotten.

The decline of our scenes, since the nineteen eighties,
Do you see, do you see it’s still happening?
There’s no change only lies,
Only lies and goodbyes,
Do you see, do you see, we are dying.

In the second chorus, waves of lights spread out from behind the band, as the camera once again change from shots of the different band members performing and of the stage as a whole. At the end of the verse, Dorian takes the microphone off it's stand and falls to her knees as she belts the final note, and the camera once again fades off to the wide shot of the stage.

Do you see, do you see?
Hear me, hear me, hear me-e-e.
What do you see?
Do you see?
Hear me, hear me, hear me-e-e.
Oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh.

In the quieter part of the ending instrumental, the camera focuses on a grey sky shown on the backing LED, and as the drum start to hit, spotlights flash out with them and the camera switches with each drum beat from shots of the sky, shots of Dorian reaching out to the camera and the wide shot of the arena. Once the guitars come in again, the spotlights flash as intensely as they did at the beginning, (which was like, pretty intense init) and columns of fire pyrotechnics shoot up from the edges of the stage. The camera doing as it does in the chorus for this section and switching between the different shots. As the song calms down in the final outro, the camera slowly pans from member to member, who looks at the camera with a solemn expression, before everything flashes with the final drum beats and then all cuts to black. After the end of the song, the other band members run up and hug Dorian, as she thanks the audience, they all take a bow before the camera changes to the next act.

by **Yaakovistan** » Sat Sep 26, 2020 6:34 pm

XX
Yaakovistan
Naimanzuunnadintsetseg Millen - "A Long Dark Walk"
Language(s): English
Tune: Ned Miller - From a Jack to a King
Entry Specifics
Trigramme: YKV
Lyrics: Naimanzuunnadintsetseg Millen
Music: Naimanzuunnadintsetseg Millen

Through the dark of the night
Through Whiskeys to a gutter side
I drunk my fill and I lost again
And went away on my own

Through the dark of the night
With sorrow i spiralled down last night
And went and fell down from such a height
To the depths of a lonely heart

For just a little while
I thought i might breathe again
But just as ever
I drown in the warmth of a lie

Through the dark of the night
Through Whiskeys to a gutter side
I drunk my fill and I lost again
And went away on my own

For just a little while
I thought i might breathe again
But just as ever
I drown in the warmth of a lie

Through the dark of the night
Through Whiskeys to a gutter side
I drunk my fill and I lost again
And went away on my own

by **Polkopia** » Sat Sep 26, 2020 8:32 pm

XX
Polkopia
Sokol - "Ayoka"
Language(s): Polkopian
Title Translation: Storm
Tune: KAZKA — ПЛАКАЛА
Entry Specifics
Trigramme: PLK
Lyrics: Stefan Ruriković, Yelena Harper, Viktor Melek
Music: Ana Sofiya, Viktor Melek

Although there were three members of the group, Sokol, only one - the lead singer Ana Sofiya - was visible onstage. She wore a heavy black-and-blue leather outfit (similar to this, different color scheme). She stood center stage looking directly into the camera as it slowly panned into her from afar. Around her, fog crept in from various parts around the stage and there was minimal lighting so that only Ana was visible at the moment. This bit was carried on for a few moments until the beat dropped. Once the beat dropped, the camera spun and transitioned to a different angle so that the entire stage was visible. The lights on the geometric background shapes were colored a deep navy color and several spotlights flew around the stage. Background dancers in black hooded cloaks came onto the stage, hunched over, and circled around Ana as she sang the first verse. In front of Ana stood a microphone stand, which she held as she maintained a stoic expression, looking straight forward as she sang.

Ayoka zdes', i bolbes igraet v zovne
The storm is here and the idiot is playing outside

Čorniye khrami okrogut v derevne, oh yeah
Black clouds are surrounding the village, oh yeah

To viyskavka
It's a show

I miskavka
And the lightning

I kak ona pogaet nedačnakhi slanovi c srakha
And how it fills the poor villagers with fear

The background LED screens were black during this verse as well, however now there were moments where the lights would flicker, imitating lightning. The background dancers moved their arms outward and then back inward as they continued circling Ana as she sang, still hunched over. Part-way through this verse, (When she says, "za bezpeku".) they stood up straight, looked up behind them and placed their hands on the sides of their head. Then, during the next line, they all looked at different directions, still keeping their hands on their heads. As Ana sang the last line, the dancers resumed their earlier circular formation, only moved much, much quicker.

Ayoka zdes', i naves zavakrenno
The storm is here and the shutter is closed

Vmeste sami se-pyatut i oni se-molut
Families gather together and they pray

Za bezpeku
For safety

Za vygodku
For comfort

I ždan, i sami drug drugu dražut tvorno
And as they wait, families hold each other tightly

During the first chorus, the camera rapidly zoomed around the stage, circling around Ana to start with, and then moving all around the stage. Here, it was seen that the dancers all had their faces painted white with black areas around their eyes and lips, and thin black trails moving downward from their eyes. Each of them had a terrified expression as they moved around the stage. Meanwhile the win picked up, blowing Ana's hair behind her face and dark, ominous clouds could now very distinctly be seen moving across the LED screen, with the lightning effects being evermore prevalent.

S ayokami cmert'.
Death comes with storms.

Ne možem eto izbežit'.
We cannot avoid it.

No možet-byt' stini se-deržut do zavtra.
But maybe the walls will hold up until tomorrow.

I zvyozi padayut.
And the tears will fall

I ni'kto ne zasonet'.
And no one will sleep

No zavtra miy počinim derevnu v komu, čem biyla
But tomorrow we'll fix the village to what it was before.

During the instrumental bit, the camera moved to look at the stage from an aerial angle. Ana looked up and swayed her head back and forth, gently closing her eyes, where meanwhile, the dancers around her took three or four steps, looked up at the camera with their hands on the sides of their heads, and continued for three or four steps before doing the same thing. Once Ana started signing again, the dancers dropped to the ground and slid away from her so that for now, it seemed as if Ana was alone on stage. The camera panned to Ana's facial expressions, which were stoic and calm before, but now showed traces of alertness and concern as she sang. She moved her eyes rapidly around the stage as if she was prey looking for signs of their attacker.

Ayoka zdes', i zveri ves izbežut.
The storm is here and the beasts have all fled.

Miy v odno i neč se'stalkam eto vmeste.
We are all alone and must face it together.

V čore.
In the darkness

Čerez noče.
Through the night

I svet luni poprovodit nebi ver-to v utrom.
And the moonlight will guide us to the morning

The dancers returned to the stage and maintained the same formation as they had done so before, moving in a clockwise circle around Ana. The wind machine picked up and blew a strong wind around the stage that kicked up the fog and spun it around in the background so that it looked similar to a cloud bearing down on stage. The lighting centered on this area as well, coloring it in very deep purple and gray hues so that it resembled a terrifying cumulonimbus cloud on stage. The background LEDs, though not as easily visible as before, as the dark-colored fog was in front of it, flashed much more often so that it looked as if lightning was present in the 'cloud' onstage. At certain times, if the dancers circling Ana ventured too close to the storm, an unseen force would grab them and violently pull them inside the storm and that dancer would never be seen onstage again.

S ayokami cmert'.
Death comes with storms.

Ne možem eto izbežit'.
We cannot avoid it.

No možet-byt' stini se-deržut do zavtra.
But maybe the walls will hold up until tomorrow.

I zvyozi padayut.
And the tears will fall

I ni'kto ne zasonet'.
And no one will sleep

No zavtra miy počinim derevnu v komu, čem biyla
But tomorrow we'll fix the village to what it was before.

S ayokami cmert'.
Death comes with storms.

Ne možem eto izbežit'.
We cannot avoid it.

No možet-byt' stini se-deržut do zavtra.
But maybe the walls will hold up until tomorrow.

I zvyozi padayut.
And the tears will fall

I ni'kto ne zasonet'.
And no one will sleep

No zavtra miy počinim derevnu v komu, čem biyla
But tomorrow we'll fix the village to what it was before.

During the last chorus, the 'storm' onstage seemed to subside and the clouds began to dissipate. the LED screen in the back was still a black color, however the geometric shapes outlining the screens transitioned from a dark blue to a pleasant peach-color. The three dancers that were left on stage moved much slower than before and began to stand up straight, dusting themselves off and recovering from the violent storm that occurred on stage. Ana, meanwhile, maintained the same stoic expression as before, though toward the end she allowed herself to smirk, as if she expected this the entire time. By the end of the last chorus, the fog had completely dissipated and the few dancers that had disappeared onstage were still nowhere to be seen. On the floor, leaves and branches were scattered in a seemingly random pattern.

S ayokami cmert'.
Death comes with storms.

Ne možem eto izbežit'.
We cannot avoid it.

No možet-byt' stini se-deržut do zavtra.
But maybe the walls will hold up until tomorrow.

I zvyozi padayut.
And the tears will fall

I ni'kto ne zasonet'.
And no one will sleep

No zavtra miy počinim derevnu v komu, čem biyla
But tomorrow we'll fix the village to what it was before.

S ayokami cmert'.
Death comes with storms.

Ne možem eto izbežit'.
We cannot avoid it.

No možet-byt' stini se-deržut do zavtra.
But maybe the walls will hold up until tomorrow.

I zvyozi padayut.
And the tears will fall

I ni'kto ne zasonet'.
And no one will sleep

No zavtra miy počinim derevnu v komu, čem biyla
But tomorrow we'll fix the village to what it was before.

As the closing instrumental notes sounded, the dancers backed away from Ana and the camera closed in on her. She looked at the camera and maintained the same malicious smirk as before until the song ended and the lights faded into black. The performance was over.

by **Natanya** » Sun Sep 27, 2020 1:40 pm

XX
Natanya
Leonardo da Vinci - "Multiple Colours in the Sky"
Language(s): English
Tune: Galileo Galilei - Aoi Shiori
Entry Specifics
Trigramme: NTY
Lyrics: Jinta Kuuderov
Music: Jinta Kuuderov

The main members of Leonardo da Vinci, with Jinta seen on the right

Leonardo da Vinci are a Natanyan indie-rock band, formed by singer Jinta Kuuderov and guitarist Tsudon Yanderov in the rural northern town of Chincheren. Chosen by NTV for the 54th World Hit Festival, lead singer Jinta said that their song for the contest is one about a friendly relationship with an uncertain future, and the doubts one has in themselves once they start overthinking about things. In the song they are joined by vocalist Meiko Medvedev. Once they found out they were performing first, the band did not seem too phased by having to open the show, saying that they like the idea that they'll be seen without any expectations to meet from the performances beforehand, with viewers being able to properly focus on their performance. Not talking much about how they expect to do, just before going live, Jinta gave one last update on social media, saying that the band were ready and excited to show the world their music.

The band positioned themselves relatively centre stage, with each of them around a metre apart from one another, except for Jinta, the band’s lead singer, who was stood near the front of the stage. Once the music began, the shot changed from camera to camera to match the tune of the song, as did the spotlights descending from the back of the stage. When the vocals start, the shot changes to a straight-on full body shot of Jinta who sings the first verse into the camera, onto the second the camera the camera aims up slightly, while an evening’s sky with many colours appears on the backing LEDs. In the third verse, the camera focuses on multiple close side views of Jinta, with the final line being a close head-on shot.

Sometimes I think about the future,
I have dreams about everything that I face,
Dreams that last for hours,
With multiple colours in the sky.

Sometimes you’d be stood under that coloured sky,
Spending my fictional future in a journey with you,
I can’t say that I’d object to it,
Us walking through towns and trails, day or night.

Eventually I’ll snap out of my daydreams,
Slowly I breathe a sigh as I realise,
Am I crazy for having such long dreams about something that may never happen?

As the song transitions into the chorus, the camera quickly switches to a zoomed out view of the stage that pans across slowly, a flurry of lights descend into the audience. The camera focuses on Jinta's face for the last line, before fading for the next verse.

Maybe I’m a thousand miles away from you,
But you feel as if you are right here next to me
Just like that I feel the space between us dwindle,
Maybe I’m getting ahead of myself here.
Do you even feel the same?

The camera in the next verse is positioned on a shot over Jinta's shoulder, showing the band's female lead, Meiko, stood facing the camera from further back in the stage. The camera's focus changes from Jinta's close up face, staring into the distance and Meiko, singing straight at the camera. In the small instrumentals in between some of the lines, the camera goes back to the panned views of the stage.

You remember so many little details,
Like how I smile or all my favourite colours,
Sometimes we’ll chat all through the night,
You’d say things that’d make me feel so warm inside.
Maybe I’ll throw back some hints of my own too,
私達はどこに行くの？
They will probably backfire but it’s worth the shot,
ここに着くまでどれくらい？
Surely you must also feel the same.

For the next verse the camera focuses on an overhead shot that gradually moves downwards, with the spotlights ticking on and off in time with the music. And in the next verse again, the camera follows much of the same, but instead is level with stage and pans from left to right.

I need to take a step back and think about this,
Try and ground myself in reality,
But even if I’m mistaken,
Well as long as I’m with you, that’s fine by me.

All the good times that we have,
Nothing between us could possibly change them or take them away,
We don’t really need anything extra,
To continue just being ourselves.

For this verse the camera switches to another head-on view of Jinta, who looks up at the camera and sings passionately towards it as it slowly zooms out. Right at the end of the verse, as the camera is zoomed just past the front of the stage, a single firework shoots up from the front-centre point of the stage, with the camera quickly turning upwards to follow it.

I start to get lost in my imagination once again,
Slowly, I breathe a sigh as I realise,
There’s no reason to fear,
Wherever fate takes us, at least it’ll take me to you.

Into the chorus, the arena darkens somewhat as the backing LED fills with fireworks. A wind machine blows a gentle breeze on the band as Jinta passionately sings to the audience, with the camera taking multiple angles and shots of both him, the band and the stage as a whole. For both of the last lines, the camera solely focuses on an upper body shot of Jinta.

Maybe will won’t even actually meet,
Though these doubts I just can’t really see,
I’m sure we’d find some way around the distance,
I hope that someday we won’t need to even think about it,
You are my everything.

Maybe I think of you holding me tight,
In a future where we’ll be together,
I always do tend to get way ahead of myself,
But should I really tell you all about this?
I think for now I’ll keep those 3 words private.

Light slowly returns to the arena as the backing LEDs slowly fade to footage of commuter trains and life in a quiet rural town. The camera shows these different clips, and during each line will fade in a shot of Jinta from an angle, before focusing back onto the footage.

You remember so many little details,
Like how I smile or all my favourite colours,
And I’ll remember all those little things about you too,
So when we meet we’ll have more to learn.

The footage in the back now stays on a clip from the back of a train, with tracks moving away from the stage. The camera slowly comes from an upper shot of the stage showing this clip, moving towards where Jinta is stood from a slightly upwards angle. On the final two words of the lyrics, Jinta looks up at the camera, with a curious expression on his face to match the question being asked.

Will you step into the future with me?

After the music ends and the arena returns to it's neutral setting, Jinta and Meiko thank the audience for their warm reception as their band members wave from a distance. The camera fades into the next postcard as the band start to make their way off the stage, proud of their performance.

by **Todlichebujoku** » Sun Sep 27, 2020 2:58 pm

XX
Tödlichebujoku
Sivartti Yataroo & Hajimee Heikkinen - "SONG_TITLE"
Language(s): English
Tune: Brad Paisley & Alison Krauss - Whiskey Lullaby
Entry Specifics
Trigramme: TBJ
Lyrics: Verejalte Barros, Kasivolyo Hayaši
Music: MUSICIANS_HERE

you loved me

and i should have known

and now the earth weeps without you

World Hit Festival 54 - La Cañada, Achaean Rep.|DRAFT THREAD

World Hit Festival 54 - La Cañada, Achaean Rep.|DRAFT THREAD

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