WorldVision Song Contest 61 | IC | Hwoarang, Togonistan

by **Togonistan** » Mon Dec 11, 2017 2:05 pm

Broadcast starts with a video clip showing different scenes of the city of Hwoarang with the official tune of the 61st WorldVision song contest playing in the background. All sorts of different views can be seen, starting with a bunch of WorldVision fans from all over the world waving their flags while looking at the camera and shouting:

WorldVision!

After that, more views can be seen, such as a drone camera view of a local football stadium, a young Togoni man sitting in a restaurant and smiling at the camera, local street dancers doing some breakdance moves in a parking lot and a lovely couple taking a walk in a park. Eventually, the video takes us to a busy street, showing a quick day and night cycle timelapse.

After that, another drone camera view can be seen, slowly closing up on Hwangje Concert Arena. At the background, an unknown man can be heard shouting:

WorldVision!

Drone camera takes us closer and closer to the venue, until it fades into another scene showing arena from the inside. Camera rotates around the arena and shows the audience, who are waving their flags. All sorts of flags can be seen from various different nations, and the crowd is cheering when a male voice can be heard from the speakers saying:

Let WorldVision begin!

Camera stops at a bunch of fans from Mister X and at the same time, a female voice can be heard from the speakers:

It's time to broaden your horizon!

As the tune reaches 0:50 mark, camera turns around and shows us the stage. Local street dancers group, all dressed in black, comes to the stage and starts showing their dancemoves. Even though the moves are nothing too spectacular, they're all well synchronized and match the music. Familiar male voice can be heard saying:

Nations from all over the world have come together.
It's not about winning,
but learning.

Streetdancers do a quick bow and leave the stage to make room for another dance group. This one consists of middle-aged men and women dressed in native Togoni outfits. They all stand around in a circle, put their hands up and shout:

WorldVision!

Dancers start doing their dance moves, which are a mixture of native Togoni dance moves as well as more modern ones. Meanwhile, the stage, which has been rather dark so far, starts to lighten up a bit more. Eventually, led screens at the back of the stage show a sunrise, at the sea horizon.

Soon, a male voice can be heard again:

WorldVision!
It has begun!

Dancers leave the stage to be replaced by young women dressed in short black dresses with high heels. Each one of them is carrying a flag of a nation participating in the competition. They take a walk around the stage and catwalks connected to it. Meanwhile, a voice can be heard saying:

It's time to broaden your horizon.
It's time to broaden your horizon.
It's time to broaden your horizon.
It's time to broaden your horizon.
Let's do it!

Crowd is cheering as the women carrying flags walk around on the stage. Eventually they start heading behind the stage one by one. Male voice from the speakers can be heard saying:

Nations from all over the world,
in WorldVision!

LED screens behind the stage can be seen opening, revealing the hosts Alyn Tuvalu and Nang Tae-Young. Alyn is wearing a dark blue suit with a white shirt and blue tie, while Nang is dressed in a long red dress. They smile and wave to the audience as they start walking towards the middle of the stage.

WorldVision!

Alyn and Nang make their way to the middle of the stage and stand side by side, smiling as the camera takes a close-up shot of them. Eventually, Alyn puts his hands up and says:

That's enough!

Music ends and audience is making a huge noise at the arena. The hosts smile and wait for the crowd to calm down a bit, before starting with the introduction.

Alyn: ''Good evening world and welcome to the 61st WorldVision Song Contest hosted in Hwoarang, Togonistan! My name is Alyn and, apparently, I'm your host tonight along with this lovely lady next to me.''
Nang: ''Good evening from me aswell. I'm Nang, and I shall help this handsome fella here host this evening. Tonight, we have wonderful acts from all over the multiverse. Everyone has victory in their mind, but only one will prevail. Who will that be? We shall see. Right, Alyn?''
Alyn: ''Indeed, we will see that. However, while we are trying to make clear who shall have the next title, we also think that WorldVision is more than just a mere song competition. It's an event. Event where nations all over the world come together to share a little part of their culture. To make themselves heard.''
Nang: ''The slogan for tonight's event is Broaden Your Horizon. While the competition is going on, we would also like to educate you a bit at the same time. World is a huge and interesting place after all.''
Alyn: ''Absolutely. Now, I think it's soon going to be time to let our first act on the stage.''
Nang: ''Indeed. During the acts, you will see a phone number on the screen at some point. You can vote for your favorite by sending a text message or by using the official WorldVision app. However, please be advised that the lines won't be opened before all of tonight's acts have been performed.''
Alyn: ''Also, you cannot vote for your own nation. Trust me, I've tried that.''
Nang: ''So, which one of us is going to say it?''
Alyn: ''Let's do it together.''
Alyn & Nang: ''Let the 61st WorldVision Song Contest begin!''

by **Togonistan** » Mon Dec 11, 2017 2:05 pm

01. Missus X
Rick Leg - "Have Yourself A Sweary Little Christmas"

02. Dreamplanet
Vasco Henriquez - ''Never Right''

03. Estogium
Tiara Wicks - "Je Peux Le Sentir (I Can Feel It)"

04. Natanya (DSQ)

05. Izmedu
Luka Brekalo & Tatjana - ''A Way Out''

06. Silvacometopia (DSQ)

07. Adab
Kinan al-Salaman - "The Message"

08. Polkopia
Martina Ilya - ''Flying Free''

09. Libereco kaj Paco (DSQ)

10. Talvezout
Isobella Bachelor - ''Within Me''

11. Vartugia
FILLER-MAN- ft. Dick Arms - "Gonna Make Your Pant Moist”

12. Cleaca
Jason Tarudo Band - ''Oblivion''

13. Norjihan
Fyrnas Odanæ - ''Stolen Voices''

14. Electrum Diplomatic Offices
Gertrude Pullman - ''Rise From The Ashes''

15. Antahbrantahstan
Amariliis Kõiv & Raymond Võigemast - TBA

16. Togonistan
Stacy Lekker ft. Troublesome - ''Enough''

17. Britonisea
Mathias Bexley-Durand - "The Pink Mist"

18. Kalosia
Max Calder - "On My Way"

19. Electrum
Evita - ''Country Roads''

20. Mister X
Jack Baxter - "Reach For It"

21. Ardoki
Alistair Killian Moriarty - ''You're Voting My Way''

22. Filindostan
7Seven Gang - ''Seven Ball''

23. Saviera
Otto Björnman - ''Lover''

24. Arioslavia
Vadim Khabibulin - ''Izvini''

25. Balkvla Islands
Adam Wiles - ''Fever Dream''

26. Tödlichebujoku
Venla Almeida & Mortiz Kneller - ''A Mayfly's Life''

DaTV (Darkmania)

BITC (Britonisea)

TNTV (Togonistan)

MBO (Mitoland)

KNN (Kannap)

What's That??? (Merecendi)

by **Missus X** » Mon Dec 11, 2017 2:12 pm

01 Missus X

Rick Leg - "Have Yourself A Sweary Little Christmas"
Tune: Cascada - "Last Christmas"

Rick Leg slides onto the stage on his knees, screaming at the top of his voice, dressed as an elf:

WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOAH
WOOOH
YEAH

As the beat kicks in, money starts falling from the ceiling. Obviously not real money, because otherwise what would be the point of this song?

Last Christmas you gave me your heart
But I couldn't care less, so I'll send you a fart
This year, don't "be thoughtful", dear,
I JUST WANT FUCKING MONEY

Last Christmas Day was a shambles
So the very first thing I did on Boxing
Day was to list on eBay
All the total shit you gave me

Various gifts get thrown at Rick from off-stage.

Some mittens!? Cartoon ties!?
I'm not a paedo, so I don't like mince pies,
Listen, baby, just you send me money,
'Cause I don't want more novelty honey

"Happy Christmas!"
Not for me it isn't
'Cause my gifts are worth about 3 cents
Now I know what a [bleep] you are
And so I'll send you some shit, literally, a-ha.

Rick stops being pelted with gifts, and starts distributing that assorted crap into the audience, lobbing it at audience members, who are less than thrilled with cartoon ties. One audience member drops a mince pie and gets splattered.

Last Christmas you gave me your heart
But I couldn't care less, so I'll send you a fart
This year, don't "be thoughtful", dear,
I JUST WANT FUCKING MONEY

Last Christmas Day was a shambles
So the very first thing I did on Boxing
Day was to list on eBay
All the total shit you gave me

Rick belts out at the top of his voice again:

OHHHHHHHHHHHH

More gifts fall from the roof, and Rick is now knee-deep in rubbish Christmas presents.

Another book!? I don't care for
"How To Win Chess Quickly With White"
Oh, Santa, I thought you were someone to rely on,
But you sent me more shit I didn't ask for

Waist-deep.

I raised absolutely nothing on eBay
Which tells me exactly what to say:
WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOAH
"IS THAT ALL I'M WORTH? YOUR PRESENTS ARE SHITE!"

Chest-deep.

Last Christmas you gave me your heart
But I couldn't care less, so I'll send you a fart
This year, don't "be thoughtful", dear,
I JUST WANT FUCKING MONEY

Last Christmas Day was a shambles
So the very first thing I did on Boxing
Day was to list on eBay
All the total shit you gave me

Neck-deep.

I don't want to make another scene
So please don't you dare send a tangerine
Maybe next year
I'll get something that's ac-
I'll get something that's actually worth shit

Rick now sings covering the microphone to create a "muffled" effect:

Last Christmas you gave me your heart
But I couldn't care less, so I'll send you a fart
This year, don't "be thoughtful", dear,
I JUST WANT FUCKING

And then he uncovers the mic:

I JUST WANT FUCKING MONEY

He finally emerges from the rubbish toys and...:

"Send me some cash, Whore-ing!" shouts Rick at the audience. They don't. And Rick walks off.

by **Dreamplanet** » Mon Dec 11, 2017 2:15 pm

02 - DREAMPLANET
Vasco Henriques - Never Right
Tune: New Order - Blue Monday (start from 0:20)

It was finally the day, the moment, the song, Vasco Henriques' chance to prove to RTD, Dreamplanet and the multiverse that Dreamplanet deserved to return to the contest, and after Missus X's entry, commeth the hour, commeth the man.

The stage's pitch dark, but as the song starts suddenly, it explodes with light and it reveals Henriques and 2 performing actors wearing a polo shirt and some suit pants, they were on treadmills sorry for stealing from sweden but i couldn't think of a better opening walking at a leisurely pace as the LED display showed the city streets at day time, complimenting the movements of Henriques and his performing actors, if they went forwards on the treadmills, the buildings would look like they're getting away from the 3 men, if they're going backwards, it looks like it's going towards them and so on. The reason why the song starts so suddenly is because Henriques' song is normally longer than this, but it was shortened just for the contest.

His key arrived (0:32), and it was now or never, would he be nervous? Not today. He had this bright smile and was just bathing in the occasion, he was proud to represent his country, he was proud of being big enough in the music industry to single-handedly throw Dreamplanet back into the Worldvision Song Contest, he had the experience to not fail ahead of big audiences, and he believed in his musical talent, blessed with a great sounding voice, good looks and a banger track, now all he had to do is show what he was worth.

I kept knocking on the door
but you won't open,
i've tried hard to gain your love and more,
but i guess the dream was stolen.

And even though i've kept trying
all it ends up is with me crying,
i could go on and chase the dream
but i'm running out of steam.

Maybe i should just give up now?

Maybe i should just give up?

Maybe i should just give up now?

Maybe i should just give up.

All 3 men stop moving along with their treadmills, the spotlights above flicker along with the song (1:01), before the choir-like sound the stage turns pitch black again, the and during the choir sound, the spotlight is firmly pointed at Henriques with his arms out, but the spotlight eventually lights more to reveal all 3 men, the 2 performing artists are performing the same thing as Henriques, and as the choir changes tone, (1:23) the camera zooms in on Henriques' face. He puts on a smile, the camera cuts to a wide shot as all 3 men do a backflip and land it perfectly. (1:36) Wait what, why did Henriques do a backflip? He wasn't meant to. Oh well i guess it looked better if all 3 did it, thank God that he actually landed well, we could've had a problem through Henriques' eagerness, maybe that showed the crowd how energetic he is, maybe it was for the better. Looking pleased about doing something that he wasn't meant to do, Henriques continued to sing.

Ok, i get it now,
I've lost you, but still i'm asking how.

When you told me to dream on,
i believed that hope wasn't gone.

Maybe you'd be the one,
i refuse for this to be done,
however i admit i messed up
i know now that i messed up.

The treadmills start moving from forwards to backwards, and the crowd cheers as the three men threw out their polo shirts to reveal a tuxedo, Henriques in black and the other 2 men in white, it was unexpected but maybe the suit pants gave it away, either way, it worked in getting the crowd to cheer, creating the energetic feel for Henriques as he continued to sing (2:18)

And i always get it wrong,
but yet i sing this song,
cause i can make this right,
and we will dance through the night.

The strobe lights flashed in different colours once again along with the song as the city behind them changed from day to night, the treadmills still moving forwards and backwards, the strobe lights once again flashed to accompany the end of the song, and to conclude, a stream of fire along the stage and a firework went off, pyrotechnics were never a part of Dreamplanetian songs, but they were now.

The crowd were cheering, it appears that Henriques was able to win over the energy of the crowd, "Thank you Togonistan! Have a great night!" Henriques shouted, he visibly seemed accomplished, however how much of that feeling of accomplishment is truth would be discovered as the voting happened, so he went back stage to make way for the next song, Henriques was also questioned by shocked but impressed greenroom Dreamplanetian members, sure he wasn't meant to do a backflip, but it looked impressive right?

OOC: sorry if i disappointed some of you, i tried to do stage directions and i kinda ran out of words and ways to describe things without sounding repetitive, atleast i tried

by **Estogium** » Mon Dec 11, 2017 3:16 pm

#03 ESTOGIUM
Tiara Wicks - "Je Peux Le Sentir (I Can Feel It)"
Tune : Alma - "Requiem (French ver. Original)"
Language: English
Duration: 3:03

Tiara Wicks: Youngster to represent Estogium at the contest, with her new song "Je Peux Le Sentir"

Original News Announcement;

It was announced today that Tiara Wicks, who was born in the city of Boschke in Britonisea but moved to Estogium as a teenager, will be representing Estogium after being approached by the broadcaster, RVC. Estogium recently took a break from the contest after the very respected Ellie Morgent represented Estogium in the 59th WorldVision Song Contest, ultimately coming 9th - which is good placing after coming 12th and 17th. Despite the title being in French, the song will be performed in English - with only the "Je peux le sentir" being sung in French. The full French version will be released after the song contest takes place.

As previously explained, Tiara Wicks was born in the city of Boschke, which is a city in the North East of the Republic of Britonisea. She was born to an Estogian mother and Britonish father, but stayed in Britonisea due to her father having business in the country. Her Estogian mother worked as a nurse at a clinic, while her father was an executive at a store in the city centre of the large Britonish city. After he withdrew from his job, it was an opportunity to go back to Estogium's The Estograd to enrol in to the secondary school life. Her father quickly found a job, similar to his previous job in The Estograd, but had more time to stay at home with Tiara, whereas her mother would work sometimes in the nights or day - meaning her relationship with her father, growing up, was closer than mothers but she loved both of them nevertheless.

Tiara Wicks was ready to perform her song, and so she went on to the stage and took a deep breath, with a standing microphone in front of her face. Everything was dark, right up until the postcard for Estogium - and the audience cheered loudly for the nation. With that, lights from around the arena circled before ending up all facing Tiara Wicks. In the background, nothing much happened yet, but the audience weren't to focus on what was happening behind Tiara.

I feel amazed, I'm out of place,
I've never felt like this before.
I wanna feel like this again,
I wan't you here, right beside me.

I can feel it, je peux le sentir
I feel the love, the ecstasy.
It's like a drug I can't escape from,
I think I'm addicted to it!

Hold me so tight, right next to your body,
Let's dance in the twilight, under all of the stars.
And watch the passion between us flourish,
Never stop dancing even if we are bored of it.

Throughout the first verse and the pre-chorus, Tiara sang in to the microphone, slowly swaying along to the sound of the song. The camera would slowly position itself near Tiara, and she did look at the camera, and smile a bit. As the pre-chorus came though, the camera which was beside her zoomed out quickly before she sang "Hold me so tight", and with that the audience begun to cheer. A splash of pink (paint) was displayed on the screens behind Tiara, right behind her, and for those who were watching on the television, the camera was positioned as though it came from her back.

As the first chorus came, she took the microphone from the stand and started strutting down the stage to the edge of it, and started to sing towards the audience who sat in the Golden Circle area.

(Je peux le sentir!)
I'm in another universe, when both our palms meet each others.
With you, time is just a construct, hours and hours pass away.
When I look deeply in your eyes, takes me by surprise every time.
Maybe it's by coincidence that we found each other in this world.

(Paint) splodges in different colours, such as blue and green, was displayed on the screen behind her, coming from each side of the screen as she sang on. As she sang "With you, time is just a construct", the camera focused on the screens behind before slowly zooming out and focusing on Tiara.

You have me staying up all night and, I have you wrapped up inside my thoughts,
I feel like I am back at school, I feel like I'm reborn and new.
It's your effect, it's what you do - and you have got me enchanted,
I think you know what you're doing, and I don't want you to stop now.

Hold me so tight, right next to your body,
Let's dance in the twilight, under all of the stars.
And watch the passion between us flourish,
Never stop dancing even if we are bored of it.

Tiara started walking up and down the stage like she meant it, and a steadicam was following her from the back before she turned around and the cameraman quickly turned their camera. Another one came from the air and joined her, and met her eyes. She then sang in to that one - all while the lights at the back of her were flashing on and off, and while the audience were jubilantly waving their flags.

(Je peux le sentir!)
I'm in another universe, when both our palms meet each others.
With you, time is just a construct, hours and hours pass away.
When I look deeply in your eyes, takes me by surprise every time.
Maybe it's by coincidence that we found each other in this world.

This was the second chorus, and she started walking backwards towards the microphone that was on the stage at the start of the performance. Once she reached there, she put the microphone back on the stand and sang in to it.

Yes, I found you, and you found me,
Together, we were meant to be.
We can't be separated again, I cannot lose sight of you.
Yes, I found you, and you found me,
Together, we were meant to be.
But when I blink my eyes and open, you are gone without a trace.

Hold me so tight, right next to your body,
Let's dance in the twilight, under all of the stars.
And watch the passion between us flourish,
Never stop dancing even if we are bored of it.

Here, Tiara started free-dancing on the stage, as the camerawork did most of her. One of the cameras came from the top, and displayed what was doing on underneath her, which was just an array of colours being splashed on to the screen below her. The backing singers came in to aid her when Tiara wasn't singing.

Je peux le sentir!
Je peux le sentir!
Je peux le sentir!
Je peux le sentir!

Je peux le sentir!

At the end of the song, Tiara stood in the middle of the stage as the three camera shots (from the left, right and ending on the middle) finished the song for her. She only looked right down the middle, where the final shot met her face. The screens turned from a golden display to black, with her being lit up in the bright spotlight; the audience in Togonistan cheered loudly for her. "Thank you so much my beautiful people, thank you so much!"

by **Natanya** » Mon Dec 11, 2017 8:45 pm

#04. Natanya

Hayleen Muribakl - Smile

To the tune of: Sara Bareilles' 'Brave' Vocal Version Instrumental Version

{Placeholder for now}

by **Izmedu** » Tue Dec 12, 2017 12:57 am

05. IZMEDU
Luka Brekalo & Tatjana - A Way Out
Tune: Logic ft. Alessia Cara & Khalid - 1-800-273-8255

“Life's impossible, a bitch sometimes... We all say that casually, but my god, when life truly does to you, it almost feels like we don't deserve to live anymore. Always read my darkest moments as being told that I wasn't worthy of being alive, and it didn't help that I was raised without any struggle. How could I possibly be unhappy? I was making money, I was raised in a prim and proper house... Yeah, I'll never know that struggle, but that doesn't mean I don't know when my mind's fucked up. For a while, I wanted to die, the world didn't need someone like... a privileged asshole from Vodiznad, whose rapping isn't even good, pretentious as hell... Maybe those things are still true, but when you meet that one person who makes a difference? Your life changes. There is a way out, and it doesn't have to be from dying.” - Luka Brekalo

“I come from the opposite side. I know what darkness is, but my goal? If I can make a difference by saying one comforting word, one piece of strength... Then maybe that's a small part I can play to make this world a brighter place. We don't need anymore darkness, we don't need more pain.” - Tatjana

You're nothing but a fake anyway... Mediocre rapper, mediocre sales, savaged by The Vodiznad Chronicle... Hell, even the Hesskin rappers who you thought loved you, they excoriated you behind your back. When you fell down like a domino in that one performance, when you cried because you forgot your lyrics in a diss contest, when you had your fucking idol say that you deserved to die when they were nice to you on camera... Maybe that's the line, the threshold into the unspeakable. Heh, there's my poetic self talking again, that side of myself I thought I killed off to make myself more approachable... Maybe my attempt at street smarts was just to hide the fact that I'm just that rich boy from Vodiznad...

Those were the thoughts of Luka Brekalo as he was secluded in a corner of the Izmeduan delegation in the Hwan Concert Arena's green room. He enjoyed the experience so far, representing Izmedu in WorldVision and doing the press tours. However, what weighed on his mind was precisely the thoughts he was conjuring earlier. Each moment that led to the creation of “A Way Out,” each moment where he thought he couldn't survive to the next day, each moment where he wished for nothing but death... The moment before his performance felt like the hour of judgment for him, where his pain would be put on the spot for the world to decree it worthy of expression. For a song he specifically constructed as his life manifesto, his way of 'laying it bare' on stage. The thought of going up to perform petrified him. He wouldn't be alone, of course. Tatjana, a young Izmeduan singer with connections to Izmedu's WorldVision scene, would sing a verse with him. However, Luka Brekalo knew that the public associated this song with 'him.' This was his song, and whether he liked it or not, this would be associated with his living name till the end of his career.

Luka Brekalo, born Marko Lukas Gaus, is a singer and socially conscious rapper hailing from Vodiznad. 24 years young, his early life was marked with an upper class upbringing that was bought about by an upswing in the Izmeduan economy following its trademark partnership deal with its much larger neighbor, the Hesskin Empire, as well as the country being recognized as the overseer for the World Hit Festival. These deals and renown bought a sense of pride to the battered Izmeduan spirit, and Luka was raised with one of Izmedu's most economically powerful families, the Gaus family. His mother, Antonija Gaus, was seen as one of Izmedu's most financially shrewd bankers, and was able to craft a finance career in Vodiznad that caused even the old timers from Sastavak to take notice of her. For Luka, this led to an early life where he was raised mostly by nannies that knew how privileged he was. He had no stable father figure. His 'parents' consisted of a series of nannies and servants that would continually try to act as substitutes and give him the love that he needed, but constant turnover meant that Luka had no one in his life that he could call a 'parent.' His mother wasn't even there that often either, treating her son as a trophy and annoyance to entertain, but not as a child that needed actual affection.

A constant instability profoundly affected Luka's social ability and his interests. A foray into his immediate circumstances suggested an average rich kid that would normally stay quiet, making few friends, and doing decent, but not spectacular work in his studies. However, Luka knew that the reality constructed by his label was different. Behind the facade of being that silent rich kid were temper tantrums at an early age to actual breakdowns born from a primal desire of wanting a friend, a stable family figure, or anyone that he could latch to. His adolescent years were marked with increasing mental instability. He first attempted at the age of 14, following an incident where bullies would continually mock his status as a socially awkward and insecure student and use his mother's status against him. His enemies would make it a point to remind him that he wasn't loved. And he learned the double bind of his emotional pain early on as well, with his mother having put him on overpriced therapy soon after she learned of these incidents and was rightfully worried.

What he learned early on, maybe his pain wasn't genuine. It was clear to Luka that his emotional reactions were off. His brain was reacting in ways that felt fundamentally abnormal to him. It came from when he knew that even just waking up in the morning to do fundamentally human functions proved to be a challenge. It wasn't just that laziness that his few friends discussed, it was a weight on his head that told him he wasn't worthy of living to the next day. It was a voice in his head that always said, 'you have so many material things. Why aren't you happy? Why do you complain?'

Damning, but valid questions. Luka's only solace through the process was his discovery of Izmeduan rap, a niche in the Izmeduan music landscape. He was part of a small hip hop club during his adolescent years, but spent much of it only listening and observing. It wasn't until he was 18 years old that Luka tried to write his own verses. Much as he is loathe to admit, Luka's first attempts to form a mixtape were disastrous. While his lyrics were raw and to the point, his skills at trying to rap were disastrous. He put himself up for mockery as a barely-there rapper with too many adolescent tropes. And when his background was found out, Luka knew he sullied his first attempt.

However, it was lyric craft that allowed Luka to secure a line of redemption towards his current career path as an established Izmeduan rapper. His written verses were recognized by one of Izmedu's old guards in its rapping scene. Dario G, a retired rapper who largely found his career peak during the era of the WorldVision 40s, paid close attention to the lyrics that Luka wrote and was intensely moved by them. The particular reasons? Dario found a kindred soul in Luka's silent suffering, where even if someone had everything in the world and had no obvious reason to be weeping for their life, Dario knew that the human brain was an unpredictable organ. He sensed, right from the very beginning, a creative potential and a pain that ran deep in Luka's burgeoning talent. He just needed mentoring to focus his creative energies.

In a sea of darkness, Dario G's private endorsement came as a miracle to the 18 year old Luka. Dario was one of the figures that Luka idolized during his teenage years, with Dario's confessional lyrics and socially conscious raps being a way for the young Luka to frame and vent his pain. It was the first time he had a genuine avenue to which to be able to purge his demons and express into words what he was truly feeling. Little did he know that it would result in a complicated career for him. While the first years of being under Dario G's mentorship rewarded Luka with a connection to labels that were invaluable (to the point of a second mixtape that garnered relatively warm reactions), Luka's idiosyncratic style of confessional-esque rap and skewed perception of Izmeduan society caused massive frictions in his entrance.

And unfortunately, Luka's skills in rapping didn't progress fast enough for the increasing standards for the Izmeduan rap base, especially since it was struggling to find an audience beyond just its niche in Izmedu. His rapping was considered too soft, his lyrics still too adolescent, and unfortunately, consistent mixtape releases (leading to an album that largely flopped) didn't do anything to turn the tide on his increasingly polarized presence in the rap scene. Unfortunately, a spat with another rapper caused his reputation to go downwards in a humiliating public performance where his skills in trying to make up lyrics on the spot were insufficient. That performance also burned his relationship with Dario G, who was precisely that idolized rapper that said he deserved to die behind the cameras...

That happened at the age of 22, and he attempted again shortly after the above incident... Only to be stopped by a singer who was standing right by him, and his co-performer for the song, Tatjana. It was a night of the Zvucni dodjela, shortly after Luka's own career was obliterated right in front of his very eyes, having effectively lost his mentor, his reputation, and most of all, the fundamental respect of a genre that he owed his life to. In the moment, Luka wasn't sure if he had much of a reason to even live, much less even exist as a human being. He had too much, he was coddled, he was comforted most of his life... He thought if he couldn't handle real pain, then why would the world need someone like him? If Tatjana was only a second too late, he wouldn't be standing right here in Togonistan, about to perform.

She was the person that, in that specific moment, was his guardian angel that he needed in his darkest hour. Luka was uncomfortable in saying it, knowing that he would be inscribing a great burden on a young artist who herself was facing her own struggles. However, Tatjana saved his life, and the incident (thrown under the rug to the media as an unfortunate accident that Luka suffered, not a suicide attempt) had led to an intimately close friendship with one another. It was from that moment where Luka managed to find the strength to write again, and that was the very reason why “A Way Out” was formulated. As Luka recovered from his attempt, he would constantly think to why he survived, and why someone like Tatjana thought he was worthy of being saved... He remembered the lyrics he wrote in sharpie pen on a roll of a paper towel, a lyric that remains in the song to this day... I'll see that light through to the very end. From that singular lyric was a song that Luka gave his all in writing. He kept in constant contact with Tatjana, constantly re-drafted the verses, and curated the creative process with an intensity that he never managed with his past works.

Drawn relatively early, Luka faced the stage as Izmedu's country name was called out... He counted his lucky stars that RTI saw the potential in “A Way Out.” It wasn't a win that he was hoping for, it would've been too much for Luka. What he was truly hoping for was that someone would be moved by the song. He was already immensely honored when he heard from Izmedu's state broadcaster that the committee tasked to organize Izmedu's WV participation were driven to a genuine, visceral reaction to the song he sent; to the point where the unprecedented decision to move forward with an internal selection occurred versus drawing it for the perennial Izmepisma.

Maybe I can put all of this pain to rest... He thought. With a hug from Tatjana, he sauntered off to the stage.

This is the moment of truth... Luka thought, seeing the stage lights in the Hwan Concert Arena darken in preparation for his entry. His heart was racing inside as he stood at the stage's center, with him standing on top of the LED screen floor as all he could hear was the audience's endless cheering. Eventually, it would die down. Luka had his head down through the whole introduction, seeing only the darkness and feeling only the eternity of the last moments before he would have to perform the song in Togonistan.

The entry commenced with a dim spotlight on Luka, revealing the contours of his face as the camera focused on a close-up of him as he slowly looked up. A church organ like instrument played, inserting a sense of instant solemnity to the proceedings as Luka's tired eyes began to become apparent to the viewers at home. As the organ-like instrument from the background music continued to go through its paces, a rumbling orchestral began to dominate the instrumentation as the camera made a brief, cinematic swoop of the stage. The stage itself was still dark, with the dim spotlight on Luka brightening as the instrumentation developed further. Then, when the song was about to approach its first vocal moment, the camera faded to a close view of Luka, with the triangular screens beginning to show the camera view in black and white. At that moment, Luka then sang the pre-chorus to the song...

Strung out and hopeless
Reached the end of my line
Don't know if I can take much more
Sinking deeper into pain
(Feel this right now?)

Luka sang these words with a conviction, his burrowed eyes locking the camera in its place as he sauntered forward. His eyes, though downcast, shone with the dark auspices of experience that befit the lyrics' confessional nature. His body was hunched over slightly, his eyes were slightly closed trying to hide the pain, but the way he sang the lyrics was visceral. With both hands clasped at the microphone, he held it as if it were for dear life. At the fifth line, he held a hand as he shouted 'feel this right now' with a sense of abandon, shouting a 'whoop' and holding his microphone up for a few seconds. As the triangular screens showcased his emotional performance, the LED floor was displaying a scene of a strewn and broken wooden floor in black and white. On the floor were clear stains in a darker shade of black.

I can't even smile
Or survive just one day
This weight on my chest stops me dead
Telling me that I should die

For the last half of the pre-chorus, the camera shifted between focusing on the triangular screen to scenes of Luka himself performing. He walked forward only a few steps more through this last half, his voice developing a slight rasp from the intense emotions he was harboring. He tried to set his body straight, trying to eliminate the hunched over posture he was carrying from the pre-chorus' earlier half. The camera view went slightly overhead for this part, displaying the blank LED screen, and emphasizing that Luka looked derelict on stage. At the third line, Luka visibly put a hand on his chest, looking up towards the spotlight, and then closing his eyes as if he was about to emotionally crater as he ended the pre-chorus.

There ain't no way out of this
There ain't no way out of this
Too pathetic to survive
I don't deserve life
There ain't no way out of this
There ain't no way out of this
I don't deserve life
I've never been worthy

Though Luka's mind was on auto-pilot, he thought to focus on performance as he sang the chorus, even though it was wave after wave of relentless memories playing through his mind. He walked backwards one step with his chest still on his heart as he tried to move with the beat that was developing with the song. The camera maintained a mid-distant view of him as the increased instrumentation caused the Hwan Concert Arena to begin to illuminate in soft white lights. In turn, the more wider view caused the triangular screens to no longer display an intimate view of Luka's performance, instead opting to display darkened pictures of artworks of a broken apartment room; ranging from broken lamps, mirrors, and to a scribbled note that was unreadable even if zoomed up close. At the close of the chorus, the camera zoomed in closer to Luka, his face transitioning from fragile hopelessness to a harder edged look in his eyes.

Spent my life seeing my name trampled over and shit on
To the point where I can't stand to even breathe without breaking down
I've driven away so many, too many, too many
I'm alone with no one I can call for help

For the first verse of the song, Luka put every single inch of his soul to rapping the first verse. The lyrics came out in quick succession, his words forceful and emotive, conveying the absolute pain he expressed when he wrote these lyrics in the first place. He constantly moved his free arm to emphasize a point, keeping them close to his chest at appropriate times, as well as putting his free arm to his face at some parts. Despite the pain, none of Luka's words blurred into each other, with his rapping tuned for maximum impact. Around him, the LED background behind Luka turned into a city in downtown in black and white. It was a time lapse of pictures of people walking in the city, looking like blurred shadows. with the camera maintaining a mid-frontal view to make it look like he was situated in the city itself, but no one noticed that he was there, suffering and broken. The pictures were timed to nearly change at each word he was rapping, making it look like despite the passage of time, Luka was truly alone on stage, with not even the courtesy of the common human to help him.

I'm deserted and I know it's my fault
No shoulder to cry on, no one telling me it's okay
No embrace, no shelter, no one I know
They only care if you're an easy fix

For the second half of the first verse, Luka slightly slowed down the pace of his rapping to fit the pauses of the 'list' of emotional frustrations he was saying in the verse. The more he rapped the verse, the more his emotions transitioned from a hard edge to the point of mental breakdown, with his voice becoming emotionally strained as he said 'no shoulder to cry on' and each lyric right after. Luka managed to control himself by the end of the verse, with his voice becoming unexpectedly smooth at the last line.

Strung out and hopeless
Reached the end of my line
Don't know if I can take much more
Sinking deeper into pain
(Feel this right now?)
I can't even smile
Or survive just one day
This weight on my chest stops me dead
Telling me that I should die

For this iteration of the pre-chorus, the triangles on each side of the stage then displayed a close-up live feed of Luka. He performed this section much the same was as he did the previous, but his register was slightly more shaken versus the initial impact of the first instance of the pre-chorus. The instrumentation was more beat-based and the orchestra was more apparent. Despite the higher volume of instruments, the fragile look on Luka's face remained; his face downcast as he held his chest throughout much of this pre-chorus. The LED backgrounds remained that city-like background, with the image lapse ceasing with the shadows of people on the screen stopping. However, the shadows that 'stopped' weren't just mere images in the screen, some of them were people cleverly lit up to appear as if they were part of the image.

Maybe there is a way out
Maybe there is a way out
There's more to life than I know
More than just this pain
Maybe there is a way out
Maybe there is a way out
A light I can't see
(A light you will see)
Am I worthy of hope?

This chorus was a turn, a reflection of a burgeoning hope that began to bloom inside Luka as the lights got brighter to reflect it. The stormy black and white city behind Luka began to have a glimmer of sun shine down on it, and the shadows of people were lit up by the Hwan Concert Arena's lights to reveal a row of 13 people that stood behind Luka. Even though this version of the chorus was still hopeful, fitting with Luka singing towards the ceiling as the stage lights illuminated his fragile visage, there was still an intensely latent hopelessness in his singing. No more was this encapsulated at the deliver of the last line of the chorus, a damning question that caused Luka to turn away at the end with his eyes closed, going towards one of the runways but not daring to step on it. It was at this moment that a figure from the 13 started to walk towards Luka. At the moment Luka sang the first line, that figure was quickly revealed to be Tatjana, and a quick spotlight shone on her as she walked towards Luka's direction, and was prepared to sing her verse.

I know that feel you fear
That shame of feeling like you are unloved
I know it may ring true to you
But I care
'Cause I see a light in you

For Tatjana's verse, the camera maintained a sideways view of her as she slowly walked towards Luka, who was standing on his lonesome. While her vocal was more subdued and subtle, she packed it with an intensity of movement, her eyes brimming with concern for her co-performer. By the third line, she was able to reach Luka, and she was singing these words directly to him; trying to get the rapper to see the other side and to help him not succumb to the darkness. The camera then faded to a view of their interactions together, with Luka standing solemnly, trying to hide his breakdown as Tatjana placed a hand on his shoulder as she sang to him.

You are worthy, you deserve life
It's okay if you need to cry out
It shows just how strong you are to me
You don't need to be afraid
I'll be with you at every step

Even though Tatjana was singing these words at a relatively fast pace, she infused them with the encouraging tone necessary to give these words meaning. She made sure to keep her eyes on Luka at all times. At one point, she even began to grip Luka's free hand as he began to slowly see hope in Tatjana's words. She motioned for him look towards the slowly brightening LED background, with more streaks of sunlight piercing the CGI clouds on the city. Her eyes and voice, despite holding pain, were begging for Luka to see hope in this situation. At the last two lines, she began to lead Luka back to the center of the stage, leading him at every single step of the way, not daring to let go of his hand until the very end of the verse. However, the transition period from verse to verse would be quick, and as soon as Tatjana finished, she stepped back as Luka's spotlight was brightened somewhat.

I wanna believe every word, every last one
Been too lost in myself to see that there's more
I don't have to breathe without crying
I've found my reason to live again

For this verse, it was Luka singing to Tatjana this time around. As he sang his verse, the singer had her hands clasped to her chest, holding the microphone as all she could do was look at Luka as he purged his pain and confessed his desire for hope. While he maintained his distance, Luka was slowly motioning towards Tatjana with a fragile look on his face. Now, there was a note of optimism in his voice, reflected by streaks of yellow light that occasionally flashed on the stage, disrupting the monotony of the shades of white that cast a ghostly atmosphere on the stage. At the last two lines, the camera especially focused on Luka, as a ghost of a smile appeared on his face, his hand outreaching not only towards Tatjana, but to the camera itself. He was beginning to heal.

I'm still hurting
My mind won't let go
I hope you're right that I'm strong
And that I deserve to live this life

Despite the hope from earlier, Luka turned away for the briefer two lines in the verse's second half. He held his head to reflect the unending darkness that would continue to trample over his mind for as long as he lived. However, this was when Tatjana began to intervene. Even though her parts were now minimal from this point on, she would still help Luka find his way out of the darkness in this performance. At the verse's close, Luka's spotlight was gradually turning into a pastel gold, reflecting the possibility of hope and a new future.

Strung out and hopeless
Reached the end of my line
Don't know if I can take much more
Sinking deeper into pain
(Feel this right now?)
I can't even smile
Or survive just one day
This weight on my chest stops me dead
Telling me that I should die

For this reprise of the pre-chorus, it was the voice in Luka's head returning once again. He turned away from Tatjana as it was a battle against his own mind, the stage and the city on the LED screens disappearing as only a white spotlight remained on him. He managed to deliver a similar reprise of this pre-chorus, but it was a conflict and contrast to the hope that was developing. Luka was more reticent in delivering these lines. The camera focused on intimate shots of Luka as he performed, with the intensity of his expression betraying the internal conflict within. Behind Luka was Tatjana silently corralling the crowd of 13 to help support Luka later on in the song. Silently and in the darkness, they converged into a line together, interlinked and crafting a physical support system.

There is a way out to the light
There is a way out to the light
It's that hope you feel inside
It's that hope inside
There is a way out to the light
There is a way out to the light
It's that hope inside
It's that hope inside

The transition to this final chorus was rapid, with a yellow and white color palette now dominating the stage as Luka was saying these words of hope while a crowd of people, Tatjana among their number, with their arms interlocked and crafting a clear message: no one is alone. The triangular screens showed flashed through each member of the 13-member crowd in each triangle, with some of them looking solemn, some providing an impromptu choral accompaniment, and with one member providing impassioned backing vocals that matched Luka's lyric. That one member took “it's that hope inside” and added a gravitas at the end of the chorus, capping off a transition to the final verse of the song. The camera alternated between intimate views of Luka and the 13-strong support system behind him. The instrumentation removed the beats at the second-to-last line of the song, with the woman's impassioned vocals being driven with the song's solemn and trademark orchestral. Luka stood with his face down, tears freely streaming down his face at the instrumental interlude. He looked to be visibly shaking, his performance emotions blurring with the ones threatening to bubble up from inside him.

Sometimes I still lose myself
Breaking down as I try to heal
But I just gotta push through without fail
Knowing that I won't end this battle
I'm still pushing on
Despite the fact that I'm broken
I can't give up hope now
I'll see that light through to the very end

This was the beginning of the end, the sorrowful outro that Luka dreaded. He kept the emotions at bay for as much as he could, and the camera accentuated his struggle by lingering on his face as he softly sang this outro. His voice was at a much different register from earlier, fittingly trembling for the emotionality of the lyrics, but it was clear that Luka was at his last stretches. He looked ready to keel over, but he kept his vocals centered on the performance as he held both hands to the microphone in an attempt to steel his concentration. He blinked his eyes to keep everything at bay, but to the viewers at home, his barriers were broken. Behind him, even some of the people were beginning to visibly react, looking away as to not betray their emotions.

Gotta keep saying
Just gotta keep...
I'll see that light through to the very end

For these final three lines, Luka couldn't keep the illusion anymore. Closing his eyes for most of it, he sputtered out the final line with the most intense emotionality he could muster, and looked away as the spotlight on him quickly faded. From the intensity of what he had just performed, he physically fell to both of his knees at the end of the performance. He wasn't sure what he had just pulled off, or what he had just gone through. All Luka felt was that visceral feeling of relief and purged demons. It was going to be a while till he could objectively evaluate what had just happened on stage. All he knew that, at least in this moment, was that he truly felt as if he laid everything bare on that tonight. Take it or leave it, Luka could go home with that realization.

Tatjana had to help him up as the crowd cheered at the end of the Izmeduan entry. He didn't have the energy to mouth a thank you, so all he could do was just wave to the crowd with an exhausted smile. With the 13-person crowd beside him, he walked backstage with Tatjana, hand in hand...

It will be okay... It will be okay...

by **Silvacometopia** » Tue Dec 12, 2017 1:44 am

#06 Silvacometopia
Rosalie Hickey - "Unlimited"
Tune: BETTY - New Generation

by **Adab** » Tue Dec 12, 2017 2:44 am

7. ADAB
Kinan al-Salaman - "The Message"
Tune: U2 - The Fly
Language: English

Al-Salaman performing at The Thomas Dawood Show

Background
Kinan al-Salaman's surprising 4th place finish at WorldVision Song Contest 60, on his 18th consecutive edition, confirmed his status as Adab's preeminent living musician and silenced critics at home and abroad, an increasing number of whom had gone on record as saying that the time had come for al-Salaman to relinquish his WorldVision spot in favor of younger artists. Even though he did not win the contest, al-Salaman's achievement was still widely celebrated by his fellow countrymen, among whom he had come to be seen as one of Adab's modern-day national heroes. Upon his return to Adab, al-Salaman was given a ticker tape parade across the capital Adab City, with up to a million citizens coming out to celebrate the great man, culminating in a reception at the Imperial Palace where Inimabakesh al-Tikriti, Minister of Foreign Affairs, gave a speech on behalf the Emperor honoring al-Salaman and his achievements in the fields of music and charity. He further confirmed that al-Salaman would stay in his position as Adab's representative on future WorldVision editions, claiming that no other act was currently worthy of the position.

Basking in his latest triumph and glory, al-Salaman spent the next few weeks holding a mini-tour, visiting some of Adab's largest cities and playing to sell-out audiences as the media acclaimed him as one of the greatest Adabians of this century, and certainly the most famous. When the mini-tour came to its conclusion, al-Salaman retired to his mansion, the Alwalid, to start work on "one or two" EPs to satisfy his fans while also mulling over the choice of songs for the next WorldVision contest. With quite a lot of time on his hands, al-Salaman completed the EPs quickly, after which, having developed an interest in archaeology, he went on a one-week excursion with an Adab City Museum team to the ancient ruins of Eridu. The trip went some ways towards reinvigorating al-Salaman and, he hinted, at least partly inspired his song for the next WorldVision contest. Returning from Eridu, the singer proceeded to establish Al-Salaman Group - of which he appointed himself chairman and CEO - as the parent company of Al-Salaman Records and the newly-established Al-Salaman Music Publishing, with a view towards an IPO in the near future. Things were looking bright for al-Salaman, and he intended to keep it that way.

The performance
The lights dimmed as the previous act made its exit. Even though everything seemed to be fading to black, the audience - especially those in the front rows - thought that they could see dark, shadowy shapes moving around the stage. Some correctly guessed that they were technicians, setting up whatever was needed for the next performance. This situation went on for what felt like a whole hour, even though in reality it was much shorter than that, before the shapes disappeared for good, leaving the stage empty. Barely a sound was made and heard at the venue. The audience, immersed in and overwhelmed by the darkness, whispered among themselves, none daring to raise their voice for fear of disturbing the peace.

Then they began to hear a voice, coming out not from among themselves, but rather emanating from somewhere on the ceilings. The voice grew louder with time, robotic and almost bereft of emotion. Its warnings and urges were delivered coldly, less of an enthusiastic call and more of an advisory, the robotic edges in that voice resonating across the venue. "Keep yourself safe," said the voice at one point. "The world as you know it has ceased to exist," it claimed. "Globalization is real", "family is first", "music consumption is at an all-time high", "the vultures are coming for their food", "deny the truth" were among the things that the voice said. The coldness in the voice was almost reassuring. Suddenly the lights came back on across the venue. The announcements ceased. The fractured triangular screens behind turned light gold along with all the stages' floors, while the screen at the back of the stage showed what appeared to be a video of plants and animals in their natural habitats, complete with accompanying music.

As the video rolled on, the floors turned black and a golden throne was wheeled onto the main stage by someone who appeared to be a security guard, flanked on each side by seven women holding plucked leaves and dressed in red and brown ala the Priestess of Delphi. The man on the throne appeared to be comfortable in his seat, wearing a leopard-skin coat that matched the gold of his throne. He waved to the audience, who cheered and applauded him, some even rising from their seats. Fresh from his success at the previous WorldVision contest, Kinan al-Salaman continued to elicit enthusiastic reactions from audiences everywhere, especially his own countrymen. Behind the throne marched the latest members of The Kinan al-Salaman Band, attending the event in decidedly casual attire. Behind them were the country's best professional wrestlers, wearing the typical wrestling singlet.

The band took their respective positions and tuned their instruments, while the guard wheeled the throne to the front of the main stage before making his exit. The women and the wrestlers were spread around the stage. Al-Salaman did not rise, preferring to receive the crowd's adulation from his royal seat and acknowledge them with a wave and a smile. The microphone had been set up and a guitar was handed over to him; for all that al-Salaman had achieved as a singer and songwriter, his skill as a rhythm guitarist remained underrated. "Thank you all for coming," he said, reaching for the microphone. "This promises to be a good night, so let us all enjoy this occasion and celebrate the power of music. As the great poet Horace once wrote in days long gone, carpe diem, seize the day. Or night." He then turned to his band, his eyes especially directed at the lead guitarist. "One, two, three, four!"

The music finally started. Hands on his guitar, Al-Salaman jumped from his seat and kicked his precious golden throne off the stage, much to the excitement of the crowd. Behind him, the women joined hands and formed two circles, spinning around while the LED screen at the back spelled out "WELCOME TO THE KINAN AL-SALAMAN SHOW" against a background of red.

A man knows once the cards are dealt, then there's no turning back
A man knows once the die is cast, there's no point in running back
You know your conscience matters not when the pen's on your contract
You and I, we should have walked out when he still had the time

A man knows when the queen's on his side, he should have used the chance
A man chooses his best friends, and knows them from his enemies
I heard the preacher call me up, and he whispered a few words
The message is in each of us, child

A man ran onto the stage, dressed casually like the members of al-Salaman's band, and the singer handed his guitar over to him. Al-Salaman reached for the microphone, taking it off the stand, and walked around the main stage. The circles were gone and the women were roaming the stage themselves. Two of the women approached the bassist, uncovered almost to the chest, but the bassist appeared impervious to the temptation even as one of the women attempted to caress him. One of the wrestlers launched himself between the women and the bassist, trying to chase off the women, but another wrestler intervened and performed a powerslam, falling face-down on the other wrestler as the women watched. They ended up rolling around the floor, each attempt to wrest himself off the other's hold. Meanwhile, another woman approached the lead guitarist, even massaging his back at one point. The guitarist politely shooed her away after a while.

The LED screen at the back was now showing what appeared to be a bustling nightclub, with people talking and drinking and enjoying themselves; the lights were flashing and almost blinding but there was no sound from the video itself. The three stages were now bathed in constantly changing colors, blue to yellow to green to red to white and back to blue.

Falsetto by lead guitarist; (low voice) by al-Salaman

My friends, we shine like the moon at night
We're crashing and burning (A man will come, a man will take)
Tonight (From the depths of the water, from the roof of the world, it's what we always want)

The other wrestlers, seeing the two rolling on the floor, came to the rescue of one of them or the other, culminating in an all-out brawl which continued even as they slowly removed themselves to the right side of the main stage. The women gathered at the left side, where they broke into what appeared to be a tap dance while watching the wrestlers fight it out among themselves. The floors of all three stages now turned bloody red along with the background of the LED screen at the back, even as it continued showing the nightclub video, giving the whole performance a rather sinister look.

A man knows when to keep his friends close, and his trusted men closer
A man knows when to bide his time, and which pawn he'll be using
Every civilization falls, everything returns to dust
We all only decide our lives, and wait for the conclusion

The women now approached the wrestlers, offering them the plucked leaves that they were still holding as a call for peace. The wrestlers took a moment to evaluate the leaves, then accepted them without comment and soon appeared to be evaluating the women themselves. The attention was not entirely unwelcome, for there seemed to be quite a bit of touching and feeling going on there. By the time the floor parted behind the drums, they all had blended into one crowd near the back of the main stage. Out of the opening rose scaffolding that rose just high enough for the audience to see. This sight was soon obscured by an explosion of fireworks all around the main stage, their deafening sound only barely masked by the cheers and gasps and applauses of the audience. The fireworks began to die down, only to be replaced by flames - accompanied by columns of smoke - that rose so high, it threatened to burn the ceiling, creating an illusion that the main stage was surrounded by a curtain of fire.

Falsetto by lead guitarist; (low voice) by al-Salaman

My friends, we shine like the moon at night
We're crashing and burning (A man will rise, a man will fall)
Tonight (From the depths of the water, from the roof of the world, it's what we always want)

Near the back of the stage, the women and the wrestlers were becoming increasingly merry and intimate, dancing and hugging and giving each other kisses on the cheek. The LED screen at the back - now complete with sound, albeit rather faint so as not to overwhelm the music - was now showing a montage of city life, interspersed with footage of Emperor Tizqar III delivering a speech at the Imperial Palace. Al-Salaman sprinted towards the scaffolding, putting his arms around one of the women and taking her with him. On the way to the scaffolding, he stopped by the drum kit, where a small sack was sitting between the drummer's legs. The drummer nearby fell off his seat as he leaned back in order to allow al-Salaman to take the sack.

The spotlight was now on al-Salaman's band, especially when the lead guitarist performed his lengthy solo. The floor and the lights above turned blue as al-Salaman and the woman slowly climbed the scaffolding to reach the two jet packs lying perilously on the top of the scaffolding. Al-Salaman gave the sack over to the woman, retaining his mic as he put on the jet pack and flew over the "curtain of fire" to the audience's cheers. The woman soon followed him, still holding the sack as she took off, and the audience was treated to the sight of the singer holding hands with the woman above them. Al-Salaman instructed the woman to open the sack and pour its contents on the audience below, revealing countless Adabian shekel bills and coins. The woman then flew back to the stage as the audience took it upon themselves to grab all the money, nearly causing a riot. Up above, al-Salaman held the mic close to his mouth.

Falsetto by lead guitarist; (low voice) by al-Salaman

My friends, we shine like the moon at night
We're crashing and burning tonight

My friends, we shine like the moon at night
We're crashing and burning (A man will rise, a man will fall)
Tonight (From the depths of the water, from the roof of the world, it's what we always want)

Al-Salaman landed on one of the two smaller stages. The flames were already starting to die down by this point, once again allowing the audience a clear view of the stage. The three stages were now veering between flashes of red, blue, and back to red. Al-Salaman noticed a young man in the audience carrying a small Adabian flag in his hands and pulled him up to the stage, allowing him to show off his dance moves as al-Salaman knelt at the edge of the stage and reached out to his fans, eagerly high-fiving and fist-bumping them.

A man knows when he's run the course, and when he has to leave
The clock is ticking down and there's no time to waste
Well I gotta go, yeah they said my turn has come
You better think again, maybe see what you have missed

Al-Salaman ran back to the main stage as the flames continued sinking around him, the young man climbing off the stage and returning to his seat. Another, much briefer guitar solo provided the backdrop for al-Salaman's return to the main stage. In his excitement, he fell to his knees and slid all the way to the front stage, just in time for the last glimmers of the flames to die, for the music to stop, and for the lights to go out. He stayed on his knees for some time, raising his hands as the audience applauded him and his people. In the darkness, he thanked the audience, put the mic back on the stand, and quietly exited the stage.

by **Polkopia** » Tue Dec 12, 2017 9:11 am

08. Polkopia
Martina Ilya | Flying Free
Tune: Sia - Fire Meets Gasoline
Alternative Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rvzg-w4zz3M

Martina Ilya had come second place in the most recent edition of the Landa vy Polkopiya, narrowly missing out the chance to represent Polkopia at the 60th Worldvision Song Contest in Hajenired. With the producer of the National Final deciding that the contest would take a year hiatus, the PNB approached Marina to represent her home country in Togonistan, to which, she readily accepted. Her song was initially loved by the public, but failed to chart in the Top 10 in Polkopia after her second place finish. With the announcement being made public that Flying Free would be Polkopia's song in WV61, the song once again began to rise in the Polkopian charts, before peaking at #12, as well as charting in the Top 100 in various other countries. Her song, Flying Free, is described by Martina herself as relatable to the public, because she notes that most people have gone through a loss of a loved one in their life. Her song is about letting that loved one go. Grief is an understandable emotion to have in such times, but letting go of that person, and accepting that they're gone is the most important stage in dealing with such a hardship in one's life. According to Martina, death is an awful thing. It destroys one person's physical body, but has the potential to destroy hundreds emotionally. Grief buries its way inside one's emotions and plants itself there, until a person is left longing for something that they cannot change. In order for one person's death to be contained to one person and one person only, resilience from that person's loved ones is required in order to prevent further casualties. That is the message she hopes to convey to, not only the Polkopian public, but to the rest of the multiverse.

Martina Ilya stood on stage by herself, dressed simply in a white dress, while her blonde hair fell naturally to her shoulders. Her makeup was very minimal and only limited to mascara, in order to make her striking green eyes pop on stage. The background was black and a single spotlight was shown on Martina as she stood behind a microphone stand. The camera filmed her with an almost nostalgic filter; the brightness seemed unnaturally high, almost as if there was a sunset in the distance, when in fact the lighting surrounding Martina was severely limited. As the music began to play, the triangular LED screens around the stage flickered in a golden color, but remained permanently golden once she started to sing. The camera never seemed to sit still while she sang the first two verses. It slowly panned sideways, from all sorts of angles, as she sang.

It don't make sense
To leave someone this way
Wanna fly with you tonight.
Up above.

The both of us
We're too old to inspire.
Still caught in this crossfire
...Burn.

As soon as Martina sang 'cross', 'hoped', 'spread', and 'don't' the main LED screen would flicker the same gold color as the triangles, but would disappear as soon as she finished singing that word, until it reappeared and disappeared again. She gripped the microphone and squeezed her eyes shut as she sang the last two lines.

So come on now,
Cross your heart, cross your heart now
You hoped to die, hoped to die now
Won't you come?
Won't you come on back home?

So come on now,
Spread your wings, spread your wings now
And don't look down, don't look down now
You have left this earth forever
But I'll always remember...
(Eyy eyy eyy eyy)

Martina let go of the microphone and extended her hands in front of her and she raised them until she sang the last line of the first stanza of the chorus, at which she brought her hands back to her side. A wind machine blew her blonde hair back, meanwhile, the stage's back LED screen turned completely golden, with slightly noticeable sparkles drifting around the screen.

To immortality...
Now you're flying free
You're gone and you are flying free
Soar with me tonight

I wish I could see
Your soul above me
As you're flying free
As you're flying free

But you've got all you need
To reach eternity
As you're flying free
Soar with me tonight

She grips the microphone with her right hand and leans in enough so that her lips are nearly touching the microphone as she sings. Once again, she squeezes her eyes shut, and fixates her free hand on the microphone stand.

Eventually
I'll join you in the sky
I'll see you when I fly
Up...

On the LED screen, a golden phoenix zooms in from the center of the screen and centers itself in the middle of the screen. The camera zooms out and by the last line, the phoenix is in full view, with Martina standing directly in front of it.

So come on now,
Spread your wings, spread your wings now
And don't look down, don't look down now
You have left this earth forever
But I'll always remember...
(Eyy eyy eyy eyy)

As soon as the chorus starts, pyros erupt from the perimeter of the stage and the phoenix dips down, decreases in size, and flies around the background LED screen. The camera zooms in to Martina, whose face is turned toward the audience, but whose eyes are looking upward.

To immortality...
Now you're flying free
You're gone and you are flying free
Soar with me tonight

I wish I could see
Your soul above me
As you're flying free
As you're flying free

But you've got all you need
To reach eternity
As you're flying free
Soar with me tonight

Every two lines she sang here, the camera took a different angle. She focused her eyes back on the audience and seemed to move her body in tune with the beat. The phoenix was still flying around the screens, but now it hopped between the triangular LED screens and the main one in the back as it flew.

And it's a cruel world
So I've heard
And your eyes, oh your eyes are forever closed.
When the music dies
You're up in the sky
And I know, oh I know you're looking down at me

And it's a cruel world
So I've heard
And your eyes, oh your eyes are forever closed.
When the music dies
You're up in the sky
And I know, oh I know you're looking down at me

A shower of sparks rained down from the background screen and the phoenix could still be seen flying around until it disappeared by the beginning of the third stanza. After the third stanza, the sparks stopped and the camera showed a final shot of an arial view of Martina standing on the LED triangular screen on the floor, where the phoenix was seen spreading its wings.

To immortality...
Now you're flying free
You're gone and you are flying free
Soar with me tonight

I wish I could see
Your soul above me
As you're flying free
As you're flying free

But you've got all you need
To reach eternity
As you're flying free
Soar with me tonight

But you've got all you need
To reach eternity
As you're flying free
Soar with me tonight

Soar with me tonight

Soar with me tonight

Soar with me tonight

Eh Eh

The camera faded to Martina's face, who wiped her face and waved at the applauding crowd. "Thank you Hwoarang!" she said before leaving the stage.

by **Libereco kaj Paco** » Tue Dec 12, 2017 9:19 am

[deleted]

by **Talvezout** » Tue Dec 12, 2017 12:08 pm

10. TALVEZOUT
Isobella Bachelor - Within Me
(Set to Portishead - Sour Times)

Given the rather dark nature of the song, the stage would be set in a rather austere fashion; a 10-piece orchestra would be sitting center stage, in a half circle around the microphone. Isobella would be wearing a black ball gown to suit the rather spy movie like song. There would only be stage lights shining directly down on Isobella and the orchestra, as the song started. The camera would have a filter on it to display everything in black and white, with only Isobella being in color.

The nerves within burn inside
All my thoughts bruise in time
Forgotten words and peering eyes
Things that reside within me
Take a look, come all come now

As the verse would end, triangular screens to the sides of the performers would start showing black and white clips from old spy movies. The black and white filter on the cameras would change to a full color filter, as the harsh white spotlights would change to a more warm yellow.

See the pain within me
All bruised
Always to renew

The camera filter would switch back to black and white for the verse, as the lights would also change back to a harsh white.

Smothered within blind grief
Broken fantasies of symphonies
Orchestrating my beautiful demise
End the vows, no need to lie, enjoy
See the bows, the applause, in grey
Take a seat, take a pick now

See the pain within me
All bruised
Always to renew

The lights would all go dark except for a lone warm yellow one on Isobella. All the focus would be on her, as she would deliver the bridge of the song. The orchestra would swell during this part, giving extra emphasis.

Who am I, what and why?
All you see here, is a woman singing some song
Of a world seething

See the pain within me
All bruised
Always to renew

The screens behind the performers would change to clips from a short Isobella had recently appeared in, "Death Of A Man". As the black and white scenes would appear on the fractured screens, the rest of the lights would come back onto the orchestra.

In due time the bitter thoughts
Without innocence, all lost
Sans a path, without no hope
It feels like at the end of my rope
And the chorus comes...

See the pain within me
All bruised
Always to renew

See the pain within me
All bruised
Always to renew

All of the lights would focus on Isobella. After she would finish singing the last words of the song, the scenes shown behind her would start to distort and disintegrate in time with the siren like noise. As the song came to an end, all of the lights would fade out a la an old spy movie.

Watch the blood flow deeply
All new
Come all, come to view

by **Togonistan** » Tue Dec 12, 2017 3:23 pm

After Talvezout's act had left the stage, camera showed Alyn and Nang, who appeared standing on one of the small stages. As they were standing basically in the middle of the audience, flags of various nations can be seen being waved on the background.

Nang: ''Thank you Talvezout for this breathtaking performance! The first ten acts of the evening have finished their performances, but there is more to come! However, as we said before, we are not here tonight just to host a song competition, but also to broaden your horizon.''
Alyn: ''That's right, and what would be a better idea to do it than take look into the past. Let's have a quick historical math lesson and go through some numbers. Right now, we are witnessing the 61st WorldVision being hosted. That means, we have already been through 60 different editions. During these editions, 60 titles have been given out to 33 different nations, with Polkopia being the most successful nation with 7 wins. During the past competitions, over 10 000 points have been given out. Record for the biggest score achieved, looking only at the raw amount of points without using any complicated formulas, belongs to Victoria Magdalena from Polkopia with 187 points awarded in the 39th WorldVision Song Contest. Meanwhile, the all-time lowest score was achieved by Lovisa in the 2nd edition. In fact, they are the only nation ever to have received nil points in the competition. However, when we look at the lowest amount of points ever required to win a WorldVision edition, then that glory belongs to me personally. 76 points in the 59th edition. Not sure if I should be proud or hide my face out of shame.''

Some laugh can be heard from the audience.

Nang: ''Thank you Alyn for this quick glimpse into the past, we will surely have more interesting facts for you later on, but for now, it's time for the next contestant to step onto the stage.''

by **Vartugia** » Wed Dec 13, 2017 2:05 am

11.Vartugia

FILLER-MAN- ft. Dick Arms "Gonna Make Your Pant Moist”

Meisterjaan- “Parmupillihullus”

FILLER-MAN was pissed that ge got last place for his "song". Angerly, he went back to the writing table and begin mixing his dankest mixtape. He will take his friend, Dick Arms (who is the hottest copyright infrinsment of Missus X`s Rick Legg) and fills the stage with cockaine, "dead" hookers and blackjack.

All the haters are haters, Jelous of our vitory
And our amazing engrish are just right
Shut up and make the points fly to me
Im getting horny, Gonna make your pants moist

Crowd is thirlling, im stealing a dank song
The song is danker than your weed
Im letting all the bitches play with my stick
*Thats not english*
But hey, England is my city

Hey losers, my IQ is over 35
Im going to win, no mater who wins
Now shut the fuck up and vote for me, peasnts

All the haters are haters, Jelous of our vitory
And our amazing engrish are just right
Shut up and make the points fly to me
Im getting horny, Gonna make your pants moist

Im Fillerman and i snorted cockaine
Saying romantic words. I eat ass
Im here to kick your asshole and has good song
Shut up while i seduce y`all to vote me.

Send me nudes!
Send me nudes!
Send me nudes!
Send me nudes!
Send me nudes!
Send me nudes!
Send me nudes!
Send me nudes!

All the haters are haters, Jelous of our vitory
And our amazing engrish are just right
Shut up and make the points fly to me
Im getting horny, Gonna make your pants moist
Im moist
Im moist
Im moist
Im moist

Nobody expects ~~the spanish inquisition~~ a "Audence shut the fuck up so the next country can sing" joke.

by **Cleaca** » Wed Dec 13, 2017 11:24 am

12. Cleaca

Jason Tarudo Band - ''Oblivion''
Tune: Kali Briis Band - ''Idiot''

After their last placed result in their debut at the 59th edition, Cleaca is back for a second chance to prove that minuscule sub-national entities do have a chance in WorldVision. In this case, CBC at first decided to find someone outside of the nation to represent them, but at the last moment, decided to take a bold decision and instead send an indie group to represent Cleaca in the 61st WorldVision Song Contest.

Jason Tarudo is a 35-year old hobby musician born in Cleaca. So far, Tarudo's band has been active in the underground scene for past five years, but tonight, it is going to be their first time ever to perform on a big stage to millions of people all over the world.

Their song ''Oblivion'' is a rather simple song about the hardships on the path of finding a true love.

Performance:

Stage is dark. Music starts playing and the stage gets lit up soon.

Tarudo and his band of four are standing on the stage, all dressed in a white shirt and black jeans. Tarudo does not wear any footwear, so his feet are bald in this case. The staging is rather minimalistic, as the background LED screens are showing nothing but a few golden sparks fading in and out every once in a while before reappearing on a different location.

Jason is holding a guitar and has his microphone attached to a stand in front of him. He starts playing his instrument, puts his mouth to the mic and starts singing.

There are some days when you just score, when you just score,
feeling fine, feeling fine, lalalala lalaa.
Then there are some days when things don't go, when they don't go,
have to try, have to try, have to try.

Camera starts rotating around the band members, including a young brunette female keyboardist, a middle-aged male drummer with black hair and glasses, a middle-aged bald male keyboardist, a young male guitarrist with a black mohawk haircut and, eventually, Jason himself. The band is standing in a V-shaped formation.

She seemed so trivial,
(She seemed so trivial)
called herself Vivian,
(called herself Vivian)
kind of subliminal,
(kind of subliminal)
it's just oblivion.

She seemed so trivial,
(She seemed so trivial)
called herself Vivian,
(called herself Vivian)
kind of subliminal,
(kind of subliminal)
it's just oblivion.

Stage lights fade out and it gets rather dark. It's not pitch black though, as it is possible recognize band members silhouettes. When it is time to sing, lights fade in again and camera takes a close-up shot of Jason.

Then there is someone that just won't give, that just won't give,
then go on, then go on, go on go on.
If someone asks you how did it go, how did it go,
carry on, carry on, carry on, on, on.

Once again, camera rotates around the band members. Some of them smile to the camera when it passes them, while some of them just focus on playing their instruments. After that, camera takes a quick shot at the audience, before returning to Jason and his band.

She seemed so trivial,
(She seemed so trivial)
called herself Vivian,
(called herself Vivian)
kind of subliminal,
(kind of subliminal)
it's just oblivion.

She seemed so trivial,
(She seemed so trivial)
called herself Vivian,
(called herself Vivian)
kind of subliminal,
(kind of subliminal)
it's just oblivion.

Song ends and Jason with his band receives an applause. The band makes a humble bow, before Jason kisses his two fingers before raising them up to the sky. They stay on the stage for a few moments before leaving to make room for the next act.

by **Norjihan** » Wed Dec 13, 2017 11:57 am

|13|
Norjihan
|Fyrnas Odanæ - Stolen Voices|
Tune: Eivør - Í Tokuni

Norjihan went utterly mad. Utterly, utterly mad. There was practically a week of unstoppable celebration (of which only one of those days was official). NF (the Norjihani broadcaster) and Uram Utenid, Norjihani PM, had triumphed in bringing the contest, and the trophy, home. Everyone has dreamed but not Utenid had dared to believe, but yet Marija had won. The contest itself had been ridiculously expensive, much like RTI would tell you about World Hit Festival. Enough of that rival competition, back to this. It was a major coup for Norjihan, a moment which everyone knew could never be matched again.

Now, waking up from the hysteria, NF and Gynud Junasö realised the enormity of the task that lay ahead; keeping Norjihan's success going wasn't going to be easy, to say the least (as had been learned a few contests ago). And now, the search began once more, for the song that was to follow Light My Fire and compete in Hwoarang, Togonistan. The cogs in the machine turned once more, and the message of presenting Norjihani culture - as quite obviously clear in Light My Fire and the hosting of last contest - was at the fore once more. It was this that led Gynud to turn towards the "Gothu Me Nojeceni" contest.

Gothu Me Nojeceni, meaning "The Song For Norjihan", is a nationwide contest that has been taking place in Norjihan for the last 32 years. It was a response to the newfound freedoms of the post Vadini dictatorship world - Vadini, who had become dictator in 1950 until 1982 during which time he killed many dissenters and tried to destroy traditional Norjihani culture - and a new journey of self discovery the country was beginning to undertake. It was the first ever program to be broadcast by NF, the Norjihani state broadcaster who obviously represent Norjihan at WorldVision. 25 songs, all from large, well known artists, compete to be crowned the song that represents Norjihan for that specific year, and is the most prestigious musical title that can be awarded in Norjihan.

It was with this in mind that Mr Junasö declared that the winner of Gothu Me Nojeceni would have first refusal to represent Norjihan at the 61st WorldVision Song Contest. He also said it was to introduce a more public element to the contest and make sure it truly represented the people of Norjihan, although the country has had great sucess with internal selections. Of course the news was recieved well, with the public now in the driving seat.

Out of the 25 outstanding acts who performed in the Mahiraz Arena, Hajenired, it was Fyrnas Odanæ and her song 'Stolen Voices' (originally performed in Norjihani for Gothu as per the rules of the contest, and translated into English for the contest) that was chosen as the 'Song For Norjihan'. Fyrnas Odanæ is a young, more alternative artist on the Norjihani musical scene, and no one had expected her to win the Gothu Me Nojeceni. She has had some commercial success, but was by no means the best known or most successful artist at the Gothu. The song? Well, as you no doubt know it is called Stolen Voices. Fyrnas herself has said 'The song is open to
you to analyse and read, and it will hopefully have different messages for different people'.

So now, a rising star was going to her biggest gig yet, and quite possibly the biggest one she would ever have. The entire nation supported her, but with that came a huge sense of expectation. Could she deliver? Let's see...

The final preparations had been made, and everything had led up to this, the performance of Fyrnas' lifetime. Naturally she was nervous, and wouldn't you be if you had to perform in front of hundreds of millions of people? However, she would not let it conquer her, not like last time. And so, it began. As the first few seconds of the song played, the camera feed showed the image from one of the triangular screens of what at first appears to be wisps of smoke, before taking on the dark blue hues of deep water, illuminated by some distant rays of light becoming lighter and darker and moving around.

Just before Fyrnas began to sing, the deep shadow in the centre of the water revealed itself to be an eye, opening and staring at the audience; the camera zoomed in before the feed cut to show the stage. The camera was focused on the centre, where a single blue spotlight shone on Fyrnas, who was dressed in where blue, wispy cloak-like dress (sort of like Loreen for Euphoria but longer), mostly of an assortment of blue shades and black with mucky yellows as well providing little bursts of colour. She was kneeled down on the ground, smoke wisping around her lit faintly by the blue light, but with the rest of the stadium pitch black she appeared to be lost in an infinite ocean.

She looked up to the camera, her face pale white with blue lipstick, and began to sing. She whisked her hand up from her side and slowly moved it down her face, before reaching out into the darkness that surrounded her. She continued in a similar manner throughout the verse, generally moving her arms around in a dramatic manner I'm sure you can imagine. The light caught half of her face perfectly, and the other half faded into the darkness.

Can you hear the voices?
Screaming, calling, reaching for me
The darkness knows my name now
Shadows of the one voice
The voice whose song is hollow

The moveable LED screens began moving through the mirky, misty atmosphere that surrounded and enveloped the stage, showing various shadows and silhouettes, seemingly providing the chanting that was going on. There were several wide camera shots, interspersed with rapid shots of Fyrnas in various positions, her hands out to her sides one moment and to her head the next. By the tome the next verse was set to begin, the LED screens had arranged themselves to look like jagged rocks coming out of the sea of smoke on the stage.

Weird chanting

Fyrnas slowly walked through the maze that the LED screens had created whilst in the background a storm began to brew, with brief flashes of lightning illuminating the stage momentarily. There were what looked like Roman statues, trapped within the LED screens and the dark shades of blue which they were immersed in. Fyrnas reached the front as the camera feed came down diagonally across the stage and moved to zoom in on her face.

In the lair of the mountain gods
Thunderbolts light those hallowed halls
Small in the face of greatness
Sinking into eternal meekness
Singing that same hollow song

A wave of a lighter blue raced across the stage as the first chorus began and the background screens lifted up and began to move around the stage. The camera rapidly zoomed out as the chorus began, capturing the scene on stage. The background LED screen showed a storm out at sea, the waves crashing against the rocks, whilst Fyrnas moved around the stage as if she too was in the storm, a little bit of the wind machine helping to add that extra bit of D R A M A.

Stolen voices singing with me
Blind to my disaster, feeling the pain
The water laps my feet and swallows my soul
And the voices start singing again

Weird chanting

The wind machine died out and the temporary increase in the intensity of the lights that had occured in the chorus ceased, and we were returned once more to the deep depths. The background carries on to delict the same storm except the waves died down. A ship appeared temporarily with a figure who looked like Fyrnas on board, narrowly missing (or so it seemed) a rock whose shape was formed by one of the moving LED screens.

Fyrnas herself was now in the centre of the stage resting on a rock as if she had dragged herself from the sea, rising tentatively from the smoke that surrounded her, whilst there were glimpses of the LED floor beneath which showed the waves moving across. Just before the chorus began, there was another flash of lightning and an island emerged within the storm, with a single, leafless tree on it. The ship crashed straight into it and began to sink into the depths, taking the Fyrnas like figure with it.

An ocean reaching out to me
Formed from my thoughts and my desires
Haunted by this old shell now
Torturing the rotten flesh now
Find a good place to watch yourself drown

The camera cut straight to Fyrnas, writhing around and appearing thanks to some fun camera tricks to be appearing to fall into the water (her rock having been swiftly moved off the stage whilst the cameras weren't looking). There were glimpses of shadowy figures at the back of the stage, illuminated by lights searching through the dense storm. Just before the chanting began again, a figure suddenly appeared in front of the camera, and instead of a head there apppeared to be gaping darkness. The camera was dragged downwards.

Stolen voices singing with me
Blind to my disaster, feeling the pain
The water laps my feet and swallows my soul
And the voices start singing again

Yeaaaaaah
Yeaaaaaah
Yeaaaaaah
Yeaaaaaah
Ah ah hey

On the stage, Fyrnas was now on her knees in the centre, moving and pulsing her body to the rhythm of the chanting as several of the cloaked figures moved towards her very slowly, writhing and generally moving sneakily. She appeared to be aware of them, but to be completely ignoring them, continuing to be lost in her own world. The lights began to fade so that a single spotlight was left on her and two of the figures as the bridge began.

Weird chanting

The two figures grabbed either hand of Fyrnas, who appeared to be startled as she began singing the bridge. She began to wrestle for conteol, both of herself and of the situation, as the two figures came closer. As the spotlight grew and grew more of the figures, standing eerily still in the expanse of smoke which covered the stage, appeared, each in a particular pose but all of which ultimately looked as if they were reaching for Fyrnas. However, as the bridge ended, the lights conpletely cut out.

I hold counsel with life and death
The tug of war will soon begin
Only a temporary truce
Never to end, never to resume
Old friends fading into the distance

As the final chorus began, Fyrnas was slowly being lifted up above the smoke so that her feet touched the surface of the sea below, but no higher. Her dress waved rapidly in the breeze and the background screens began to move once more and the storm intensified. Streams of smoke and water spurted out of the floor of the stage, whilst in the background the waves grew greater and greater.

Stolen voices singing with me
Blind to my disaster, feeling the pain
The water laps and swallows my feet
And the voices start singing again

Fyrnas began to walk on the 'water' towards the front of the stage, the figures at the back reaching but dissapearing into the smoke as she slowly moved away, appearing to be almost possessed. She continued to move to the rythmn of the song, swaying and contorting herself with the deep emotions she was attempting to convey clearly visible. The searchlights spread across the stage and the audience but all visibly managed to miss her as she edged forwards. As the chanting began once more some of the figures reemerged form the smoke, trying to drag her and pull her back down into the smoke, but still Fyrnas walked on until the very end, when it seemed she left the stage and fell into the darkness around it as the lights cut out again.

Stolen voices singing with me
Blind to my disaster, feeling the pain
The water laps my feet and swallows my soul
And the voices start singing again

Weird chanting

The crowd cheered as the normal lighting arrangements arranged themselves once more and Fyrnas was safe on the surface of the stage. She, along with the backing singers, gave a bow and the obligatory thank yous. Had she done enough? Only time would tell...

by **Electrum Diplomatic Offices** » Sat Dec 16, 2017 4:45 am

14. ELECTRUM DIPLOMATIC OFFICES

Song: Rise from the Ashes
Artist: Gertrude Pullman
Tune: '羅生門 (Rashomon)' by 坂本冬美 (Fuyumi Sakamoto)

Introduction
After being forced into a contract to do two humiliating songs advertising products, it safe to say that Gertrude Pullman was demoralised. She was set to do a third song as part of her contract to advertise products in exchange for her retaining her perennial WorldVision spot, but after the revenue and feedback that the Banana Federation of Electrum received after her song last edition was phenomenal (with bananas being bought from all around the multiverse), they decided to repay the favour by buying up Gertrude's last advertisement and allowed her to sing whatever she liked, just like she used to. Gertrude Pullman is now finally free to sing whatever she likes, and she comes back with a traditional and in her words, 'fully serious' song about her future, and how she is a phoenix that will live on forever in the hearts and minds of people across the multiverse. It's not known if this trend will continue in the future, but if she's not getting points in this song, she promises that, 'I will come back with a vengeance if y'all don't give this song first place!' This song is about her hatred of Network ENN, who made her endure two editions of torture and pain, especially last edition where she was forced to wear an exoskeleton and breakdance on stage. Additionally, ever since the revolution in Gregoryisgodistan (now South Covello), she has lost access to her slaves and her status as Government VIP, once conferred onto her by Lord Almighty Gregory. Here, she is lamenting the fact that she has lost her slaves ever since the revolution.

The Performer

The Performance
Gertrude Pullman comes on stage with a very deep red dress that holds many secrets, and also wearing some rather heavy duty red gloves too -- they look far too big for her hands. She moves to the front of the stage and starts gripping the microphone. This is just the start of her rant, and she is unloading on all those who wronged her in the past few editions. She is practically screaming the lyrics at the audience, and understandably, they are booing (though this is edited out using anti-booing technology in the worldwide broadcast).

0:22
You took my will, my budget, this I won't forgive
Network E.N.N I'll crush you under my fist
I promise I will rise from the ashes
I........will.......
Swear revenge on those who have wronged me!
And that includes the audience
And that includes the audience, give me your points

She twirls around in her red dress and sparks fly from underneath -- showing how she's being reborn from the ashes. But unfortunately, the flares and sparks which were attached to the bottom of the dress started overheating and the now deadly electrical sparks started flying into the audience as Gertrude moved about unaware. Some of the people in the front row are injured by electrocution: those are the risks you take when you pay so much money to sit in the front row.

1:35
I'm still a faithful servant to Lord Gregory
I'm going to take back the slaves that are mine
I promise I will rise from the ashes
I........will.......
destroy all those idiots who stand in my way
And that includes the audience
And that includes the audience, give me your points

Now the dress is well and truly alight, but it turns out it was part of the plan all along. She peels off her burning dress to the audience's shock with her heavy duty gloves and throws it into the audience, creating a fire that the security guards rush to put out. Underneath she was wearing a flame resistant rainbow leotard, representing the love that she says she has to offer.

3:00
The multiverse will love, what I have to offer
An old lady telling it like it is, no holds barred
I promise I will rise from the ashes
I........will.......
Make sure you respect me for who I am
And that includes the audience
And that includes the audience, give me your points

She comes down to the audience and slobbers over some of the faces before she decides to leave.

by **Antahbrantahstan** » Sun Dec 17, 2017 12:49 am

15. ANTAHBRANTAHSTAN

Amariliis Kõiv and Raymond Võigemast-Heartbreak

Tune: Miriam Cani ft. Alban Skenderaj-Somebody Hurts
m & l: Raymond Võigemast, Amariliis Koiv

Raymond Võigemast is a male singer, born in the city of Pulga, Raymond moved to Oreo City when he was 7 years old, he is one of the famous singers in the Anturian music scene, releasing songs in English & Estonian, Raymond himself also write songs for other people, including former Anturian WV representative Darja Antonjeva.

Amariliis Kõiv is a female singer from Pärnu, Estonian Special Administrative Region, she is currently studying in Oreo City Music Conservatory, Vocal Division. Amariliis herself is also pretty popular, with her latest song Kosmos garnering 900.000 YouTube views to date, aside from that, she also works as a voice actress and a radio host.

As common with other Anturian WV entries, both appeared in RR1 midnight talkshow Bincang Malam. When asked about the song and how they met, Raymond replied that he was introduced to Amariliis from his friend some months ago, and both promised to write a duet together to submit for WV, "The song itself is about us both, we have similiar experiences, being heartbroken and then, suddenly seeing your ex in public after several months, you just want to, um, hide in the center of the earth". said Raymond, Both Amariliis and Raymond have been in a long-term relationship with their partners, Amariliis for 5 years and Raymond for 6 years until both broke up with their partners, "It's one of the saddest moment of my life, i remembered slitting my wrists in my bedroom because i have so much pain from that [heartbreak]". said Amariliis, "I also wanted to commit suicide back then, thanks to friends and family we recovered and become happier with ourselves now". said Raymond.

Code:
Yellow: Raymond
Blue: Amariliis
Green: Both

The stage is full of darkness, and then, the piano plays, as if telling the audience that the song is about to start, after the piano ends, a single spotlight shines through the center of the stage, revealing Amariliis, standing on stage alone, wearing a an unbuttoned jacket, a white t-shirt underneath, black trousers and a brown hat, she is also wearing an 18-Karat gold constellation necklace. The camera focuses on Amariliis, and as she sings, the camera zooms into her face slowly and when her verses end, the camera blurs out.

I remember back then
In the park, when wind blows
When you broke my own heart
Like sheets of paper being torn

Raymond then walks into the stage, wearing a cream-coloured suit and black trousers, as he walks, another spotlight follows him, meanwhile the camera also follows him until he stops, standing next to Amariliis, the LED screen then began to show what seemed to be a salt flat at night, with some stars decorating the sky. The stage then brightens a little bit.

You appeared, once again
When i just want to forget you
You only said “i’m sorry”
Thinking that will fix it all

Amariliis and Raymond then sings facing each other, expressing their own anger towards each other.

My heart is dead, my heart’s lifeless
Love’s nothing but a myth
My heart is dead, my heart’s lifeless
From what you’ve done to me
You broke my heart

As the violin shrills, the LED screen then began to show a sped-up timelapse of the salt flats transitioning from night to day before settling on an image of the salt flats at midday with huge clouds and the floor LED screen showing a clear, mirror-like appearance reflecting the clouds, the lights also revealed that there are "salt domes" on some part of the stage floor, somewhat reddish-coloured, the camera then switched to showing the audience and the stage before zooming in and hovering above Raymond & Amariliis.

Seeing your face again
Is like a shot to the heart
Something deep, inside me
I can feel it fall apart

Part of me, falls to the floor
I can’t do this anymore

The LED screen then shows the cloud on the salt flat image moving pretty fast, and Amariliis and Raymond sings with looks of anger on their face.

My heart is dead, my heart’s lifeless
Love’s nothing but a myth
My heart is dead, my heart’s lifeless
From what you’ve done to me

The LED screen then became dark, however the salt flat is still quite visible, Raymond then walks to Amariliis and began to touch her face, Amariliis originally shows a look of disgust which then changes into what seemed like to be a sad expression as she then began to touch Raymond's face, the camera, close to them, slowly rotates around them and during the "face your fate" verse the camera stops moving, then both singers stops touching each other's face, and both looks at the camera.

Oh, no, if you want to fix everything
You are way too late
‘Cause my heart is dead
Now face your fate

The camera then switches to a stage, The LED screen then shows a blood-red sky and the wind machine is turned on, blowing away the salt domes which is actually a pile of red rose petals, the rose petals then flies around the stage, the camera then zooms out and then the camera shoots both singers singing, facing each-other, and after the final verse, The stage immediately turns dark, with spotlights showing Amariliis & Raymond.

My heart is dead, my heart’s lifeless
Love’s nothing but a myth
My heart is dead, my heart’s lifeless
From what you’ve done to me
You broke my heart

As the wind machine is turned off, the rose petals then falls to the stage floor and into the audience, and both singers bowed down, they then said "Tänan Hwoarang! Thank You!" into the microphone, and then they exit the stage, holding hands, to much cheer from the audience.

by **Togonistan** » Sun Dec 17, 2017 7:50 am

Alyn and Nang were standing in the middle of an audience pit, surrounded by fans from all over the world.

Alyn: ''Ladies and gentlemen, that was Antahbrantahstan. They hosted the 46th WorldVision Song Contest in Oreo City, however, they are still looking forward to claiming their first title.''
Nang: ''Fifteen acts have performed and we have more to come. However, before we go on, let's have another peek into some interesting facts and share each others culture a bit.''
Alyn: ''For example, did you know that in Izmedu, culture preservation and cultural exchange is one of the biggest government investments?''
Nang: ''Yes, Izmeduans are indeed very culture-oriented. Meanwhile, did you know that in Vartugia, there is a place called Gërlërtyrasërälövüränmersën?''
Alyn: ''Oh dear, I'd be better off learning Merecendian than trying to pronounce this town's name.''
Nang: ''I'd go crazy if i had that name written as a living place in my passport. Speaking of passports, did you know that people in Libereco kaj Paco don't need any passports? In fact, they don't even have a fundamental government. They're a seasteading community without any police, borders or laws.''
Alyn: ''Well, the big wide world. Lots of different places with different traditions.''
Nang: ''If you're interested in more facts from all over the multiverse, feel free to visit worldvision.tv where we have plenty of information about all the contestants and their nations. Also, don't forget to download the official WorldVision app. However, for now, it's time for our next act of the evening. This is act number 16, Togonistan.''

by **Togonistan** » Sun Dec 17, 2017 7:50 am

16. Togonistan

Stacy Lekker ft. Troublesome - ''Enough''
Tune: Within Temptation - ''And We Run''

Stacy Lekker won Togonifest, a WorldVision National Final of Togonistan, with an extremely close result followed up by a swing duo On The Dancefloor. After her victory, Stacy thanked all her fans who had voted for her, as well as national juries for their points. For her song ''Enough'' Stacy teamed up with a local Togoni rapper Troublesome.

Stacy Lekker is a 30-year old singer, actress, model, TV host and reality star from Tushlark, Togonistan. She's a child of a dutch immigrant family and older sister of Grace Lekker, an artist who represented Togonistan in WorldVision 55 and 56. Stacy gained her first recognition after winning a season of Togonistan's Next Elite Model, a local reality TV competition. Even though Stacy has been singing for the past 10 years, she is more widely known to the public as a TV host and reality star rather than a singer.

Troublesome, real name Kaea Aoki, is a 26-year old rapper from Hawkston, Togonistan. He is widely known amongst the local underground rapping community, however, has not gained much success overseas so far. Troublesome has been a close friend of Stacy for about five years and when she approached him to provide a few verses for her song, Troublesome kindly agreed.

Their song ''Enough'' is a social message to the international community. It's about promoting world peace and putting an end to all the conflicts currently going on in various nations near the vicinity of Togonistan.

Performance:

Stage is dark and as the piano starts playing, Stacy can be seen standing in a spotlight. She is wearing a long black sleeveless dress. Stacy is standing still with a microphone attached to a stand in front of her. She opens her mouth and starts singing as camera shows a close-up shot of her.

The times have gone too rough
The darkness may not win
People at frontline
They all know it is a sin
And harm
That we done to humankind
Your heart is gone and you know
The desire to leave your mind

Camera zooms a bit further away and shows the stage, which is still dark apart from a single spotlight on Stacy. Then, camera shows Troublesome, who's silhouette can be seen crouching. He is leaning his head to his fist and is just crouching there not making any moves.

Look at you there's nothing left
Scars are packed up on your chest
And the world, has had enough

Camera shows Stacy again, however, from a bit further away. Background LED screens, which have been pitch black so far, start showing an effect of cracks appearing on the screen, with a bright yellow light seen glowing through the cracks.

Had enough, of all war and hate
Had enough, hope it's not too late
Had enough, wipe the tears of pain
Had enough, please lay down your arms
Had enough, are you near or far
Had enough, piles of bodies that lay

By the time Stacy is done with her verse, whole background is filled with cracks. Eventually, the background blows up into a thousand pieces, revealing a bright yellow magma flowing down through the screen. Camera turns to Troublesome, who stands up and puts his microphone to his mouth. He is wearing a black cap, black leather jacket, black jeans and sneakers. Camera zooms up on him as he starts rapping while doing a few common rap gestures with his left hand.

Don't think just leave it
Come be my friend
We gotta be cool
Yeah, you gotta hear!

Don't think just leave it
Just be my friend
We gotta be cool
Yeah, you gotta hear!

Camera then turns to Stacy, moving closer to her from behind before turning around and facing her. She puts her arms wide open as she sings.

Had enough
of this killing streak
Had enough
see them all so weak
Don't lose hope, take my hand and hold on

Suddenly, lava shown on the background LED screen cools down and stage turns dark again. Camera approaches Troublesome from the back as he is walking forward while rapping his verse at the same time. Camera slowly catches up on him and turns to his side, before showing Troublesome from the front.

Time to stop this hate
Share our faith
Time to do it, do it rite'
All unite
This war ain't right
Are you black or white
We are all the same
But this is no game
This is our time now!
No time for tears
Celebrate, put your hands up right now!
Never back down
Pacifism is my pride
So join me
Don't cry
And the trust
Ruined by all the political fuss
That's enough,
No need to be so tough!
Get it right
May our future be bright!
Get it right
Situation is too tight
Hall of Fame's just political stunt
World's about to get broken and bust
Governments destroying human race
The world has had enough!

Stage suddenly starts to light up again, however, this time, background screen shows a bright white light instead, one that seems somewhat holy. Stacy is putting both of her hands on a microphone while singing as the camera closes up on her.

Had enough, of all war and hate
Had enough, hope it's not too late
Had enough, wipe the tears of pain
Had enough, please lay down your arms
Had enough, are you near or far
Had enough, piles of bodies that lay

By the time Stacy is done with her verse, Troublesome has made his way next to her. He bends his knees a pit as he is performing his verse.

Don't think just leave it
Come be my friend
We gotta be cool
Yeah, you gotta hear!

Don't think just leave it
Come be my friend
We gotta be cool
Yeah, you gotta hear!

Camera rotates around Stacy and Troublesome as Stacy is singing her last verse. Meanwhile, Troublesome is stepping back and forth while nodding his head.

Had enough, of all war and hate
Had enough, hope it's not too late
Had enough, wipe the tears of pain

Camera zooms out and shows the stage in all of it's beauty. It is filled with white light and all background and floor screens are white aswell. Troublesome is doing a few hand gestures while performing the last verse.

Don't think just leave it
Come be my friend
We gotta be cool
Yeah, you gotta hear!

Don't think just leave it
Come be my friend
We gotta be cool
Yeah, you gotta hear!

Troublesome puts his left fist up and Stacy puts her arms wide open again. As the audience applauds and cheers somewhat louder than usual, camera shows a close-up shot of Stacy who is smiling. She sends a blow kiss to the audience before saying: ''Thank you Hwoarang, thank you all! Mihi koe!'' Meanwhile, Troublesome is just nodding before they both leave the stage.

by **Darkmania** » Sun Dec 17, 2017 8:09 am

Placeholder for commentary

by **Britonisea** » Sun Dec 17, 2017 8:44 am

BITC Presents;
Live Coverage of the 61st Edition of the WorldVision Song Contest in Hwoarang, Togonistan.
Your commentators for the evening are T:Rodden, the composer and lyricist to many WorldVision and Vha Mehlodhivestoile songs alongside Eva Almast, a Britonish singer who represented the nation in the 33rd World Hit Festival.

Broadcast started 19:55 GMT.

T:Rodden: Welcome to the 61st WorldVision Song Contest on BITC for the fourth time in history, I am your co-host, T:Rodden and I am joined in the studio this evening with the wonderful Eva Almast.
Eva Almast: Indeed you are, T. We are in for a treat this evening as we have returning nations coming back to claim the crown, but also we have some new nations hoping to scupper their chances.
T:Rodden: This might be the bloodiest battle for #1, Eva. I, for one, am looking forward to it. Of course, let me just add that one of the returning nations is Britonisea! So, we did broadcast the event last edition, but you may have noticed that we didn't participate.
Eva Almast: But we are back, and we show now signs of backing out for the time being. We took a break from going to Mister X, Polkopia and Norjihan - but the contest is back in the Ultimaverse, and for the first time, we're heading to Togonistan - home of just 5.2 million.
T:Rodden: Norjihan was great - but a WorldVision so close to home is better. Shall we get started on the the proceedings of the contest? I think we shall! Welcome to the 61st edition of the WorldVision Song Contest!
Eva Almast: I think we should, here is the opening act!

T:Rodden: Welcome back, this is the WorldVision Song Contest 61 in Togonistan! Unfortunately, Nang, we didn't hear your facts, and we won't be hearing any of your facts - but fellow Britons, if you'd like to listen to them, you can find them on YouTube. Right, it's Vartugia!

Eva: Hello, we will be swiftly moving on to the home nation, Togonistan, before we come home to Britonisea with Mathias Bexley-Durand! I am looking forward to it. Anyway, it is Song Number 16, Togonistan!

by **Britonisea** » Sun Dec 17, 2017 8:46 am

#17 BRITONISEA
Mathias Bexley-Durand - "The Pink Mist"
Tune : Joseph J. Jones- Crawl
Music: Mathias Bexley-Durand, Lamar K. Notes, Zubion Jayce, Lyrics: Mathias Bexley-Durand, James Smith, Lamar K. Notes

Joseph J. Jones- "Crawl"

Britonisea will be returning to the WorldVision Song Contest for the first time in four editions, after the nation took a break from going to the WorldVision Song Contest in Polkopia, Mister X and Norjihan. In the last competition that Britonisea participated in, the nation also hosted it. In Machievelihe, Britonisea was amongst 25 other nations competing for the right to become the winner of the 57th WorldVision Song Contest. Mello Cinde, who finally received a chance at representing the country, performed in position 22 with the song "Vindication". The song went on to become the main threat to the eventual winning song by Togonistan, as it started off the evening at the top of the scoreboard, but as the voting reveal drew to an end, it was apparent that Togonistan was going to win the competition, but we had other things to worry about - Todlichebujoku catching up! However, straight after the 26th vote, it was official that the second place would be going to Britonisea, with 105 points - the third most points Britonisea has gained since it's debut. There were speculations that Britonisea would come second as it would follow the pattern (WV41, WV47 = 1st, WV51, WV57 = 2nd) - but what does that mean for the 61st WorldVision Song Contest, then? Despite the fantastic, successful competition in terms of hosting and song, BVC decided to withdraw Britonisea from the competition, citing that the Britonish public are no longer interest in the WorldVision Song Contest - and have moved their interest elsewhere even though the 57th WorldVision Song Contest clocked in a viewership of 10 million, an increase of around 3 million from the 56th WorldVision Song Contest. Despite this, Britonisea waited out WV58 and WV59 before the rights to broadcast the competition went to BITC, who has the rights until the end of the 64th WorldVision Song Contest - when the contract will be extended or handed to another channel (BVC, IGBK, Channel 4, TBE). BITC said they intend to return to the contest during the 61st contest, and that is exactly what they have done - and they will be doing it under an internal selection.

Mathias at WorldVision: Mathias Bexley-Durand will be singing his song "The Pink Mist", 17th position, in Hwoarang, Togonistan.

Of course, this is the 24th entry that Britonisea is sending, and the 30th edition since the debut of Britonisea. For the nation, it seems like WorldVision Song Contest has been on television for ages, and it really has been on for ages. The contest is one of the longest running international competitions that the country participates in, and as the editions went on, the nation has progressively started to become better, and more consistent in achieving top ten finishes. However, BITC is in charge and the last time that happen was at the 32nd and 34th contest, which leads some fans to thinking we might go down before we resurface. BITC has assured fans that things will be okay, and then revealed that Mathias Bexley-Durand will represent Britonisea at the WorldVision Song Contest 61. The last time a male act was sent by Britonisea was WorldVision 55, when Mehkl Maddox-Ajax represented Britonisea and came 9th place.

Mathias Bexley-Durand is a 29 year old male from Eaux, a city which is in the North East of Britonisea. He was not always the musician that you may think he is; he only realised that he could sing when he went to university; where it was recommended that he should have singing lessons to further enhance his voice. So throughout his tertiary school education, that is what he did. And after his three years he spent at university, he met somebody and later on went to have a child with them. However, due to family happenings, he decided to take another career path and go to the army - which is where he learnt to be more primitive and less soft; which is described in the song he sings. However, after spending seven years in the army, he decided to give it up to work on something he learnt to do; to sing and what better thing to sing about than his time in the army?

Listen to how "The Pink Mist" sounded before the WorldVision revamp!

The BITC got in contact with Mathias after searching him up on different platforms. The BITC wanted to go for someone who wasn't as famous as people like Rigas Jengiz or Mini Surrey North, but someone who makes music just as good as them. The BITC also looked at live jam sessions to see whether they can find their representative that way, and this is when they stumbled across Mathias Bexley-Durand. He was singing his to-be WorldVision Song at a jam session at one of the largest bars in Eaux. Within a day, Mathias received a call from executives at the broadcaster asking to see whether he would like to work with them to present a credible act for the WorldVision Song Contest - and this is something that he agreed to. Days after, Mathias went in to a BITC base in the city, and that is when he was told that they would like to perform that very song, "The Pink Mist" but make it radio and stage friendly. BITC wanted to keep most of the lyrics, taking out any swear words, in order to keep it personal to Mathias.

Many people will be wondering what "The Pink Mist" actually means, and while some people might not take the song seriously from the title, it means more once you know what it means. "The Pink Mist" refers to the spray of blood that shoots out of body when the bullet of a gun hit them and the effect created as the blood lingers in the air; a common sight for a man like Mathias Bexley-Durand who did go abroad, seeing men kill each other in the most insincere way. His first line, "Steering through the pink mist" remarks on the amount of blood that was spilt - so much of it being spilt that it was almost an obstacle to do the job that he was supposed to do. He commented; "I am singing a very personal song, a personal message - you know? I really hope that the WorldVision Song Contest audience will feel me - will understand me. I would like to try my hardest to make my nation proud, as that is my first goal."

"I would like to try my hardest to make my nation proud."

-Mathias Bexley-Durand

Upon arriving to Togonistan, BITC has managed to keep him very, very busy in Hwoarang, which also giving him time to enjoy himself. As he landed, he was shown to a concert hall which would serve as his base for practise during the competition. Here, those who will be on the stage will see how the performance will be on the WorldVision Song Contest; in other words, the staging is blocked here in Togonistan. He is also going around the city, meeting with fans (Britonish, Togonistanian fans) and broadcasting interest in the contest. He also had meet ups with some popular Togonistanian people, and managed to spend nights out with them, but when it was rehearsal day, he would make sure that he had a good sleep the night before - ready for the competition. The BITC also tried to set him up at as many gigs as possible across the city, in local restaurants and pubs to try and get his name out there to the people of Togonistan. He exclaimed that he had "fun meeting the people of Togonistan, and also seeing some Britonish fans who are going to the contest. It was a real treat!" He will perform 17th in the Grand Final of the WorldVision Song Contest.

This was it, this was the moment for Mathias Bexley-Durand to shine and the Britons made sure that it was his time. Mathias was wearing this; which was a blue jeans, alongside a white top and wore an army-green colour bomber jacker over it. On the stage wasn't only Mathias Bexley-Durand though. Also on the stage were three men who were all similar to stature, all around 6" fall. They stood at the back of the stage, behind three microphones (Freddie ESC 2016 style) and they wore this, which was an army T-shirt with trousers which were khaki coloured with slightly visible army patterns on them. Also on the stage was another army looking man who was a tad shorter than the rest of them, but he was standing behind a large drum which would become a centrepiece of the performance. Mathias felt ready, and as the song for Togonistan ended, the cheers followed that nation to Britonisea, one of it's closest allies. The cheers spurred him on, both him and his men who all trotted on stage during the Britonish postcard. They all stood still as the Britonish dragon appeared on the stage, and the audience once again cheered for Mathias Bexley-Durand. He took one large breath in as the lights in the arena all turned off ready for the song to start.

A camera focused on the drums as the stage lit up suddenly in an array of green colours. The audience had finally died down and the man standing behind the drum was given the order to start beating it. You could hear the audience cheering as the stage lit up in front of them. Another camera - which pointed away from the drums came from above and lowered itself down to Mathias' level and as he turned to it, he begun singing;

(Hmmmm)
Steering through the pink mist,
Looking at the devastation left behind, but I have to be blind to my softer side.
My muscles are aching,
But never must I whinge and whine about how I feel, no one cares, no one gives a damn - no more.

But I keep it here, stored in my mind.
And I use the pain to drive on.
Yes, I have cried, I'm only human,
But without this I'd do go insane.

As Mathias sung "But I keep it here," he raised his hand from down hanging to up by his temple, slowly tapping along with the beat of the song but keeping that contact with the camera which was still focused on him. However, each time that the backing singers sung "Hmmm", another camera quickly snapped them. But for the most part, we focused on Mathias. The colours of the green kept on moving around itself behind Mathias, with all of the light shades of green focusing itself on him - he who stood right in the centre of the stage. The backing singers slowly swayed along with the song, raises their hands above their heads and clapping at each clap you could hear on the track.

There was then a pause of singing, at which Mathias turned slightly away from the camera, so you saw all of the side of his face. He put his hand near his mouth as if he were contemplating about something. On the screen behind him, the word "INSANE" was plastered on in green with a white halo around the borders of each word to make it easily readable for the audience. There was a wide shot of the whole arena, before it zooming back in to Mathias when he then turned back around to the microphone as if he were going to start singing again. Two of the three men who were singing at the back sung the "Hmmm" bit while one of them decided to sing in harmony with Mathias;

Tell me that I am wrong,
Tell me about how I have made a mess of my life, let the army get in to my head.
Tell me I have missed out - oh oh.
Tell me about how wonderful our daughter's first steps were, then bring back how I wasn't even there.

You won't understand, what I feel inside,
I needed to go'way and hide.
Yes, I have cried, I'm only human,
But without this I'd do go insane.

As he spoke about his daughter, he tilted his head ever so slightly, as though he was having a conversation with a friend and he is showing signs of confusion. For the second part of this verse, the backing singer didn't sing along with Mathias, and so it was just him who was singing, but the backing singer joined the rest of his singers.

The camera then focused on the drums being beaten quickly before another camera shot the whole stage after he sung "insane" again. The white lights in the arena went from low to high, and for those watching at home, for a second, the whole screen was white (similar to Sweden 2014). The wind machines turned on and so as another camera zoomed in towards Mathias, his hair and bomber jacket slowly danced in the air. The backing singer singers also came in louder, but there was not much focus on them. The green on the stage's screen was also quite magnificent too as the dark green now focused in the middle of the screen creating a tombstone shape, with a white halo around it so the audience could see that clearly.

I'll keep marching, past the fallen,
I've lost the battle, but I have not lost the war.
Through snow and rain, war keeps me sane,
And nothing will stand in my way, nah, not again.

Look at the clock ticking,
Our time on this Earth is running out, gotta make the most of it, that is what I am doing.
Come on - meet me half way.
You gotta understand why I made the move to travel so far away, cross the seven seas.

This part was probably the calmest bit of the song before it got all mad again. The backing singers were still singing the background, while Mathias sang in to the camera. It was very similar to how it was during the first verse of the song; nothing much had changed. On the screen behind, the dark green went in to handles, like on a clock, and started ticking around, relating back to the "clock ticking" lyric.

But I keep it here, stored in my mind.
And I use the pain to drive on.
Yes, I have cried, I'm only human,
But without this I'd do go insane.

I'll keep marching, past the fallen,
I've lost the battle, but I have not lost the war.
Through snow and rain, war keeps me sane,
And nothing will stand in my way, nah, not again.

Just straight after the chorus above, there was a long break in the vocals, and you could call this the main moment of the stage. Lights were flickering on and off and the camera went from a middle point of the arena and watched on, slowly twisting itself around (like Bulgaria 2017). Though, the difference between that and this is that the staging was still quite a murky green. You could see in the distance Mathias throwing down the microphone stand and taking the microphone with him. As he came in to start singing again, a steadicam came on to the stage from behind him, and he turned around to meet it. The steadicam then circled around him, but Mathias followed it around, slightly crouching and singing down in to the camera even while the lights where still flickering on and off.

The lights didn't stop as he continued on to the chorus though. The three men who was singing the backing to Mathias came from behind him with the microphones and stood beside him in a line once he walked to the front after spinning around with the steadicam. Words did appear on the screen, in quite an intimidating way. The backing singers all sang along with him, jolting to the left and the right and Mathias decided to join in on the quite jolting forwards and backwards the singers were doing.

But I keep it here, stored in my mind.
And I use the pain to drive on.
Yes, I have cried, I'm only human,
But without this I'd do go insane.
But I keep it here, stored in my mind.
And I use the pain to drive on.
Yes, I have cried, I'm only human,
But without this I'd do go insane.

Durign that chorus, the final army-dressed man walked forwards to meet the rest of the men, and like them, he had a microphone in his hand. He then joined the other side of the men, so that Mathias was in the middle of them. Mathias slightly stepped forwards as the camera now went a bit hectic, not focusing on one position, sweeping past them all.

All of the five men stood on the stage in a line and all of the lights focused straight on him, with the brightest light on Mathias Bexley-Durand. He managed to sing the last line - even if the audience had already starting cheering.

Tell me that I am wrong,
Tell me about how I have made a mess of my life, let the army get in to my head.

Mathias Bexley-Durand then took a bow as the final light on him faded out. The roar of the Togonistani audience filled his eardrums, which made him smile with glee, before walking off the stage, the lights came back up and he managed to thank the audience, "Thank you so much, Hwoarang, thank you so much and happy new year!", with the last shot being of the Britonish contingency cheering after Mathias. Then, the stage started to get ready for Kalosia, the next nation on the stage.

by **Togonistan** » Sun Dec 17, 2017 4:20 pm

WORLDVISION 61 ON TNTV

WorldVision 61 Live Coverage on TNTV with Mandy Hill and Dom Falepeau
Sponsored By: Sunshine Taxis - Need a lift? Dial 54-54-7272

Mandy: Hello everyone who have got behind their TVs or computer screens, it is a lovely evening here in Hwoarang, where the 61st WorldVision Song Contest hosted at Hwan Concert Arena is about to start any moment and, as usual, I am here to guide you through the evening. We are about to see a lot of spectacular performances along with some crazy interval acts. At least, that's what Alyn told me when I spoke to him earlier today. I have taken my seat in one of the Hwan Concert Arena commentator boxes, however, I'm not alone. Sitting here right next to me is Dom Falepeau, a professional racecar driver. Good evening Dom.
Dom: Good evening to you too Mandy. Thank you for letting me commentate here with you tonight.
Mandy: The pleasure is all mine. Now, if some of you might be wondering where's Mac, well, he has other tasks to fulfill tonight, which I am not allowed to talk about. However, you will find it out eventually. So, tell me Dom, apart from being a racecar driver, you're also quite a big WorldVision fan, am I right?
Dom: Oh yes, absolutely. I have watched every edition since TNTV started broadcasting it. I think the first edition I saw was the 53rd one in Cherbourg. What a great competition it was.
Mandy: Well, I am sure we are going to have a lot of great performances tonight aswell. Oh look, the opening act has already started.

by **Kalosia** » Mon Dec 18, 2017 12:47 am

18
Kalosia
On My Way — Max Calder
performed in English to the tune of L'Impasse — Amir
[alternative link - it's also on Spotify]

Max Calder stepped into the year 2017 as a nobody and is now walking out of it as a household name. His real name is Masimo Kalderon, a 25 year old who worked as a personal trainer at a gym in downtown Monterra. Already being fit and maintaining such a lifestyle, he wanted to try new things. So at the beginning of the year, he started recording himself doing song covers, including Franceska Lukrezi's Where Are You Now?, which came 3rd at WorldVision 43 for Kalosia. In late March, he had nine thousand subscribers and promised that he would write and release his own song if he reached 10k subscribers. That mark was passed in mid-April, and later that month he released The High in Your Eyes. It became viral, and he left his job to sign a record deal with a major company, after which it was released commercially and became the summer hit in Kalosia (although it was constantly competing with Luis Fonsi's Despacito for the top position in the charts).

He took the next step in September by releasing his next single, Feelin' It. It was a success, although not as big a hit as his debut single. If that was a summer tune, this was more of a dance track. Indeed, the music video was filmed in a club setting.
In early December it was announced that he would be Kalosia's entry to the 61st WorldVision Song Contest in Hwoarang, Togonistan. The song, On My Way, was soon released, and proved to be yet another hit, and is now one of the favourites to win the contest later this month (although Kalosian entries tend to receive much hype in general). He has been performing all three songs during promotional tours and in the WorldClub.

When asked about his rise to fame at an interview during WorldVision week:

"At the beginning of this year I set my New Year's Resolution to pick up a new hobby. But I really wanted to make sure I kept going with it, and not give up. A buddy of mine at the gym suggested I set up a video channel online to really push me into doing it every week, so I decided to make covers. Simple, right? A lot of people do that. But the number of subscribers I had just kept climbing up and up... and I promised them I'd do something I'd never done before if I reached 10k, and that thing was to write a song. Never thought it would be a hit.
As for the rest of it, well... I've released two more songs and worked with an amazing team and now I'm at WorldVision! For sure, my New Year's resolution was achieved — big time."

When asked about his 2018 resolution, his response:

"Well, I'm not sure yet, there's just so much going on right now. It's crazy. I'm planning to release an album in April and probably go on tour after that, but that's it. I don't know what comes next, but we'll figure that out. But I will have a resolution by the end of the year, I promise that. Yeah, that's the end of this weekend, I know."

Well, preparations for the contest have been in full swing. On the night of the final, Max steps on stage shortly after Mathias Bexley-Durand from Britonisea heads backstage after their performance. He is seen wearing a plain white t-shirt and sneakers, putting on a coat over it with matching pants, creating a simple but stylish semi-casual look. He is joined by 3 female backing vocalists, standing on the right side of the stage, all wearing sailor-inspired outfits.

As the song begins, the background screen displays storm clouds and Max slowly walks from the back of the stage forward.

I see the storm clouds
Reflects the worry in your mind
When no one’s around
Come to the safety of my eyes

But when you think that all hope is lost
That final frontier has been crossed
And there is no way to the light
Love will be the guide in our way
The grand star to brighten our day
Which will be never out of sight

He eventually reaches a mic stand, places his mic there, and spreads his arms out in time for the chorus. The stage floor creates light patterns that move (similar to this) and the background screen followed (similar to this).

Oh-oh-oh-oh I’ll be on my way
Looking for the safest place, I’ll try to keep you warm and safe
Oh-oh-oh-oh please don’t be afraid
I’ll be there with you, I’m on my way

The background screen now displays a cave. Two lines in, the cave slowly illuminates, as if someone had started a fire or carried a torch into it.

Walking on water
There’s always miracles waiting
Emotions get hotter
Two hearts together pulsating

In the second half of the next part, the background screen dramatically zooms in and zooms out again (it's a transition) and now displays a night sky, with stars slowly twinkling into existence.

But when you think that all hope is lost
That final frontier has been crossed
And there is no way to return
Stars up in the sky will light our day
To which our dreams come out and play
From this madness we will learn

The stars then appear to warp, turning into the background from the previous chorus (something like this) while stage floor displays the same graphics as earlier.

Oh-oh-oh-oh I’ll be on my way
Looking for the safest place, I’ll try to keep you warm and safe
Oh-oh-oh-oh please don’t be afraid
I’ll be there with you, I’m on my way

Oh-oh-oh-oh I’ll be on my way
Climbing up the highest mountain, risking all to keep you safe
Oh-oh-oh-oh please don’t be afraid
I’m coming to you through the night and day

The screens become dark, and the camera focuses on Max.

When the raindrops touch the ground
When you don’t feel safe or sound
Remember that you are home-bound
And that your shelter will be found

But if you understand the truth
You’ll unlock secrets from our youth
And then you will know what to do

Max takes off the mic from the stand as he makes his way to the platform on the right catwalk, hi-fiving some audience members as he goes. At some point between the lines of the next part Max yells "Come on Hwoarang!"

Oh-oh-oh-oh
Oh-oh-oh-oh
Oh-oh-oh-oh
Oh-oh-oh-oh

He sings from the platform as the stage screens put on the same graphics from the previous choruses.

Oh-oh-oh-oh I’ll be on my way
Looking for the safest place, I’ll try to keep you warm and safe
Oh-oh-oh-oh please don’t be afraid
I will come to you through night and day

The stage screens all fade to black and some of the stage lights even dim. The camera focuses on Max as he looks into it, his eyes appear to reassure viewers at home that everything is gonna be okay.

I will be there with you, I’m on my way

The song ends and the audience cheers. Max shouts back, "Thank you, you're amazing!" and leaves the stage to let the next act, from Electrum, take the stage.

WorldVision Song Contest 61 | IC | Hwoarang, Togonistan

WorldVision Song Contest 61 | IC | Hwoarang, Togonistan

03 | Estogium | Tiara Wicks - "Je Peux Le Sentir" | WIP

13. Norjihan

BITC: 61st WorldVision Song Contest

17 | Britonisea | Mathias Bexley-Durand - "The Pink Mist"

61st WorldVision Song Contest LIVE on TNTV

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