World Hit Festival 50 - Vodiznad, Izmedu | IC Thread

by **Izmedu** » Wed Feb 26, 2020 10:00 pm

WHF Network - OOC Thread - Draft Thread - NSWiki Page

THREAD DIRECTORY

SEMI-FINAL 1
Opening Act - List of Participants - Interval Act - Qualifiers

SEMI-FINAL 2
Opening Act - List of Participants - Interval Act - Qualifiers

GRAND FINAL
Opening Act - List of Participants - Interval Act I - Interval Act II - Start of Voting - Halftime - Winner Announcement

by **Izmedu** » Wed Feb 26, 2020 10:09 pm

20:00 IZMEDUAN TIME

History was being made once again, just in time for the historic 50th edition of the World Hit Festival.

It was fitting that for the first time since the 40th edition of the festival, semi-finals were triggered once more. 31 delegations descended upon Vodiznad, 15 of them sitting in the arena for the first WHF semi-final in 10 editions. The effort from the overseeing team behind the World Hit Festival had now paid off. With so many nations in Izmedu, the commitment in terms of logistics and planning no doubt increased due to the increased amount of shows. Yet, for RTI, the whole process was worth it. Hosting semi-finals last time was a dream come true for many.

The El stadion skolkje was roaring with life. Many were excited to begin the World Hit Festival proper. RTI’s call-sign was aired on television.

It was showtime.

Tune: Two Steps From Hell - Undying Love

The first seconds of the 50th World Hit Festival would situate us right at the very beginning of the World Hit Festival itself. The first seconds of the broadcast was an archived still of the first host city of the World Hit Festival; Necrobrachlesh, Saintrabina. A faint mixture of blue and orange began to be tinted on the screen…

0:00-0:56
The first strains of the opening theme, created specifically for these semi-finals, began to play through the broadcast and across the stadium. The presentation was a trip down memory lane, with archive footage being only lightly tinted with the Saintrabinian national colors. From the footage that RTI was able to recover, flashes of the first five editions were shown on the screen. We would see Revenge of the World’s winning moment flashed on the screen, winning with a stunning 99 points (under a different scoring system back then, of course). From there, we would gradually flash through memories of the 2nd to 5th World Hit Festivals, with the music remaining calm and reinforcing the ‘walk down memory lane’ mood. This section would end with Ariana Mago’s winning moment, Phoenigetuzstha winning in Busolaher, Saintrabina. The music began to swell, marking a new era…

0:56-1:47
As the music swelled, the colors on the archive footage would change to the Euskal colors, with the iconic tinge of light blue and green gracing the screens. The music soared to the footage of Euskirribakondara’s early overseership, recapping the nation’s dominant performance during their tenure. On broadcast, timed to the music, we would see Karolina Etséu, Cheiko Orlich, and Totó, all bringing home the trophy for Euskirrabakondara. However, they certainly weren’t the only ones to attain WHF glory. Mademoiselle and Sabina & The Natives from Chenkorya and Folkand also appeared respectively, echoes of their winning songs haunting the broadcast the same way the Euskal songs did. At about 1:15, we’d transition to the second half of the Euskal overseership, with Samira’s song acting as the hinge point to look towards the future lying in wait. After footage from the 14th World Hit Festival was played, the background colors would begin to pulse and change to the Kalosian dark blue, tinted with some signs of white to represent the iconic crescent.

1:47-2:53
The music would build toward its dramatic climax, the orchestra flying to new heights as footage from Kalosia’s overseership was shown. From here, we would begin to see nations that would be recognizable to audience that watch today. Tödlichebujoku, Normandy and Picardy, Chámeliyá, Kalosia, Ethane, and The Sarian would appear in the last minute of this song, celebrating the editions that helped codify the practices and rules that informed the current version of the World Hit Festival. Of note, right around the 2:05 mark, was the 19th World Hit Festival itself; with its stunning moments produced on screen once more. The tie between Nání and Pilvi was shown to the screen, haunting echoes from the original broadcast were reproduced, and the stunning scoreboards that broke down the tie were shown. This encapsulated the unprecedented three-win streak that Chámeliyá were on at the time. The music would climax at that point. At 2:20, we were taken through the early 20s of the World Hit Festival, with Henrik & Gabiya’s victory being shown on the screen. As the music truly climaxed, the package would end at the ‘halfway’ mark of the World Hit Festival’s history. The package would end with Kalosia’s first victory in Gorgona, Paola Amadin being flashed on the screen, framed by the Kalosian national colors.

That final image would fade; a clear indicator that this presentation only covered (albeit briefly) half of what came before us. We were now right at Vodiznad, Izmedu; the camera showed a live overhead feed of the El stadion skolkje, currently in its closed configuration to ensure that the entire set-up for the World Hit Festival remained stable. 44,000 people were in the stadium, cheering their hearts out, and brimming with excitement for the show. The camera would then fade to the inside of the stadium itself, currently darkened. The only light sources were from the audience themselves, with many using their phone lights.

It was time for the opening act…

Tune: Kelly Clarkson - People Like Us

The audience did not even have time to breathe or process that the opening act began. As soon as it did, a sudden pulse of blue light would pulse through the stadium. The floor was coated in blue wedges akin to the show's design aesthetic. A faint spotlight would begin to shine on a figure situated at the center of the stage, on one knee and turned away from the audience. There was no time to process or to rest as the opening act would quickly begin in earnest, by way of a spoken introduction…

We've come from a long way from back then
Feels like all the years were a blur
But this isn't the end
A new era's here, the future waits

The figure was still ‘unknown’ to the audience both on the stadium and the viewers at home, but that voice was instantly recognizable to the Izmeduans in the audience. The camera views and the light configurations all draped this mystery figure in darkness, leaving the audience literally in the dark as to who she might possibly be. The camera would alternate between close views of this figure and of the stadium at large, settling on a view of the singer by the end of this introduction. The spotlight would brighten at the end of this spoken word section, revealing the singer to be Katarina Zunic herself, winner of the 30th World Hit Festival. There was no time to pause as the song quickly went into its first verse, with Katarina taking full control and command of the stage.

Hey
You're staring into defeat
Time doesn't slow down; feels like we're being forgotten
Look here
This doesn't mean it's all hopeless
Darkness will fight to keep you down; promise me you'll hold on

In comparison to her more intimate and personal WHF30 performance, there was a far more upbeat tone to the song and packaging. However, there was still that sense of strong emotionality brimming in her expression and vocals, which was filtered through a confident and assertive pose. She sang these lines as if she was speaking to a person who was down on their luck, struggling to get through the next day. She walked through the stage with that gait of confidence; herself having already lived through her darkest days and wanting to help others out. Katarina remained at the center of the stage as the camera mostly focused on her, with the stage effects and blue wedges pulsing slightly to the song’s beat.

This is our time to rise up and fight for love
Never look back, remember who you are
This is our chance to live and fly without fear
Don't hold back, go show the world what you're really made of

There was a quick transition to the pre-chorus that was represented by a camera cut to a wider view of the stage. The instrumentation pared back its beats with a clear signal and intent to ‘build up’ to something. Katarina’s vocals intensified slightly as she was performing some choreography to the song. Each line had Katarina pause for a micro-second, with Katarina performing some deliberate arm and body movements with those pauses that signified her pushing through a metaphorical wall. The camera would change angles with each micro-pause; but every angle would remain on Katarina. By the final line, Katarina would stand stock still on the center of the stage and the lights would flash a brilliant white before transition to a pitch-black darkness in a flash. The instrumentation would disappear for just a few seconds as Katarina belted out ‘go show the world what you’re really made of’ in her trademark style; both with power and passion.

The world will never take away what we've started
We sing loudly, 'this is our time, oh this is our time.'

The chorus would see Katarina and the background vocalist sing an anthemic ‘whoa’ before these lines. These provided the larger-than-life feels that befit the wide sweeping views the camera would take of the stadium. These were then framed by quick cuts to Katarina as she sang the lines within the chorus, as she could be seen reaching and running through the stage; extending her arm out to the audience that were in pits near the main stage itself. For the second line, she would return back to the center of the stage, raising and throwing her arm up to the air in time to the beats. The lights were at their brightest, with the stadium screens engulfed in abstract patterns of blue and purple, with tinges of gold.

Hey
Know it's not too late to change
I know you have regrets, but you're not set in stone forever
Hold on
None of this will be easy
All it takes one step to realize there is more

For the second verse, the camera would return back to closer views of her. She sang this verse with a sense of both comfort and determination, extending her arm to the camera, and singing to it as if she were talking and personally motivating someone. Though the stage effects were largely toned down as she sang, there were more tinges of gold being added to the color palette that surrounded her. In comparison to the first verse, there were more moments of longer and stronger notes in this verse. This was especially encapsulated in the last line of this verse, where she sang the final line by letting her vocals for that one moment in the final few words of it. This moment was met with some loud cheers from the Izmeduan contingent of the crowd.

This is our time to rise up and fight for love
Never look back, remember who you are
This is our chance to live and fly without fear
Don't hold back, go show the world what you're really made of

It was time for the pre-chorus once again. This time around, Katarina stood in place as the camera positioned itself right in front of her. Instead of performing choreography, Katarina would stand still as a cadre of dancers began to march right behind her. These dancers would march to the beat, getting closer to Katarina. The lights would pulse and intensify as the pre-chorus reached its conclusion; with Katarina pulling off the same vocal trick she pulled for the first pre-chorus. She would sing the last few words a ca pella, this time with a line of dancers right behind her.

The world will never take away what we've started
We sing loudly, 'this is our time, oh this is our time.'
The days will get rough and tiring, but we will not back down
We sing loudly, 'this is our time, oh this is our time.'

The chorus was extended to four line, with more opportunities for Katarina and the dancers to pump up and excite the crowd. The camera views were wide, with Katarina performing some light choreography with the dancers. The movements were not anything incredibly intricate or strenuous, but these movements, whether through arm pumps, strategic steps forward; all invoked the image of someone pushing through a tough obstacle. The dancers would begin to surround Katarina as the chorus ended.

No one's gonna stop us now, no one will make us go home
I won't give in to defeat, I won't give up what I've fought
Tonight we rise up and shout: we live, we live as we are
Tonight we leave our own legacies

For this bridge, Katarina toned down her vocal power and sang as if she were defiantly speaking these lines. However, that didn’t make her delivery any less intense. The dancers around her continued performing their choreography, with Katarina addressing them one-by-one as she sang each line. The camera maintained alternating views of the audience and Katarina. At the last two lines of the bridge, the dancers broke their formation and assembled into a new one, a rough V formation behind Katarina as she led them away from the stage’s center and towards the front of the stage. The lights would flash white once more as the stage effects mostly disappeared once the bridge ended, causing the instrumentation to return back to how the song began.

Hey
You're staring into defeat
Time doesn't slow down; feels like we're being forgotten

Katarina would reprise the first few lines of the first verse. Her eyes caught the camera coming close to her, her eyes piercing through and singing directly to the audience at home. She would follow the camera the entire time she sang this brief bit. As soon as the truncated reprise ended, the camera would turn back to a wider view of the stadium.

Oh
This is our time to rise up and fight for love
Never look back, remember who you are
This is our chance to live and fly without fear
Don't hold back, go show the world what you're really made of

This pre-chorus had a slightly different delivery from its previous iterations. Katarina relaxed her vocals just slightly for the first half. Around her and the dancers, the stage would begin to envelop itself in the golden colors that invoked the current design aesthetic for the festival. Once the pre-chorus ramped itself to its end, Katarina would unleash the trademark vocals she was known for, helping set-up the final chorus to its dynamic conclusion.

The world will never take away what we've started
We sing loudly, 'this is our time, oh this is our time.'
The days will get rough and tiring, but we will not back down
We sing loudly, 'this is our time, oh this is our time.'

Katarina and the dancers went all out on their movements for the final chorus for the opening act. As Katarina sang, she would ad-lib for some parts, especially when she would invoke the song’s title. The camera took wide views, the stadium was engulfed in golden lights, and the screens were practically reproducing the WHF50 design. Of course, this moment of euphoria couldn’t last for too long. By the second half of this chorus, the production would begin to pare down and the dancers would retreat. Katarina would be the one to end the song, singing the last two lines with only the barest hint of production. At the final line, she sang it a ca pella.

The opening act was finished, but it was only one of what RTI had planned for the whole World Hit Festival season.

The lights dimmed, the stage covered in smoke, as the El stadion skolkje was flashing with an array of gold and white lights. The show proper was about to begin as the opening theme from earlier began to swell through the speakers. There was at least a one minute pause between opening act and the burgeoning announcement as the lights would then began to flash a solid gold… A podium was now visible on the stage.

Then, an announcement blared through the speakers...

WORLD, PLEASE WELCOME YOUR HOSTS

KATARINA ZUNIC AND GABRIJEL CELINA

This caused the audience to erupt to a large cheer. For the first time in Izmedu’s hosting history, the channel would recruit two former World Hit Festival participants to host the contest, sidelining the usual procedure of trying to hire someone who was not overly connected to the contest by looking through TV personalities.

The smoke finally clearked to reveal the host and hostess themselves. There was Katarina, looking markedly different from her appearance in the opening act, and then there was Gabrijel, a little bit nervous to face the crowd but excited to be in his new role.

They would both walk towards the podium set up for them, cue cards in hand.

Katarina & Gabrijel: WELCOME TO THE 50TH WORLD HIT FESTIVAL!!!

The crowd cheered for them both, the camera panning back to the rest of the stadium. This let on for a few seconds, not letting down until a signal had to be pulled to make sure the show could still proceed as scheduled.

Katarina: Come on, this isn't even the grand final yet!

Now, the crowd finally calmed down enough to let the hosts proceed with the show.

Gabrijel: I guess we should start our introductions. Let's keep it short, we can save... some of it for later.

Katarina: You heard the man. Alright, I just performed earlier, maybe not the best idea since I can barely catch my breath. I'm Katarina Zunic. I competed in this contest 20 editions ago and here I am now, hosting the the big 50th edition.

Gabrijel: I'm Gabrijel Celina. I too also competed, twice, but let's leave it at that. We, Katarina and I, and everybody from RTI, would like to welcome everyone tuning in for the first of three shows for the golden edition of the World Hit Festival.

Katarina: Indeed! For the first time since 10 editions ago, hosted by us in a city down south of Vodiznad, we have semi-finals. We have 15 nations competing here tonight for 8 slots.

Gabrijel: Well, let's not keep the entrants waiting. We know the nerves, we were in their spots all those editions ago. Alright, the first entrant and performance of the World Hit Festival season is Achaean Republic.

Katarina: They're represented by Por Ciento! And I gotta say, it might be a good mood way to get us into that contest mood. They're gonna be singing... Okay, excuse my bad Spanish, “Sinceramente,” which means, Sincerely. Alright, Achaean Republic, you know what to do!

The broadcast would soon transition to a shot of the Achaean Republic's header, draped in their national colors...

by **Izmedu** » Wed Feb 26, 2020 10:12 pm

The Official Playlist for the first Semi-Final of the 50th World Hit Festival

by **Izmedu** » Wed Feb 26, 2020 10:15 pm

Translation: Sincerely
Tune: Monsieur Periné-Bailar Contigo

A few good friends were drinking a couple of beers at a local Corola hotspot. Marcela Gutierrez was drinking wine. Her boyfriend, Gabriel Ramos, was drinking beer. He invited his cousin, Roberto Ramos, to drink a couple of beers with him as he found out he left work for the weekend. Marcela’s friend, Eliana De Jesús, was also hanging out in the neighborhood when Marcela called her to join. Except Roberto, who was working as a music teacher at a local Corola middle school, were students at the University of Corola who also moonlighted as first-level starving musicians who struggled to pay for college with a very eclectic mixture of scholarships, grants, and the occasional odd job here and there from that bartender across the street. They were good friends––and Marcela and Gabriel great lovers––, but they never saw themselves as powerful musicians.

On the other hand, the Achaean World Hit Festival delegation was more than excited for last year’s results in Alshkan: the sudden 5th place earned by Dalila Poncho––and a potential automatic bye to the final––galvanized Ernesto Vázquez’s delegation to find new talent that can bring a victory to the country and increase his budget. Which is why a victory in Vodiznad is very important, and not only because he needed to pay for his third wife’s breast implants with that saline factory the Izmeduans installed not so far from his luxury condo, but because he needed to keep up the momentum going for his future career prospects.

At the same time Marcela, Gabriel, Roberto, and Marcela me each other at the bar, Mr. Vázquez wanted to stop by the bar and drink a pint or eat a sandwich before continuing his hectic workday at AS1 Comunicaciones. Not only is he the supervisor for the Achaean delegation; he also books, grooms, and manages in-house talent, finds sponsorships for certain telenovelas as assigned, headlines a portion of the AS1 Comunicaciones Internship Program for music events, and also volunteers at the Boys and Girls Club of Central Corola. Besides all those ridiculous responsibilities he never considered worthy enough of such a paltry salary (still in the hundreds of thousands of corcinos), he needed a break.

As he entered the bar, Mr. Vázquez focused his gaze on the quartet singing, laughing, clapping, dancing, and stomping their way to the people’s attention. They made drums with their hands, air guitars, microphones with their fists, and Marcela’s crystal-clear, timeless and somewhat sultry voice. The quartet complimented each other’s rhythms perfectly, and they grabbed the attention of everybody in the bar. They don’t remember what song were they covering (perhaps they were improvising one, said Marcela in an interview for MTV Acaya), but it must’ve been so good that people were clapping in the end, buying them drinks, or even throwing corcinos at them.

Bewildered by the sudden sight, Mr. Vázquez slyly approached the quartet and decided to strike up a conversation with them. Marcela was all about the vocals. Gabriel played the guitar. Roberto played drums and cajón, while Eliana had the piano and also did back-up vocals to Marcela.

And with a few conversations, LPs, and live demos on a few morning AS1 shows, Por Ciento (Per Cent) was born. Their first hit, Sinceramente (Sincerely), was crafted in a few days using minimal equipment and a lot of drums. They were whisked away to the Fortune Islands’ Bosque Tropical de la Ciénaga (Tropical Marshland Forest) and filmed the music video, as well as the promo shoots for their first LP, Sincero (Sincere), a disc with eight songs that mix the twenties’ swinging jazz rhythms with the tropical sounds that come from the Achaean Republic. And this was the sound they would take to Vodiznad.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

As the postcard ends, the Vodiznad stage is covered with different tropical plant species brought over from the Achaean Republic. Orchids, small ceibas (kapok trees), flamboyanes (royal poincianas) and even jacarandas and other greenery dot the diamond stage, surrounding the fans and covering them with delectable tropical fragrances. The extensive LED stage behind them also has passages of an untouched Achaean rainforest, the Bosque Tropical de la Ciénaga in the Islas Fortuna, one of the country’s most pristine national parks, itself dotted with hiking trails, waterparks, hot springs and even hidden beaches for both locals and tourists alike. The delegation also used smoke machines to lightly cover the stage with the fresh scent of mountain dew, and a special machine was used to embrace the scent of the waves of the ocean hitting the rocks, and still another machine that spread the aroma of freshly ground coffee. The idea is to set a scene that was delightful, seductive, and inviting––something very definitely Achaean.

It was a hassle to bring all these tropical plants to Vozidnad, even though the delegation made sure to create plastic copies of it in case they died on the way to Izmedu. They barely made it in time: first, the delegation had to pay significant import fees to liberate the “quarantined specimens” from customs before finally transporting them to El Stadion Skolkje before having some of them suffer through days of week and neglect and damage and withering due to the bitterly cold (by Achaean standards) conditions the specimens were faced. Notwithstanding the criticism from Achaean environmental NGO’s condemning the delegation’s "reckless endangerment of Achaean flora for a frivolous, three-minute show that amounts to nothing else than more wastage of money (although AS1 is a private, commercial channel)” in an open letter on El Señorial de Corola. But, despite the minor backlash, the delegation––and the plants––made it safely to Vodiznad.

Micaela, the band’s singer, is laying face-up in a shallow pool of water. She is wearing a sparkly black dress with loss hair and sterling silver earrings that float in the water and bring a natural shine on its own. Her hair is loose, almost impermeably floating in the water filled with lily pads, and her arms effortlessly glide in the water. And if it looks like she has something in her left cheek, don’t worry––it’s just a small, waterproof microphone connected to her ear.

As the song begins, the top camera focuses on Micaela laying down in the shallow pool of water, barefoot, floating, almost motionless. As she sings, the camera slowly focuses on her face, her body swing back and forth to the rhythm of the music. She is tenderly and effortlessly, yet somewhat naively, seductive to the camera and its viewers at home.

Quiero imaginarme un cuarto de estrellas
Siempre embrujándome, vives embrujándome
Pero los destellos de amor siempre cuentan
Yo desesperándome, tú aquí esperándome

Micaela quickly stands up from the pool, her body soaking wet, and continues to gracefully flay her hands across the pool. On the left camera, she gleans. On the right camera, she hustles. Behind her, another camera would focus on the drums and the piano, the electric guitar and the tambourines guiding the music.

Pues tú quisiste, mi amor
Y yo, nunca te dejé engañar
Pues sí, tu voz no me está mintiendo
Soñamos con dulces sueños
¿Por qué esperar?

As the chorus commences, Micaela lifts her feet off the air and dances in the water, gliding the steps with her bare feet making fresh puddles. She is whirling, twirling, and dancing in circles around the water trying not to trip on the weight and soaking her precious and costly microphone. She radiantly projects happiness and confidence, sensuality and enthusiasm. Another wide glance of the camera behind her shows the band members playing their instruments with gusto and the backup singers joyfully harmonizing the chorus. It is their goal to serenade the Vodiznad’s audience with the flavors of the Achaean tropical forest.

Micaela looks heavenly––and perky!––in her black dress as the camera moves around her misty body, glistening with the mixture of faint lights and water on her skin. Behind her, the LED screen transforms into moving scenes of the Achaean rainforest slowly moving towards the audience, a three-dimensional imagery filled with colorful parrots, chameleons, Achaean hogs, and the all-elusive Achaean rainbow butterfly––a beautiful species that can only be found in the Bosque Tropical de la Ciénaga.

Sinceramente, bailamos entre la gente
Sinceramente, ya no puedo esperar
Sinceramente, tú y yo somos urgentes
Haces mi corazón latir y mi mundo entero temblar

Siempre embrujándome, vives embrujándome
Siempre embrujándome

Micaela slowly walks towards the camera in front of her, grasping her arms and making hand gestures in a “come here”motion. She wants to be assertive, yet playful and inviting. In a way, her movements convey a sort of naiveté, a charm that is both seductive but also refreshing. Part of her hands and arms use subtle flamenco gestures, rotating her wrists in circular motions and tracing her bodily gestures as if she is twisting her fingers. Perhaps she is.

Quiero experimentar, tus labios probar
(Tus labios y ojos son finos
Que dulce amor infinito)

Un poco de agua y miel porque quiero endulzar
(Y darte calor en días fríos
Mi cuerpo es cálido y tibio)

Another camera shows Micaela quickly stopping near another pool of sand, her legs barely touching the borders. Her body remains soaking wet and leaves small puddles wherever she walks, and the water coming off her also-soaked hair mixes with the sand to make a small paste. Unlike and continues to gracefully flay her hands across the pool. On the left camera, she gleans. On the right camera, she hustles. Behind her, another camera would focus on the drums and the piano, the electric guitar and the tambourines guiding the music.

Sinceramente, bailamos entre la gente
Sinceramente, ya no puedo esperar
Sinceramente, tú y yo somos urgentes
Haces mi corazón latir y mi mundo entero temblar

Siempre embrujándome, vives embrujándome
Siempre embrujándome

As the chorus commences, Micaela jumps and stops her feet into the pool of sand. She dances randomly to the beat of the music in a freestyle of sorts. Like before, she is whirling, twirling, and dancing in circles around the sand trying not to trip on the weight and soaking her precious and costly microphone. She radiantly projects happiness and confidence, sensuality and enthusiasm. Another wide glance of the camera behind her shows the band members playing their instruments with gusto and the backup singers joyfully harmonizing the chorus. This time, this is Vodiznad, not Achaean, sand (environmental regulations and customs would not forgive the delegation for pulling that one off).

Mis dedos plantados en la arena
Se confunden con tanta destreza
Lo puedo imaginar

Me llenan de tanta entereza
Porque tú traes la delicadeza
Yo te iré a buscar

A wide pan shows Marcela in the center, small and resolute against the massive Vodiznad stage, barefoot, looking widely at the audience. Behind her, the LED screen showing more high-definition scenes of the Bosque Tropical de la Ciénaga. In between, the bandmates and backup singers, tucked away in a corner, were accompanying the song with all their might: tambores, panderetas, and claps from the audience keeping the rhythm. If there is something Achaeans are clearly known for, it’s in their chaos and loudness––something that people in the crowd would soon learn the hard way when the final refrain to the performance.

Sinceramente, bailamos entre la gente
Sinceramente, ya no puedo esperar
Sinceramente, tú y yo somos urgentes
Haces mi corazón latir y mi mundo entero temblar

Siempre embrujándome, vives embrujándome
Siempre embrujándome

As the song ends, she puts her hands to her chest. She later bowed at the cheering, flag-waving crowd, with the camera placing special attention to the Achaean contingent. She and the rest of the band waved their hands in the air and said, “¡Gracias! Thank you!” to the Vodiznad crowd. Throughout this journey, Por Ciento had lots of fun. Now they can only hope they can bring the fun back to Achaea next year.

by **Izmedu** » Wed Feb 26, 2020 10:17 pm

Tune: Heize - It's All Like This

비도 오고 그래서
니 생각이 났어
생각이 나서 그래서
그랬던거지
별 의미 없지

오늘은 오랜만에 니 생각을 하는 날이야
일부러 난 너와 내가 담겨 있는 노랠 찾아
오늘은 슬프거나 우울해도 괜찮은 맘이야
어차피 이 밤이 다 지나가면은 별 수도 없이
난 또 한 동안은 널 잊고 살테니까
내 가슴 속에만 품고 살아갈테니까

비도 오고 그래서
니 생각이 났어
생각이 나서 그래서
그랬던거지
별 의미 없지
우산 속에 숨어서
니 집을 지나쳐
그 날의 감정을
다시 느껴보고파서

떨어지는 빗물과
시계 초침 소리가
방 안 가득 채우면
그 때로 난 돌아가
차라리 난 이 비가
그치지 않았음 해
매일 기억 속에 살 수 있게
나 널 아프게 했던 못난 놈이니까
널 다시 품에 안을 자격도 없으니까

비도 오고 그래서
니 생각이 났어
생각이 나서 그래서
그랬던거지
별 의미 없지
우산 속에 숨어서
니 집을 지나쳐
그 날의 감정을
다시 느껴보고파서

우리에게 주어진 행복을
너무 빨리 쓴 것 같아
거기까지 인 것 같아
이 비가 그칠 땐 각자 있던 곳에서
다시 살아가야만 해

비도 오고 그래서
니 생각이 났어 (생각이 났어)
생각이 나서 그래서 (Oh)
그랬던거지
별 의미 없지
우산 속에 숨어서 (Ooh)
니 집을 지나쳐 (집을 지나쳐)
그 날의 감정을 (Oh)
다시 느껴보고파서

by **Izmedu** » Wed Feb 26, 2020 10:22 pm

Tune: Within Temptation - ''Mercy Mirror''

Stacy Lekker represents Togonistan in the 50th edition of World Hit Festival

Togonistani broadcaster Lucky 7 announced the intentions of returning to WHF for the show's 50th edition, following a period of haitus due to budget issues and a lack of viewer numbers during the latest editions. In light of recent hype regarding the 50-edition anniversary amongst the fans of WHF, the broadcaster made a decision to bring the nation back into competition and announced an internal selection to find a participant.

Stacy Lekker, a 32-year old singer, actress, model, TV host and reality star from Tushlark, Togonistan is representing the nation during the 50th edition of World Hit Festival in Vodiznad, Izmedu. Born as the first child of an immigrant family, Stacy started her singing career at the age of 20, although didn't gain any wider recognition until participating in and winning the maiden season of Togonistan's Next Elite Model, a local reality TV competition at the age of 25. Despite that, Stacy never decided to become a full-time model and instead used her newly-gained fame to start a successful career as a TV host and reality star, hosting various TV shows as well as providing commentary to WorldVision Song Contest TV broadcasts.

She became more widely known to the international audience during her participation in the 61st edition of WorldVision Song Contest, where she, accompanied by a Togonistani rap artist Troublesome, brought a solid 4th place for the nation. Following her successful performance in the show, Stacy was picked up by a local composer Tahafa Talagi and his Amarillo Music label, starting what turned out to be a successful partnership to date. Together, they participated in the 2019 VHA Mehlodivestoile, a widely popular Britonish televised musical event. Stacy made her way through the show to the grand final, where she eventually made it to the 8th place.

For Stacy, this is going to be the first time participating in World Hit Festival. Here in Vodiznad, she's going to sing her new single titled ''Graceful Widow'' which is a ballad about a touchy subject of letting go of an abusive relationship. For this, Stacy partnered up with a composer Michael Funafuti, with whom she has had multiple cooperative projects before. ''It has been such a pleasure to work with Michael on this project about a topic which is of great importance to me. It is something I've had in my mind for quite a while now, and I can't thank Michael enough for helping me make it a reality.''

A round of applause can be heard on El Stadion Skolkje as Stacy's performance is being announced, mixed with some cheering coming largely from Togonistani, but also various ABEN and other Novapax nations fan sectors. The performance starts with the arena being rather dark. The only sources of light are the spotlights behind the main stage as well as around the audience pits, all providing warm light to the stage accompanied by a thin goldish line surrounding the stage borders. Stacy is standing in the middle of the front stage, wearing a semi-long grey dress without any sort of footwear. She puts his hands on the microphone attached to a stand in front of her and looks into the camera as it approaches her from the left and starts slowly rotating around her.

We were united as one since you said my name
Playing the game until fate led us astray
Feeling empty for the time I gave you
Back to back through the storm we carried on
Now it's the time, I'll move on

The camera zooms out on the stage as it lights up more, with background screen displaying graphics of some golden lines forming up. The lines start from the bottom and start to branch out through the chorus, eventually forming an image of a golden heart. Throughout the chorus, Stacy is doing some hand movements as she sings. Camera angles show both the stage from afar, followed up by some closer shots of Stacy singing on the stage. Halfway through the chorus, the golden heart on the background starts beating.

So I will be a graceful widow
It is time for the final show
So I will be a graceful widow
Now I'm ready to let you go
No more games, no more games
I am ready to let you go
No more games, no more games
I am ready to let you go
I am ready to let you go

As the chorus ends, the heart on the background can be seen shattering into pieces before the stage lighting tones down again. People in the audience pit start slowly waving golden light sticks above their heads as Stacy clings to the microphone. Camera angles take a close-up shot of Stacy as she is singing the verse, along with an effect of one camera angle fading into another. Halfway through the verse, people in the audience pit will be shown with the camera moving up on them, before raiding above their heads and showing a sea of golden light sticks from the above.

My heart will recuperate from the scars
Your deeds all gone under the radar
No more words, the silence reaches
The storm you started evaporates
The calmness reaches my soul

The broadcast fades into another view on the stage from afar, as the stage lights up and background graphics start forming the heart again. This time, the image starts forming from the either side of the screen and it happens much faster. Halfway through the chorus, the heart gets formed up once again. Stacy is singing and does various hand gestures at the same time.

So I will be a graceful widow
It is time for the final show
So I will be a graceful widow
Now I'm ready to let you go
No more games, no more games
I am ready to let you go
No more games, no more games
I am ready to let you go

As the song reaches to the bridge, a wind machine starts blowing from the front, making Stacy's hair and her dress wave in the wind. The camera takes a close-up shot of her face, moving from left to right.

It took time to realise
Let the memories fade away
No turning around, I wear my gown
What we had was nothing but a compromise
It felt so out of place, out of space

Reaching to the final chorus, Stacy puts her arms wide open as the stage graphics show a bunch of golden aurora-like graphics reflecting on the stage floor, rapidly moving towards the beating heart on the background. As the chorus progresses, the heart on the background grows bigger as it consumes the golden light sliding across the screens into itself. The whole thing looks like Stacy is standing in the middle of this light storm, with the wind blowing in the same direction as the lights go.

So I will be a graceful widow
It is time for the final show
So I will be a graceful widow
Now I'm ready to let you go
No more games, no more games
I am ready to let you go
No more games, no more games
I am ready to let you go

I am ready to let you go

Eventually, the lights fade out and the stage goes black, except for the golden heart that can still be seen on the background screen, this time without any lights surrounding it. The heart starts beating once again and does it three times with an audible sound accompanied, before eventually fading out and ending the performance. A round of applause can be heard on the arena as Stacy puts both of her hands in front of her mouth and send a huge blow kiss to the audience.

''Thank you Vodiznad! Thank you everyone! Afetai!

by **Izmedu** » Wed Feb 26, 2020 10:24 pm

Tune: "Jesus Forgive Me I'm A Thot" - JPEGMAFIA

Due to a lack of finances and preparedness, all TRT was able to send to WHF 50 was a hastily made entry. Massey Massie would be dressed in a choir robe, with a choir of Talvezians behind her. She would be standing at a pulpit, seemingly preaching-rapping the song.

Oh (You think you know me)
When we starting? (Now)
Um

Say (say), say
Say that the world goes up on fire
Say that your love gains no desire
I say that the children gonna be alright
You say that this world will end tonight
Pray for the children they’re terrified
Bitch don’t hurt me, it’s all rarified
But you’re still alive, yeah, I'm still alive
But say that the children ain’t growing right
It’s confusing, truth is hard to find
Pushes them bitches beyond the pine
Hope you get some shine, hope you get some shine
Hits you in the wallet like everytime
Just feels like you’re wasting time, wasting mine
And I’m dressed in the finest cloths, stanky hoe

You’re a sucka while I’m the fucha
They’ve been hurting you everytime
Sell you a bridge call it a crime
You sell those bars for a dime
I put my soul, in every rhyme

I can't feel my face, oh God
OMG, NBC, ASMR
Show me where the holy go
Show me how to keep his bussy closed
She said, "Now we got these blessings for real"
Amen (Woo!)

Say (say say
Pray for my babies, they doin’ fine
They just kinda wack but ain’t no decline
Say that you hit your peak in due time
But you can’t recline
These chalice a pretty one, cost a dime
Bitch these cups ain’t worth your life
Steal them and the bell smacks your spine
Priest said this is a sign
Use protection and hit your prime
I should come up with a better line
Or else they’re gonna make me resign
2020, I'll be 35
She payed the church call it finer time
They speaking in tongues like I'm David Byrne
Bought that album called Nevermind, I don’t mind
That church ain’t real just a shell company
Girl, I'm a saint, ain’t no hoe in me
What the hell do you want for me? You ain’t getting this puss-c
You can’t even release the seed

I can't feel my face, oh God
OMG, TRT, ASMR
Show me where the holy go
Show me how to keep his bussy closed
She said, "Now we got these blessings for real"
Amen (Woo!)

Praise the great old lord!

by **Izmedu** » Wed Feb 26, 2020 10:29 pm

Tune: Song Of Mana - Annika Ljungberg

Promotional image of Annija Lendberkyev

Annija Lendberkyev is a 35-year-old Natanyan singer and voice actress. She has a versatile career as a recording artist, having recorded music in many different genres, however she is best known for her soundtrack work, appearing on the soundtracks of many television programs, movies and games both domestically and abroad. She had kept her participation in WHF a complete secret up until the official broadcaster reveal, however has stated in many interviews that she is thrilled to be the Natanyan act for such a special edition and can’t wait to give it her all on the stage.

“I Shall Wait” is an orchestral folk song that takes clear inspiration to Annija’s knowledge and experience in the field of soundtrack music, with the song carrying a whimsical fantasy feeling through its 6-minute runtime. Annija wrote the lyrics herself before the song’s composition, the lyrics tell of the longing one does for a distant loved one, though keeps the specifics of why said loved one is distant or even the type of relationship that the song tells about as to keep the lyrics somewhat open ended, though Annija herself did say that her inspiration for it was indeed romantic love. For the music, she teamed up with Natanyan composer Yohann Craig, who directed the orchestral element to the song and helped Annija bring the concept of the song truly to life. Yohann is also well known for his contribution to soundtracks, so the partnership for this song comes as little of a surprise.

In the week run up to the competition, other than rehearsing, Annija has reportedly been enjoying her time sightseeing around Vodiznad and its surrounding areas and has especially been noted for trying out many different restaurants in the city. Annija herself said of the city; “I’m really enjoying my time here, the place is absolutely beautiful and it has played a big role in WHF history, as it will again this oncoming week, so I thrilled to be here!”. After the semi-final draw, Annija address questions about Natanya being drawn into Semi Final One, which tabloids and fans have been calling the bloodbath semi. “I agree that it’s a tough semi, very tough as there is a lot of strong competition, but I’m still gonna keep my head up high, keep confidence in my song and just try and do Natanya, my song, and myself justice up there. Qualification would be a bonus!”

The song starts with the stage shrouded in complete darkness, with only very small and scattered simulated snowfall appearing on the backwall, as the lyrics start, the camera pans over to Annija, who is stood in a spotlight, centre stage, draped in a long cloak. For the first 2 verses, the camera stays focused and head and body shots of Annija.

Walk softly,
Through the snowy trail,
Leading to the start.

The trail is winding and grinding,
But still I walk,
And never once do I hesitate.

In the third verse, the camera stays focused on a more far shot of the stage, with Annija dead centre, as she sings and feels the music through her expressions and arm movements, thin white lines on the snowy LEDs flow and spiral around as if they were dancing in the wind.

Heart and mind are true,
And I sing out for you,
Use my song, guide you home through the storm.
If your vision does blur,
Just hold on to me.

After the last word of the third verse, the pace of the song picks up considerable, as does the staging, the arena fills with light, dancers and musicians rush onto the stage and the back LEDs now display an autumnal woodland scene. During the brief musical interlude, the camera shows both a young flute player performing the song’s iconic flute melody and also shows Annija turning and removing her cloak, throwing back to one of the dancers and revealing her outfit for the rest of the performance. As she sings onwards, Annija interacts with the dancers, who are not following a strict routine, but are instead emulating the type of natural community dancing found at town and village festivals.

Searching through the mist, I know it’s so close now,
More and more do I wish to be held by you,
Running straight through the mist, feel it so close now,
More and more do I wish to be held by you.

My love doesn’t burn like the sun,
(But still gives warmth like a flame),
Carry this warmth with you,
Use its light to guide you,
And with time, it shall grow strong.

For the chorus, Annija runs to the front as the stage, where she is met by a wind machine and a row of spotlights along the edge of the stage. These lights flow out into the audience as she too sings out into the audience.

Time may wither us both down,
But still I wait patiently,
Waiting for your loving,
Waiting for you to see.
Waiting for your embrace,
For in your arms I wanna be,
No matter what comes, still I shall wait.

During the post-chorus instrumental, the camera pans around the audience. For the next two verses, the camera follows Annija as she traverses through the dancers and around the musicians as she seemingly is searching for someone, with her singing the last line straight at the camera.

Just a little further now,
We are almost there,
Like the sea and earth, we’re destined to collide.

Through any storm (through the snowy trail),
Keep on moving forward and never forget me,
I promise we’ll meet one day.

For the next verse, Annija runs through the middle of the dancers, with them moving out of her way and looking back at her, she runs to the front corner the stage which, opposed to the autumn/winter scene further back, is display a flowery spring meadow on it’s floor LEDs instead, Annija sits down on the stage and continues to sing the chorus with her back to the audience as the camera angle obscures the autumn scene to create the effect of her being in a meadow alone.

Eventually spring will bloom and melt the snow away,
Flowers will grow in time,
Life once again will shine,
And in meadows so peaceful,
We fathom the sign,
Take me there, take me there, I shall wait.
The route we take does not matter,
Love bound by fate.

At the end of the last verse she gets up again and slow starts to walk more centre stage, as she passionately sings the first line of the final chorus, she turns to the audience with the camera focused on her, and then zooming back to a far shot as spark pyrotechnics spray up from the sides of the stage. For the rest of the chorus she sings outwards, looking slightly upwards, again as if she was searching for someone, with the moving camera’s focus alternating between her, the autumn scene and the audience.

Time may wither us down,
But I still wait patiently,
Flowers will grow in time,
Life once again will shine,
And in meadows so peaceful,
We fathom the sign,
Take me there, take me there,
I wait.

For the musical outro of the song Annija smiles into the distance contently, and then turns to go join the dancers, who continue to dance and celebrate for the remainder of the song. As the song closes, Annija step forth from the dancers again, and then thanks the audience for watching, wishing them a great night. “Thank you for being here and being so kind, have I great night, I love you Vodiznad!”

by **Izmedu** » Wed Feb 26, 2020 10:31 pm

Tune: Soni Malaj - Më e fortë

Artist: Eileen Dover

Background

Eileen Dover is a 27 year old professional singer from the city of Banksia in Beepee. In January 2020, Eileen released her eponymous debut album which reached number 83 on the Beepeean Charts.

Song

The song, 'Inside Me' written by Eileen's husband, Ben Dover, and Tanya Hyde, was chosen by Ms Fanny Golightly of the Beepeean Occasional News Corporation to represent Beepee at the World Hit Festival. Upon its release, a number of Beepeean religious groups objected to the suggestive lyrics, and a number of radio stations refused to play the song. The controversy around the song helped push the single to number 32 in the Beepeean singles chart prior to the HitFestival.

Pre-WHF50 Tour

In the weeks leading up to WHF50, Eileen Dover undertook a tour of nations attempting to bolster support for her entry. Playing to "massive" crowds of sometimes 6 or 7 people, the tour was widely mocked in the Beepeean press as a waste of money. However, Ms Fanny Golightly, repeatedly said it was 'to show the seriousness of which all Beepeeans should take WHF.'

Eileen posted several entries from her tour on her social media pages updating her fans about the tour....

Entry

The stage is dark, two large candlesticks holding many hundreds of candles stand at either side of the stage, giving off a warm flickering orange glow a table sits in the middle of the stage

Six hooded figures enter the stage, dressed all in black. A slow rhythmic chant begins....

'Bom-bom-bom-bom-bom
Bom-bom-bom-bom-bom
Bom-bom-bom-bom-bom
Bom-bom-bom-bom'

Standing centre stage, Eileen Dover throws of her cloak to reveal herself wearing a white jumpsuit. As she does the full lights come on illuminating the stage. Eileen climbs onto the table, as the hooded figures march around.

Can you understand my heart?
Do you hear it call for you?
A-yeah, a-yeah
I want to feel your love,
Slipping inside my heart-oh

Bleed with me,
Bleed with me,
Bleed with me,
I'm bleeding inside of me,
Inside me,
Inside me,
Inside me,
I want you inside of me,

Yes, indeed,
You're the only one for me!
I close my eyes, knowing I just want to feel your love now
Come let me take your hand,
follow me into my land,
And breathe,

Eileen lies on the table and starts writhing about on the table, leaving many onlookers aghast!

I want you inside me,
Inside me,
Inside me,
I want you inside me,
Inside me,
Inside me,
I want you inside me,

I'm sorry to be a bore,
But I want so much more,
I want all your love,
I know it's not enough yeah

a-yeah a-yeah

Eileen stands up again on the table and continues to dance around provocatively

Bleed with me,
Bleed with me,
Bleed with me,
I'm bleeding inside of me
Inside me,
Inside me,
Inside me,
I want you inside of me

Yes, indeed,
You're the only one for me!
I close my eyes, knowing I just want to feel your love now
Come let me take your hand,
follow me into my land,
And breathe,

I want you inside me,
Inside me,
Inside me,
I want you inside me

I want you inside me,
Inside me,
Inside me,
I want you inside me

Hey, Hey
Hey, Hey

I want you inside me
Inside me,
Inside me,
I want you inside me,

Ooh-oh

I want you inside me now!

Eileen finishes the song kneeling on the table with the remaining hooded dancers kneeling exalting her.

The stage returns to darkness, Eileen shouts "Thank you everyone, Thank you Vodiznad", and skips off stage.

by **Izmedu** » Wed Feb 26, 2020 10:38 pm

Translation: The Seas
Tune: ONUKA - Zenit

Everything was set. Marie was ready to deliver the performance of a life time. All the usual clichés, really, but naturally they are clichés for a reason, and Marie was certainly feeling those very emotions at that point. The postcard came to an end, and the feed being sent across the multiverse showed the arena, dark as always for the beginning of a Normand performance; why change it now when we've been doing it for so long? And then, all of a sudden, it began, with a sudden close up view of Marie, dressed in a long, slightly matted, almost bedraggled dress, yet still ultimately looking classy, and less like she has just been in a car crash. It was Marie who would 'play' the opening flute sequence. The camera view zoomed out slightly through the very opening flute section, and moved with a hard cut between different perspectives, all from the front. This revealed that Marie was on some sort of platform made to look vaguely like a rock in shape, quite jagged and what not, but create definitely modern and not attempting to look too much like an actual rock, and it was also white, standing out from the very dark, subtly blue, lighting, and surrounded on all sides by a thick layer of smoke. Then, there were a series of flashes of a deep blue light, both in actual lighting and the background LED screen such that is almost seemed to ripple. Following this, a series of searchlight-esque lights started moving rapidly around the arena. This was mostly shown via a large panaromic shot, with occassional changes of perspective.

As the opening ended, all the searchlights converged on Marie and nearly seemed to fade away, although a gentle spotlight remained, which would remain fixed onto her throughout the verse which was now beginning. Marie gracefully held hold of her flute with one hand and brought it down to one side, and with the other grabbed onto the microphone on the stand before her, and began to sing quite softly. The cameras focused on her during this first verse as the song calmed down from its beginning intensity, which certainly will have woken up people across the multiverse (whether they enjoyed it or not of course being a different matter we will discover more about later, although naturally none of this happened to Maria, who was busy getting the job done whilst feeling both intensely nervous and euphoric about this opportunity, such that what anyone else cared was very much less than even a secondary concern). The lighting was less intensely dark, as the large background LED, a large screen of a nearly navy blue, but with ever so subtle fluctations, seemed to slowly pulsate along with the music. Naturally, even though there was not much going in the background, not too much of this could be seen as the focus was very much on Marie, with the background simply serving as a backdrop.

Là
Au bord du grand inconnu
J'y suis debout
'ci
Les vagues courent à travers mes pieds
J'me jete de l'eau

A series of panning shots from multiple perspectives, zoomed ever so slightly out, showed Maria who, having seemingly hidden her flute away in some pocket in her dress or otherwise (this is exactly what had happened, but naturally those of the audience wouldn't know this, although how many would have noticed? And would those who had noticed been able to figure it out? Probably, but that is not a pressing issue, back to the entry at hand) now began to move her hands around in that fancy arty type of way, moving them as the lighting slow intensified. The LED floor was used to provide a sort of underlight to the smoke, adding again a blue tone, but with the ocassional hint of red coming through (not, like, a gaudy bright red of course, the same being true for the blue, but think of something a bit more moody) whilst the background finally did more than pulsate now it was in greater view. A series of what appeared to be the outlines of medieval manuscript type drawings appeared to scrawl across in a slightly lighter shade of blue, showing various scenes from Normand legend about the sea.

Maria levia
Nunc semper curatis
Et nunc nos deletis
Maria

And then the chorus hit. The outlines of these drawings, which had started to glow from behind (as if the light was trying to escape from the behind the lines themselves) in an ethereal white seemed to be engulfed in one great flash, and the background was now replaced with a geometric-style representation of a stormy sea, 'waves' moving about and crashing. A series of rapid camera shots, followed by a panning shot over the audience and turning up to show the stage. Marie danced around on the top of her 'rock' in the centre of this great swirling storm, moving her body and her arms around and feeling the rhythm of the song. She felt somehow free in this situation, and let herself go within this tempestuous atmosphere. However, the instrumental break here was only brief, and it was time to return to safer shores once more as the next verse began. The storm subsided, but the waves in the background stayed, now once again less intensely dark and only slowly moving about, as once again the focus returned to Marie, starting with a slightly hazy shot which slowly came into focus. Again, the important thing here was calm after the outburst of madness.

Là
Au bord du grand inconnu
J'y suis debout
Je pars à la voile vers l'horizon
Vers mon destin ou rien

There followed a brief instrumental break, with the sounds of birds (likely to be seagulls in this case, bloody pests, although no need to worry about that really, because barring some terrible act of God, a flock of seagulls isn't going to descend on Vodiznad right now. Neither the animals or the band, for those who know their early 80s music, but I digress once again!) in the bats ckground. A series of long shots of the arena, with lights slowly twinkling and a gentle pulsing glow from the LED floor beneath the smoke adding to what was a wonderfully ethereal feel designed to take the listener to another world entirely. The sailing here would seem to be clear, a peaceful yet captivating sonorous voyage. The camera shots seemed to melt into one another, until finally Marie faded fully into shot once more, a series of faint lights focusing on her as the lights got ever so slightly darker. Marie reached out towards the camera and kept on the ethereal feeling whilst she sung.

Iam liberabor
Iam omnia videro
Nihilque quoque
Beata et mala
Anima mea ipsa

The, she brought her hands up to her face, palms facing the camera and interlocking. On her palms were a series of small screens which the camera focused on greatly, showing a series of different monsters trying to reach out as they appeared to sing in unison. Then, suddenly, using the wonders of post-production effects and the technology kindly provided by the team at RTI, who SRNP seemed to be determined to bankrupt once more, everything seemed to quickly disintegrate away. Again, there was a sudden cut, and now the entire arena could be seen in full. The searchlights from the very introduction were back once more, darting around the venue as if desperately searching for something, but for what? Or who? Marie? The waves in the background were in full movement once more too (everything here feels very cyclical; there's an analysis essay here for someone), now accompanied by flashed of what appeared to be lightning, whilst the camera shots went absolutely crazy. But this was not all. A series of dancers, all members of Orchestron (who also provided the music for this entry), who looked much like the figures that had been shown just before, a sign of what was to come. They appeared to dance around haphazardly, moving with the music, much as Marie perched on her rock did, and moved around the stage. Among the varying different camera shots, including barrel-roll type deals etc. (and indeed the camermen here have a very difficult job, sorry about that), the various figures were shown, including one who wore a mask which opened up like this. The monsters, dancing about in the smoke, moved closer and closer towards the rock until eventually, by the end of the song, they were close enough to pull her from the top (nothing too aggressive, I mean this was all choreographed so she was fine), and she disappeared into the smoke, a fact that was also met with bursts of water and smoke as the final, long note of the song sounded. Then, that was it, it was over.

Vos quae vitam datis eam cito reposcitis
Quae vitam datis
Quae vitam datis eam crudele reposcitis
Quae vitam datis
Quae vitam datis
Quae vitam datis
Quae vitam datis eam crudele reposcitis

by **Izmedu** » Wed Feb 26, 2020 10:40 pm

Tune: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KU6ISEfi8uo

Ooh, yeah, yeah

Najwa stands at a mic at the front of the stage as her band is behind her and she sings as the lighting in the room is dark and the rims of the stage are red and the interior of the stage is black. The screens show a red background with black smoke moving around in slow motion.

I been thinkin bout you baby
Just the things you do have my head spinning
And baby you never lose me
And baby with life you make the meaning

Baby I’d go far out just trying to chase it
And sometimes I just end up hesitating
But I’ll do whatever it takes to get to you baby
But I’ll do whatever it takes to get to you baby

I’ve been slippin, I’m sli-slippin
I've been missing, where did my mind go
It feels like', I cant think and
I just keep losing control , ooh
Baby it’s your love, got me feeling brand new
Just know that your love, got me slippin from you
I know that it got me slippin from you, slip slippin on you
Yeah, you good enough, I’m just slippin from you, slip-slippin' from you

I cant , I cant stop, slippin' from you (Slippin' from you)
I cant , I cant stop, slippin' from you (Slippin' from you)

Najwa grabs the microphone and walks away from the microphone stand, and starts to walk around the stage.

I cant keep cool when you around me
And baby boy you make my heart beat
Seems theres no way to get around this
It’s just like a drug, now I need it

Baby I’d go far out just trying to chase it
And sometimes I just end up hesitating
But I’ll do whatever it takes to get to you baby
But I’ll do whatever it takes to get to you baby

I’ve been slippin, I’m sli-slippin
I've been missing, where did my mind go
It feels like', I cant think and
I just keep losing control , ooh
Baby it’s your love, got me feeling brand new
Just know that your love, got me slippin from you
I know that it got me slippin from you, slip slippin on you
Yeah, you good enough, I’m just slippin from you, slip-slippin' from you

I cant , I cant stop, slippin' from you (Slippin' from you)
I cant , I cant stop, slippin' from you (Slippin' from you)

Boy you make my heart go (Beat, beat)
Boy you really got me (Slip, slip, slippin' from you)
I cant get away from it (Slip, slip)
Cause boy you got me (Slip, slip, slipping from you)

As the band powers the song through the chorus, the camera switches views through each band member and back to Najwa and then lights on the stage and around the building would flash white.

I’ve been slippin, I’m sli-slippin
I've been missing, where did my mind go
It feels like', I cant think and
I just keep losing control , ooh
Baby it’s your love, got me feeling brand new
Just know that your love, got me slippin from you
I know that it got me slippin from you, slip slippin on you
Yeah, you good enough, I’m just slippin from you, slip-slippin' from you

I cant , I cant stop, slippin' from you (Slippin' from you, slippin from you.. yeah)
I cant , I cant stop, slippin' from you (Slippin' from you, slippin on you)
I cant , I cant stop, slippin' from you (Slippin' from you, baby)
I cant , I cant stop, slippin' from you (Slippin' from you)
Theres just no way that I can escape it
I cant , I cant stop, slippin' from you (Slippin' from you)
(Slippin' from you, slippin on you)

Slippin' from you, yeah, yeah
Ooh, yeah, yeah

by **Izmedu** » Wed Feb 26, 2020 10:43 pm

Tune: Tom Grennan - Found What I've Been Looking For

After co-hosting the last edition of the World Hit Festival, Estogium returns to the World Hit Festival - participating for the 9th time in a row. Elias Nordin returns to Vodiznad to try and win the title here on Izmeduan soil.

Ever since his appearance at the World Hit Festival at the 45th World Hit Festival with his hit song, "Tired of Lying", appearances at the WorldVision Song Contest as the Opening Act and also rumoured participating at an upcoming WorldVision Song Contest, Jorsvikian singer (Elias Nordin) gained a lot of hype in his home country of Estogium. Interestingly, when he was being interviewed in the running to the 45th World Hit Festival, he said the quote, "he is not too famous, he’s able to go to the shops without being dragged out by screaming fans.” which is not something that he can say now. Elias Nordin, at the 45th World Hit Festival, sent the song "Tired of Lying" which was a male ballad which was something that was expected of the nation's Eastern neighbour, Britonisea rather than Estogium. Though, it seemed as though the song paid off as, in the end, Estogium placed 5th place with a total of 18 points. The placement marked the best result Estogium had received in 17 editions when Estogium placed 4th place with 19 points in Telgrad, Arioslavia which remained to be Estogium's best placement at the time. The song managed to clinch the #1 spot in the official charts for Estogium, before going platinum within weeks. Elias Nordin, after his performance, is now one of Estogium's most recognisable faces, with the man also gaining more gigs to host shows in the Brityunikosphere.

Ever since his appearance at the 45th World Hit Festival, Estogium has had quite the journey. At the 46th World Hit Festival, which was won by Britonisea, Estogium sent Hunter Malden - who had been rumoured to represent Estogium for a very long time. At what was an orchestral special of the World Hit Festival, Estogium placed 7th place which for the nation saw Estogium return to the realm of average results which suggested that Elias' performance was just a one-off. RVC thought that they had a formula however and sent their third solo male act in a row through Tony Alanis, who opened the show in Kyvivre. The show finished a lowly 15th place making it Estogium's third-worst result at the World Hit Festival showing everyone how quickly a nation can go from the greatest heights to flops. Estogium's RVC and the Estogian public were furious with the result which people not understanding what Estogium's place in the World Hit Festival was. After doing some evaluation, the nation returned to the World Hit Festival with Zala Marelli at the smaller 48th World Hit Festival which was being held in Llalta. Despite the show not being as grander as previous editions and not as many Estogians being invested in the show, Estogium scored 29 points, coming 2nd place - the first time Estogium was in a podium position - only pipped by it's neighbour, Britonisea. For the first time, ABEN had done a 1-2, with Estogium's best result giving the nation a flavour of what it would feel like to host the World Hit Festival.

The 49th World Hit Festival was held jointly by Estogium and Britonisea in Alshkan, the city which lies on the Brito-Estogian border. RVC and BVC both joined forces to host a good edition of the World Hit Festival, but while their neighbours managed to stay in the top 2, Estogium fell to 10th place with a total of 13 points. Knowing that the nation might have to qualify from the Semi-Finals, Estogium decided to opt to send Elias Nordin - a similar tactic to what was done at the 40th World Hit Festival when RVC sent Viv Rumie as they had faith that she'd qualify, which she ended up doing. With this song, RVC are sure that with whatever happens at the Golden edition of the World Hit Festival, Estogium would hopefully qualify and keep up their 100% qualify record.

The song, "Do Not Look Back" is similar to that of his other World Hit Festival, but this one seems to be a lot more positive and upbeat than his previous contribution. "Don't Look Back" is about someone wanting to be back with Elias Nordin after they wronged him (you can assume that he was cheated on). Elias explains in the song that it's time to just move on and not look back, asking who is he singing to to remember to times when they were together; focusing on the bad parts of the relationship as a reason why they shouldn't be together. The song has done well in the Estogian market already, entering the Top 10 of the Estogian charts since it's release. It's expected that the song will only rise higher and higher in the charts until he performs it in Vodiznad, Izmedu. Estogium is hoping that this song could give them the glory they've waited ages for...

It is now time for Estogium to grace the World Hit Festival stage. Elias Nordin entered the stage and readied himself for Estogium's seventh participation at an Izmeduan World Hit Festival. For Elias, his mention was to better the score that he received at the 45th World Hit Festival - placing 5th place or higher. It was also the mission that the broadcaster had set itself, with RVC desperate to make an impression at the turn of the decade. Elias was nervous as he knew that this World Hit Festival was much larger than the 45th World Hit Festival and therefore the chances of him receiving the result that he wanted would be harder. He walked into the middle of the stage wearing a white t-shirt and black jean trousers and shoes - nothing too fancy but would fit the song pretty well. He wore two large chains around his neck too which complimented his look. The colours that he wanted to use throughout the song would change throughout and so he thought that going for the neutral white and black would suit well.

Low-lying fog filled the bottom of the stage as the stage personnel bought a diamond shape on the stage with two light beams on either side of the shape coloured in neon red. Similarly to the picture shown in the link, the LED screens were a gradient of blue to black in the background. He stood in the middle of the scenery with his face and shirt lit in the red colour. He waited for his postcard to finish before he the music started.

The camera slowly moved in closer and closer to him as the music began. He faced the audience, swaying gently to each side. He raised the microphone to his face before starting the song;

Don't get your hopes up too much
Keep it PG between us
Don't say that you still love me - I don't care
Our time is over, I had to cut it short
I...thought that you wanted time apart?

At the end of the verse, the lights turned from the blue in the LED behind, it moved to a grey-ish colour with the red diamond still keeping its colour. As he finished the verse, there was a camera shot, a close-up, of his face with him smirking right down the lens after asking the question. There was a wide shot of the stage as Elias turned to meet another camera to the left side of him. He looked at the crane camera which zoomed passed him, slow down as it went over the stage. During this bit, lights from above the stage were flashing golden lights rather furiously with the crane camera pointing upwards once Elias was out of shot. Elias began singing the chorus of the song;

I was hurting, and I know you were too
Remember all the millions of fights
That we had, we weren't
Happy, don't kid yourself.
Honey, move on and do not look back
Move on and do not look back, yeah!
(Ooo-ooo-oooh) Move on and do not look back, yeah!
(Ooo-ooo-oooh) Move on and do not look back, yeah!

The chorus was only just a taster of what was to come as this chorus wasn't as long as the other ones and so Elias didn't stress out his vocals too much. The camera had a mixture of further away shots and close shots of Elias Nordin. Elias walked around the diamond shape and sat in the middle of it with his back to the audience. There was a camera shot of him sitting down in the middle of the diamond with the audience behind him, swaying their hands and waving their flags. He started singing the verse, with a male vocalist singing the end of each of the lines with him making it seem fuller. As he was sitting, Elias was moving from side to side more animatedly, getting more and more into the song.

Don't say please, don't hurt me (dry those tears)
I won't go back, no (so leave me)
Let's go our separate ways (pack your bags!)
Our time is over, I had to cut it short
I...thought that you wanted time apart?

Before he went back into pre-chorus once again, Elias stood up and walked around the diamond to face the audience once again. There was an aerial shot from the rigs of Elias walking further into the audience of the diamond-shaped stage. The lights started flickering gold once again like we saw just a few lines ago. Elias became much jumpier as he moved closer and closer to the chorus. He felt as though he could enjoy this song a lot more than the song than his previous effort of a ballad and so he was really going for it. There was a low angle shot, looking up at Elias as he waved his hands up and down before interacting with the camera as it switched to the next shot.

I was hurting, and I know you were too
Remember all the millions of fights
That we had. We weren't
Happy, don't kid yourself.
Honey, move on and do not look back,
Move on and do not look back, yeah!
(Ooo-ooo-oooh) Move on and do not look back, yeah!
(Ooo-ooo-oooh) Move on and do not look back, yeah!

After singing the chorus for the second time, there was another aerial shot of him running back to the diamond shape. As usual with performances from ABEN, a man with the cam came running onto the stage for the bridge section of the performance. He waited for the man to come with the audience watching as we crept closer and closer to Elias. As Elias began singing "I gave you a chance," the Steadicam was in front of Elias Nordin, with him following the camera with his eyes but not moving that much. The camera quickly went around the back of him before doing the same thing for a few times. During this bit, the golden lights at the top of the stage were still flickering and so every time the camera passed that, you could see that on the top of his head.

(Ooo-ooo-oooh) I gave you a chance, me a chance, us a chance
(Ooo-ooo-oooh) And I tried so hard, oh I tried, yes, I tried
(Ooo-ooo-oooh) But sometimes things aren't meant to be!

By the time he belted the last line, the Steadicam was away from the stage with a camera zooming out from his mouth out over the jam-packed stadium in Vodiznad making that the moment of the performance. As the camera moved out, not only the lights at the top of the stage but the LED was almost split into 10,000 tinier squares which flashed golden along with other lights that were behind Elias. The diamond that was behind him, too, was flashing making it a very dramatic moment for the Estogian performance.

Though, as we moved onto the first bit of the last chorus, everything was calm as the flashing stopped. A camera zoomed in on him similarly to the start of the performance with a similar setting as the first time. He looked into the lens and the camera came closer and closer to him. His face was blank at this point; he was just singing but that would change by the end of the chorus.

I was hurting, and I know you were too
Remember all the millions of fights
That we had. We weren't
Happy, don't kid yourself.
(ooo-oooh) Honey, move on and do not look back
Move on and do not look back

As he went into the final half of the last chorus of the song, he jumped out from the still position that he was in, almost hopping and skipping to the edge of the stage where the audience was - picking certain members of the Izmeduan audience to sing towards. The cameras were following him, changing every four beats but all zooming in or out from him making the performance rather dynamic. As with Elias' last performance, the golden shower pyrotechnics fell at the back of him as he danced and sang with the song - living his best life.

I was hurting, and I know you were too
Remember all the millions of fights
That we had. We weren't
Happy, don't kid yourself.
Honey, move on and do not look back!
Move on and do not look back, yeah! (Yeaaaaaaaah)
(Ooo-ooo-oooh) Move on and do not look back, yeah!
(Ooo-ooo-oooh) Move on and do not look back, yeah!
(Ooo-ooo-oooh) Move on and do not look back, yeah!
(Ooo-ooo-oooh) Move on and do not look back, yeah!

At the end of the song, Elias Nordin extended out his arms and looked up to the sky as the lights shone in him from the back, with none in front of him (creating the silhouette effect). The audience came in cheering as Elias kept that position for quite some time. As Elias noticed the heat of the light shining him on going away, he looked out to the audience where a camera was waiting for his expression, he jumped in the air and thanked the audience; "Thank you, everybody! Vote Estogium!" before running off the stage. Could Estogium return to the top 3? We'd find out by the end of the broadcast.

by **Izmedu** » Wed Feb 26, 2020 10:44 pm

Translation: Love your family
Tune: When Love Passes By — IU

After a highly successful participation at the 49th World Hit Festival, Fromulyans were ecstatic. Televisi Republik Fromulya instantly confirmed participation at the 50th contest and, having earned a bye to the final, did not have to be concerned about qualifying from semifinals.

So they internally selected a returning artist. Arum Dawoh had previously participated in the 43rd World Hit Festival with the song Kuaci. She came 12th out of 20 countries.

Once again, the song is written by Rahmat Rahadian. However, this time they are sending a quintessentially Asian song, rather then taking inspiration from an experimental Kalosian piece. It is hoped that the song, titled Sayangi Keluargamu, will curry favour with the audiences of various countries.

The song itself is a message to those who go great lengths to provide a living for their loved ones, that we can go so far with our careers, but who are we doing it for? The song serves as a reminder to actually keep in touch with those who love us the way we love them.

For the big night, Arum is wearing a nice batik dress. For the song, she sings solo, though accompanied on stage with a pianist who kinda does his own thing. Throughout the song, various imagery appears in the background screen depicting whatever she is singing. At first, there is a picture of a person busy at an office computer, followed by imagery of an old couple at home, etc.

Aku tahu kamu sibuk
Dalam pencarian nafkah
Tetapi ingat, kamu ditunggu
Oleh yang ada dirumah

Ingatlah pada mereka
Yang berikan makan minum
Jangan lupakan sang adik kakak
Sayangi keluargamu

Kurangi hal-hal yang menjauhkanmu
Dari sang buah hati
Betapa susahnya obati rindu
Pada yang di dalam batin

Ayolah membuat panggilan
Gunakan dengan baik waktu
Ayo lakukan tanpa alasan
Sayangi keluargamu

Na na na nana nana nanana
Nana uhh~ uhh uhh uh uh uhh~

Kurangi hal-hal yang menjauhkanmu
Dari sang buah hati
Betapa susahnya obati rindu
Pada yang di dalam batin

Ketika sudah tiada
Yang ada dalam hatimu
Kau tentu akan merindukannya
Sayangi keluargamu

Sayangi keluargamu
Sayangi keluargamu

The song ends and the crowd cheers. She takes a bow and then gestures to her pianist, who stands up and bows as well. "Terima Kasih!" Arum Dawoh shouts, "Thank you!" She then promptly leaves the stage.

by **Izmedu** » Wed Feb 26, 2020 10:46 pm

Tune: Tori Kelly - Nobody Love

Vanessa Alekzandra Anisimova had a notably tough childhood. Born in Peeto, Polkopia, she and her siblings were put up for adoption when she was 8 years old, as her parents fled the country during the civil war and couldn't afford to take their children with them. Due to the horrid conditions of her adoption house during the course of the war, Vanessa lost her younger sister to typhoid fever, but was adopted three months later by a Polkopian family living along the outskirts of Peeto. Her older brother was later adopted by a family in Restnov. While living with her new family, she enrolled in a private education institution - one of only three private schools in the country, where she received a stellar education in the arts and sciences and realized her musical passion. Throughout her final years at her institution, she posted numerous videos online of her singing covers of popular songs around the multiverse, many of which gained hundreds of thousands of views in a matter of days. She was only seventeen and already had a massive fanbase which would continue to go nowhere but up as the years progressed.

In a decision that could only be described as ambitious, her first project after graduating consisted of writing her own song. This song would be the very one which would be sent to the Landa vy Polkopiya and later, at the World Hit Festival. In an interview given with the PNB2, Vanessa reportedly spent three weeks composing the song and another week writing the lyrics. The finished product was Better Love , an upbeat radio-friendly song which she debuted on her video channel once the final touches were made. The initial reviews were overwhelmingly positive, with many of her closer fans suggesting that she consider taking her success to another level. On a whim, and from the suggestion of a couple of her fans, Anisimova submitted the song to the Landa vy Polkopiya and performed live in the first semi-final months afterward. Fortunately for her, her live performance got the attention of a much broader audience and she was projected as one of the early favorites to win the Grand Final. Unfortunately for her, fate was not on her side, as she just fell short of winning the contest.

Although she hadn't won the contest, she was awarded the next best thing - exposure. Better Love was played on radio stations all around Polkopia and for a while, there had been a popular movement among fans to double-check the results of the LvP, as many believed that Vanessa had been wronged. Even Vanessa herself had taken to social media to express her disappointment with the results. Although she later apologized for the post and congratulated the winner, the results didn't change. Years later, Anisimova continued using her presence online as a medium for posting her new projects, which included makeup tutorials, vlogs, and comedy skits in addition to her musical activities. It was during this time where the PNB2 contacted her privately in order to entertain the idea of her performing at Polkopia's comeback to the World Hit Festival and represent her nation on another international competition. She naturally agreed, and days later, Polkopia's return to the World Hit Festival was made public, as was the announcement of Vanessa representing Polkopia. Fans all across the nation rejoiced at this news and the hype couldn't have been any higher for the competition - everybody was excited to see the internet star finally have her shot at performing at the international level, and expectations were high that she could possibly give her nation its first-ever win at the World Hit Festival.

Soon after Vanessa took the stage, the music started playing. Once it did, the background LED screen illuminated itself in a deep golden color and Vanessa walked toward the center of the stage from the back, a wide grin present on her face. The crowd could be heard cheering on the young Polkopian artist as she was about to perform her song. For this performance, Vanessa was dressed in a simple outfit - dark blue jeans which were ripped at the knees, a white blouse with embroidered flowers on the hem of her neck, and black heels. Her blonde hair had streaks of light purple in it and fell in waves down past her shoulders. She wore several items of jewelry too, including golden earrings, a multitude of gold chains around her neck, and golden bracelets around her wrists. Her makeup was relatively simple, save for the purple eyeshadow she wore which matched the streaks in her hair, so she bore a sort of a natural "glow". At the moment, she was alone on stage, but would eventually be joined by some of her backup dancers as the song progressed. For this verse though, she was to be completely alone on stage. She approached the perimeter of the stage, extended her free hand while her other held the microphone, and sang out to the crowd, still sporting her smile.

Everybody's trying to feel that something.
No one's ever willing to take the time.
You and I, we got that special something.
And I'm so happy that you're mine.

Vanessa retreated toward the center of the stage and continued singing, squeezing her eyes shut in order to concentrate as she hit the higher notes. Some of her background singers could be heard during this verse though they weren't visible at the moment. In the background, five horns were visible, all fixated in an arch, pumping out notes in-sync with the instrumentation. Other than this, the background was to be completely dark. There were golden patterns and lights on the LED stage floor, but other than that there was none.

Feeling fresh as hell when all is well and you are by my side.
When I'm with you, when I'm with you
Feelin' how I'm screaming when we're fighting but I'll always say.
Woah, woah, woah there's...

For the choreography during the chorus, Vanessa bent over and faced the camera and positioned her arms as if she was leaning on something. She alternated between bending one leg and straightening the other one, and vice-versa.

Ain't no better love, ain't no better love than you boy.
Ain't no better love, ain't no better love than you-o-o-o.
Ain't no better love, ain't no better love than you boy.
Ain't no better love, ain't no better love than you-o-o-o.
Wait, hold on!

The background dancers began to come onto the stage one by one until there were five of them on stage. Each of them wore all white - white pants, white shirts, white shoes, and some wore white hats too. As they came on stage they high-fived Vanessa, danced on their own for a few seconds, before standing next to Vanessa. As Vanessa sang the next verse, the group of six walked around the perimeter of the stage, maintaining the same formation.

Everywhere we go there's no denying.
How this love, it just won't end.
But everyone's got peaks and valleys.
And through it all, you're my best friend

For every other syllable that Vanessa sang here, one dancer would slide away from her to the right, then another to the left, on and on again until Vanessa had space around her. For the third line, she slightly crouched, squeezed her eyes closed, and sang. During the fourth line, the dancers returned, standing in a horizontal line with Vanessa in the center.

Feeling fresh as hell when all is well and you are by my side.
When I'm with you, when I'm with you
Feelin' how I'm screaming when we're fighting but I'll always say.
Woah, woah, woah there's...

Now that the chorus was here, Vanessa repeated the same choreography as before, only this time she was leaning on the dancer in front of her, who in turn was leaning on the dancer in front of them. The crowd was heard screaming in delight and Vanessa's face shone brightly, hearing the massive applause she was receiving so far.

Ain't no better love, ain't no better love than you boy.
Ain't no better love, ain't no better love than you-o-o-o.
Ain't no better love, ain't no better love than you boy.
Ain't no better love, ain't no better love than you-o-o-o.

The dancers all ran away from Vanessa and the camera did a 360 circle around her as she sang. When the camera was at her back, the audience at home could see golden lights all around the crowd in the venue.

Boy,
Let's stop all this pretending now, you drive me wild.
The chemistry we have.

The camera showed an aerial view of the stage until Vanessa hit the high note, at which point the camera rapidly zoomed in on her face. When the high note finished, the camera rapidly zoomed out again and the background dancers once again flooded the stage. Behind the dancers, four more people came out from the back, each of them wearing the same outfit as the dancers. These people carried trumpets and played them as they took the stage and stood behind Vanessa - two of them on either side of her. Furthermore, a rain of glitter and fireworks showered the stage from above. All the dancers walked around the perimeter of the stage, motioning to the crowd.

Feeling fresh as hell when all is well and you are by my side.
Hey...
Hey...
Ohhhh oh oh....

Yeah
Alright

Everybody's trying to feel that something.
Oh oh oh...
Oh oh oh...

Ain't no better, no better, no better love

Ain't no better love, ain't no better love than you boy.
Ain't no better love, ain't no better love than you-o-o-o.
Ain't no better love, ain't no better love than you boy.
Ain't no better love, ain't no better love than you-o-o-o.

The dancers slowly stopped dancing and walked over to Vanessa. The lights dimmed and all that was left was a singular spotlight on her by the end of the performance.

Ain't no better love, ain't no better love than you boy.
Ain't no better love, ain't no better love than you-o-o-o.

by **Izmedu** » Wed Feb 26, 2020 10:48 pm

Tune: Teshima Aoi - Toki No Uta

Esther Winterbourne, previous Llaltese entrant for World Hit Festival 40, 41, 42, 49 and now 50. Also entered WorldVision in 69 and 71.

As of World Hit Festival 49, Llalta has claimed five podium positions out of nine participations, which while good on paper, the podium positions appear to be spread out, only once having two podium positions in a row. However, with a win under its belt and most recently a third place, the LBN believes it is possible to reach podium position once again and hopefully gain a consistent track record. Following a successful edition in Estogium, Esther WInterbourne once again placing in the top three, the LBN made the internal decision to send the successful starlet to World Hit Festival once again. Though one would have thought the participation of Esther WInterbourne for the fifth time in the prestigious contest would cause Llaltese to become sick of her, the people of Llalta have never been more excited. Furthermore, the idea of the reintroduction of semi-finals, though a far off, distant thought, has people even more driven to send an excellent entry. In WHF 40, and the edition in which Llalta debuted in, Esther Winterbourne participated with her soft rock song "Free". Failing to reach the finals, however, the song placed 8th, one away from qualifying. And overall placed 17th out of 30th. This previous failure has given Llalta a competitive streak, causing the tiny island nation to get ecstatic over the idea of semis, and to qualify.

Esther Winterbourne, 19-year old Llaltese singer-songwriter, was born in the tiny village of Lilliannes. She is very well known throughout Llalta, being one of the biggest artists behind Evergreen. From the age of three, one of her favourite pastimes was singing, where she would sing songs 24/7. At four, she started school at St. Christopher’s Academy, where she stayed at the school until she was 18, the school teaching almost every Llaltese child. From four to eighteen, she participated in many school talent shows and open mic nights at pubs, where she became ubiquitous for her singing and piano playing. The piano she learnt from 6, from the renowned John Marshall of the Evergreens, and reached up to grade 8.

Now 19, Esther Winterbourne is currently taking a gap year to focus on her music career and travel the world before going to Britonisea to study at the University of Telm, where she will study Healthcare and medicine. She says, “While I love making music and singing and so on, I want to do something more with my life, helping people and others in need.” She plans to get her degree and become a doctor back in Llalta to help those less fortunate than her. “I want to make people happy; save lives; make Llalta stand out for its amazing healthcare.” She said in an interview. However, now her music career has really set off, boasting two-second places and most recently a third place at the World Hit Festival. Despite this and being a commercial success abroad, she still believes that being a doctor is her dream, and to help people. However, she couldn’t be more thankful for what World Hit Festival has done for her. She said, “The World Hit Festival Really has changed my life. Like, people know who I am and you know. I just can’t put it into words how... thankful and glad I am for the opportunities and having the chance to meet amazing people I wouldn’t have met before. It really is surreal.” The starlet now has three podium positions out of her four participations as well as WorldVision 69 and 71, gaining 5th and 9th respectively.

As said, Esther Winterbourne was picked internally to enter this competition, given that she'd avenge her non-qualification of WHF 40. The song, "Yours Truly", is a tranquil piano ballad which serves as a letter to her former self, especially her early teenage years, where she suffered the most. As said in an interview, "Well, yeah. I wish this letter would have been given to me when I was... you know... living in my personal hell! It raises questions that I wish would have been asked to me... Well, though I've written, like, meaningful songs in the past.. this one seems extra special. Not sure why." The song is both written and composed by Esther Winterbourne herself and is intended as not only a letter for her past self but to anyone watching who needs a letter such as this.

The postcard ends, and there is a loud cheer as the Llaltese entry is announced. Darkness descends on the arena, and the cheering soon turned to hushed whispers. There is a short silence, before the piano begins to play. The camera is zoomed into Esther's elegant fingers dancing upon the piano, a subtle diamond ring shining in a soft wash of gold. The piano pauses for a moment and the camera defocusses and turns to black before zooming in on her fingers, this time from another angle. As Esther begins to sing the soft, personal lyrics, the camera slowly begins to pan around Esther. Simple and angelic, Esther wears a flowy white toga-style dress which drapes to the floor, with her hair let down. She wears subtle make-up, with gold eyeshadow complimenting her dark, silver eyes. Soft, golden lights shine in a ring around the stage facing the ceiling, creating a warm, nostalgic atmosphere. However, other than that the stage is black and simple, with the black piano in the centre of the ring of golden lights. Esther is perched gracefully on the seat, playing the soft and humble melody as she sings the first lyrics of the song. Her eyes are closed, showcasing her golden eyeshadow which gleams in the golden light. The camera work is close up and intimate, her poetic lyrics echoing across the arena carried by her warm, soulful voice. Every so often, she opens her argent eyes and stares into the distance, as if beginning to reminisce and journey through her own experiences. Her eyes glimmer in the dim golden hue that washes over the stage, her mouth pursed as if telling a secret or something she holds dear to her heart.

Dear Esther,
Tell me how well have you been?
Is life well,
Are you painting with the winds?
Waltzing with the flowers
As winter turns to spring
Are you taking each day
As if your last

The next verse begins, Esther continuing to play the piano as she sings the words that mean so much to her. The staging remains simple yet so full of nostalgic warmth throughout the whole song. She closes her eyes again, getting lost in the music, and she almost drifts away into her own personal dream. The camera takes the first wider shot of the stage, showing Esther like a small star in the night sky, creating an atmosphere of space. On the fifth line, she looks up to the ceiling as if yearning for the childhood she lost, or maybe it's a pained memory as such. No matter, she turns from the ceiling and back to the piano keys, where her fingers waltz upon the pearly keys, dashed with golden lights. On the last line, she subtly shakes her head, her hair shimmering.

Dear Esther,
Have your hopes and dreams remained?
Do your eyes,
Still shimmer like stars o' grey?
Do moonlit skies tell stories
Like odysseys of brave
Or do they shine silent
Is it mere child's play
I once believed

The lights harshen as Esther begins to sing with a little more power, matching the desperation sung in the lyrics. There's a sparkle in her eyes as she sings too, like a blazing fire. She almost begins to rock back and forth as she sings, putting power into her piano playing. Her words are almost spiteful yet full of sorrow, contrasting the former warmth and hope that was presented in the previous verses. As she sings, a shot of the audience shows the Izmeduan crowd truly encaptured in Esther's singing. A few Llaltese flags could be seen, waving like waves in the sea. On the last line, Esther raises her hand, the camera following before fading to a wider pan of the stage. As the verse draws to a close, she begins to slow her energy back down, as if she were once at peace with herself.

Those rosy cheeks
Those argent eyes
Smile of a thousand suns
When did they fade
Like all those days
Dreaming of years to come
Don't let each hour ebb by
By
Imminent volant

After the previous verse, she returns to her calmer, more warm voice. The camera shots once again become more intimate and close in, many of just her playing the piano as she sings. During the fifth line, she glances slowly around her, as if looking and accepting where she is now, a sign of reassurance to her younger self. However, her expression changes as the verse continues, creases of melancholic pain etched across her face, spreading shadows. The camera seems to capture every emotion, no matter how subtle, especially the solemn vibe Esther exudes as she sings the lyrics of longing and regret. No matter, the staging creates a level of intimacy, of childhood worries and anxieties we experienced. The camera faces towards Esther on the final line, and she tilts her head back, lost in the memories that flood her.

Dear Esther,
Do you face the rising sun?
Or are you,
Lost amongst the fading souls?
Do shadows dance around you
As starlight turns to flame
Your tainted heaven
A star-crossed prophecy
You once dreamed

As she sings with more power once again, the lights yet again harshen to match the rise in energy. A burst of motivation, a will to succeed. Shimmering, her eyes ablaze with passion for the future. As the camera circles her, she looks deeply into it, not just into the camera but into the viewer at home, hopefully setting a spark within others, a spark to succeed through thick and thin. As Esther sings the fourth line up to the sixth line, the camera pans the stage before changing to a rather dynamic shot from below Esther like an audience view. The light glimmers in the camera view, allowing Esther to look ethereal, bathed in gold. As she asks her past self whether she'd believe her, there's a sense of hope, Esther closing her eyes as if she were praying for the best.

Could you believe
Your odyssey
The end upon your stage
Lights of gold
Your miracle
In a garment of painted dreams
Would you believe me?
Soon
Soon you'd see

The lights that once rung around Esther and the stage, slowly billow outwards to match the climax of the song. The golden lights glimmer as they one by one glare into the camera, giving Esther the look of an almost silhouette. Despite the initial grandeur of the light-show, it creates a sequence similar to the of the morning sun breaking from the horizon. There is a small cheer from the audience, however, and there is a shot of them for a brief moment enjoying the quiet nostalgia that the song presents. As she begins to sing "Maybe", the gobos with a twinkling dots pattern like stars billow outwards too, following in the footsteps of the spotlights before. On the final line, the gobos dim and the spotlights slowly return to how they were positioned before, in ring around Esther.

Imagine
The world within your palms
Your universe
A dazzling blaze you carved
Maybe
Shadows reign your dreams
And maybe
Your nightmares run awry
Hold on 'till the sun's birthed anew...

As the final verse approaches, the instrumental begins to play, Esther's fingers twirling and pirouetting along the keys. The camera zooms into this fragile sequence as if it were a dance itself. Throughout this segment, the camera follows her fingers, only very little looking at Esther's face, glancing down at the instrument that so long inspired her and lead the way throughout much of her life. Though showing concentration at first, it is a mere mask for the feeling of reassurance. Something that she has full confidence in and can lean on; an anchor in music. There is almost a haunting vibe due to the lack of light, Esther a silhouette to the backdrop of the golden lights. Only her ring and a couple small tears glimmering from argent to gold. And yet, it's a touching moment of the song, even with no words. A perfect duet between woman and music. As the instrumental nears to a close, the camera moves the focus from her fingers to her as she sings the final verse. Unlike the other verses before however, it's not one of sorrow or loss, but rather one of hope. Her eyes glimmer in gold, a hopeful atmosphere in the arena. Her voice is softer, more motherly as if tending to the struggles of her younger self. Her piano playing, too, becomes not of dance but of a lullaby, soft and soulful. For once in this song, the ends of her mouth slowly grow into a small smile, proud of who she was and what she's become. And proud of what she'll become in years to come.

Dear Esther,
Has dawn painted the skies?
Do your eyes,
Shimmer like before?
It's goodbye,
Until you sing this song once more
Yours truly

With shimmering golden tears rolling down her cheek, she holds the final note, the camera taking a close up of her face before fading to black. The song ends with the LED screen being used for the first time this entry, to show a golden sunrise upon the black abyss slowly rising so that Esther becomes a silhouette, a mere figure upon the great light of dawn. The entry is met with applause as the Llaltese starlet performs once again in Izmedu. Tears streaming like waterfalls upon her face she bows, and says, "Thank you Vodiznad! And *sniff* thank you world! Yours truly!" before slamming her head into her hands with tears, and shuffling offstage as the crowd applauses loudly.

by **Izmedu** » Wed Feb 26, 2020 10:50 pm

Tune: Stephen - ''Crossfire''

Artyom representing Kassegrochia in the 50th World Hit Festival

Artyom Kalyagin (stage name: Artyom) is a 22-year old vocalist from Nachekov, Kassegrochia. Currently studying in Perman-Ziga Conservatory, the young and relatively unknown artist won a local talent show Idol na Kassegrochia, where he impressed the judges with his singing voice. After his spectacular performance in the show, Artyom got approached by a local music label Pobeda Records to be taken under their wing and release his first solo album. As part of the promotional campaign to promote the artist for the international audience, the label signed a deal with Tre Televisija to provide funding for sending a Kassegrochian delegation to the 50th World Hit Festival, a task which would have been next to impossible for the mostly (poorly) state-funded broadcaster.

With the deal signed, the broadcaster announced their participation, along with Artyom being the Kassegrochian representative in the show. The song ''I Won't Break'' is part of Artyom's first album currently in the making. A story about mental health which, according to Artyom, is heavily inspired by his personal experiences in his childhood. Having grown up in the peak of the 1st Kassegrochian civil war, Artyom had to go see and go through a lot of unpleasant, and he wishes to dedicate his song to everyone out there who go through times that make them feel they can't carry on anymore. The song is composed by Irina Varfolomeyeva, a local female composer highly respected in the Kassegrochian music scene.

Artyom was adjusting his earpiece as his entry got announced on the arena. With the crowd applauding as he step onto the stage, Artyom took a deep breath, ready to perform his song.

The stage theme dominated by bright red colour. As the music starts playing, Artyom can be seen standing in the middle of the stage, wearing a black coat with a white t-shirt, tight red squared pants and black sneakers. He lowers his head as the camera takes a close-up shot of him and the music starts playing. When it's time for him to start singing, Artyom raises his head and looks into the camera while singing into a microphone attached to a stand in front of him. As Artyom does some hand gestures while singing, the camera zooms out on him and takes a look at the stage.

I see my mind is gone
Sanity sank into a mire
The ideas my mind had drawn
All lost and gone, they backfired
Anxiety, sobriety
Crawls near and takes the best of me
And it can't get enough, no

The bright red stage theme gets partially replaced by much darker shade of red. Moving through the chorus, the stage theme brightens up again. Artyom can be seen still standing behind his microphone with the camera showing him from various angles.

Clouds in the crimson sky
Marking the start of July
Does not feel like it should be
This summer should not be for me
Standing under maple tree
Wishing to set myself free
Looking upwards, looking down
Still moving forward
Yes I won't break

But I won't break

As the drop kicks in, the stage theme starts flashing from darker shade of red to a brighter side to the rhythm of the beat. On the background screen, a pulse display can be seen, with the line jumping up and down to the rhythm as well.

Going into the second verse, stage theme fades into the brighter red shade as the camera focuses on Artyom singing and showing some sincere facial expressions at the same time. More observant viewers at home can notice a few tears dropping from the corner of his eye.

It took some time to build
To build a shell from my own skin
Goals unfulfilled
And still feeling so paper thin
Anxiety, sobriety
Crawls near and takes the best of me
And it can't get enough, no

The bright red stage theme fades into the darker shade. Moving through the chorus, the stage theme slowly evolves and brightens up again.

Clouds in the crimson sky
Marking the start of July
Does not feel like it should be
This summer should not be for me
Standing under maple tree
Wishing to set myself free
Looking upwards, looking down
Still moving forward
Yes I won't break

But I won't break

Again, the stage theme starts flashing from darker shade of red to a brighter side to the rhythm of the beat as it kicks in, accompanied by the pulse graphic on the background. As the song goes to the bridge part, a wind machine starts slowly waving Artyom's hair as he looks into the camera while singing. Throughout the bridge, on the background, a graphic of a red tree on a black background starts forming up.

Is that for what we're living?
The childhood lost and gone
Lost ambition, can one carry on?
And I can't feel, need to conceal
The storm inside of me
Waves clashing over me, however I won't break

By the end of the bridge, the tree on the background has formed up and a the last chorus kicks in, the background graphics suddenly change into vibrant tones of maple leaves flying around in the wind, reflecting themselves to the stage floor as well. Artyom removes the microphone from the stand and bends his knees as he sings the final part of the song. The wind machine makes his hair and coat wave in the wind. Halfway through the final chorus, Artyom starts spinning around with one hand reached out. By the end of the chrous, the graphics fade out and Artyom stands with his hand reached out towards the audience. He has a smile on his face.

Clouds in the crimson sky
Marking the start of July
Can't see why it should not be
Why this summer shouldn't be for me
Standing under maple tree
Having set myself free
Looking upwards, looking down
Moving forward
Yes I won't break
Yes I won't break
Yes I won't break
Yes I won't break, no, no
Yes I won't break

The crowd starts cheering for the Kassegrochian act, as Artyom bows for them. ''Thank you everyone! Spasiba!'' Artyom says and waves as he leaves the stage.

by **Izmedu** » Wed Feb 26, 2020 10:51 pm

Tune: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FHzu69V8Z14

The stage is bathed in red two yellow spotlights light the duo up

You find so many people confusing
But you, you are so amusing
I like the way you walk.
I like the way you love you love

The camera pans out

I like the way you charm.
You do it, it strikes a chord
You find so many people are manageable
But you, you are lovable lovable

They march in unison to the left a few steps, pause and look sensually into the camera

I love the way you wear your hair,
Spreading your style everywhere.
You're like a style fountain.
Enough zazz for a whole high mountain.

They march in unison to the centre, pause, camera that pans into them and they look sensually into lense.

Stage stays red but hearts are projected on the LED screens

Come get me
Come get me

The girls perform some arm moves to the beat covering their eyes with there fingers and revealing them again

You find so many people are love blind

But you, you are so so kind
You're the perfect man.
No one brings me joy like you can.

Amusing, hot and potent,
Lovable and kind too,
Are the great qualities of you
Stay with me Stay with me

The girls move around the stage camera follows

I love the way you wear your hair,
Spreading your style everywhere.
You're like a style fountain.
Enough zazz for a whole high mountain.

Camera pans out showing whole stage and some of the excited crowds with MCG flags
They point at crowd

Come get me
Come get me

I'm just here
Here waiting for you

Fire sparklers shoot out from around the stage

You find so many people are manageable
But you, you are so lovable
Lets give us a try
So come on now

Come get me
Come get me
Come get me
Come get me
Come get me
Come get me

Huge applause for MCG's debut, Girls hug and Thank audience

by **Izmedu** » Wed Feb 26, 2020 10:54 pm

Tune: Dua Lipa - Physical (Official Video)

Britonisea participates in the World Hit Festival for the 14th consecutive participation at the semi-centennial edition of the World Hit Festival, where the stakes are very high.

At the 49th World Hit Festival, it was Britonisea's sixth hosting and so the broadcaster had decided to host alongside Estogium who at the time was yet to host a competition. It was an interesting feel to the last World Hit Festival that was different from the ones that Britonisea had hosted before. On the side of BVC, the fact that they didn't expect the World Hit Festival to return to Britonisea this quickly was a real shock for them and so the organisers of the contest were hauled in very last minute. There hadn't been a case of the previous winning rejecting the hosting of the next competition during Fabio McAlpine's Overseership and the Britonish broadcaster did not want to embarrass itself by being the first one right at the end of his Overseership. Having Estogium on the team helped BVC add that more international appeal, but many fans of the World Hit Festival thought that BVC did a much more relaxed, less fancy job that the broadcaster usually goes for, going for the bare minimum expected in a modern-day World Hit Festival. BVC doesn't deny this theory whatsoever, explaining that winning the 48th World Hit Festival was a shock, even if a pleasant one. The show must go on and Britonisea, alongside the help of Estogium, did put on a good showing of the World Hit Festival in Alshkan.

As one half of the World Hit Festival delegation focused on the hosting of the 49th edition, the other side focused on the entry. It was announced rather early that Michael Turner was to represent Britonisea at the upcoming World Hit Festival 49. Fabio McAlpine wanted there to be an even more competitive edition for the 49th edition by announcing that the top 5 nations would automatically qualify to the Grand Final if there were Semi-Finals and we reached a target. The news of this did put the delegation on edge. For a show that receives 13 million viewers per Grand Final, the repeated participation in the Grand Final most certainly kept the viewers coming - especially after the 40th World Hit Festival. Initially, the delegation could feel the pressure not only from national fans and international fans, but also from other broadcasters as well. Britonisea might have qualified in 1st at the 40th World Hit Festival, but the increase of nations participating at the 49th World Hit Festival, compared to that of the 48th, and the rising tension ahead of the 50th edition made BVC want to try harder. BVC were unsure whether they could host another edition of the World Hit Festival and so while BVC's motto is to go for the win, the main target was to get in the top 5 in order to qualify if we so need that extra leverage come the 50th World Hit Festival.

It could've gone wrong. Fans might think that Britonisea has formed a somewhat imperishable reputation at the World Hit Festival, but the nation does have its slips. The 47th World Hit Festival was BVC's attempt to win the World Hit Festival, but when the nation finished 7th - which while its not a bad result, was low compared to it's results in the 40s - BVC received a lot of criticism, especially because of the song's themes. Ahead of the 49th World Hit Festival, however, BVC were confident in Michael Turner's chances of placing in the top 5. The song received good response from the international press which was a positive in the eyes of BVC. At the World Hit Festival 49, Britonisea performed in 11th position, right after the host intervention. The boisterous, topless Michael Turner graced the stage with his rock ballad which marked the 3rd time in 5 editions that the nation sent a rock song to World Hit Festival. Britonisea was 3rd place by the time Phase 1 had finished. Britonisea hasn't finished 3rd place in its 63 participations at the WorldVision Song Contest and World Hit Festival and so this was an odd citing. Though, by the time we had reached the last point being given out by Estogium in Phase 2, Britonisea was leading with 26 points. Britonisea looked as though the nation was on course for its sixth win at the World Hit Festival, moving it one behind the record of seven. However, Izmedu received the 5 points from Estogium, with the nation overtaking Britonisea from 7th place to 1st. Interestingly, had Izmedu received a point less, there would've been a WHF26 situation for the first time in 23 editions. Nevertheless, Britonisea ended up in 2nd place - avoiding 1st and hosting (unless Izmedu rejected hosting) but still being runner-up.

For the 50th World Hit Festival, many different songs were considered but a split last-minute decision was made to select Meghan Jorgensen with the song "Waiting For You" because those deciding the music "Felt like it was right". The song is a different number to the songs that Britonisea have sent ever at the World Hit Festival. This song is a pop number with disco and orchestral elements in it. Britonisea hadn't tried disco in the past as broadcasters thought that it would be a genre that would put people off. With this song, they argue that the right balance has been found, making the song current and relevant and good enough to grace the prestige World Hit Festival 50 stage. BVC also believe in this song and its capability to withstand the pressure of being a Semi-Final too. But only time will tell.

It was now time for the Britonish performance on the stage. The audience cheered as the Britonish postcard begun, as the stage personnel rushed onto the stage. The staging was rather simple for the Britonish performance this edition. There was a large circular platform that was placed in the middle of the stage which had lights all around it. Above the circle, platform was a few spotlights in different colours as well. There were also disco balls that were placed in different places around the whole of the stage which would shine at certain moments. Meghan ran onto the stage wearing a shiny crop-top and thigh-high shorts. She glistened in the light as speckles of glitter that was over her body lightly shone in the light which bathed her. She had a microphone attached to her face instead of the conventional microphone. Joining her on the stage was a male dancer who wore a mono-colour see-through t-shirt and trousers. He stood on one side of the circular platform while she on the other; they both faced each other as we reached the end of the postcard.

The audience cheered once again as Britonisea's national colours showed up on the screens. Britonisea has, in recent editions, been a household name and so Meghan felt the pressure of representing Britonisea at the World Hit Festival but as soon as the lights came down, she was ready to get her groove on and get into the song to make her country proud. (Following the Official Video on Dua Lipa's YouTube Channel) An introduction to the music begun, with the song's main theme being played in the background to strong heartbeats. Red light bathed the circular platform where Meghan and the dancer was. The lights behind them started flashing on and off to the beat of the heart in the back. The pair began to walk closer and closer together with the camera shakily switching between the pair; tracing its way up both of their athletic bodies. The fog started to fill up the stage floor as there was a shot of them walking closer to each other side on (what the audience could see).

At around 26 seconds when you could hear the sound of glass (or sparkles), the red light they were bathed in turned golden representing the 50th World Hit Festival and a little ode to that. The camera was a lot more focused during this section and we slowly zoomed in towards the action. At 34 seconds in, the lights quick went to black before coming back on. In this time, the male dancer had disappeared with the camera now in a medium-close-up of her looking into the camera. Her face was left of screen, with the camera showing the LED screens and light flashing to the right of her alongside the fog which was slowly making its way up her body.

Our eyes met on the dancefloor
From your gaze, I could tell you wanted more
Yeah, I could feel
Sexual appeal

For you, I'm there for the taking
But you're gonna have to work hard for it
So come meet me...
Come and take me

If you really want me, you'll find your way to me

During that last section, the camera did mixtures of close-ups and further away shot of Meghan singing towards the camera under the mood lighting. She moved closer and closer to the middle of the circular platform with the camera following her as she did. As she got to the line, "So come meet me", the camera slowly moved outwards to the point where you could see standing on the circular platform on her lonesome in the middle. You could see the man that we saw earlier and three other men moving around the circular platform as though they were ballroom dancing by themselves - holding someone that just wasn't there. As the camera moved out, you could see that Meghan's focus wasn't on any of the men that were dancing around her but the camera.

As we came closer to the chorus, there was an extreme close up of her mouth as she said the line, "If you really want me, you'll find your way to me" before there was an establishing shot of the whole arena as the disco balls turned on and golden and red shone through the arena. As she started singing the chorus begun, the four men stopped at each corner of the circle and jumped onto the stage with her, bobbing strongly to the side of the song along with Meghan who sexily trailed her finger on the side of her body. The men were all facing inwards, looking at Meghan only. While they were all bathed in light, the light that was on Meghan was much stronger. There was a shot zooming into Meghan with the lens flare of her dress and the disco ball filling up most of the screen...

Come here - I will dance with you,
The music's a-blaring,
Get's me into the groove.
I won't bite, boy, come!
Show me...
Your best disco move!

Red, green, yellow and blue
Dancing under disco lights,
It's time to get close.
I won't bite, boy, come!
Get me...
I'm waiting for you

At the end of the chorus, there was on a track which moved from one side of the arena to the other side of the arena as the men stepped down from the platform and started moving circularly around it. During this, Meghan slowly moved forward, taking a breath before going straight into the next verse. Capturing her before she started was a camera shot which focused mainly on her face. The fog was now dying down and the LED's behind her were now being used in full force, shifting from red, green, yellow and blue - the four colours that were mentioned in the song. The audience cheered as Meghan started singing once again. She smiled cheekily into the camera as she sings about how she "can see you advancing"...

Now I can see you advancing
Look at that smile, it's naughty but beaming
The mystery
Too much for me

Oh, It feels so good to feel wanted
I've waited a long time
Taking advantage...

You have something for me, so come find your way to me

During the verse that had just gone, Meghan was doing pretty much the same things that she was doing before - singing to the cameras and audience with the lights around her flashing on and off in a disco-theme. Meghan was bobbing along to the song, looking happy and in her element as she got closer and closer to the end. As she sang the last part of the verse, "Taking advantage...", the lights in the arena muted, with a single bright, white light beaming behind her as that last line was said. Suddenly, as we went into the chorus, the colours came back as though it was an explosion.

Come here - I will dance with you,
The music's a-blaring,
Get's me into the groove.
I won't bite, boy, come!
Show me...
Your best disco move!

Red, green, yellow and blue
Dancing under disco lights,
It's time to get close.
I won't bite, boy, come!
Get me...
I'm waiting for you

As we came to the bridge of the song, the more emotional part of the song, the male dancers were back on the stage, still circling the podium that Meghan was in. A steadicam then joined, running around Meghan as she sang the bridge section. As the steadicam moved around, Meghan moved along with it, looking directly into the lens and she sang. Every few seconds, one of the male dancers would pass in front of her, making it look as though Meghan was turning in circles in a busy club like what is described in the lyrics of the song.

Boy, come!
Pull me in by the waist…
Hold me, come on!
Hold me like this is the last time -
That you'll ever see me.
I'm waiting for you

I'm scared
That I will fall for you
But now...I feel...
Stronger than I've felt for so long
And it's all thanks to you
I'm waiting for you

After the bridge section, she belted out the last line with the camera zooming out from her mouth over the audience before losing focus so all you could see on the screen was lights beaming. During this bit though, four female dancers had entered the stage on the platform all wearing short, shiny black dresses. Meghan stepped forward as the four women flanked Meghan - two on either side. All of the four women had microphones strapped to them similar to the one that Meghan had, and all of them would begin singing during the pre-chorus section. She gave them all a little look before they started to sing together in unison.

The wind machines started blowing wind as the lights started flashing white lights from in front of the five women on the circular podium (like the paparazzi) along with the beat of the tune. The women did multiple different actions such as bopping to the side, flicking their hair from side to side, pointing out the audience, twirling before slapping their behinds (Beyonce-style). As they started singing "Boy, come! Show me...!" they turned to the front once again and started pulling as though they had ropes on them. The camera pull focused and zoomed out with the four men appeared on the stage floor in front of the platform. The four women then walked off the platform before circling Meghan who still stood in the middle on the circular platform. The women started dancing/jogging anti-clockwise closer to the platform while the men went clockwise. As a male and woman crossed each other, they would hold each other and do a twirl before moving on.

At this point, the disco ball was still turning and the music was still a-blaring.

Come here - I will dance with you,
The music's a-blaring,
Get's me into the groove.
I won't bite
Boy, come!
Show me...!
Your best disco move!

Red, green, yellow and blue
Dancing under disco lights,
It's time to get close.
I won't bite, boy, come!
Get me...
I'm waiting for you
I'm waiting for you
Yes, I'll wait
I'm waiting for you
Come on, yes, yes, yes, I will wait.

At the end of the song, Meghan started to do some poses as the camera slowly moved in on her as the dancers sang the song out. At the end of the song, the camera stopped moving in and the dancers stood in a line in front of the podium. Meghan smiled widely as she stood in the middle of the row of dancers on the circular podium behind. The audience came in with an almighty roar, "Thank you everyone, thank you Izmedu!" she screamed into the microphone. That was Britonisea's 30th performance at the World Hit Festival - let's see how far this would take them at the 50th World Hit Festival!

by **Izmedu** » Wed Feb 26, 2020 11:00 pm

The last performance from the overseers, Britonisea, was complete. The stadium was definitely a dancey mood having enjoyed the Britonish act. Katarina and Gabrijel returned to the stage after clean-up, stage set-up, and preparations were finished. Now, it was time for the voting announcement.

Katarina: My god! What a way to end the first semi! Let's get onto the next half of the show with some good old dance. Whew! Alright Mr. Celina, your turn to speak about the part we all love, dread, but love at the end of the day.

Gabrijel: Alright, now it's time for one of the fun parts of every World Hit Festival, the voting. If you've been watching us for editions, you know how this works.

Katarina: It'll depend on who your broadcast is, but normally you see a number on your screens and you dial that number to vote for your favorite entry. We also have an app for voting as well, so go on and download that and get right to it. However, hold your horses, we haven't opened the floodgates yet.

Gabrijel: Since this is the semis, only the nations that have participated can vote, as well as us, the hosts.

Katarina: Alright, here we go.

Katarina and Gabrijel would go on to explain what the voting system was. For countries that had their own special instructions, commentators were allowed to dub over the hosts to explain to their viewers how their voting procedure would work. Once that was done, the focus returned back to them.

Gabrijel: Do we really have to do this?

Katarina: It's what we as Izmeduans were born to do, Gabrijel. Alright. Audience? Shout with me.

WORLD! START! VOTING! NOW!!!

As customary, there was quite the show made of the start of voting. Streamers were released from the ceiling and a huge message with what they just shouted. A countdown clock appeared on the bottom right half of the screen. 15 minutes was what these nations in the semi had to decide who gets to continue on to the grand final.

Katarina: Okay! Okay, let's settle down. We need to pass the time. Gabrijel, you should know who's coming up?

Gabrijel: I... oh yeah! Well, if there's one good thing about being the host, we don't have to worry about the anxiety over qualifying. So, the people about to perform next as our interval act can rest a little bit easy tonight. However, knowing who our entrant is, she and her band are never the types to rest on their laurels.

Katarina: Yes indeed. They represented us in WorldVision, a loooooong time ago. And yes, emphasis on long. They're pretty ancient, but they're famous here for a reason. Give it up for Poslie Postojanje with Battle Cry, the Izmeduan entry to the 50th World Hit Festival!

Tune: Florence + the Machine - Breath of Life

“It took a village to get this song from then to Vodiznad. ‘Then’ feels so vague, but it’s the only way I can put the beginning of this all into one word. This song saw through the very first time we came together as a band, our first entry into WorldVision, our future music projects, our band changing, the highs and the lows… It stood in the backburner when death struck not just our friends, but even our band. It’s just myself and Metod now. So, in a way, this song represents the old days. It’s one of the last few songs we can release with us five all together. We may not be the band we used to be, but… we’ll keep on fighting, even if we’ve lost what we can’t get back.” – Vlatka Pogacic

In a strange and roundabout way, ‘Battle Cry’ was so much older than what its original release date in its Izmepisma indicated. The song was ‘recent,’ an iconoclast in Poslie Postojanje’s discography and so unlike the more experimental, quieter direction that the band has recently taken. Yet, the frontwoman and lead singer, Vlatka, knew better than anyone (sans the band) that the song they were taking to the World Hit Festival was with the band since the beginning of their formation in Crveneja.

‘Battle Cry’ was one of the first songs conceived of by Vlatka and Bozidar Nimac when the band was a musical project for a college class. Though the band desired to enter Izmedu’s indie rock and chamber pop scenes, the song that was ‘Battle Cry’ indicated the orchestral and epic leanings that the Poslie Postojanje project was once infused with. The whole song came out of a minor thinking game that Vlatka and Bozidar were having when they were trying to determine what kinds of songs the Poslie Postojanje project would have. Songs for movies was one topic that was broached early on between them. If they were going to have a song, a ballad was out of the question, nor could it have been anything happy. In their minds, the song was likely going to be shopped to one of the small Izmeduan arthouse studios that helped Izmeduan film students create their first films for the larger film market in the country. It would make good use of Vlatka’s striking and high-soaring vocals, but other than that… Vlatka and Bozidar were left at the dead end of their thought game. For them, they couldn’t conceive of a proper idea without having much material to work from outside of a hypothetical ‘what if’ scenario. Thus, the film idea was left in the backburner to simmer.

As Vlatka and Bozidar went through their college years and prepared for post-university life, the former couldn’t help herself in exploring the concept on her own. The song morphed into an amorphous idea to a brief lyric poem titled ‘To Battle,’ inspired by the direction that the Izmeduan film industry was taking at the time. In those years, the Izmeduan film (especially big-budget ones) was leaning towards a mixture of arthouse sensibilities with the high-octane aspects of an action film. Thus, the kind of box office fare that would dominate the Izmeduan watercooler was films that could be described as both ‘abstract and action-packed,’ often coming in with high fantasy concepts with intricate, but hard-to-connect lore filled with (as par for the course with anything Izmeduan) stories beset with tragedy. They began with a hopeless direction and ended in destruction. For Vlatka, that was creative catnip for the concept that her and Bozidar shared, and the short lyric poem she wrote for her creative writing class was beginning to look like a plausible foundation for a song. She also began to realize the theme she was unconsciously working towards.

It was war.

The whole Poslie Postojanje was built to explore the boundaries of what music could be in Izmeduan pop and rock, taking elements from both genres and staking out their own identity in the music industry. However, Vlatka didn’t imagine provoking thematics that were too taboo to utter in the Izmeduan cultural moment. Having been formed not too long after the bloody Izmeduan Revolution, the topic of war was still an understandably sensitive subject to broach across most, if not all, corners of Izmeduan social life. Of course, the kind of war that she was writing on wasn’t the kind that was described in daily and political discourse. This was war in the abstract and fantastical sense, spoken of in legend, sometimes etched in history books, but far too temporally removed from what the present moment. She also noticed this disconnect too when she evaluated the discussions surrounding the films that she loved. These high-concept action films all fought in battles that only loosely resembled the kind of modern warfare of the Izmeduan revolution, but the weapons that were used were swords, fictional weapons, magic, to sometimes things that we have no language to describe. Either way, the common theme was a war that wasn’t recognized as the modern or traumatic conception of war as Izmeduans knew it. It was hidden under the veil of a detached, fantastic, and abstract world.

That was where Vlatka felt safe to begin probing the theme, but not every piece of media was immune to the shield of an abstract concept. She vividly remembered seeing a band get excoriated for provoking (unintentionally as well) memories of the bloody Izmeduan Revolution. Vlatka took that as a sign that the song she would write could not evoke any memory of the contemporary moment. It needed to be about a battle that made it clear that it was eons past. The setting needed to be fantastical, but bloody and solemn. Vlatka began to tinker with the musical tools and knowledge that she had when the theme began to congeal into a possible song. Draft lyrics for ‘To Battle’ were written and a vision for the song began to crystallize. It needed to be orchestral-led, epic, and operatic. The song was going to be beyond the scope of the kind of chamber pop that they were pioneering back in their university years. The song was careening towards the necessity of a big-budget project.

At the interim of graduating from their college and fielding the attention they were courting from local labels in Polumisec, Vlatka once more broached the topic with Bozidar. The latter was familiar with some of Vlatka’s discussions with the possible song project, but the prospect of being signed by one of the local subsidiaries meant that all aspects of their portfolio thus far needed to be shopped or at the very least, addressed. By this point, Bozidar was fully willing to go along with what Vlatka had in mind provisionally, but as he was talking over the logistics, the production, and what needed to happen for the song to come to life… It required more money and resources than what Poslie Postojanje could manage. As still a 2-person project, the project was shelved for the time being, with Vlatka and Bozidar hoping to revisit at a later time.

The project sat in the ever-largening reserves as Poslie Postojanje grew from a college-led project to its own musical tour de force in its own right. The addition of Metod, Dositej, and Branislav (especially with their past experience with the Izmeduan music industry) helped turned the band into the musical powerhouse it is today. Yet despite the acclaim they achieved that led them to be selected for the 43rd WorldVision Song Contest, ‘Battle Cry’ became one of the few projects that would continually haunt them. As the band matured, the song was once more revisited in the period where they were building their reputation in the music industry. The song, or at least its demo, was able to be successfully shopped to a film. That film, an ambitious action-fantasy project, was called ‘Terminus.’ ‘To Battle,’ as the song was originally known, was shopped to be the project’s main theme. The song itself was originally released as the counterpoint to Poslie Postojanje’s body of work, providing their first entrance into movie music and the epic music scene writ large. However, despite the song finding some domestic success abroad, the Terminus project was sank due to production troubles that rattled it at its very core. All material related to the film was pulled from public view, including the song itself.

Though Poslie Postojanje would go on to wild success (especially due to coming 2nd in Monterra and fully cementing Izmedu’s full investment in the WorldVision Song Contest), seeing the Terminus film collapse left the band at a loss of what to do with the song. There was talk of trying to re-arrange the song and shop it to another film, but with the way the Izmeduan music industry was heading, and the constant pressure put on Poslie Postojanje to maintain a steady stream of releases within the indie rock and chamber pop genres, the song was left once more to sit in the archives. Their WV43 entry was enough foundation to ensure that the band reached the kind of superstar highs that ensured that their star would last throughout the next couple of years. Following that entry, the band’s quieter and more avant-garde moments started to become more apparent. Nothing quite like Reckoning or To Battle proved to appear in Poslie Postojanje’s new singles and albums following their WV entry.

Though the band did flirt with dramatic moments, they were always flourished with a sense of intimacy and closeness. In an album entitled Bandaged Moments, that was where critics and fans began to see the full product of Poslie Postojanje’s more ethereal, earthy, and generally mellower sound take root. Their entries to future editions of Izmepisma reflected this ethos, sending songs such as Haunted Ground and Lose Control without announcing a clear intent or even desire to represent Izmedu in either WorldVision or the World Hit Festival. Instead, venues like Izmepisma were showcases for Poslie Postojanje to take their creative ventures into the public view. They sought to explore just how far they could take both the staging and the music, giving audiences artistic stage performances akin to Reckoning. Though these more ‘out-there’ approaches to their music led to critical acclaim, there was a contingent of fans that yearned for the more dramatic, bombastic, and larger-than-life sound that Poslie Postojanje pushed but never did quite fulfill.

Vlatka and Bozidar shared a similar sentiment, especially the former. Seeing this from the fanbase, Vlatka once more turned back to the song that haunted their archives, ‘To Battle.’ Though the song was left to figuratively build dust, Vlatka was haunted by the prospect of what the song could’ve been. During times where the band was on brief hiatuses, she would occasionally revisit the song’s production, composition, and lyrics. The lessons that the band have learned since then made it clear to Vlatka and later on, to Bozidar and the rest of the band, that a lot can be done to update and refit the song into something new entirely. What was originally attached to Terminus appeared as a first draft that was begging to be revised and fixed. Following the release of their latest album and a creative lull, re-arranging ‘To Battle’ into ‘Battle Cry’ was the next project.

With all of the band putting their full energy into the now titled ‘Battle Cry,’ an internal hype began to course through the sector of the music industry that Poslie Postjanje was most embedded with. The return to a more epic sound was genuinely in the cards for the band. The production was going smoothly, a feasible timetable for the song was being followed. The rough edges that once marked the song were being refined, and the song’s orchestral production and its lyrics were being transformed to a much more fantastical bent. There was a real freedom to the song’s production, no longer being bogged down by cultural concerns that were more pertinent in the band’s earlier days. It was the perfect background to return back to a side of the band that has not been seen in such a long time.

However, tragedy struck the band as the song was taken seriously for release.

During discussions with their label for a possible campaign, they were doing radio tours throughout Izmedu during a period where they were celebrating their achievements and teasing the appearance of ‘Battle Cry.’ In a drive towards Crveneja, their vehicle was hit by a drunk driver. The accident cost Bozidar and Dositej their lives, while Vlatka, Metod, Branislav, their travelling crew, and their driver all sustained injuries of varying severities. Needless to say, Poslie Postojanje were fighting for their lives, and many feared that this might be the end of a band with a discography that could’ve only gotten richer and deeper through the passage of time. Ultimately, Poslie Postojanje were no longer the same since the fateful accident. The promotional tour throughout Izmedu was cancelled, ‘Battle Cry’s potential promotional campaign was shelved, and fans waited with bated breath as the band as a whole was not out of the woods.

In the interim, all fans could hope for was that the members not instantly killed in the accident could pull through the required myriad of surgeries and treatments in the immediate aftermath of the crash. The waiting period was filled with radio silence, with news only being released through hushed networks and families understandably opting to keep the situation as quiet and private as possible. In the end, Vlatka, Metod, and Branislav were the band members that survived the accident. Yet, all three were irreparably and strongly affected. To say that Vlatka mourned the passing of Bozidar was to understate the harrowing period that was her recovery period. She was inconsolable for at least a period of a few months, not desiring any contact from anyone. Branislav, though he survived, found that the nature of his injuries meant that his career and time with Poslie Postojanje were to be cut short. Of the three, Metod was the luckiest, taking it upon himself (once he recovered) to help ease the fans and work with the media to explain the band’s uncertain future.

The band hung in total silence; being de facto disbanded. Time to mourn, regroup, and heal was sorely needed. It wasn’t until the period around the 42nd and 43rd World Hit Festivals that whispers of the band’s reunification would surface throughout the music industry. Though the band’s silence stretched on for edition after edition, the frontwoman, Vlatka, found that she missed the experience of making music. Throughout the long process of grieving for Bozidar and Dositej, the tail-end of her self-imposed exile began with her writing songs for the first time. This then would result in her contacting Metod after a period of silence and both candidly talking with each other about what had happened since that faithful accident and in turn, the years they shared together as a band. The highs, the lows, the ugly. All in all, they missed making music, putting their thoughts, feelings, and impulses into paper and music, in the hopes that someone, anyone would find sympathy with what they had to say. There was no question about it, they wanted to re-enter the music industry, and release the music they’ve been keeping in the archives for what seemed to be an eternity.

A decision was reached.

Though it would just be Vlatka and Metod, the songs they wanted to put out there were recorded as the full band. Thus, the Poslie Postojanje project was reborn once more, returning as a two-piece for promo, but the recorded material that they would finesse and release had everyone involved. They would stagger their return to music through attempting to participate in the very contest that helped cement that they were a force to be reckoned with, WorldVision. First was “Lose Control,” an entry they sent to Izmepisma in WV72 that would result in a respectable 5th place. That was merely the first step in what Vlatka and Metod had in mind, recalling the protocol they had when participating in Izmepisma’s 2nd edition. The song was not a deliberate push for the win. It was a message to the Izmeduan public that a return was in the cards, and that this was a direction they were attempting to head towards.

There next phase of the return would mean that a song that has been with the band since the very beginning would finally get its light of day. ‘Battle Cry,’ from potential soundtrack song, a potential single, a hark back to the band’s epic sound, was now in contention to represent Izmedu in the 76th WorldVision Song Contest. The competition was fierce, but there was a real chance that Poslie Postojanje could do it. Vlatka and Metod put their all into the song’s presentation and performance. However, they were pipped to the post by the hype and energy that was Lea Sabolic. Yet, that in itself came with a silver, or perhaps golden, lining.

Placing 2nd meant representing Izmedu in the World Hit Festival, a contest that many domestic fans have desired to see the band compete in. The offer for this particular Izmepisma meant representing Izmedu in the 50th World Hit Festival. In no uncertain terms, Vlatka and Metod immediately agreed to do so.

It was fitting then that they would be performing the song in the country they called home. This was beyond trying to live up to what came before them in the World Hit Festival. The pressure was always there and there were always expectations to try and hopefully meet. Yet, the song’s long and protracted journey was finally nearing its destination. After trials and tribulations that could arguably be its own movie, Poslie Postojanje were ready to return with a song that they have been holding onto for years.

This was for Bozidar. This was for Dositej. This was for Branislav. This was for the lives lost in that accident, for friends and family they’ve lost among the way.

The El stadion skolkje was roaring in anticipation for the Izmeduan entry… Vlatka and Metod glanced at each other one last time right before the performance, sharing a tight hug, and wordlessly exchanging what they’ve already said to each other during their respective healing periods.

Performing at home was another experience entirely than doing so internationally. Vlatka knew that the crowd here was made of people from all over the multiverse and beyond. Yet, there was a different tenor to the nerves standing in front of the stage after a long battery of rehearsals, interviews, and no less the long tale that this song carried prior to even being selected for the World Hit Festival. There was performing to an arena, but a stadium was another kind of electrifying experience.

The stage lights billowed down to the center of the El stadion skolkje’s stage, flashing a brilliant white before pluging the stadium into total darkness. The crowd cheer was loud for the home entry, with fans of the band, Izmeduan WHF fans, and the multiversal audience screaming their hearts out before gradually quieting down for the entry. The audience didn’t have a lot of time to rest as the entry immediately started. The entry’s dark and epic mood was set right from the first note, a foreboding drum banged through the stadium with low horns on the background track. Before long, Vlatka would vocalize the beginning of the song; her distinct, power-filled vocals resonating through the stadium. The lights would flash to the strong, foreboding beats that crafted an almost chokingly intimidating atmosphere. On the screens both on the back end and on the floor, the very scene that the song would be set began to appear. Vlatka was vocalizing against a darkened and empty field, set against cloudy skies and looking almost idyllic were it not for the blue hue that it was coasted in. Once Vlatka’s vocalizations ended, the instrumentation would pare back and the lights would flash into a darkness. The camera would switch from its wide, sweeping views of the stage to a closer view of Vlatka. That switch in view was timed with the instrumentation becoming softer. The dramatic beginning of the song gave way to Vlatka to finally take center stage. She stared into the camera, the background screens around her darkening, and was only illuminated by a faint spotlight that displayed her face to the audience at home.

I hear nothing but the sound of death
Cold air set against the empty, dark plane
I breathe in and shout my battle cry
I break the silence with my voice
No friend or foe seemed to hear Valhalla’s call
I breathe in and shout my battle cry

The song would start off with its chorus, starting with a vague preview of things to come later on in the song. The lights remained sparse, the faint spotlight intensifying on Vlatka as she sang the chorus with an almost hushed tone. The cameras stayed close to her, befitting the more ‘intimate’ style the song’s beginning was reaching for. Vlatka raised uncertain hands towards the camera, with a close observer being able to spot that they were visibly trembling. The very look of fear was in her eyes, reflecting the uncertain tone in her voice as she sang these lines. She would visibly breathe for some parts of this chorus; the camera would cut between close and slightly wider views of the stage, all of which were showing Vlatka singing against the backdrop of that empty field that was teased in the song’s dramatic intro. Throughout this chorus, faint hints of the choir could be sang when Vlatka sang the song’s title. Otherwise, only a pounding set of piano chords complemented her singing. As she sang the title of the song, the camera would ‘pull back’ and the arena lights would gradually flash alongside that choir’s brief appearance. As the chorus ended, Vlatka would begin to step forward, being gradually revealed to the audience that it looked like she was wearing a facsimile of chainmail armor; appearing as a warrior about to embark on her battle.

The cruel rush of war runs free
The tempestuous blaze of valor
I desire it, I will kill for it
The cruel rush of war remains
The temptation for endless glory
I desire it, I will kill for it

Now, the first verse of the song proper could begin. Even so, a tone of uncertainty and dread hung around the stadium as Vlatka began to move forward. Though her movements remained limited, it was clear that she was standing stock still in attention. Her frame was poised and frozen, looking convincingly like a soldier that was waiting for their commander’s orders. However, the uncertainty that was resonant in her eyes and body language began to give way to a complicated and just as uncertain bloodlust. A mixture of fear and hungering of fear began to appear in her eyes, as if Vlatka was afraid of the very words she was singing. Throughout this verse, the camera would maintain close views of her. At some parts, especially when she sang ‘I desire it, I will kill for it,’ the camera would catch the conflicted emotions within Vlatka’s eyes. Her hands were balled up to a curled-up fist, shaking with both fear and a desire for violence. She would end this verse with a vocalization, her eyes closed, face slightly contorting, before her eyes opened with a resigned determination. This bloodlust was a part of her, and soon, it was going to be time for battle. She would step forward as if in a march.

Who do I fight for? Why do I fight?
Who do I fight for? Why do I fight?

This hook was a brief intermediary that linked the first verse to the pre-chorus. They were a barrage of two existential questions, delivered twice. It was here that Vlatka’s stoic persona began to break down slightly. The camera angle that was used was close and yet almost unsettling, as if the changes were frenetic and disorienting to the viewer. The uncertainty here reached its flashpoint, even though this was by no means the song’s climax. The camera would take a sideways view of her as she looked up into the ceiling; Vlatka could then be seen raising a hand in front of her face, balling it into a fist and her eyes closing in a display of hesitance and pain. Throughout this brief hook, the stage effects were at work to set up the next stages of the song. Holograms of life-like soldiers began to manifest around her subtly, with them being well-placed to ensure that the streaks of light around the stadium wouldn’t prematurely spoil the illusion. The empty field background would also begin to brighten, to the point where the relative darkness of the rest of the stadium now created a convincing image of Vlatka singing against that background.

The enemy marches onwards
My army's blood in their sight
I stand ready to wage war
The war horns bleat their twisted melodies
This is the sound and sight of hell
I stand ready to wage war

This pre-chorus took the song from its uncertain, dread-filled beginning and set ‘Battle Cry’ to the direction of building towards an epic climax. There was a marked shift in mood as Vlatka sang the first line of this pre-chorus. Now, there was a sense of triumph being made, an army being encouraged to fight for honor and glory. The instrumentation began to inch towards a more triumphant bent as a vaster soundscape was used, with an orchestra especially being dominant throughout. Vlatka would look up into the light and towards the camera, when it was nearby her, when she sang this pre-chorus. Surrounding Vlatka was now a hologram army, appearing almost like apparitions surrounding her. However, the hologram package with her saw this virtual army move alongside her. They would be in formation, taking similar stances to Vlatka. A look of determination was evident in Vlatka’s face as she sang these lines, especially evident when she would end the third line with vocalizations on ‘war.’ At the second half of this pre-chorus, the orchestration would then swell with a few notes from the horns. She would take one step forward, place a hand over her heart, and look onwards the audience’s direction with a resolute gait. As she did so, the hologram army would follow suit; as if it was the song itself is what was leading Vlatka and her fellow soldiers. The cameras would remain close to Vlatka while she was singing this, making sure that her expression was evident while also taking care not to break the illusion in too obvious of a way. As the pre-chorus was approaching its ‘end,’ the lights began to intensify to a mixture of reds and whites. The background began to resonate, the hologram army stood ready to fight and march, and then…

Maj rat! (My war)
I hear nothing but the sound of death
Cold air set against the bloody fields
I breathe in and shout my battle cry
Maj rat! (My war)
I break my silence with my voice
No friend or foe seemed to hear Valhalla’s call
I breathe in and shout my battle cry

The transition from pre-chorus was marked with the song’s climactic moment. The build up from the pre-chorus now found its payoff with Vlatka shouting ‘Maj rat’ into the heavens, her vocals soaring and resonating with the power she was renowned for. Her note was strong enough to the point where she would hold ‘Maj rat’ up to the end of the first line of the chorus, with her joining the backup singers and the choir for the next two lines. As Vlatka belted out ‘Maj rat,’ the narrative crested with the battle it was leading up towards. The stage was in pandemonium, the camera focusing on closer views of the stage, and the holograms were acting out the narrative. There was now a war between two hologram armies on the stage, with the background sounds of fighting, agony, swords clashing, and shouting augmenting the background track. While Vlatka sang, it was clear that she was disoriented, the holograms surrounding her, and her unable to tell who was friend or foe. As befitting the lyrics, the background battlefield began to be laced with tinges of red, signifying that blood was being spilled. The holograms surrounding her would fight and fall, sometimes getting too close for comfort. Even so, she would continue singing, with the second ‘Maj rat’ even stronger than the first. She sang that with one hand held up, in the vain hope that her vocalizations would end up being some sort of battle cry to turn the tides of fortune towards the army she served. Yet, even so, it was not enough. Around her, soldiers would continue to fall and fall one by one, and Vlatka couldn’t escape. The way she sang was nearly hushed, her voice dominated by the backup singers and the choir when she was no longer belting the dramatic ‘Maj rat.’ The camera, fittingly, would provide a mixture of stable and frenetic views during this chorus, sometimes appearing as if it was ‘found’ footage. The cameras remained close, especially when the chorus reached its end. Vlatka’s inability to escape soon meant that she would be a casualty, with her being ‘struck’ by an enemy hologram through impalement. At the chorus’ end, she would fall to her knees, the camera instantly switching to a view of her, and a spotlight would shine on her as the rest of the stage darkened. The last remnant of the chorus was her belting of ‘battle cry,’ the last set of notes resonating throughout the stadium…

The El Stadion Skoljke would hang in silence for just a few seconds. Vlatka was on her knees, the sight of death all over her face as she looked up helplessly towards the ceiling during that brief interval. The field around her was now coated in a black and white hue, bloodstains disappearing into a natural decay. Now began the instrumental interval that would act as the bridge to the song’s outro. The camera would fade to a wider view of the stage, with three grim reaper-esque figures walking out to the stage. The music returned with a flurry of notes from the orchestra, one that acted as the musical backdrop to these hooded figures surveying the destruction. As the music progressed from its initial instrumental to a choir singing in the background, these grim reapers would occasionally kneel down and solemnly gaze at the holograms of the fallen soldiers. The camera would stick close and move with these reapers. At the tail-end of the choir’s singing, the camera would return to Vlatka. She was still situated at the center of the stage, but her head was down. Once the camera reached her, one of the grim reapers could be seen standing right before her. Once the section for Vlatka’s vocalizations came in, the grim reaper behind her would take off their hood. The grim reaper behind Vlatka was revealed to have Vlatka’s face, and she would be ‘singing’ alongside the Vlatka that was situated on the floor. The timing between both was almost perfect, suspiciously so. The grim reaper version of Vlatka would kneel down, beckoning her other self to look at her as the second verse of the song would begin.

Her army falls, and the battle seems lost
We seek honor, a glory for our home
Yet it was fought in vain, and death is the price that's paid
She falls to her knees, and she dies unknown (unknown, unknown, unknown)

The camera fixated on this surreal, intimate moment, almost as if it were a movie being shot rather than a performance for a song contest. This grim reaper would coerce the ‘real’ Vlatka to lie down on her back, facing upwards. Both would once more sing together, even though only one of Vlatka’s voice would resonate through the stadium. However, the camera would focus only on the grim reaper version of Vlatka; with the lights strategically placed away from her, and the battlefield distorting into a twisted, slowly decaying and deadening reality as she sang. The grim reaper’s face was cold and empty, with only a detached lament coming from her as she ‘sang’ these lines. The music maintained its urgency, with backup singers continuing the vocalizations that Vlatka would be unable to do at this point in the song. At the second half of this verse, the camera would also cut to close views of Vlatka on the floor; at first she looked as if the life in her eyes was slowly draining. She glanced at the stadium lights as the call to the afterlife, her duty to the world done. She too was also singing the lines much like the grim reaper, but by the final line of this verse, Vlatka realized that she was looking at an illusion. A sudden look of fear, fear of death and fear of herself, gripped her eyes as she swatted away the grim reaper that lay her down on the floor. The grim reaper with Vlatka’s phase was nothing more than a mere hologram, with that illusory Vlatka fading away as she sang ‘unknown’ and aggressively made a motion to sway her away. This time, the ‘real’ Vlatka was now standing up, but there was no time to rest as the next section of the verse was approaching quickly.

Darkness and agony cloud my eyes
My blood's spilled and my life flashes
Valhalla calls for our souls
Soldiers die in countless numbers
Stolen lives that we'll never know
Valhalla calls for our souls

For this third, Vlatka looked desperately around the stage for any sign of life for her allies. Around her were soldiers falling one by one, an ongoing fighting still occurring that marked an endless war. It was now revealed that the grim reapers’ presences had ‘stopped time’ during the instrumental interlude and second verse. As soon as this part of the song began, time had once more ‘resumed.’ The bloody fields regained back their original color and the hologram soldiers appearance once more. The soldiers, both friend or foe, were writhing and shouting in agony, Vlatka’s pained and desperate vocals their backdrop. The camera would focus between those holograms and Vlatka’s singing, her eyes widened and unhinged. She was horrified at the sight she saw, not sure of how to process both armies falling to each other’s knees. Though the lyrics were solemn, she was nearly shouting them as if she were losing sanity. She did not settle at all into a regular register or even let the way she delivered settle, maintaining a high intensity as she wandered around the stage, hoping in vain that the battle could still be saved. By the end of this verse, she realized that there was nothing she could do rescue these fallen soldiers. She was now once more on the center of the stage, slowly falling to her knees in both death and defeat, slowly putting her hands up to her face as a show of slow frustration and insanity. The camera closed up on her for this moment, her eyes catching the camera and freezing it to place in preparation for the song’s final moments.

I hear nothing but the sound of death
Cold air set against the empty, dark plane
I breathe out my final battle cry

The song, just as it began, would end with a note of uncertainty. These final three lines were a haunting bookend to the song’s introduction. Vlatka would sing this half of the chorus straight to the camera, the instrumentation finally paring back. This was timed with the stage effects darkening and going off one by one, each note in the instrumentation seeing the holographic fallen soldiers disappearing one by one. As Vlatka sang, the bloody fields would return back to their decayed, ‘timeless’ state. The camera would gradually close in on Vlatka as the song approached its uncertain and fraught conclusion. There was no sense of triumph, no hurrah, or even a victory salvaged out of hopelessness as Vlatka sang the final line. The trademark power in her voice resonated throughout the arena as she closed the song with the song’s title, her vocalizations echoing for just that brief second. The instrumentation didn’t even have the time to calm down and quiet as the home crowd cheered loudly for the entry.

Vlatka felt as if she was about to faint when the performance ended. She was too wrapped in trying to play the character, the hopeless soldier girl as the nameless face in an army, that she nearly forgot there was an audience not to far from her at all. She looked completely out of it as it dawned upon her that the entry was complete. There were people cheering for her even the pits they had next to the diamond-shaped stage. She held her chest and tried to maintain her composure, but the excitement and emotions got to her.

“Thank you!” she shouted, her voice trembling and her vision blurred. But that was message enough for the incredibly loud home crowd, amplified by the much larger stadium instead of the arenas that RTI was fond of hosting in.

She walked backstage, still trembling, and still nervous. She had no idea how she did. For all she knew, she may have just given Izmedu a dud of a performance, was offkey, and certainly sending Poslie Postojanje home with a terrifying result.

When Vlatka reached the green room, she was greeted with a long, tight hug from her fellow and only living bandmate, Metod.

Things were going to be okay. Vlatka and Metod didn’t know how. It was a mantra that both shared together after the band’s tragic losses. Things seem uncertain now, with any outcome possible, and high stakes involved.

But in the end, things were going to be okay.

by **Izmedu** » Wed Feb 26, 2020 11:02 pm

After Poslie Postojanje’s striking entry to the World Hit Festival, represented here as the interval act, the home crowd were cheering endlessly for them. A shot of the El stadion skolkje’s audience would be shown waving their flags around as there was a brief break to make sure that Katarina and Gabrijel had enough time to make it back to the stage. Of course, just like production magic, Katarina and Gabrijel appeared with a camera view shift to them, situated behind a podium.

Gabrijel: Wish I could sing like her, Katarina.

Katarina: Everybody does, Gabrijel. Before we get off too deep into this rabbit hole, we’re not here just to look pretty and say hello before voting closes.

Gabrijel: Yes! We have a recap prepared for you to close out the rest of the time that the lines are open.

Katarina: Pay close attention, people. This might be your last chance to vote for the songs you love, so get to voting, please! And on that note, here’s the recap.

The camera would shift away from Katarina and Gabrijel as the show’s theme graphics would appear in the broadcast. From there, the recap would begin in earnest with Achean Republic’s Sinceremente. The recaps show highlights such as the song’s chorus, a glory note within the song, something that had gone on spectacularly during the staging, or any other aspect that would ensure that people would remember these songs as they would vote. Once Britonisea’s entry was finished in the recap, the camera would return back to Katarina and Gabrijel, now appearing with magic cue cards.

Gabrijel: Well, it’s time. Do we… really have to do this?

Katarina: Of course, it’s not an Izmeduan hosting without shouting it out loud. 30 seconds left.

Gabrijel: As you say so…

10… 9… 8… 7… 6… 5… 4… 3… 2… 1…

WORLD! STOP! VOTING! NOW!!!

Streamers were released onto the stage as the production team got into immediate work trying to make sense of the mass of votes that came in. Seeing the jury and televote scores come together made the RTI team look at each other with intense anticipation as it was now becoming slightly clearer who was going to qualify. They gave the all clear to Katarina and Gabrijel to keep the crowd at bay for a little while as they were working and playing with numbers, but that said… Seeing the top 8 form was a wild ride.

Katarina: It’s almost time for the part we’ve all been waiting for!

Gabrijel: You mean the part that’s going to make everyone panic?

Katarina: Don’t be so glum, Gabrijel! Anyway, it’s time for us to turn to someone who’s been running this channel for god knows how long, and is also the executive producer of the show, Dora Vidakovic! Are you there?

The camera turned to the production room where it was evident that the RTI staff tasked with helping canvass the votes were busying themselves with making sure that all of the numbers were correct, made sense, and produced a valid result. Dora had looked like she’d just gone through a roller coaster seeing all of the votes in action, but she was able to give a smile to the camera as it dawned upon her and the production team.

Dora Vidakovic: I am here, yes.

Katarina: Fantastic! Are the semi-finalists ready to be revealed?

Dora Vidakovic: I can confirm that we do have a valid result. All I am going to say is that I am very excited to show to the world who has made it to the grand final. Katarina, Gabrijel, take it away.

The camera turned back to Katarina and Gabrijel, ready and in position to reveal just who made it into the grand final.

Gabrijel: Alright, no better time than now to reveal the results. Geez I feel for all of the people waiting for it right now…

Katarina: Indeed! Okay world. 15 nations. 8 qualifiers. 8 nations are still in with a chance to win the 50th World Hit Festival, while 7 nations will be going home.

Gabrijel: Your votes have decided what fates lies in store with them. They will be revealed in no particular order, so… let’s begin?

Katarina: And begin we shall!

by **Izmedu** » Wed Feb 26, 2020 11:02 pm

This music began to play as the stadium's lights dawned upon Katarina and Gabrijel, who were waiting to reveal who the 8 qualifiers were.

Katarina: The first finalist is...

Gabrijel: Finalist number 2 is...

by **Izmedu** » Wed Feb 26, 2020 11:02 pm

Katarina: Two qualifiers in! We have six spots remaining. The third one is...

Gabrijel: Qualifier #4... They are...

by **Izmedu** » Wed Feb 26, 2020 11:03 pm

Katarina: We're halfway through! But it's not close to being over. Our fifth finalist is...

Gabrijel: Now we're down to three spots remaining. I know it's tense. I know it's difficult. But just know you've made it this far already. Qualifier six is...

by **Izmedu** » Wed Feb 26, 2020 11:03 pm

Katarina: Two spots remain... And we have 9 nations waiting to find out if they're qualifying for the grand final. The seventh qualifier is...

Gabrijel: One last spot remains. Just one more. I can see who our eighth qualifiers on our screen and I can reveal that... The last qualifier of the night is...

by **Izmedu** » Wed Feb 26, 2020 11:04 pm

Katarina: World, that's it! All 8 qualifiers have been revealed! Everyone, come on down to the stage and celebrate!

It was a wild ride from the first nation to the last, but they had done it. 8 qualifiers were now revealed to the world and the first semi was now in the history books. Now it was time for the 8 winners of the semi to descend upon the stage to celebrate with each other. The atmosphere just a few minutes ago was tense to say the least, but there was both jubilation and commiseration. As the qualified acts went over to the stage, there would be those comforting nations' delegations that weren't able to make it through. Tonight was a notoriously tough semi, with many nations participating being former winners and current powerhouses of the WorldVision and World Hit Festival.

As they went onto the stage, a video recap of the 8 semi-finalists would play on the screens, reminding the audience of the 8 semi-finalists who would now be advancing to the grand final. However, things were certainly far from over.

Gabrijel: One semi done, but we still have another one to go.

Katarina: Exactly! World, we want to thank you for beginning the journey that is the World Hit Festival 50 with us. We don't know what we would do without you. So thank you, all of you.

Gabrijel: Come back for the next semi to see who the rest of our finalists. Until then, this has been the 50th World Hit Fesitval. I am Gabrijel Celina.

Katarina: And I am Katarina Zunic.

Katarina & Gabrijel: Thank you so much.

World Hit Festival 50 - Vodiznad, Izmedu | IC Thread

World Hit Festival 50 - Vodiznad, Izmedu | IC Thread

01 Achaean Republic

02 Imperial Joseon

03 Togonistan

04 Talvezout

05 Natanya

06 Beepee

07 Normandy and Picardy

08 Bayilan

09 Estogium

10 Fromulya

11 Polkopia

12 Llalta

13 Kassegrochia

14 Malta Comino Gozo

15 Britonisea

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