With little over 24 hours left before the 2020 edition of GlobeFest™ kicks off in the outskirts of the Sun Republic’s capital, we look at what to watch for in this year’s show with the current betting favourites.
The favourites
United Republic – Love in The Dark (1)
Currently leading the pack, if it was to win next Saturday ‘Love In The Dark’ would become the United Republic’s second winning entry – putting them on par with Saria as one of the most successful countries in the contest since it relaunched in 2011. Since last taking the top spot in 2015 when Tom Faulkner won with his entry ‘Clouds’, the country has twice made the top ten – with Rhys coming seventh in 2018 singing ‘Come Undone’, following an eighth place in 2017. This year, Jessie’s soaring vocals over swirling strings makes this stripped back, traditional inspired entry a stand out. One of the first songs to be announced back in the summer, it has had a commanding place at the top of the field and lines up firmly as the favourite. Rehearsals have not suggested anything but a top three place for the song – a remarked turnaround from an incredibly poor performance from them in Bat Hadar last year. Expected to qualify with ease, this is an easy bet to take the trophy in next Saturday’s final.
Milàt – Blue Skies (2)
Another hugely successful country in the show, Milàt have combined everything that has come to define them at GlobeFest and bring a relaxed, modern but timeless classic in the form of ‘Blue Skies’. Building throughout, with a rememberable riff – if anything can challenge the United Republic it is this. Cool, calm and collected, this is the small island nation’s best attempt since it burst onto the scene in Marlborough four years ago and landed a top two placing. Dropping out of the top 10 only once since and with a second runner-up prize in 2018 as well as an eighth place last year, Milàt are never to be ruled out in this competition. Released slightly later than the favourite back in September, this entry has been building momentum and is expected to have an easy time qualifying in the first round but could come up against the United Republic in the duels. Even with that scenario playing out, there is nothing to suggest this won’t be in the super-final next week.
Ostry – Remember Me (3-4)
From the minute this starts it reels you in and takes you on a gripping journey for the next three minutes where you need to hold on tight. Distinctly different than nearly anything else in the pack this year, Ina provides absolute catnip for jurors in an operatic/ pop crossover that grips you through every second. Joining the competition last year for the first time, Ostry is quickly making a name for itself in the show – and ‘Remember Me’ will almost certainly give them their best result yet. Whilst some see this as a potential rival for the win, the betting odds have been more cautious – seeing this as a borderline super finalist. Puerto played a similar role within the pop category last year with ‘Calipso’, and this could come down to the performance. Anything other than note perfect and this entry will stick out – but like a sore thumb. Rehearsals have suggested they can get it right and if they do on the night, it’s a potential challenger and one of the best pop entries in the show this year.
Royal Livinian Kingdom – Más (3-4)
Making their debut – the only country to join this year – in fighting form, this strong anthemic entry from the RLK sits slap bang in the middle between the two most successful genres in the contest. Seen as the other most likely challenger for the super-final, Más is a by-numbers anthem that builds until the very end. Agoney nails every note, but it has a strong rival in ‘Remember Me’ – both straddle similar ground and one of them is likely to miss out on the chance to compete for victory. In a relatively ballad-heavy field, Ostry seems to have the edge, but you can’t rule out this making a strong impression on the audience at home as one of the only non-Havenish entries in the show this year. Despite Montelimar making history last year, most countries have opted to stay safe on language – that could be a major bonus for this debut entry for the Livinians.
Free States Union – Traitors (5)
The last entry to be announced, this has rocketed up the charts and pushed some other potentially worthy entries out of the top five favourites on this list. Fresh off the back of a seventh place finish last year, with the atmospheric entry ‘Night Air’, the Free States’ sense an opportunity to go at least a few places better. With this only having just been released and momentum building around it – some see this potentially going all the way. While Saveus gives it his all, with incredibly emotive vocals, here’s the catch – it’s dark. Really dark. Many are comparing it with Milàt’s runner-up ‘Sirens’ from 2018 in Yaochang – and whilst the similarities are striking, the Milése track was rooted more in the anthemic mainstream. This is firmly a ballad – and takes a while to get going. The end however, is possibly the greatest 30 seconds in the entire line up. Expecting their rehearsal this afternoon, it is not yet known how they’re staging this – but if it’s close to last year, this could do very – very – well.
The outsiders
Montelimar – Mi Amor (8)
The reigning champions are certainly not sitting back. Montelimar is back in the pop category and brings one of the freshest and most current songs of the whole competition – but breaks with its successful four year run of entries fully in one of its own languages. Experts at the modern competition – the country has not been out of the top five since 2016 and their run of brilliant results includes some of the best songs in the competition in recent years – such as À Fleur De Toi, Dernier Danse and Avant Toi. ‘Mi Amor’ brings something different, but is still likely to reward them with a top ten place.
Polasciana – Kokhayu (10)
Heading into a GlobeFest competition as a potential outsider is a first for Polasciana. Rumoured to be a potential ‘last shot’ – PTV have thrown everything at this entry, and so far, so good. Announced in October, this duet has a lot going for it – and is one of the only other country’s singing in a home language. Beautiful, haunting and stunning, this has the potential to do very well – but could potentially get lost. A smooth journey to the final could see this in the top 10 (it currently sits at 10th in the betting odds), but a rocky ride could see it miss out. It certainly deserves a spot in Friday’s line-up, but everything is to play for.
Kennelly – Tears In My Eyes (18)
Further down the betting odds is this understated and underrated entry from Kennelly. Coming back from a year off, the island nation has never made an impact at the competition – although it did nearly host the show twice over the past 10 years as the official ‘stand-by’ country from 2011-2015. ‘Tears In My Eyes’ is not high impact, granted, but Callum’s track is a wonderful tear jerker of an entry and stands out quite distinctly in the competition for it. Striking a similar chord as their 2017 entry ‘Love and War’, this is a more modern take. Whilst similar songs in past editions have had mixed success, this is one to watch and potentially could make a claim on the top 10 if done right next week.
