Axel Hirsoux wins the Belgian ticket to Copenhagen!

Axel Hirsoux, winner of Belgium's Eurosong 2014

About Axel Hirsoux

For Axel Hirsoux, taking part in the Eurovision Song Contest is a dream come true. This humble young man from Charleroi will soon take to the stage in Copenhagen to show the world what he has to offer musically with the song Mother.
View full profile

Antwerp, Belgium - Tonight, in an impressive production from VRT, Belgium chose Axel Hirsoux with the song Mother written by Rafael Artesero and Ashley Hicklin as its representative for the 2014 Eurovision Song Contest in Copenhagen.

Tonight, at the Sportpaleis in Antwerp, the Grand Final of the Belgian national selection, Eurosong 2014, took place where 6 acts competed for the right to represent Belgium at the 2014 Eurovision Song Contest in Copenhagen in May.
There could, however, only be one winner and this was Axel Hirsoux with the song Mother after impressing the viewers and juries with a great performance.
Each of the acts went through a long and exciting journey to get to tonight's show, starting will casting rounds and culminating in this spectacular Grand Final while listening to the valorations of the professional jury made up by 2004 Eurovision winner Ruslana from Ukraine and local experts Bart Peeters, Piet Goddaer and Jef Martens.

The Acts

These are the six acts that qualified for the final of Eurosong 2014, which tonight took place at the Sportpaleis in Antwerp:

1. Yass - Need You Tonight
2. SIL - What's The Time In Tokyo
3. Udo - Hero (In Flanders Fields)
4. Bandits - One
5. Eva Jacobs - Nothing Is Impossible
6. Axel Hirsoux - Mother

Belgium - Eurosong 2014 Final

Check out the Full gallery

The voting

Tonight the result was made up of votes split 50:50 between the televote and 7 international juries from Azerbaijan, Denmark, Ireland, F.Y.R. Macedonia, The Netherlands, Spain and Belarus. After they casted their votes this was the result:

1. Axel Hirsoux 74
2. Yass 58
3. Eva Jacobs 52
4. Bandits 42
5. Sil 32
6. Udo 22

The expert panel was present during tonight's show but only in an advisory capacity, unlike in previous shows, but they could mention their one favourite and they all agreed in naming Axel Hirsoux as their favourite.
The juries and public had the same total of 280 points each to give out. This is how the televote was spread:

1. Axel Hirsoux 160
2. Bandits 48
3. Eva Jacobs 37
4. Yass 19
5. Udo 10
6. Sil 6

Making the final score look like this:

1. Axel Hirsoux 234
2. Bandits 90
3. Eva Jacobs 89
4. Yass 77
5. Sil 38
6. Udo 32

Watch again

If you missed tonight's show or simply want to watch it again, you can visit our WebTV whenever you like to see Eurosong 2014 and many other shows on-demand.

Read more

We have been covering the Belgian selection, all the way from the first casting rounds until tonight's show. You can read all about it in our articles below:

Line-up complete in Belgium

Tonight, the Belgian national selection Eurosong 2014 continued with the third and final Semi-Final where four further acts competed for the final two places in the Final. The lucky winners ... Read more

Two further finalists found in Belgium

Tonight, the Belgian national selection Eurosong 2014 continued with the second Semi-Final where four furhter acts competed for just two places in the Final. The lucky winners are Sil and Yass. Read more

First two finalists found in Belgium

Tonight, the Belgian national selection Eurosong 2014 continued with the first Semi-Final where four acts competed for just two places in the Final.  Read more

Semi-Final line-up complete in Belgium

Tonight, the callback round of the Belgian national selection, Eurosong 2014, took place as the first live broadcast ahead of the Semi-Finals which begin next week.  Read more

Four more acts through in Belgium

Tonight, the second Casting round of the Belgian national selection, Eurosong 2014, took place where four acts qualified to the Semi-Final stage and four further acts got a second chance. Read more

Eurosong 2014 kicks off in Belgium

Tonight, the first casting round of the Belgian national selection, Eurosong 2014, took place where four acts qualified to the Semi-Final stage and four further acts got a second chance.  Read more

Belgium will participate in the first Semi-Final of the 2014 Eurovision Song Contest, which takes place at the B&W-Hallerne on Refshaleøen in Copenhagen on the 6th of May.

Did the right song win in Belgium?

Tonight: Final of Festival da Canção in Portugal

The finalists of Festival Da Canção in Portugal.

Lisbon, Portugal - For their comeback to the Eurovision Song Contest the Portuguese broadcaster, RTP, decided to held a semi-final with ten acts which took place last week in Lisbon. The five lucky winners will fight tonight for the honour of representing Portugal in Copenhagen.

The Portuguese national selection for the Eurovision Song Contest in Copenhagen, Festival Da Canção 2014, comprises one semi-final and the final, both held at the Convento do Beato in Lisbon. Ten composers were invited by RTP and they chose the performers for their songs. In the end, the following five made it to tonight's final (click on the title to watch the performance of the song):

1. Rui Andrade - Ao Teu Encontro (Rui Andrade & Marc Paelinck)
2. Catarina Pereira - Mea Culpa (Andrej Babic & Carlos Coelho)
3. Zana - Nas Asas da Sorte (Paulo Abreu Lima e Jan Van Dijck)
4. Raquel Guerra - Sonhos Roubados (Nuno Marques da Silva & Nuno Feist)
5. Susy - Quero Ser Tua (Como A Lua É Do Luar) (Emanuel)

Meet the finalists of Portugal

Check out the Full gallery

You'll be able to follow the show in the webcast offered by Portuguese Television starting at 23:15 CET
The winner tonight will represent Portugal in the First Semi-Final of the 2014 Eurovision Song Contest on the 10th of May in Copenhagen, the same place where they made their first appearance in the contest 50 years ago.

Who's your favourite to win in Portugal tonight?

Watch tonight: Song presentation in Armenia

Aram MP3.

 

Yerevan, Armenia - Tonight the moment many Eurovision fans have been waiting for will finally come: Aram MP3 will present his song for Copenhagen! You can watch the show, in which you will meet previous Armenian Eurovision stars again too, at 19:00 CET tonight right here on Eurovision.tv!

On New Year's Eve Aram MP3 was announced as the Armenian representative in the 2014 Eurovision Song Contest. Tonight at 19:00, you can finally watch the official premiere of his song for Copenhagen!

 

In the show, which will be broadcast live on Armenia's First Channel as well as here on Eurovision.tv, the video clip of his Eurovision entry will be shown for the first time. Host of the show will be Gohar Gasparyan.
Not only Aram MP3 but also the previous Armenian Eurovision participants Dorians, Sirusho, Eva Rivas, Emmy, Hayko and first participant Andre will perform in the show. The Armenian Junior Eurovision stars from the last years will also be present to wish Aram luck.

What do you expect from Aram MP3?

Sweden: Sanna Nielsen wins Melodifestivalen!

Sanna Nielsen will represent Sweden in Copenhagen.

Stockholm, Sweden - It's been an outstanding Melodifestivalen tour around Sweden arriving to the capital, Stockholm, tonight for the final of the Swedish national selection of the Eurovision Song Contest. Ten acts gave their all to win the votes of the international juries and the people of Sweden, but the one that manage to get the highest number of points, and go to Copenhagen, is Sanna Nielsen with the song Undo.

After four semi-finals, a second chance round and tonight's final, Melodifestivalen 2014 is over. For the past 6 weeks 32 acts have been fighting for the honour of representing Sweden in the Eurovision Song Contest.

 

But it was all down to the votes of the 11 international jury groups, which accounted for 50% of the total result, and the telephone votes of the Swedish audience, accounting for the remaining 50%. In the end they decided that Sanna Nielsen will represent Sweden in Copenhagen with the song Undo.

The finalists

This is the order of appearance in which the artists participated tonight:

1. Anton Ewald - Natural (John Lundvik)
2. Ellen Benediktson - Songbird (Sharon Vaughn, Johan Fransson, Tim Larsson, Tobias Lundgren)
3. Alcazar - Blame It On The Disco (Fredrik Kempe, David Kreuger, Hamed "K-One” Pirouzpanah)
4. Oscar Zia - Yes We Can (Fredrik Kempe, David Kreuger, Hamed "K-One” Pirouzpanah)
5. Linus Svenning - Bröder (Fredrik Kempe)
6. Helena Paparizou - Survivor (Bobby Ljunggren, Henrik Wikström, Karl-Ola Kjellholm, Sharon Vaughn)
7. YOHIO - To The End (Andreas Johnson, Johan Lyander, Peter Kvint, YOHIO)
8. Sanna Nielsen - Undo (Fredrik Kempe, David Kreuger, Hamed "K-One" Pirouzpanah)
9. Panetoz - Efter Solsken (Johan Hirvi, Mats Lie Skåre, Nebeyu Baheru, Njol Badjie, Pa Modou Badjie)
10. Ace Wilder - Busy Doin' Nothing (Ace Wilder, Joy Deb, Linnéa Deb)

The Swedish broadcaster SVT offered yet another top entertainment show which, besides the contestants, offered other guest performances from Swedish Eurovision Song Contest singers, like that the 1999 Eurovision winner Charlotte (Nilsson) Perrelli and an interval act dedicated to another Eurovision winner from Sweden: Waterloo by ABBA that won the contest 40 years ago.
After the international juries gave their points the top 3 looked like this:

1. Ace Wilder - Busy Doin' Nothing 97 points
2. Sanna Nielsen - Undo 90 points
3. Alcazar - Blame It On The Disco 62 points

Then the Swedish public gave their results

1. Sanna Nielsen - Undo 122 points (Total 212 points)
2. Ace Wilder - Busy Doin' Nothing 113 points (Total 210 points)
3. Alcazar - Blame It On The Disco 48 points (Total 110 points)

Which means Sanna Nielsen is the winner by just 2 points.
The winner of Melodifestivalen 2014 Sanna Nielsen will go on to represent Sweden at the 2014 Eurovision Song Contest in Copenhagen, Denmark, in the first Semi-Final on the 6th of May with Undo.

Do you agree with the results of the Swedish Melodifestivalen?

Tonight: Sweden chooses for Copenhagen

The finalists in the Friends Arena.

Stockholm, Sweden - Five weeks full of exciting entertainment have led to the final of Melodifestivalen 2014, the Swedish national selection for the Eurovision Song Contest in Copenhagen. Ten acts have reached this stage but only one will be the winner. Watch it tonight, starting at 20:00 CET, from the Friends Arena in Stockholm.

After four semi-finals and a second chance round the time for the Melodifestivalen 2014 final has arrived. The line-up includes ten acts: four male and four female solo singers, an all-male group and a mixed group act. They'll fight for the honour of representing Sweden in Stockholm's stadium in Solna, the Friends Arena.

In the first semi-final YOHIO and Ellen Benediktson were the winners

The Swedish broadcaster SVT will offer a top entertainment show including other guest performances like that of the 1999 Eurovision Song Contest winner Charlotte (Nilsson) Perrelli and an interval act dedicated to another Eurovision winner from Sweden: Waterloo by ABBA who won the contest 40 years ago.

Panetoz and Sanna Nielsen proceeded to the final from the second semi-final

The finalists

This is the order of appearance in which the artists will participate in the the final::

1. Anton Ewald - Natural (John Lundvik)
2. Ellen Benediktson - Songbird (Sharon Vaughn, Johan Fransson, Tim Larsson, Tobias Lundgren)
3. Alcazar - Blame It On The Disco (Fredrik Kempe, David Kreuger, Hamed "K-One” Pirouzpanah)
4. Oscar Zia - Yes We Can (Fredrik Kempe, David Kreuger, Hamed "K-One” Pirouzpanah)
5. Linus Svenning - Bröder (Fredrik Kempe)
6. Helena Paparizou - Survivor (Bobby Ljunggren, Henrik Wikström, Karl-Ola Kjellholm, Sharon Vaughn)
7. YOHIO - To The End (Andreas Johnson, Johan Lyander, Peter Kvint, YOHIO)
8. Sanna Nielsen - Undo (Fredrik Kempe, David Kreuger, Hamed "K-One" Pirouzpanah)
9. Panetoz - Efter Solsken (Johan Hirvi, Mats Lie Skåre, Nebeyu Baheru, Njol Badjie, Pa Modou Badjie)
10. Ace Wilder - Busy Doin' Nothing (Ace Wilder, Joy Deb, Linnéa Deb)

Ace Wilder and Oscar Zia got their ticket to the final in the 3rd semi-final in Gothenburg

You'll be able to follow the 2014 Swedish final stream starting at 19:45 CET on the Melodifestivalen official website.

Alcazar and Anton Ewald went through from the 4th semi-final.

The winner of Melodifestivalen 2014 will go on to represent Sweden at the 2014 Eurovision Song Contest in Copenhagen, Denmark, in the first Semi-Final on the 6th of May.

Helena Paparizou and Linus Svenning, the winners of the Second Chance round.

What is your favourite song to represent Sweden in Copenhagen?

Estonia sends Tanja to Copenhagen!

Andres Putting (EBU)

Tallinn, Estonia - Tonight in a spectacle of a show in Estonia filled with entertainment and 10 wonderful songs, the Grand Final of Eesti Laul 2014 culminated with Tanja being crowned the winner with the song Amazing.

Quality is something we have come to expect from Estonia, and this year was no exception! ERR delivered a spectacular show from the Nokia Concert Hall in Tallinn, where the Grand Final of Eesti Laul 2014 took place.
Ten songs fought their way through the Semi-Finals to make it to tonight's show, and they were all worthy of qualification. However, just one song could win tonight and that was Tanja with the song Amazing, who will wave the Estonian flag in Copenhagen on the 6th of May.
See Tanja perform Amazing below:
 

The participants

The following ten particpants competed into tonight's show, listed below in order of appearance. The winner has been highlighted in bold.

1. Brigita Murutar - Laule täis taevakaar
2. Traffic - Für Elise
3. Norman Salumäe - Search
4. Wilhelm - Resignal
5. Lenna - Supernoova
6. Super Hot Cosmos Blues Band - Maybe-Maybe
7. Maiken - Siin või sealpool maad
8. Kõrsikud - Tule Ja Jää
9. Tanja - Amazing
10. Sandra Nurmsalu - Kui tuuled pöörduvad

Eesti Laul 2014 - Final

Check out the Full gallery

Superfinal

After the 10 songs were performed, the juries gave their results, which accounted for 50% of the vote in the first round. In all 52,000 televotes were recevied making up the other 50% of the votes. The following two acts went to the Superfinal:

• Super Hot Cosmos Blues Band - Maybe-Maybe
• Tanja - Amazing

Birgit and Ott open the show

Opening the show were Birgit Õigemeel and Ott Lepland who represented Estonia at the Eurovision Song Contest in 2013 and 2012 respectively. Birgit appeared first singing an extract of last year's Estonian entry Et Uus Saaks Alguse. After this Ott joined her on stage to perform the track Pea Meeles Head from Birgit's recently released album, Uus Algus.

"Who is drunk, is smart"

The postcards between the songs tonight were created using animated plasticine models and based on old Estonian sayings. You know the English phrase, "hit two birds with one stone"? They use it in Estonia too! Although, instead of birds they use flies, and instead of hitting them, they catch them.
Estonia will take part in the first Semi-Final of the 2014 Eurovision Song Contest, which takes place at the B&W-Hallerne on Refshaleøen in Copenhagen on the 6th of May. The Grand Final takes place on the 10th of May.
Remember, if you missed tonight's show or loved it so much you want to see it again, you can watch it right here on our ESCTV player!

Did the right song win?

Tonight: Estonia chooses its Eesti Laul for Denmark

Sandra Nurmsalu (right), one of tonight's favourites.

 

Tallinn, Estonia - Tonight, Estonia will decide the song and artist that will represent the Baltic state in Copenhagen at the 2014 Eurovision Song Contest in May and you can watch it with us right here on Eurovision.tv.

Tonight, the Nokia Concert Hall in Tallinn will play host to the Final of the 2014 edition of Eesti Laul, where Estonia will choose its entry for the upcoming Eurovision Song Contest, taking place in Copenhagen, Denmark in May.
This year is especially prudent for Estonia as the last time the competition was held in Denmark, Tanel Padar and Dave Benton took home victory with their song, Everybody bringing the contest home to Tallinn in 2002, where it was held at the Saku Suurhall.

The line-up

Tonight, ten acts will battle it out for the right to represent their country on the Eurovision stage in Copenhagen. After making it through the Semi-Final stage, they are all eager to achieve the ultimate prize.
These are the ten particpants, in their order of appearance during tonight's show:

1. Brigita Murutar - Laule täis taevakaar
2. Traffic - Für Elise
3. Norman Salumäe - Search
4. Wilhelm - Resignal
5. Lenna - Supernoova
6. Super Hot Cosmos Blues Band - Maybe-Maybe
7. Maiken - Siin või sealpool maad
8. Kõrsikud - Tule Ja Jää
9. Tanja - Amazing
10. Sandra Nurmsalu - Kui tuuled pöörduvad

Eesti Laul 2014

Check out the Full gallery

Where to watch

Well now this is surely a no-brainer! We will be broadcasting Eesti Laul 2014 LIVE right here at Eurovision.tv. All you need to do is visit our ESCTV player and we'll sort the rest! The show starts at 20:35 CET.
Estonia will take part in the first Semi-Final of the 2014 Eurovision Song Contest, which takes place at the B&W-Hallerne on Refshaleøen in Copenhagen on the 6th of May. The Grand Final takes place on the 10th of May.

Who do you want to win tonight?

Ruth Lorenzo wins in Spain!

Ruth Lorenzo will represent Spain in Copenhagen.

Barcelona, Spain - It was a very exciting show tonight in Barcelona with a nail biting ending between the two favourites, Brequette and Ruth Lorenzo, which ended in a tie between the two. The televoting winner prevailed making Ruth the Spanish representative in Copenhagen at the 2014 Eurovision Song Contest with Dancing In The Rain.

The entry of Spain at the 2014 Eurovision Song Contest has just been chosen in a televised final held in Barcelona tonight. The show called Mira Quién Va A Eurovisión was conducted by Anne Igartiburu.
These were the five hopefuls in the order of appearance of the show (click on the titles to listen to the songs):

1. Brequette - Más (Run) (Thomas G:son / Tony Sanchez)
2. Dama - Estrella Fugaz (Shooting Star) (Melendi)
3. Ruth Lorenzo - Dancing In The Rain (Ruth Lorenzo / Jim Irvin / Julian Emery)
4. Jorge González - Aunque Se Acabe El Mundo (Even If The World Ends) (Kiko Rodríguez / Bruno Nicolás / Leticia Fuentes / María José Fernández)
5. Raúl - Seguir Sin Ti (Go On Without You) (William Duque & Domingo Sánchez)

The winner was chosen in a a 50% televote and 50% expert jury voting. The jury consisted of three of Spain's top music stars: Mónica Naranjo, David Bustamante and Merche.

The results

The three members of the expert jury gave the same set of points:

• DAMA 6 + 6 + 6 = 18
• RAÚL 7 + 7 + 7 = 21
• JORGE 8 + 8 + 8 = 24
• RUTH 10 + 10 + 10 = 30
• BREQUETTE 12 + 12 + 12 = 36

Then a notary brought the televoting results which were as follows:

• DAMA 18
• RAÚL 21
• JORGE 24
• BREQUETTE 30
• RUTH 36

Spain's finalists for Copenhagen

Check out the Full gallery

Making the final ranking look like this. In the event of a tie the televoting results prevailed so... the winner is Ruth Lorenzo:

1. RUTH LORENZO 66
2. BREQUETTE 66
3. JORGE GONZÁLEZ 48
4. RAÚL 42
5. DAMA 36

The winner

Ruth Lorenzo was heavily tipped to be the Spanish choice before the announcement of a public selection. Mostly unknown in Spain, she finished in the top 5 of the UK's X Factor in 2008 with Dannii Minogue as her mentor. After trying to break it in the difficult British market she came back home and has just signed with a new record company aiming to reach not only the Spanish market but the international one too.

Ruth Lorenzo, winner in Spain

Check out the Full gallery

Ruth appeared on stage tonight wearing a mermaid like outfit which was referenced in the show with a little mermaid character, a tribute to Copenhagen's most popular sight, and also with a present for Ruth from her family: the original vinyl of The Little Mermaid soundtrack which she thought she had lost when moving to the US with her family as a child.
Earlier in the week Dancing In The Rain peaked at #1 in the Spanish iTunes singles chart. A first for a Eurovision Song Contest entry before being chosen. Her new adventure couldn't start better with this victory at the Spanish final.
Spain won the Eurovision Song Contest at London's Royal Albert Hall in 1968 followed by a home victory in 1969. Ruth Lorenzo will participate in the Final in Copenhagen on the 10th of May to make Dancing In The Rain the 54th Spanish entry.

Do you agree with the results in Spain tonight?