France in the Eurovision Song Contest 2018

France participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2018 with the song "Mercy" written by Émilie Satt and Jean-Karl Lucas. The song is performed by French duo Madame Monsieur. The French entry for the 2018 contest in Lisbon, Portugal was selected through the national selection Destination Eurovision, organised by the French broadcaster France Télévisions in collaboration with the television channel France 2. The selection consisted of two semi-finals and a final. Madame Monsieur became the winner, placing third with the international juries but winning a landslide share of the vote from the French public, amassing enough points to win the competition. This was the first time France used a national final since 2014.

Eurovision Song Contest 2018
Country France
National selection
Selection processDestination Eurovision
Selection date(s)Semi-finals:
13 January 2018
20 January 2018
Final:
27 January 2018
Selected entrantMadame Monsieur
Selected song"Mercy"
Selected songwriter(s)Émilie Satt
Jean-Karl Lucas
Finals performance
Final result13th, 173 points
France in the Eurovision Song Contest
◄2017 2018 2019►

As a member of the "Big 5", France automatically qualified to compete in the final of the Eurovision Song Contest.

Background

Prior to the 2018 Contest, France had participated in the Eurovision Song Contest sixty times since its debut as one of seven countries to take part in 1956.[1] France first won the contest in 1958 with "Dors, mon amour" performed by André Claveau. In the 1960s, they won three times, with "Tom Pillibi" performed by Jacqueline Boyer in 1960, "Un premier amour" performed by Isabelle Aubret in 1962 and "Un jour, un enfant" performed by Frida Boccara, who won in 1969 in a four-way tie with the Netherlands, Spain and the United Kingdom. France's fifth victory came in 1977, when Marie Myriam won with the song "L'oiseau et l'enfant". France have also finished second four times, with Paule Desjardins in 1957, Catherine Ferry in 1976, Joëlle Ursull in 1990 and Amina in 1991, who lost out to Sweden's Carola in a tie-break. Since 2000, France has managed to place within the top ten four times, with Natasha St-Pier finishing fourth in 2001, Sandrine François finishing fifth in 2002, Patricia Kaas finishing eighth in 2009 and Amir finishing sixth in 2016. In 2017, France was represented by Alma and the song "Requiem". The country ended in twelfth place with 135 points.

The French national broadcaster, France Télévisions, broadcasts the event within France and delegates the selection of the nation's entry to the television channel France 2.[2] The French broadcaster had used both national finals and internal selection to choose the French entry in the past. The 2014 French entry was selected via a national final that featured three competing acts. Since 2015, the broadcaster had opted to internally select the French entry. For their 2018 entry, it was announced on 21 June 2017 that the broadcaster would organise a national final.[3]

Before Eurovision

Destination Eurovision

Destination Eurovision was the national final organised by France 2 to select France's entry for the Eurovision Song Contest 2018. The competition consisted of two semi-finals on 13 and 20 January 2018 and a final on 27 January 2018, all produced at the Studio Visual – Bât 210 in Saint-Denis and broadcast on France 2, TV5Monde and TV5 Québec Canada.[4] All three shows in the competition were hosted by French-Canadian singer Garou.[5][6]

Format

The format of the competition consisted of three shows: two pre-recorded semi-finals on 13 and 20 January 2018, and a live final on 27 January 2018.[7] Nine entries competed in each semi-final, from which four were selected to advance to the final from each show.[4] Results during the semi-finals were determined by the combination of votes from two jury groups: a three-member Francophone jury panel and a three-member international jury panel.

Results in the final were determined by the combination of public televoting (50%) and a ten-member international jury panel (50%). The three international jury members in the semi-finals were joined by an additional seven members from Armenia, Bulgaria, Finland, Iceland, Israel, Russia and Switzerland.[9] The public and the juries each had a total of 420 points to award, with each jury member awarding 2, 4, 6, 8, 10 and 12 points to their top six entries. The public vote was based on the percentage of votes each song achieved through telephone and SMS voting. For example, if a song gained 10% of the viewer vote, then that entry would be awarded 10% of 420 points rounded to the nearest integer: 42 points.

Competing entries

France 2 opened a submission period on 21 June 2017 in order for interested artists and songwriters to submit their proposals through an online submission form up until the deadline on 30 November 2017. Songs were required to contain at least 70% French language lyrics with a free language allowance for the remaining lyrics. In addition to the open submissions, France 2 also requested proposals from record companies.[10] At the closing of the deadline, the French broadcaster received 1,500 submissions. A selection committee reviewed the received submissions and selected eighteen entries to compete in the national final.[7] The competing artists and songs were announced gradually via social media from 29 December 2017 to 7 January 2018.[11][12][13]

Artist Song Songwriter(s)
Ehla "J'ai cru" Grand Corps Malade, Fred Savio
Emmy Liyana "OK ou KO" Olivier Schultheis, Zazie, Jean-Pierre Pilot, William Rousseau
Enéa "I'll Be There" Sonia Boraso
Igit "Lisboa Jérusalem" Antoine Barrau, Alex Finkin
Jane Constance "Un jour j'ai rêvé" Jane Constance, Pascal Obispo
June The Girl "Same" Marine Bollengier, François Welgryn, Antoine Essertier[14]
Lisandro Cuxi "Eva" Felipe Saldivia, Fred Savio, Freddy Marche
Louka "Mamma Mia" Maître Gims, Vitaa, Renaud Rebillaud, Luca Bennici
Lucie Vagenheim "My World" François Welgryn, William Rousseau, Mathieu Johann
Madame Monsieur "Mercy" Émilie Satt, Jean-Karl Lucas
Malo' "Ciao" Malory Legardinier
Masoe "Paradis" Dany Synthé, Jonah
Max Cinnamon "Ailleurs" Max Cinnamon, Stéphanie Petrequin
Nassi "Rêves de gamin" Nassi, Raphaël Nyadjiko
Noée "L'un près de l'autre" Barbara Pravi, Tomislav Matosin, Jules Jaconelli, Mélanie Di Petrantonio
Pheno Men "Jamais sans toi" François Welgryn, Gabin Lesieur, Pheno Men
Sarah Caillibot "Tu me manques" Sarah Caillibot
Sweem "Là-haut" Sweem
Semi-final 1

The first semi-final was filmed on 8 January 2018 and aired on 13 January 2018. Eight entries competed and four qualified to the final. In addition to performing their contest entry, each artist performed a cover version of a popular song.[7][15]

Draw Artist Song Cover (Original artist) Juries Total Place
International Francophone
1 Masoe "Paradis" "Pas là" (Vianney) 0 6 6 7
2 Noée "L'un près de l'autre" "Le paradis blanc" (Michel Berger) 20 6 26 6
3 Lisandro Cuxi "Eva" "Billie Jean" (Michael Jackson) 34 32 66 1
4 Malo' "Ciao" "Wasting My Young Years" (London Grammar) 20 26 46 3
5 Emmy Liyana "OK ou KO" "Je te promets" (Johnny Hallyday) 30 20 50 2
6 Enéa "I'll Be There" "Tous les cris les S.O.S" (Daniel Balavoine) 0 0 0 8
7 Pheno Men "Jamais sans toi" "ABC" (The Jackson 5) 0 0 0 8
8 Louka "Mamma Mia" "Alors regarde" (Patrick Bruel) 14 16 30 4
9 Ehla "J'ai cru" "Time After Time" (Cyndi Lauper) 8 20 28 5
Semi-final 2

The second semi-final was filmed on 9 January 2018 and aired on 20 January 2018. Eight entries competed and four qualified to the final. In addition to performing their contest entry, each artist performed a cover version of a popular song.[7][15]

Draw Artist Song Cover (Original artist) Juries Total Place
International Francophone
1 Lucie Vagenheim "My World" "Savoir aimer" (Florent Pagny) 0 0 0 9
2 Madame Monsieur "Mercy" "Désenchantée" (Mylène Farmer) 30 26 56 1
3 Jane Constance "Un jour j’ai rêvé" "What a Wonderful World" (Louis Armstrong) 4 4 8 6
4 Nassi "Rêves de gamin" "Superstition" (Stevie Wonder) 26 20 46 3
5 Igit "Lisboa Jérusalem" "Tout va bien" (Orelsan) 22 24 46 3
6 Max Cinnamon "Ailleurs" "Perfect" (Ed Sheeran) 28 26 54 2
7 Sarah Caillibot "Tu me manques" "Tu m'oublieras" (Larusso) 8 0 8 6
8 Sweem "Là-haut" "Quelques mots d'amour" (Michel Berger) 4 22 26 5
9 June The Girl "Same" "Poupée de cire, poupée de son" (France Gall) 4 4 8 6
Final

The final aired live on 27 January 2018.[7] The four entries that qualified from the preceding two semi-finals competed and "Mercy" performed by Madame Monsieur was selected as the winner. In addition to performing their contest entry, each artist performed a duet with a well-known artist.[16] Alma, who represented France in the 2017 Contest, replaced Amir in the Francophone jury panel who provided feedback to the competing artists.[8]

Draw Artist Song Duet Jury Televote Total Place
1 Louka "Mamma Mia" "Caméléon" (with Maître Gims) 8 7 15 8
2 Igit "Lisboa Jérusalem" "L'amour à la machine" (with Alain Souchon) 60 50 110 5
3 Emmy Liyana "OK ou KO" "Viens on s'aime" (with Slimane) 82 30 112 4
4 Madame Monsieur "Mercy" "Reine" (with Dadju) 68 118 186 1
5 Lisandro Cuxi "Eva" "Zombie" (with Nolwenn Leroy) 90 72 162 2
6 Max Cinnamon "Ailleurs" "Où je vis" (with Patrick Fiori) 54 36 90 6
7 Nassi "Rêves de gamin" "Elle m'a aimé" (with Gipsy Kings) 30 18 48 7
8 Malo' "Ciao" "Sirens Call" (with Cats on Trees) 28 89 117 3

Ratings

Episode Date Viewing figures Night Rank Source
Nominal Share
Semi Final 1 13 January 20182,486,00012.4% #3[17]
Semi Final 2 20 January 20182,084,00010.7% [18]
Final 27 January 20181,795,0008.9% #4[19]

Promotion

Madame Monsieur made appearances across Europe to specifically promote "Mercy" as the French Eurovision entry. On 17 February 2018, they performed "Mercy" at the second semi-final of Vidbir 2018 in Ukraine.[20] They also participated in the London Eurovision Party at the Café de Paris venue in London, United Kingdom on 5 April; Israel Calling at Rabin Square in Tel Aviv, Israel on 8–11 April; the Eurovision in Concert at the AFAS Live venue in Amsterdam, Netherlands on 14 April; and the Eurovision-Spain Pre-Party at the Sala La Riviera venue in Madrid, Spain on 21 April. For the Amsterdam event, 2018 United Kingdom representative SuRie performed the English version of the song alongside Jean-Karl Lucas as Satt was unable to travel due to illness.[21][22][23][24][25]

At Eurovision

The Eurovision Song Contest 2018 took place at the Altice Arena in Lisbon, Portugal and consisted of two semi-finals on 8 and 10 May and the final on 12 May 2018.[26] According to Eurovision rules, all nations with the exceptions of the host country and the "Big 5" (France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom) were required to qualify from one of two semi-finals in order to compete for the final; the top ten countries from each semi-final progressed to the final. As a member of the "Big 5", France automatically qualified to compete in the final. In addition to their participation in the final, France was also required to broadcast and vote in one of the two semi-finals. During the semi-final allocation draw on 29 January 2018, France was assigned to broadcast and vote in the second semifinal on 10 May 2018.[27] During the second press conference that took place on 6 May, Madame Monsieur took part in a draw to determine in which half of the final the French entry would be performed. France was drawn to compete in the first half.

Once all the competing songs for the 2018 contest had been released, the running order for the grand final was decided by the shows' producers rather than through another draw, so that similar songs were not placed next to each other. France was set to perform in position 13, following the entry from Albania and preceding the entry from Czech Republic.

In France, the two semi-finals were broadcast on France 4 with commentary by André Manoukian and Christophe Willem, while the final was broadcast on France 2 with commentary by Stéphane Bern, Christophe Willem and 2017 French Eurovision representative Alma. The spokesperson announcing the French jury results was Élodie Gossuin.

Final

The performance featured Satt and Lucas dressed in black with red accents (the duo's shoes, Satt's makeup and Lucas's guitar). They started on the main stage surrounded by fog for the first verse and chorus before separating to walk across the two bridges on either side and joining back together on the satellite stage for the remainder of the song with the onstage lighting changing from blue to orange. On the final part of the song, the duo performed their signature hand motion with the entire audience in the arena joining in.

Offstage backing vocal support was provided by Allyson Ezell and Destination Eurovision semifinalist Noée.

Points awarded to France

Points awarded to France (final)
Televote
12 points 10 points 8 points 7 points 6 points
5 points 4 points 3 points 2 points 1 point
Jury
12 points 10 points 8 points 7 points 6 points
5 points 4 points 3 points 2 points 1 point

Split voting results

The following five members comprised the French jury:[28]

  • Cyril Taïeb – Chairperson – artist
  • Elodie Suigo – radio host
  • Léa Luciani (Ehla) – artist, singer
  • Clémentine Boulard – music and TV journalist
  • Benjamin Marciano – artistic director
Split voting results from France (Semi-final 2)
Draw Country Jury Televote
E. Suigo Ehla C. Boulard B. Marciano C. Taïeb Average Rank Points Rank Points
01 Norway98610139274
02 Romania31416151510138
03 Serbia151515161617210
04 San Marino119181471117
05 Denmark1213109111465
06 Russia1365868313
07 Moldova17181213513112
08 Netherlands643423812
09 Australia2121411256
10 Georgia18171318171815
11 Poland758687447
12 Malta4109335616
13 Hungary1616141291511
14 Latvia52121221014
15 Sweden10347147101
16 Montenegro14121717181618
17 Slovenia1775106592
18 Ukraine8111111141283
Split voting results from France (final)
Draw Country Jury Televote
E. Suigo Ehla C. Boulard B. Marciano C. Taïeb Average Rank Points Rank Points
01 Ukraine18121518231974
02 Spain12172219131665
03 Slovenia56124259225
04 Lithuania10181722201719
05 Austria436854714
06 Estonia20241417152247
07 Norway197916171216
08 Portugal99712211138
09 United Kingdom61310388315
10 Serbia242123252425101
11 Germany141693811
12 Albania15141820182017
13 France
14 Czech Republic888547413
15 Denmark14221614161892
16 Australia2221721023
17 Finland16101913141424
18 Bulgaria23252121222421
19 Moldova21112024101556
20 Sweden13154726518
21 Hungary22232423192322
22 Israel31521112112
23 Netherlands753965620
24 Ireland11161111310112
25 Cyprus25192515122183
26 Italy172013101113210

Points awarded by France

References

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  3. Robichaud, David (22 June 2017). "France announces open auditions for Eurovision 2018". eurovisionary.com. EuroVisionary. Retrieved 11 December 2017.
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  12. Adams, William Lee (30 December 2017). "DESTINATION EUROVISION: WILL JUNE THE GIRL BE FRANCE'S SINGER IN MAY?". Wiwibloggs.com. Wiwibloggs. Retrieved 30 December 2017.
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  15. Weaver, Jessica (8 January 2018). "France: Destination Eurovision 2018 semi-final allocation revealed". Esctoday.com. Esctoday. Retrieved 10 January 2018.
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