Netherlands in the Eurovision Song Contest 2017

The Netherlands participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2017 with the song "Lights and Shadows" written by Rory de Kievit and Rick Vol. The song is performed by the Dutch three-piece girl group O'G3NE, who were internally selected by the Dutch broadcaster AVROTROS to represent the Netherlands at the 2017 contest in Kyiv, Ukraine. O'G3NE's appointment as the Dutch representative was announced on 29 October 2016, while the song, "Lights and Shadows", was presented to the public on 3 March 2017.

Eurovision Song Contest 2017
Country Netherlands
National selection
Selection processInternal Selection
Selection date(s)Artist: 29 October 2016
Song: 3 March 2017
Selected entrantO'G3NE
Selected song"Lights and Shadows"
Selected songwriter(s)
  • Rory de Kievit
  • Rick Vol
Finals performance
Semi-final resultQualified (4th, 200 points)
Final result11th, 150 points
Netherlands in the Eurovision Song Contest
◄2016 • 2017 • 2018►

Background
Main article: Netherlands in the Eurovision Song Contest

Prior to the 2017 contest, the Netherlands had participated in the Eurovision Song Contest fifty-seven times since their début as one of seven countries to take part in the inaugural contest in 1956.[1] Since then, the country has won the contest four times: in 1957 with the song "Net als toen" performed by Corry Brokken;[2] in 1959 with the song "'n Beetje" performed by Teddy Scholten;[3] in 1969 as one of four countries to tie for first place with "De troubadour" performed by Lenny Kuhr;[4] and finally in 1975 with "Ding-a-Dong" performed by the group Teach-In.[5] Following the introduction of semi-finals for the 2004 contest, the Netherlands had featured in four finals. The Dutch least successful result has been last place, which they have achieved on five occasions, most recently in the second semi-final of the 2011 contest.[6] The Netherlands has also received nul points on two occasions; in 1962 and 1963.[7]

The Dutch national broadcaster, AVROTROS, broadcasts the event within the Netherlands and organises the selection process for the nation's entry. The Netherlands has used various methods to select the Dutch entry in the past, such as the Nationaal Songfestival, a live televised national final to choose the performer, song or both to compete at Eurovision. However, internal selections have also been held on occasion. Since 2013, the broadcaster has internally selected the Dutch entry for the contest. In 2013, the internal selection of Anouk performing "Birds" managed to take the country to the final for the first time in eight years and placed ninth overall. In 2014, the internal selection of The Common Linnets performing the song "Calm After the Storm" qualified the nation to the final once again and placed second, making it the most successful Dutch result in the contest since their victory in 1975. For 2017, the broadcaster opted to continue selecting the Dutch entry through an internal selection.[8]

Before Eurovision

Internal selection

After months of rumours, AVROTROS announced that girl group O'G3NE would represent the Netherlands at the 2017 Eurovision Song Contest on 29 October 2016. They previously represented the country on home soil at the Junior Eurovision Song Contest 2007, finishing 11th out of 17 entries.[9] In January, it was confirmed that there were three songs in the running to represent the Netherlands, and that one of them was written by Rick Vol, the father of the three members of O'G3NE.[10] It was confirmed that Vol's song had been selected on 2 February.[11] The song title was revealed to be "Lights and Shadows" on 2 March, while the song was released the following day.[12][13]

Promotion

In the lead up to the Eurovision Song Contest, O'G3NE's promotional activities occurred entirely within the Netherlands where they performed at live events, radio shows and talk shows. On 8 April, O'G3NE performed during the Eurovision in Concert event which was held at the Melkweg venue in Amsterdam, Netherlands and hosted by Cornald Maas and Selma Björnsdóttir.[14]

At Eurovision
O'G3NE

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) are required to qualify from one of two semi-finals in order to compete for the final; the top ten countries from each semi-final progress to the final. The European Broadcasting Union (EBU) split up the competing countries into six different pots based on voting patterns from previous contests, with countries with favourable voting histories put into the same pot.[15] On 31 January 2017, a special allocation draw was held which placed each country into one of the two semi-finals, as well as which half of the show they would perform in. The Netherlands was placed into the second semi-final, to be held on 11 May 2017, and was scheduled to perform in the first half of the show.[16]

Once all the competing songs for the 2017 contest had been released, the running order for the semi-finals was decided by the shows' producers rather than through another draw, so that similar songs were not placed next to each other. Originally, the Netherlands was set to perform in position 7, following the entry from Romania and before the entry from Hungary.[17] However, following Russia's withdrawal from the contest on 13 April and subsequent removal from the running order of the second semi-final, the performing position for the Netherlands shifted to 6.[18]

Semi-final

O'G3NE took part in technical rehearsals on 2 April and 6 May, followed by dress rehearsals on 10 and 11 May.[19] This included the jury show on 10 May where the professional juries of each country watched and voted on the competing entries.[20]

At the end of the show, the Netherlands was announced as having finished in the top 10 and subsequently qualifying for the grand final.[21] It was later revealed that Netherlands placed fourth in the semi-final, receiving a total of 200 points: 51 points from the televoting and 149 points from the juries.

Points awarded to the Netherlands
Points awarded to the Netherlands (Semi-final 2)
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

Final

Shortly after the second semi-final, a winners' press conference was held for the ten qualifying countries. As part of this press conference, the qualifying artists took part in a draw to determine which half of the grand final they would subsequently participate in. This draw was done in the reverse order the countries appeared in the semi-final running order. The Netherlands were drawn to compete in the first half. Following this draw, the shows' producers decided upon the running order of the final, as they had done for the semi-finals. The Netherlands was subsequently placed to perform in position 6, following the entry from Armenia and before the entry from Moldova.[22]

Points awarded to the Netherlands (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

Points awarded by Netherlands

Jury members

The following five members comprised the Dutch jury:[23]

  • Marjolein Dekkers – Chairperson – Editor in Chief MAX Broadcasting, radio host
  • John Ewbank – songwriter, producer
  • Gordon Groothedde – producer, composer
  • Erica Groeneveld – singer, songwriter
  • Matthijs van Duijvenbode – singer, producer, songwriter, musician
Split voting results from the Netherlands (Semi-final 2)
Draw Country Jury Televote
J. Ewbank G. Groothedde M. Dekkers E. Groeneveld M. van Duijvenbode Average Rank Points Rank Points
01 Serbia535455614
02 Austria447323856
03 Macedonia91591761111
04 Malta851410128316
05 Romania10131112910138
06 Netherlands
07 Hungary121417131416210
08 Denmark22314210101
09 Ireland15161211131592
10 San Marino17171315171717
11 Croatia148167109274
12 Norway372634765
13  Switzerland798977413
14 Belarus1312158111283
15 Bulgaria11121112112
16 Lithuania16101014161415
17 Estonia1111616151312
18 Israel664586547
Split voting results from the Netherlands (final)
Draw Country Jury Televote
J. Ewbank G. Groothedde M. Dekkers E. Groeneveld M. van Duijvenbode Average Rank Points Rank Points
01 Israel21141312211816
02 Poland252423242425101
03 Belarus16171714161719
04 Austria15138668314
05 Armenia23202422202311
06 Netherlands
07 Moldova1411109221465
08 Hungary10161620131556
09 Italy991910121192
10 Denmark374233823
11 Portugal12311112112
12 Azerbaijan18221823192022
13 Croatia20212518182183
14 Australia8667117418
15 Greece22181115171921
16 Spain24252225232425
17 Norway642844715
18 United Kingdom787576513
19 Cyprus1310201381317
20 Romania5121419910147
21 Germany17191516101620
22 Ukraine19232117252224
23 Belgium1155211592210
24 Sweden439455674
25 Bulgaria2113221038
26 France12151211141212

References
  1. "Eurovision Song Contest 1956". eurovision.tv. European Broadcasting Union. Retrieved 28 November 2014.
  2. "Eurovision Song Contest 1957". eurovision.tv. European Broadcasting Union. Retrieved 28 November 2014.
  3. "Eurovision Song Contest 1959". eurovision.tv. European Broadcasting Union. Retrieved 28 November 2014.
  4. "Eurovision Song Contest 1969". eurovision.tv. European Broadcasting Union. Retrieved 28 November 2014.
  5. "Eurovision Song Contest 1975". eurovision.tv. European Broadcasting Union. Retrieved 28 November 2014.
  6. "Eurovision Song Contest 2011 Semi-Final (2)". eurovision.tv. European Broadcasting Union. Retrieved 28 November 2014.
  7. "History by Country - The Netherlands". eurovision.tv. European Broadcasting Union. Retrieved 28 November 2014.
  8. Granger, Anthony (19 September 2016). "The Netherlands: 2017 Entrant Decision in October". eurovoix.com. Eurovoix.com. Retrieved 29 October 2016.
  9. "Girl group O'G3NE to represent the Netherlands in Kyiv". eurovision.tv. European Broadcasting Union. 29 October 2015. Retrieved 29 October 2015.
  10. Davies, Megan (2 January 2017). "The Netherlands: Three Songs in the Race for Kyiv". eurovoix.com. Eurovoix.
  11. Herbert, Emily (2 February 2017). "The Netherlands: O'G3NE'S Father Behind Eurovision Entry". eurovoix.com. Eurovoix.
  12. Granger, Anthony (2 March 2017). "The Netherlands: O'G3NE to Sing "Lights and Shadows"". eurovoix.com. Eurovoix.
  13. The NPBC (3 March 2017). "Netherlands: O'G3NE Released Eurovision Entry, "Lights and Sounds"". eurovoix.com. Eurovoix.
  14. Jordan, Paul (29 March 2017). "Eurovision in Concert sets a new record with 33 acts". European Broadcasting Union. Retrieved 30 April 2017.
  15. Jordan, Paul (25 January 2017). "Semi-Final Allocation draw to take place in Kyiv". eurovision.tv. Retrieved 25 January 2017.
  16. Jordan, Paul (31 January 2017). "Results of the Semi-Final Allocation Draw". eurovision.tv. European Broadcasting Union. Retrieved 31 January 2017.
  17. Jordan, Paul (31 March 2017). "Semi-Final running order for Eurovision 2017 revealed". eurovision.tv. European Broadcasting Union. Retrieved 12 April 2017.
  18. "EBU: "Russia no longer able to take part in Eurovision 2017"". eurovision.tv. European Broadcasting Union. 22 April 2016. Retrieved 22 April 2016.
  19. "Press". eurovision.tv. European Broadcasting Union. Retrieved 12 May 2017.
  20. Weaver, Jessica (10 May 2017). "Eurovision 2017: Live updates from semi-final 2 jury show". esctoday.com. Retrieved 12 May 2017.
  21. Kryvinchuk, Yullia (12 May 2017). "Semi-Final Thriller: 10 more qualified — Grand Final complete!". eurovision.tv. European Broadcasting Union. Retrieved 12 May 2017.
  22. Jordan, Paul; Nilsson, Helena (12 May 2017). "Exclusive: Running order for the 2017 Grand Final released!". eurovision.tv. European Broadcasting Union. Retrieved 12 May 2017.
  23. Jordan, Paul (29 April 2017). "Who will be the expert jurors for Eurovision 2017?". eurovision.tv. European Broadcasting Union. Retrieved 3 May 2017.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.