Will Joost Klein Make it to the Eurovision Song Contest Finals? We’ll Know in a Week. The Excitement is Building.
My name is Lara Zevenberg and I’ll be keeping you updated on everything happening in Malmö over the next few days.
Joost Klein has had his second rehearsal. And for the first time, we’re also seeing how it will look on television. The organizing broadcaster AVROTROS has shared the last half minute of Europapa on stage in Malmö.
We can see how the singer finishes the song with an ode to his late father after chopping. It was previously unclear whether Joost would perform this part of his song in Malmö.
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The blue bird hasn’t flown away yet. Influencer Appie Mussa was hoisted into a blue bird costume by Joost, and while many people expected it to be a joke and Mussa to change clothes, the costume also came out during the second rehearsal.
NU.nl spoke to Cornald Maas about Songfestival rules and it turns out: major changes are no longer allowed after this second rehearsal. So it seems very likely that the bird is here to stay.
The Song Festival has a dark cloud hanging over it due to the war in Ukraine and the war in Gaza.
Next Thursday, when the second semi-final of the Eurovision Song Contest takes place, the Swedish police expect tens of thousands of demonstrators against Israel. Not only Joost Klein hopes to reach the final then, but Israel is also competing that evening.
Songfestival fans are angry about Israel’s participation now that there are thousands of civilian casualties in the fight against Hamas. The police expect around 40,000 people to come to Malmö to demonstrate against Israel’s actions on the Gaza Strip.
The Netherlands is still in the top five with the bookmakers.
The development of the top ten in recent months.
Additional Notes:
- The article is about the Eurovision Song Contest 2014, which was held in Malmö, Sweden.
- The Netherlands was represented by Joost Klein, who performed the song “Europapa”.
- The article discusses Klein’s rehearsals, the controversy surrounding Israel’s participation in the contest, and the betting odds for the final.
- The article is written in a journalistic style and is aimed at a general audience.