Basel Bulletin: The Big 5 and Switzerland

The Big 5 and Switzerland are on today. We haven’t seen or heard anything so far about them but here they are! They rehearsed today!

EBU has decided to release photo’s of it only the day after. But still we can show you (if available) the national final performance or any other live performance so you got an idea what the artists are capable of. Disclaimer: for the description of the performance, we have to do it with what the EBU tells us.

🇩🇪 Germany

Germany’s first rehearsal for Eurovision 2025 featured Abor & Tynna performing their electro track “Baller.” This is Germany’s first entry in German since 2007. The duo, who are siblings, originate from a musical family based in Vienna. The performance begins with Abor playing a white LED-lit electric cello in front of a tall curtain. As the beat drops, the curtain falls to reveal Tynna standing atop a large 1980s-style boombox prop, about three metres high. She performs the first verse and chorus there before descending to the stage. Four dancers use handheld spotlights to illuminate her as they freestyle around her.

Tynna’s outfit includes black military-style shorts, a crop top, knee-high boots, and leather gloves. The visuals feature intense white and blue strobes, industrial-style graphics, and the word “BALLER” in large LED lettering. For the finale, she dances on the walkway while Abor plays above. The final chorus includes pyrotechnics and a firework display.

🇫🇷 France

France’s Louane rehearsed her song “Maman” for the first time in Basel, presenting a minimalist and symbolic staging. She performs barefoot, wearing a long black lace dress, within a sand-covered circle at the center of the stage. Throughout the song, a steady stream of sand falls from above onto one side of the circle, representing the passage of time.

The performance includes a moment where Louane kneels and clears a patch of sand to reveal a mirror. Her movements are precisely timed with the musical arrangement and camera direction. The lighting builds gradually alongside orchestral strings, culminating in an intense sequence as the drumbeat grows louder.

All visuals are centered around the theme of time, with the hourglass imagery and falling sand reinforcing the song’s message about love, loss, and personal growth. The performance concludes with a wide, backlit shot, highlighting Louane’s stillness as the sand continues to fall.

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

The United Kingdom’s 2025 Eurovision rehearsal features vocal trio Remember Monday performing “What The Hell Just Happened?” The staging begins in a vintage-style boudoir on one side of the stage, designed to evoke the “morning after the night before.” A padded screen with a heart-shaped cut-out frames the trio as they begin the song in corseted dresses—pale blue (Lauren), pink (Holly-Anne), and yellow (Charlotte).

As the chorus hits, the group moves down the catwalk toward the main stage, where a large, tilted chandelier sits—around 2.5 to 3 metres tall—with candles and multi-coloured lighting. This prop represents the chaos referenced in the lyrics.

Throughout the performance, dynamic camerawork follows the trio’s movement, including overhead shots of the LED floor and a sweeping pan over the chandelier. The song concludes with the singers back in the boudoir, framed by the heart cut-out.

Pyrotechnics are expected in future rehearsals but were not included in this run.

🇨🇭 Switzerland

Switzerland’s first rehearsal for Eurovision 2025 features Zoë Më performing “Voyage” in an intimate, cinematic setting. The performance, set entirely in black space with sculptural lighting, is filmed in one continuous handheld shot. There are no cuts, choreography, props, or LED content. Instead, the camera moves gently and closely around Zoë, responding to her presence in real time.

She begins seated and remains alone on stage throughout, wearing an off-the-shoulder black silk dress printed with abstract florals in deep reds, purples, and blues. The performance is shot on vintage Zeiss Super Speed lenses, creating soft highlights and a shallow depth of field that isolates her in the frame.

During the bridge, the quiet atmosphere ruptures with smoke, wind, and overexposed flashes, while the camera continues uninterrupted. As the performance resolves, the audience appears with phone lights raised, before fading to black. The concept focuses entirely on emotional detail and visual restraint.

🇮🇹 Italy

Italy’s first rehearsal for Eurovision 2025 features Lucio Corsi performing his glam rock ballad Volevo Essere Un Duro. The 31-year-old singer-songwriter from Tuscany brings a 1970s aesthetic, both musically and visually, echoing Bowie-era piano ballads. The staging closely follows his Sanremo performance: Lucio begins seated at an extended piano, wearing a bright yellow, giant-shouldered bolero jacket and his signature white face makeup. He is joined on stage by guitarist and co-writer Tommaso Ottomano.

After the first third of the song, Lucio moves to the centre stage with his guitar. New for Eurovision are two large retro speaker props at the back—one square and approximately four metres high, the other slightly smaller. A sepia filter is applied to the broadcast, enhancing the vintage atmosphere, and English subtitles appear on-screen to support accessibility. A harmonica solo precedes the final chorus, one of the few live instrumental moments in this year’s contest.

🇪🇸 Spain

Spain’s first rehearsal for Eurovision 2025 features Melody performing her uptempo track Esa Diva. Known for her long-standing career in Spanish pop, Melody presents a completely reimagined staging compared to her Benidorm Fest performance. Previously seen elements such as the swing, throne, and neon pink visuals are no longer present. Instead, the new staging introduces a more refined and structured concept.

The performance is now divided into three distinct acts, each marked by a specific visual theme. First, Act One uses purple lighting and graphics. Then, Act Two shifts to red tones, adding intensity. Finally, Act Three transitions into pure white, blending with a mountain backdrop projected on the LED screen.

Throughout the performance, Melody is joined by five dancers—three male and two female—who perform different routines for each act. Additionally, her outfit features a black corseted design with sharp shoulders and hips, paired with a fedora and thigh-high boots. The performance opens in silhouette and concludes with a powerful, high-energy final dance sequence.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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70 years of eurovision: euphoria

The Eurovision Song Contest is celebrating its 70th anniversary. That is a wonderful milestone. We at Eurovision Universe love diving into the history of the contest. That is why we are taking a closer look at the contests of the past 70 years. 2012 We certainly knew that the Eurovision Song Contest was going to Baku, Azerbaijan. An entire residential neighborhood had to make way for the construction of the Crystal Hall, where the whole event was to be held. At the beginning of the first week of rehearsals, that hall was still inaccessible. We had to pick up our accreditations through the loose sand. After a week, a complete boulevard had been laid. Armenia stayed away due to the ongoing conflict with Azerbaijan, and Poland due to an empty wallet. But Montenegro returned. Eldar Gasimov was asked to host the Song Contest, together with Leyla Aliyeva and Nargiz Birk-Petersen. The songs Icelandic contestant Jónsi participated for the second time, now in a duet with Greta Salóme. 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A year later, she was allowed to open the Eurovision Song Contest with perhaps the most beautiful version of a Eurovision hit ever: “Euphoria”, sung with about 60 children. Loreen was here to stay. In 2017, she participated in Melodifestivalen again. She just barely missed the final with “Statements”. And she would participate again after that, but more on that later. 2013 As mentioned, Eurovision was opened by Loreen with one of the most beautiful versions of “Euphoria”. That took place in Malmö, where the Eurovision Song Contest was held. Armenia returned, but no less than four countries dropped out: Bosnia and Herzegovina and Portugal for financial reasons. Slovakia due to scores that were far too low, and Turkey was mad about the appearance of the professional jury, which resulted in much lower results than with televoting alone. For the first time in years, the Eurovision Song Contest was presented by a single woman: Petra Mede. She did so with flair. 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History
Martijn

70 years of eurovision: euphoria

The Eurovision Song Contest is celebrating its 70th anniversary. That is a wonderful milestone. We at Eurovision Universe love diving into the history of the contest. That is why we are taking a closer look at the contests of the past 70 years. 2012 We certainly knew that the Eurovision Song Contest was going to Baku, Azerbaijan. An entire residential neighborhood had to make way for the construction of the Crystal Hall, where the whole event was to be held. At the beginning of the first week of rehearsals, that hall was still inaccessible. We had to pick up our accreditations through the loose sand. After a week, a complete boulevard had been laid. Armenia stayed away due to the ongoing conflict with Azerbaijan, and Poland due to an empty wallet. But Montenegro returned. Eldar Gasimov was asked to host the Song Contest, together with Leyla Aliyeva and Nargiz Birk-Petersen. The songs Icelandic contestant Jónsi participated for the second time, now in a duet with Greta Salóme. Kaliopi, who had failed to advance from Macedonia in the audio pre-selection in 1996, now stood on the Eurovision stage for real. Jedward tried again but was considerably less successful than the year before. Željko Joksimović represented Serbia once again and was successful with a third place finish. Montenegro’s return was accompanied by some question marks. Rambo Amadeus was primarily a comedian, and not everyone understood his humor. During the opening party, they decided to take him off the stage at a good moment, because the organizers thought that otherwise he would have turned it into a full evening’s entertainment. The Netherlands sent Joan Franka, a singer wearing a Native American headdress. She could sing, but became so nervous during the broadcast that she didn’t hit a single note. The final was opened by the then 76-year-old Engelbert Humperdinck. The British had really gone to great lengths to find a successful artist willing to participate. Rona Nishliu managed to produce very long and high notes for Albania. She finished in the top 5. This success has not been equaled to this day. Russia sent a choir of elderly ladies who, in their own country, managed to beat Dima Bilan and one of the ladies from t.A.T.u. The Buranovskiye Babushki were founded to raise money for the rebuilding of a small church. This characteristic little building in the village of Buranova had been demolished by order of Stalin. One of the successes of the Babushki was that the church has since been rebuilt. Loreen She had already participated in Melodifestivalen the year before, but she did not make it to the Eurovision stage. Her song, “My Heart Is Refusing Me”, did become an international hit. Lorine Zineb Nora Talhaoui, best known as Loreen, was an instant favorite when she performed “Euphoria”. The song was written by Peter Boström and Thomas G:son. Loreen managed to capitalize on her win with one of the biggest Eurovision hits ever. A year later, she was allowed to open the Eurovision Song Contest with perhaps the most beautiful version of a Eurovision hit ever: “Euphoria”, sung with about 60 children. Loreen was here to stay. In 2017, she participated in Melodifestivalen again. She just barely missed the final with “Statements”. And she would participate again after that, but more on that later. 2013 As mentioned, Eurovision was opened by Loreen with one of the most beautiful versions of “Euphoria”. That took place in Malmö, where the Eurovision Song Contest was held. Armenia returned, but no less than four countries dropped out: Bosnia and Herzegovina and Portugal for financial reasons. Slovakia due to scores that were far too low, and Turkey was mad about the appearance of the professional jury, which resulted in much lower results than with televoting alone. For the first time in years, the Eurovision Song Contest was presented by a single woman: Petra Mede. She did so with flair. She was praised for her humor, and the audacity to appear on stage with curlers in during one of the rehearsals. The songs Valentina Monetta participated for San Marino for the second time. In 2012 she was still something of a wallflower at the contest, but now she was ranked third by the bookmakers for almost the entire rehearsal period. The disappointment was therefore deep when she failed to reach the final. Elitsa Todorova and Stoyan Yankoulov represented Bulgaria for the second time. In 2007 they were very successful, but this time it was not enough for a place in the final. There were big stars among the contestants. Cascada was known for “Cryin’ in the Discotheque” but now represented Germany, albeit not very successfully. Anouk did better. She had several international hits to her name but now pulled the Netherlands out of the slump regarding the Eurovision Song Contest: after eight years missing the final, she brought the Netherlands back to the final with her song “Birds”. In the same category as Engelbert Humperdinck a year earlier, the United Kingdom now sent Bonnie Tyler. She had also been asked in the 80s, but she declined back then. And with a 19th place, she proved that she would have been better off doing that in 2013 as well. Among those eliminated in the semi-final were the duo Who See for Montenegro, who wore spacesuits, and Takasa for Switzerland. The latter group was made up entirely of Salvation Army soldiers. 95-year-old group member Emil Ramsauer would become the oldest Eurovision star. Final In the final, we saw Aliona Moon for Moldova wearing an enormous dress. We also saw Krista Siegfrids, who attracted attention with her song “Marry Me,” but especially with the kiss full on the mouth of one of the backing singers. During the evening of the Eurovision Song Contest, George Ezra wrote his later hit “Budapest” in Malmö! And anyone who listens closely to *that* song can hear the atmosphere of the Hungarian entry “Kedvesem” by the group ByeAlex in it. Azerbaijan managed to score

Read More »
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