Portugal

🇵🇹 Blast from the Past: Portugal 1994

We know a lot about Eurovision and we want to share this knowledge with you! Therefore we’d like to bring you a blast from the past. Today we want to honour Sara Tavares, who participated for Portugal in 1994. She passed away last Sunday. Portugal in the Eurovision Song Contest Portugal started participating in the Eurovision Song Contest in 1964. It all started with a zero. This was the starting signal for a long and not easy road for Portugal. The idiosyncratic entries the country had often finished low. Exceptions were Carlos Mendes (1958) and José Cid (1980), both of whom reached a seventh place. In 1996, Lucia Moniz finished in sixth place with her “O meu coração não tem cor”. But for a victory, Portugal had to wait until 2017. It was Salvador Sobral who managed to enchant both the televoters and the professional jury with his subdued song “Amar pelos dois”. It turned into a landslide victory for the Portuguese; something they had been waiting for so long. photo: EBU/Andres Putting Festival RTP Da Canção 1994 The national final in Portugal is always called Festival RTP Da Canção. This year, two semifinals were held, on 10 and 17 january. Each of the semifinals contained 10 songs. Among them, Marco Quelhas, who represented Portugal in the 2001 contest as a half of the duo MTM. Eight songs headed to the final: Isabel Campelo, “Malmequer do Campo“, 122 pts, 3rd Trivium, “Trovas do Demo e d’el Rei“, 84 pts, 5th Pedro Miguéis, “Todos Nós Alguma Vez“, 136 pts, 2nd Inova Fora Nada, “O Vento Sabe o Que Quer“, 83 pts, 6th José Carvalho, “Lisboa, Minha Linda Cidade“, 92 pts, 4th Fernanda Lopes, “Se Fores Poema“, 75 pts, 7th Tó Carlos, “Ai Dona Inês“, 46 pts, 8th Sara Tavares, “Chamar a Música“, 220 pts, 1st As you can see, Sara Tavares won with a landslide, 84 points ahead of the runner up! Sara Tavares Sara Alexandra Lima Tavares, born on February 1, 1978, in Lisbon, Portugal, was a renowned Portuguese singer, composer, guitarist, and percussionist. Of Cape Verdean descent, her parents immigrated to Portugal and settled in Almada in the 1970s. Tavares grew up in Lisbon and faced early family challenges, with her father leaving and her mother moving south with her siblings, leaving Sara in the care of an older woman. Tavares exhibited remarkable musical talent from a young age. In 1994, at just 16, she won the national television song contest “Chuva de Estrelas,” performing Whitney Houston’s “One Moment in Time.” That same year, she triumphed at the “Festival da Canção,” earning a spot in the 1994 Eurovision Song Contest. Her winning song, “Chamar a Música,” was included on her debut EP, “Sara Tavares & Shout” (1996), where she blended gospel and funk with Portuguese influences. Her debut album “Mi Ma Bô,” produced by Lokua Kanza, was released in 1999. In 2017, Tavares released the album “Fitxadu,”. It was inspired by Lisbon’s diverse African sounds and cultures, showcasing a more electronic and urban sound. The album earned a Latin Grammy nomination for Best Portuguese Language Roots Album. Tavares was multilingual, composing in Portuguese, Portuguese-based Creole languages, and occasionally English. Sara was known for singing the European-Portuguese version of “God Help the Outcasts” from the Disney movie “The Hunchback of Notre Dame,”. She won a Disney Award for the best version of the original song with it. She also won a Portuguese Golden Globe for Best Portuguese Singer in 2000. photo: Henryk Kotowski Tavares passed away on November 19, 2023, in Lisbon at the age of 45, after a long battle with a brain tumor diagnosed since 2009. Her death was a great shock in the Eurovision community. Chamar a Música “Chamar a Música,” the captivating song that Sara Tavares performed at the 1994 Eurovision Song Contest, showcases her exceptional talent as a young artist. At just 16 years old, Tavares brought this melodic and emotionally resonant piece to the Eurovision stage, representing Portugal with grace and artistry. The song is characterized by its smooth, soulful melody. It is blending elements of Portuguese musical tradition with contemporary influences. Although Tavares’ performance was well-received, it ultimately placed 8th in the competition. Despite this, “Chamar a Música” remains a significant part of her early career, reflecting her deep connection to her cultural roots.

🇵🇹 In memoriam: Sara Tavares

The sad news came to us that today, 19th November 2023, Portuguese singer Sara Tavares passed away. Sara represented Portugal in the 1994 Eurovision Song Contest with the song “Chamar a musica”. Sara Tavares was a multifaceted artist whose music blended her Cape Verdean roots with world music influences. She was born on February 1, 1978, in Lisbon, Portugal. Raised in a multilingual environment, her exposure to diverse cultures and musical traditions at an early age shaped her eclectic musical style. Sara’s talent was first recognized when she won two significant Portuguese music contests, including the televised Chuva de Estrelas, at the age of 16. This early success laid the foundation for her musical career. In the same year, she won Festival Da Canção, the national final for the Eurovision Song Contest. She reached an 8th place in the international final in Dublin, one of the higher scores for Portugal. Her debut album, “Sara Tavares & Shout,” released in 1996, showcased her unique blend of African, Portuguese, and world rhythms, establishing her as a promising new voice in world music. Tavares’ artistry is characterized by soulful melodies, rich harmonies, and a blend of languages, predominantly Portuguese and Cape Verdean Creole, which she seamlessly weaves into her songs. Following her debut, Tavares took a brief hiatus to refine her sound and direction. She reemerged with “Mi Ma Bô” in 1999, an album that further solidified her unique musical identity, combining traditional African sounds with contemporary influences. Tavares’ renewed breakthrough came with her 2006 album “Balancê,” which earned critical acclaim and expanded her international audience. It showcased her matured songwriting and a deeper exploration of her African roots, featuring hits like “Bom Feeling” and “Balancê.” Her subsequent album, “Xinti,” released in 2009, continued this trajectory, delving deeper into the exploration of her identity and heritage. The album was a critical success, praised for its introspective lyrics and rich, multi-layered compositions. Beyond music, Tavares is known for her activism and advocacy for cultural diversity and inclusion. She has been a vocal advocate for the African diaspora’s culture, using her music as a bridge between different cultures and generations. Sara Tavares suffered of a brain tumor and passed away at age 45.

Suzy

© Albin Olsson About Quick Facts NameSusana Guerra Born24 January 1980 Nationality🇵🇹 Portugal National SelectionFestival Da Canção 2014 In Eurovision2014 Copenhagen SongQuero Ser Tua (2014) Biography Susana Guerra, also recognized as Suzy Guerra and previously known as Susana Mota or simply Suzy, is a singer hailing from Portugal. Her stage debut happened when she was just 6 years old at Cineteatro Caras Direitas in Buarcos. She later relocated to Lisbon in her youth and joined the popular children’s group, Onda Choc. Furthermore, she was the voice behind the inaugural theme of the kid’s TV series, Uma Aventura. In the Christmas season of 1999, she teamed up with Os Anjos on a song titled “Esta Noite Branca”, included in the re-release of the album “Ficarei”. She launched her maiden solo album under the name Susana”, featuring collaborations with singer João Portugal on a song called “Vida”. This track was included in a compilation promoted by Rádio Renascença in 2001. From 2002 to 2003, Susana portrayed Sally in the musical My Fair Lady, a production by Filipe La Feria. In 2005, she ventured to Canada to explore further musical opportunities. Susana was part of the December 2009 musical, Alice e a Magia do Natal, performing alongside artists like Ricardo Soler, Helena Vieira, Bernardo Gavina, and Beatriz Costa in the Óbidos Vila Natal event. She also gave live performances alongside notable figures such as DJ Diego Miranda and DJ Rita Mendes. This opened doors for her to work with DJ Kourosh (DJ Revelation 2008) and DJ Disimmon (Miguel Simões). Together, they produced a track titled “Candyland” (written by her), which was featured in the Summer Jam 2010 compilation, credited to Kourosh Tazmini & Disimmon featuring Suzy G. In 2014, she triumphed at the RTP Festival da Canção with a song called “Quero Ser Tua”. She carried the Portuguese flag at the 2014 Eurovision Song Contest in Copenhagen, Denmark, with her song “Quero Ser tua”. Despite delivering a notable performance, she placed 11th out of the 16 entries, narrowly missing out on the qualification by a single point. She reinvented herself as Suzy Guerra and launched a new single named “Higher” in November 2021. In 2022 she performed at Eurovision Parties in Poland, Spain, the UK and Portugal. In 2023 she performed in Austria, Poland, Portugal and Spain. Entries Quero Ser Tua Country🇵🇹 Portugal Year2014 LanguagePortuguese LyricsEmanuel MusicEmanuel BackingsSara CampinaMarta MotaJefferson Negreiros (percussion) DancersRenato NobreLuís Filipe Pimenta Results Semi Points: 39Position: 11Running order: 13 Results Finals Points: –Position: –Running order: – https://youtu.be/fhMbHLiEjS4

Liverpool live: Sweaty sweaters, video games and red feathers

Every participant has it’s second rehearsal today. That means we already know a lot and we can just say whether there are (major) changes or not. Different from other years, no independent journalists or fan media can join the rehearsals. What you read is what Eurovision.tv wants us to know. photo credits: EBU/Sarah Louise Bennett/Corinne Cummings/Chloe Hashemi Norway The Norwegian act is the same as in the first rehearsal. According to the reporters of eurovision.tv she hit the high notes. Alessandra is currently 6th at the bookmakers, which means she might do well for Norway this year. Malta The Maltese act is one were a lot happens. And singer Dav jr. even wears two sweaters. He takes one off during the show. According to him that is quite…. sweaty. Dav already took part in the national final in 2020. However, he says it is now the right time to go to Eurovision. The day after he was eliminated from the X-Factor 2020, his father passed away, so that was not a good moment for Eurovision.Unfortunately the bookmakers are not happy about Malta yet. Hopefully they are wrong this time! Serbia Sometimes it is difficult to know what will happen on tv when you are in the hall. That is why only now a lot of on-screen video game references came up in the reports. It fits in the act: somebody who just wants to sleep as there are so many bad things going on in the world. The song is written during the COVID19 lockdowns. Currently, Serbia is no. 17 in the betting odds. Latvia At least they have their outfits now, so it seems the luggage problem is solved. The band members are all wearing jackets and blouses with long, thin ties over it. Lead singer Andrejs Reinis Zitmanis wears a beige jacket, the others have darker cloths. Currently Latvia does not do well in the betting odds with a 35th place. However, we can not exclude a place in the final. Portugal Enthusiasm for the uptempo song Portugal brings on stage. There have not been many changes at all in the Portuguese entry. Mimicat still wears the feather dress that impressed in the first rehearsal. Portugal is currently 26th in the betting odds, which makes it likely that Mimicat will go through to the final. Ireland About Ireland, the same information is given by eurovision.tv as they did Monday: the members of Wild Youth are having fun on stage. Ireland is currently 24th at the betting odds. However, if you look at the qualifiers of semifinal one, they are 14th. A strange contradiction, and it makes the line on the official website quite cynical: “…and they look like they’re having the best time ever – the Irish delegation should be really happy”. Croatia Croatia’s Let 3 is having their second rehearsal, and their performance looks just as impressive on the big screen as it did in the hall, says eurovision.tv. However, the visual spectacle appears even more impressive and vibrant than before. The colors are now more intense and psychedelic, and the removal of clothing is now even more detailed and noticeable due to the high definition visuals. Judge for yourself if you should be happy with that. The betting ods give Croatia a 15th place. in collaboration with Eurovision Artists

Liverpool live: rehearsal schedule

The rehearsals continue with the 2nd rehearsal of 15 countries. The countries now have only 20 minutes to rehearse. 11.30 – 11.50 Norway11.55 – 12.15 Malta12.20 – 12.40 Serbia12.45 – 13.05 Latvia13.10 – 13.30 Portugal13.35 – 13.55 Ireland15.00 – 15.20 Croatia15.25 – 15.45 Switzerland15.50 – 16.10 Israel16.15 – 16.35 Moldova16.40 – 17.00 Sweden17.05 – 17.25 Azerbaijan17.30 – 17.50 Czechia17.55 – 18.15 The Netherlands18.20 – 18.40 Finland

Mimicat

About Quick Facts NameMarisa Isabel Lopes Mena Born25 Oktober 1985 Nationality🇵🇹 Portuguese National SelectionFestival da Canção 2023Festival da Canção 2001 In Eurovision2023 Liverpool SongAi coração (2023) Biography Marisa Isabel Lopes Mena, born in Coimbra in 1985, better known as Mimicat, is a Portuguese pop and soul singer and songwriter. Marisa Mena recorded her first album at the age of 9. A self-taught singer-songwriter from a very young age, she spent her teens between school and recording studios. She participated, aged just 15 and with the stage name Izamena, in one of the semifinals semifinal of Festival da Canção 2001, the national final for the Eurovision Song Contest. She presented the song “Mundo Colorido”, but did not make it to the final. In 2004, she auditioned for Idolos Portugal and entered the last 50. Marisa was the lead singer and author of most of the lyrics for a band from Coimbra called The Casino Royal. In 2009 she graduated in Sound and Image from the Escola Superior de Artes e Design das Caldas in Rainha. In 2014 she presented her debut album under the name Mimicat: “For you”. The first single “Tell me Why”, was included in the soundtrack of the soap opera Jardins Proibidos. In 2015, she performed on some of the biggest Portuguese stages (Festa do Avante, Sol da Caparica, Edp Cool Jazz, Meo Marés Vivas, Culturgest, among others). She debuted on stages in Brazil, at one of the biggest events in São Paulo, Virada Cultural. In 2016 she released two singles: “Stay Strong” and “Gave Me Love”. They were included in her second album, “Back in town”. The album was released in September 2017. Two more singles from the album, “Fire” and “Going down” were released in the same year. In 2018, the single “Nobody knows” from the same album was released. Also in 2018 Mimicat got the opportunity to open for Selah Sue during her tour in Portugal. In July of that year, she teamed up with Camelier. She featured on his single “It feels so good”. On 11 april 2019, Mimicat released her first single in Portuguese, “Ate ao fim”, dedicated to her parents who celebrated their 50 years of marriage. The song was followed by “Mal maior” in November. Due to COVID19, it remained a little silent around Mimicat. However, she sang a lot online. On 11 February 2021, a new single came out: “Tudo ao ar”. A year later, she teamed up with Filipe Gonçalves, who featured in her single and video “Mundo ao Contrário”. In 2023 she won the 57th edition of the RTP da Canção Festival, with the theme “Ai Coração”. She represented Portugal in the Eurovision Song Contest. The song reached the final and became 23rd there. Entries Ai Coração Country🇵🇹 Portugal Year2023 LanguagePortuguese LyricsMarisa Mena MusicMarisa MenaLuís Pereira DancersDaniel CourinhaDaniel Gamito SoaresInês GameiroVanda Gameiro Results Semi Points: 74Position: 9Running order: 5 Results Finals Points: 59Position: 23Running order: 2 https://youtu.be/HYfkxX4PFyw

Mimicat is the artist for Portugal

National final season is over. Mimicat won the Portuguese final Festival Da Canção 2023. She will sing the song “Ai, coração”, which is written by Marisa Mena and composed by Marisa Mena and Luís Perreira. Mimicat won the national final after an exciting voting. The jury voting resulted in a tie between Mimicat and Edmundo Inácio, but the televoter chose Mimicat. This is the full result: Mimicat, “Ai, coração”, 24 pt. Edmundo Inácio, “A festa”, 22 pt. Cláudia Pascoal, “Nasci Maria”, 12 pt. Bárbara Tinoco, “Goodnight”, 9 pt. Ivandro, “Povo”, 9 pt. Dapunksportif, “World needs therapy”, 8 pt. Voodoo Marmalade, “Tormento”, 7 pt. You Can’t Win Charlie Brown, “Contraste mudou”, 7 pt. Churky, “Encruzilhada”, 5 pt. Neon Soho, “Endless world”, 5 pt. Esse Povo, “Sapatos de cimento”, 4 pt. Sal, “Viver”, 3 pt. Inês Apenas, “Fim do mundo”, 3 pt.

Portugal: Festival da Canção, the last national final

Festival da Canção will reach it’s final tonight. That makes the Portuguese national selection for the Eurovision Song Contest the last one for this year. Only a few internal selected songs are not published yet. Festival da Canção has 13 songs this year. There were supposed to be twelve, but due to technichal issues an extra song had been added from the first semifinal. The finalists are: 1 Cláudia Pascoal Nasci Maria 2 Churky Encruzilhada 3 Esse Povo Sapatos de cimento 4 Bárbara Tinoco Goodnight 5 You Can’t Win Charlie Brown Contraste Mudou 6 Voodoo Marmalade Tormento 7 Inês Apenas Fim do mundo 8 Mimicat Ai coração 9 Dapunksportif World needs therapy 10 Neon Soho Endless world 11 Ivandro Povo 12 Edmundo Inácio A festa 13 Sal Viver Cláudia Pascoal won Festival Da Canção in 2018 and represented Portugal at the festival in Lisbon with the song “O jardim”.Bárbara Tinoco was 2nd in the 2020 national final.

Portugal: Festival Da Canção has it’s 2nd semifinal

Portugal continues the national final Festival Da Canção tonight. The tradition is that there will be two semifinals and a final. Every semifinal contains 10 songs, the final will have 12. That means that from tonight’s semifinal, five songs will go through to the final via televoting, one chosen by an expert jury. The show will be broadcast on 22:00 CET and you can watch it here and here. These are the participating songs: Edmundo Inácio, “A festa” The Happy Mess, “O impossível” Teresinha Landeiro, “Equanto é tempo” Bandua, “Bandeiras” Bárbara Tinoco, “Goodnight” Inês Apenas, “Fim do mundo” Ivandro, “Povo” Dapunksportif, “World needs therapy” Lara Li, “Funâmbula” Voodoo Marmalade, “Tormento” Bárbara Tinoco was 2nd in the 2020 national final.Lara Li took part in 1980 (semifinal) and 1986 (final).

Portugal: first semifinal decision made

Portugal has finally made a decision. From 10 songs, seven will head to the final. Here are the final results: MoYah, “Too much sauce” Bolha, “Sonhos de liberdade” April Ivy, “Modo voo” Churky, “Encurzilhada” Cláudia Pascoal, “Nasci Maria” Sal, “Viver” Mimicat, “Ai coração” You Can’t Win, Charlie Brown, “Contraste mudo” Neon Soho, “Endless world” Esse Povo, “Sapatos de cimento”