Through our Best of the Bunch series, we gave a recap on the Eurovision entries from 2006 to 2015 and gave you the opportunity to choose your Best of the Bunch. As you may remember, the current Best of the Bunch winners were put into our ‘Ultimate Eurovision’ but it’s time to see which of the latest three entries have remained as your favourites! In our Best of the Bunch: The Trials series, we are going to recap the entries from a certain nation starting with 2016 and continuing through to the latest Eurovision season of 2018. Your job is to simply enjoy the music, and vote for your Best of the Bunch winner!
Today we will be taking a closer look at the latest three entries of Georgia at Eurovision. In the scheme of things, Georgia is relatively new to the contest having only made their debut in 2007. Since then, their best result has been 9th place which they have achieved twice, but in recent years Georgia haven’t been reaping the rewards. That’s all up for discussion as we recap the latest three entries, and then it will be up to you to vote for your Best of the Bunch!
Georgia 2016
After the gothic presence of Nina Sublatti performing her entry Warrior in the previous year, we saw a slight deviation in style with the 2016 representatives Nika Kocharov & Young Georgian Lolitaz. Although still in the rock genre, their entry Midnight Gold was certainly more in the alternative stream and throughout the pre-season, it was getting mixed reviews. The stage performance was created by the incredibly talented Sacha Jean-Baptiste which elevated the song to another level. The retro vibe of the stage performance matched the understated style of the song, and although it was unexpected for some, Georgia managed to qualify to the final in 9th place, and in the final finished in 20th with 104 points.
Georgia 2017
The following year Georgia held a multi-artist national final to select their act, and out of what felt like countless participating acts, Tamara Gachechiladze triumphed with her epic ballad titled Keep the Faith. As you may know, it wasn’t the first time Tamara had been involved with the contest, having been a part of Stephane and 3G who were set to participate at Eurovision 2009, although were withdrawn due to political content. As a solo act, Tamara performed with great strength, and although perhaps in other years it would have been a strong qualifier, in the context of 2017 it didn’t quite get there. The song finished in 11th place with 99 points in the semi-final.
Georgia 2018
That brings us to the most recent Georgian entry, and perhaps the most diverse entry from the nation. We have seen a strong showing of rock music, a few strong ballads and the occasional pop number but what we hadn’t seen from Georgia was an ethno song completely in Georgian language. In fact, group Iriao were the first Georgian act to completely sing in Georgian language which made for a beautiful change. The song titled For You was a beautiful jazz number that focused primarily on vocals and harmonies. Although it captured the hearts of many Eurovision fans, it wasn’t to the taste of the voters, giving Georgia their second last place entry.
So now you’ve seen all three performances, it’s time to vote for your Best of the Bunch!
If you want more Best of the Bunch from Georgia, check out our original series:
If you want to check out who made our Ultimate Eurovision, check it out here: