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 are putting Ukraine in the spotlight, a nation that in the scheme of things has had quite a short history at Eurovision. Despite that, they have an impeccable streak, having qualified to the final each and every time they have participated, inclusive of two wins. Today we will be discussing the latest three entries, starting from 2016 and continuing through to this year’s entry. After our recap, it will be up to you to decide which act is your Best of the Bunch!
Ukraine 2016
We are starting off on a high as the first act to recap is one of the two entries that have won the contest for Ukraine! That would have been a spoiler if you didn’t already know, but it’s difficult not to remember Jamala’s performance of her emotionally fuelled song 1944. Before the contest, it wasn’t seen as a clear winner, but upon her performance on the Eurovision stage, it became clear that Ukraine really was the black horse of the contest. In hindsight we now know that she neither topped the televote or the jury score, but her combined scores were enough to top the table and win the contest with 534 points.
Ukraine 2017
After Jamala’s win, the contest was held in Ukraine for the second time in Eurovision history. As such, Ukraine were once again in the position to choose an act to represent them on home soil which is always an added pressure! The national selection featured some strong entries, but the nation decided on O.Torvald with their song Time. It was definitely not like the entries of previous years, but with a free pass to the final as the host nation, it was the perfect time to send a hard rock song. Although rock music can be hit or miss at Eurovision, it was an authentic performance that blended a good song with the theatrics that Eurovision is well known for! In the end, the song didn’t make an impact on the results table, finishing in 24th with 36 points.
Ukraine 2018
That brings us to the most recent entry from Ukraine which was once again chosen through a national final. With a strong range of acts competing, it was a difficult national final to win, but in the end Mélovin was chosen with the song Under the Ladder. In the lead up to the contest, the song wasn’t considered a favourite, but as we know, Ukraine are qualified when it comes to creating a spectacular stage performance – and that they did. Burning piano and all, the performance was memorable. As expected, the song qualified through to the final from 6th place, and in the final finished in 17th place with 130 points.
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 Ukraine, check out our original series:
If you want to check out who made our Ultimate Eurovision, check it out here: