We see a lot of solo artists at Eurovision, and a bunch of bands, but today the spotlight is on the duets. Over the last five years, there’s been a handful of duets, but today we’ve picked the top of the crop. What makes a good duo, you ask – well, naturally the song needs to be good, but in these often love songs (or break up songs in some of these cases), the chemistry needs to be there, real or well-acted, it doesn’t matter. So here are our top 5!
5. Joe and Jake – You’re Not alone
This is a bromance too cute not to feature in the top 5. This song comes alive when these two sing together, and even though it’s two male voices, you can hear the difference between the two, creating a nice harmony. What demands more attention here is how adorable these two are on stage. Throughout the performance, whenever they’re not looking into cameras, they’re often looking at each other, almost giving each other the ‘we got this’ kind of look. It’s a connection between friends that you can’t really fake. The song literally says, we’re in this together, and this whole performance just demonstrates that. At the end, just as the cherry on top, they have a bro hug, like all good bros do.
4. Monika Linkytė and Vaidas Baumila – This Time
There’s nothing more uplifting than a boppy love song, and Lithuania really delivered this in 2015. Originally not intended to be a duet, it was one of the songwriters of This Time who had originally requested that Vaidas and Monika be coupled up to perform the song together. In the end, it made much more sense to send the duo, and they themselves were backed by two duos of backing singers. This became more important for that iconic moment where the Monika and Vaidas shared that kiss, but also the backing singers shared same sex kisses, a move which pleased audiences. A nice, innocent song performed well by two confident singers, what more could you want?
3. Elina Born & Stig Rästa – Goodbye To Yesterday
Estonia aren’t strangers to a good duo, and from the last five years, this was certainly the best of them, both in my opinion and looking at the results of the contest. Contrast to the Lithuanian counterpart, Goodbye To Yesterday was far more moody and had more country undertones. I would say that Elina gives the winning performance in this duo, however big credit to the camera work in this one which really highlights the ‘dialogue’ of the lyrics. Minimal showing of the audience really makes it feel like we’re in their lounge room just eavesdropping on a conversation. Well considered staging really helped to elevate an already enjoyable song, so it’s unsurprising that Estonia finished in the top 10.
2. Zala Kralj & Gašper Šantl – Sebi
Fresh in the mind, this minimal Slovenian entry managed to capture the hearts of the voters at this year’s Eurovision Song Contest. Unlike all the other duets featured in this top 5, Zala and Gašper are actually together as a couple, and I think that is very clear in their performance. Forget the audience, forget the cameras, their eyes rarely move away from each other. With the minimal lighting and backing screen, it created an intimate atmosphere. The style of song also adds to that vibe, being minimal but almost like a sort of lullaby. No big notes, no key changes, no gimmicks, this is one couple with a simple love song.
- Mørland & Debrah Scarlett – A Monster Like Me
Like any good duet, we start with the introduction to one half of the duo, in this case Mørland who sets the tone of the song. Enter Debrah, the redhead goddess, who kicks off some of the most beautiful harmonies we’ll see in this top 5. Their voices mesh in a way that gives you chills down your spine, especially in that very last chorus. Their chemistry within the performance is also quite chilling. They move closer together, then further away – do they love each other, do they not? It’s almost like a soap opera! The staging was kept simple, but it really suits the moodiness of the song, and the stage illuminates as they hit those big notes. Another stand out performance from Norway.