Despite Serbia’s lengthy history at Junior Eurovision, the nation is yet to win the contest. Their best placing thus far is 3rd, which they achieved in 2007, and in 2010. Hoping to score Serbia’s first win is this year’s representative, Petar Aničić who will be singing the song Heartbeat at the contest.
Song + Vocals
I have to admit, I’m not too familiar with this song so this is *almost* a true first impression review. Listening to it in its entirety now, there are things I’m liking about this song, but it doesn’t have that je ne sais quoi.
The piano intro sets the tone for the song, and then we are introduced to Petar’s beautiful voice. That first verse is perhaps the best part of the song, with the melody and vocals both incredibly smooth. Then the beat kicks in, and that’s probably my least favourite part of the song. I feel like it loses some of the magic with that generic beat in the background, and would much prefer to hear more of his voice against the piano and a stronger strings section. Additionally, it would have been great to see more ethnic elements throughout the song, as his voice lends itself well to the Balkan ballad style.
The highlight of this song by far is his tone of voice, and after doing some digging on Youtube, his voice is just as great when he performs live. As far as I know, we haven’t heard his Junior Eurovision entry performed live, however based on some of his covers, I have high hopes. This may be contradictory, but it would have been great to see him perform a more traditional Balkan ballad, or something more contemporary. Heartbeat falls somewhere in the middle and thus it leaves me wanting more from this song.
Act + Performance
It’s hard to know what to expect for the visual performance of this song, but I hope they don’t go too cliché with hearts in the background. Keeping it simple and classy would match his voice and the style of the song. It’s a complete mystery to me, but I can’t wait to see how they choose to stage this song.
Conclusions
I wish this was more of traditional Balkan ballad, especially with his stunning voice, but Heartbeat is becoming more and more likable with each listen. It will probably be a mid-table finish for Serbia this year, but nonetheless it’s a nice song that will appeal to audiences.
Rating
7/10
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