Spain hasn’t had the best of luck at Eurovision in recent years, especially in the last five years or so. The nation automatically qualifies for the final, but often finds themselves in the bottom 5. Hoping to break that pattern is this year’s participant Blas Cantó with his ballad, Voy a Quedarme. Will we see Spain rise to the top this year?
Anita (Eurovision Union)
Song and Vocals
At first, I wasn’t too impressed with Blas’ song from last year, Universo, but I quickly came around. Because of that, I was genuinely looking forward to seeing what he could deliver this year. Blas has an enthusiasm for Eurovision, and you can tell he wants to make his nation proud after a number of mediocre results. There were two options for the national final this year, more of an upbeat number, and then there was Voy a Quedarme. Immediately, I fell in love with both. Objectively, I knew the ballad would fare better at Eurovision, so I was glad that Spain picked this song.
I don’t know what it is about this song, but it immediately touched my heart. I’m not usually the biggest ballad fan, but this song just hits differently. The piano intro sets the tone for the song, and we then get to hear the smooth vocals from Blas. I am so glad that he will sing in Spanish, and this song sounds beautiful in Spanish. I may not understand a word, but the emotion manages to come through so strongly that I feel intimately connected to the lyrics. I really enjoy how the song builds over the entire three minutes, and *that note* could be one of my favourites of the year. Knowing that he absolutely nailed the note live gives me such hope, however I hope that they tone down the backing vocals and just let Blas shine in that moment. Watching the live performance back, I think Blas performs well and his vocals are good, but I hope we see a less reserved performance in the final.
Performance and Act
The national final performance was ok, but it didn’t really reach the heights I would want it to. I think they hit too many of the visual clichés, including the moon background. I want something different from Spain this year with this song, because at the moment it’s underappreciated so I think if they can really bring something special with the staging, Blas could really surprise audiences. It also helps that this is one of few ballads this year, and hopefully he gets a good slot in the running order to help him along.
Conclusions
This is easily one of my favourite songs this year, and one of my favourite Spanish songs from the modern day contest. I really hope this does better than expected, I think Spain and Blas deserve it. This is a beautiful song that should surely touch the hearts of the viewers!
Rating
10/10
Dennis (ESCDaily)
Song and Vocals
Whilst I can’t say the Spanish song is bad, it’s a bit bland and stereotype Eurovision ballad to me. This is a problem, because whilst you would think such a song would be suitable for Eurovision, it’s the type of song that doesn’t receive a lot of points at the end of the night. Blas is a good singer, but not exceptional, even though the high note is impressive, also because of the way the backing singers team up with him.
Performance and Act
I really liked the staging at the Spanish final, with the moon blocking the light of the sun, giving the performance the intimate feeling that it needs. But usually, Spain changes their staging and visual presentation a lot for the actual performance in May. No matter what they will do, I don’t know if the staging can save this song from ending up in the lower regions of the scoreboard.
Conclusions
Spain hasn’t had a good result since 2014 and I don’t see them breaking that curve in 2021. Blas Cantó and his song are just not impactful enough to make a lasting impression. Which is needed to get enough points for an eventual top-10 position. Spain needs to reconsider the way they select their Eurovision songs and act, to get more successful in the near future again.
Rating
6/10
Additional Scores from Eurovision Union and ESCDaily editors:
Steef: 3.5/10
Joshua: 6/10
Selim: 5/10
Heath: 5.5/10
Kaitlin: 6.5/10
Average Score: 6.1/10
What do you think of Voy a Quedarme? Follow our Eurovision 2021 reviews here.. You can support your favourite acts in our Eurovision 2021 poll, which you can find here.