Although their Eurovision success has wavered in recent years, Greece had a hugely successful run throughout the 2000’s. It was not uncommon to see the nation finish within the Top 10, and more often than not, it was with songs that can only be described as fiercely, unapologetically Greek.
Watch My Dance ticked the ‘unapologetically Greek’ box, with perhaps one of the strongest Greek beats at the modern-day Eurovision. Loukas provided strong vocals that really gave the song a traditional feel, however that was diluted with the addition of the English language rap. There was potential in that combination, but in reality, Stereo Mike came out of the gate but certainly wasn’t swinging. The opening performance was totally lacklustre, vocally, lyrically and visually. That was repeated in the second verse, and added up, it was a significant portion of the song that just fell completely flat.
The saving grace for Greece was Loukas. His vocals weren’t perfect, but they had power, and suited the more traditional sounding beat. I would go as far to say that his parts of the song were the only enjoyable parts of the song, and I would have happily taken 3 minutes of Loukas singing rather than the strange, undercooked combination they decided to go with for Eurovision. The song still managed to come 7th, so while I’m being a bit harsh now, it’s clear that the song did have appeal. Maybe it was novelty at the time to feature such a combination, but looking back now, there was a lot that could have been changed to improve the overall performance.
Even in terms of the visual performance, there were strong elements, and some not-so-strong elements. I enjoyed the visuals on the backing screens, and the pyro of course, but the choreography just feels strange for such a traditional sounding song. I guess the connection is, since there’s rap, there should also be breakdancing, but there is such a strong disconnect.
I simultaneously like and dislike this song. I feel that there was so much potential here, but in an effort to be more contemporary or novelty, they forced two genres together, and it was far from seamless. Overall, I’ll give it a 6/10.
Profile
Year: 2011
Country: Greece
Artist: Loukas Yiorkas ft. Stereo Mike
Song: Watch My Dance
Final Ranking: 7th in the final