Singing talents
Conchita Wurst and Rea Garvey cast ESC talents
Rea Garvey (l) and Conchita Wurst in the backdrop of “I want to go to the ESC!”. photo
© André Kowalski/NDR/dpa
Auditions, coaches and more or less friendly rejections – the interested viewer knows that from private television. Now NDR is also going this route – to find the new German ESC star.
Germany last won the Eurovision Song Contest (ESC) had little luck with its artists, who often ended up in last place. This is why calls for a new selection process have been made again and again. Now Norddeutsche Rundfunk (NDR), which is responsible for the German ESC contribution, has delivered. With the help of ESC winner Conchita Wurst (“Rise like a Phoenix”) and musician Rea Garvey (“Supergirl”, “The Voice of Germany”).
The two can appear in the six-part docutainment series “I want to go to the ESC!” (from January 25th in the ARD media library) raise a musical talent to the German ESC preliminary round. Eight acts are already waiting for the decisive show on February 16th in Berlin, including Max Mutzke and Marie Reim.
The presenter, singer and drag artist Conchita Wurst, who is behind the entertainer Tom Neuwirth, thinks it’s great that Germany doesn’t give up in its search for ESC success. “I love ambition. Germany couldn’t care less,” Wurst told the German Press Agency in Hamburg. She and Garvey now want to find the person “who can turn this into a positive again.” Conchita Wurst won the ESC for Austria in 2014 with “Rise Like a Phoenix”.
No secret recipe for success
However, there is no secret recipe for success. “The only thing that stands out is that the stars always win. Those who have a good number, perform well, have charisma and with whom people can connect.” And Conchita Wurst is convinced: “We have people like that. Yes, I firmly believe that.” She could easily have selected the entire field of candidates for the preliminary round. “If they had let me, I would have done it.”
Just like with “The Voice of Germany”, after the performance, the coaches first decide whether they want to accept the talent into their team, and then the singers decide who can be their coach. Not all of the 15 applicants make it to the boot camp and only two per team Conchita and team Rea end up in the final for the last ticket for the German preliminary round. “I don’t know of any casting show where the prize is as huge as ours,” said Wurst.
And 15 very different singers want it – the guy next door, a Tiktok actress, a street musician, a trans woman, a musical actor, a student, a professional singer. Whether one of them will ultimately represent Germany at the ESC in Malmö and whether the new format can perhaps even become an integral part of the future selection process will not be decided until February 16th.
Sympathetic duo evaluates honestly and mindfully
The show is actually very entertaining. And the coaches Conchita Wurst and Rea Garvey played a big part in this. The duo comes across as extremely likeable, chats freely here and there and is as honest as they are attentive in their assessments. They work harmoniously and you can and want to laugh a lot with them. “We are such a well-coordinated team. Working with Rea is really a pleasure and a gift,” said Conchita. And Rea Garvey added: “I love the harmony between Conchita and me. It’s a lot of fun.”
But she was still the better coach, said Conchita Wurst with a laugh. “I know how it works there. Musically I also feel relatively fit. I’ll say provocatively now: Rea, when it comes to the song contest: Thank You for Participating, I am Taking Over Now.” (German: Thanks for participating, I’ll take over now). Wurst is convinced that her talents will inspire in the preliminary round: “I’m totally confident. We have hits, hits, hits in our bag.”
After recording the first episodes, Rea Garvey was surprised by the potential of the talent. For him, the show was initially intended primarily as good entertainment, he said. “The fact that we’ve now gone through the process and know that we have a really good chance of being the winners of this show, that’s exciting. I didn’t expect that.” The finale of the show is on Thursday, February 8th, live in the media library and on NDR (10 p.m.). Then the viewers decide.