Song contest
ESC 2022: audience decides on “song for Turin”
The German audience decides on the “Lied für Turin”. Photo: Jörg Carstensen / dpa
© dpa-infocom GmbH
In recent years, the German contributions at the ESC have often ended up in the lower places. In 2022 the audience should decide who goes to the ESC in Turin.
For the Eurovision Song Contest (ESC) 2022, the audience alone will ultimately decide on Germany’s contribution to the music spectacle.
Viewers and listeners of the third television programs and the nine ARD pop waves on the radio will have the choice between five acts for one day in March, as the Norddeutsche Rundfunk (NDR) announced on Thursday in Hamburg. Whoever competes for it will be selected beforehand by a jury made up of six experts. The audience alone will have the final say, whoever sings the “Song for Turin”.
Various models had recently been tried out for the German preliminary round. In 2020 and 2021, the German act was selected by juries without the involvement of the audience.
With the new variant, the ARD hopes to end Germany’s bad luck. The last time in Rotterdam this year was the Hamburg singer Jendrik on rank 25 and thus on the penultimate place. At the ESC 2019 (before a forced Corona break), the duo S! Sters with “Sister” also only got the penultimate place, as did Levina 2017. Others were even the bottom two. From recent German ESC history, only Lena (2010 place 1), Roman Lob (2012 place 8) and Michael Schulte (2018 place 4) stand out as figures of light.
All artists who would like to be on stage for Germany at the ESC 2022 can apply now. The pop waves involved include Antenne Brandenburg, Bayern 3, Bremen Vier, hr3, MDR Jump, NDR 2, SR 1, SWR3 and WDR 2. Five experts from these radio programs form the German ESC with the head of the German ESC delegation, Alexandra Wolfslast – Expert jury. The jurors select the best five music acts. These candidates then face the audience’s vote with their songs as part of a big ARD ESC day. The ESC will be celebrated on May 14, 2022 in Turin, Italy.
In the words of ARD entertainment coordinator Frank Beckmann, the planned preliminary decision is “a cross-media event that only ARD can bring about in Germany. And in the end, all of Germany will decide who will represent our country in Turin in 2022. “