The EuroWhat? Podcast

The EuroWhat? Podcast

The Eurowhat? Podcast launched in 2018 and features two Americans (Ben Smith and Mike McComb) attempting to make sense of the Eurovision Song Contest. The show tracks national selections and artist announcements, breaks down each year’s songs with a diverse array of guests, and dives into the 65+ years of contest history during the contest off-season, using Eurovision as a lens to analyze what’s happening in pop culture and the world. read less
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Episodes

Episode 222: Scrunchy Face Sounds
1w ago
Episode 222: Scrunchy Face Sounds
We're at the end of Eurovision Selection Season and get caught up with internal selections from Australia and Greece plus the conclusion of Sweden's Melodifestivalen and Portugal's Festival da Canção. ... what do you mean there are still some unknown tracks?! Scrunchy Face Sounds Summary Electric Fields to represent Australia with "One Milkali (One Blood)" (0:51) Greece rolls the dice with Marina Satti's "Zari" (4:13) Marcus and Martinus win Melodifestivalen with "Unforgettable" (7:58) "Grito" by iolanda wins Festival da Canção (13:35) Coming up: Israel, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Armenia, Review Season (17:41) Subscribe The EuroWhat? Podcast is available wherever you get your podcasts. Find your podcast app to subscribe here (https://www.eurowhat.com/subscribe). Comments, questions, and episode topic suggestions are always welcome. You can shoot us an email (mailto:eurowhatpodcast@gmail.com) or reach out on Bluesky @eurowhat.bsky.social (https://bsky.app/profile/eurowhat.bsky.social). Malmö 2024 Stay up to date on everything happening in the leadup to the Eurovision Song Contest on our page dedicated to Malmö 2024 (https://www.eurowhat.com/2024-malmo). You can keep tabs on the countries, artists, and songs, set your laundry folding schedule with our EuroWhat's On calendar, and futz with your Spotify algorithm with our Selection Season playlist (https://eurowhat.com/selection-season)! Join the EuroWhat AV Club! If you would like to help financially support the show, we are hosting the EuroWhat AV Club over on Patreon! We have a slew of bonus episodes with deep dives on Eurovision-adjacent topics.
Episode 221: Maximal
Mar 5 2024
Episode 221: Maximal
Several internal selections join the Eurovision 2024 field this week and exactly zero of them are holding back. Serbia's national final goes harder than necessary while Iceland... also made a selection this week. We're in the homestretch! Maximal Summary Nemo breaks "The Code" for Switzerland (0:47) Joost Klein is the Netherlands' "Europapa" (3:51) Silia Kapsis calls out a "Liar" for Cyprus (9:08) The United Kingdom's Olly Alexander is "Dizzy" for Eurovision (11:37) Austria declares "We Will Rave" with Kaleen (16:32) Teya Dora wins Serbia's Pesma za Euroviziju with "Ramonda" (19:47) Hera Bjork's "Scared of Heights" wins in Iceland (28:23) Melfest Heat 5 (33:19) Portugal's Festival da Cancao Semi 2 (38:56) This week: Australia, Greece, the End of Selection Season 2024 (40:36) Subscribe The EuroWhat? Podcast is available wherever you get your podcasts. Find your podcast app to subscribe here (https://www.eurowhat.com/subscribe). Comments, questions, and episode topic suggestions are always welcome. You can shoot us an email (mailto:eurowhatpodcast@gmail.com) or reach out on Bluesky @eurowhat.bsky.social (https://bsky.app/profile/eurowhat.bsky.social). Malmö 2024 Stay up to date on everything happening in the leadup to the Eurovision Song Contest on our page dedicated to Malmö 2024 (https://www.eurowhat.com/2024-malmo). You can keep tabs on the countries, artists, and songs, set your laundry folding schedule with our EuroWhat's On calendar, and futz with your Spotify algorithm with our Selection Season playlist (https://eurowhat.com/selection-season)! Join the EuroWhat AV Club! If you would like to help financially support the show, we are hosting the EuroWhat AV Club over on Patreon! We have a slew of bonus episodes with deep dives on Eurovision-adjacent topics.
Episode 220: Go Tiffany
Feb 27 2024
Episode 220: Go Tiffany
In a relatively quiet week in Eurovision land we check out Belgium's selection from Mustii, recap Una Voce per San Marino, and say meow to Baby Lasagna. We also check in with Sweden's Melodifestivalen, Iceland's Songvakeppnin, and the first semi for Portugal's Festival da Canção. Go Tiffany Summary Belgium releases Mustii's "Before the Party's Over" (1:23) Spain's Megara wins Una Voce per San Marino with "11:11" (4:35) "Rim Tim Dagi Dim" by Baby Lasagna dominates Dora (11:13) Melfest Heat 4 (18:05) Songvakeppnin Semi 2 (22:40) Festival da Canção 60 Begins (26:49) Coming up: Serbia's Pesma za Euroviziju and internal selections (28:58) Subscribe The EuroWhat? Podcast is available wherever you get your podcasts. Find your podcast app to subscribe here (https://www.eurowhat.com/subscribe). Comments, questions, and episode topic suggestions are always welcome. You can shoot us an email (mailto:eurowhatpodcast@gmail.com) or reach out on Bluesky @eurowhat.bsky.social (https://bsky.app/profile/eurowhat.bsky.social). Malmö 2024 Stay up to date on everything happening in the leadup to the Eurovision Song Contest on our page dedicated to Malmö 2024 (https://www.eurowhat.com/2024-malmo). You can keep tabs on the countries, artists, and songs, set your laundry folding schedule with our EuroWhat's On calendar, and futz with your Spotify algorithm with our Selection Season playlist (https://eurowhat.com/selection-season)! Join the EuroWhat AV Club! If you would like to help financially support the show, we are hosting the EuroWhat AV Club over on Patreon! We have a slew of bonus episodes with deep dives on Eurovision-adjacent topics.
Episode 219: Conversion
Feb 20 2024
Episode 219: Conversion
5 Eurovision national finals took place this past weekend with mixed results. Well, results that were mixed weirdly due to jury/televote score conversions. We discuss Germany, Estonia, Moldova, Lithuania, and Denmark, plus Poland's internal selection. Conversion Summary Isaak is "Always on the Run" for Germany (1:00) Eesti Laul Grand Final (5:44) Natalia Barbu represents Moldova again with "In the Middle" (10:12) Saba wins Dansk Melodi Grand Prix with "Sand" (14:11) "Luktelk" and Silvester Belt win Eurovizija.lt (18:52) Poland selects Luna and "The Tower" (23:59) Sweden's Melfest Heat 3 (27:21) Iceland's Songvakeppnin Begins (31:58) Una Voce Per San Marino reveals big artists (34:52) This week: Belgium's entry from Mustii, Croatia's Dora, Portugal's Festival da Canção (40:05) Subscribe The EuroWhat? Podcast is available wherever you get your podcasts. Find your podcast app to subscribe here (https://www.eurowhat.com/subscribe). Comments, questions, and episode topic suggestions are always welcome. You can shoot us an email (mailto:eurowhatpodcast@gmail.com) or reach out on Bluesky @eurowhat.bsky.social (https://bsky.app/profile/eurowhat.bsky.social). Malmö 2024 Stay up to date on everything happening in the leadup to the Eurovision Song Contest on our page dedicated to Malmö 2024 (https://www.eurowhat.com/2024-malmo). You can keep tabs on the countries, artists, and songs, set your laundry folding schedule with our EuroWhat's On calendar, and futz with your Spotify algorithm with our Selection Season playlist (https://eurowhat.com/selection-season)! Join the EuroWhat AV Club! If you would like to help financially support the show, we are hosting the EuroWhat AV Club over on Patreon! We have a slew of bonus episodes with deep dives on Eurovision-adjacent topics.
Episode 218: Imaginary Beef
Feb 13 2024
Episode 218: Imaginary Beef
With Ben traveling back from Finland's UMK, guest Trip Payne taps in to discuss that national final, Latvia's Supernova, and Italy's Sanremo Festival. Then we prepare for the biggest Super Saturday of the Eurovision season coming up next weekend. Imaginary Beef Summary Petra Mede and Malin Åkerman will host Eurovision 2024 (2:27) Windows95Man wins UMK with "No Rules" (4:05) "Hollow" by Dons wins Latvia's Supernova (9:40) "La Noia" will go to Malmo with Angelina Mango (14:29) Lithuania's Eurovizijalt Final Field Set (25:51) Melfest Heat 2 (27:38) This week: Germany, Moldova, Estonia, Denmark, Iceland, San Marino (30:29) Subscribe The EuroWhat? Podcast is available wherever you get your podcasts. Find your podcast app to subscribe here (https://www.eurowhat.com/subscribe). Comments, questions, and episode topic suggestions are always welcome. You can shoot us an email (mailto:eurowhatpodcast@gmail.com) or reach out on Bluesky @eurowhat.bsky.social (https://bsky.app/profile/eurowhat.bsky.social). Malmö 2024 Stay up to date on everything happening in the leadup to the Eurovision Song Contest on our page dedicated to Malmö 2024 (https://www.eurowhat.com/2024-malmo). You can keep tabs on the countries, artists, and songs, set your laundry folding schedule with our EuroWhat's On calendar, and futz with your Spotify algorithm with our Selection Season playlist (https://eurowhat.com/selection-season)! Join the EuroWhat AV Club! If you would like to help financially support the show, we are hosting the EuroWhat AV Club over on Patreon! We have a slew of bonus episodes with deep dives on Eurovision-adjacent topics. Special Guest: Trip Payne.
Episode 217: Technical Difficulties
Feb 6 2024
Episode 217: Technical Difficulties
It was a Saturday so Super it stretched into Sunday... not by choice, but Ukraine loves drama. Norway, Spain, and Malta also made their Eurovision picks, Latvia and Sweden kicked off their processes, and Lithuania is almost done with their heats. Oh, and The Draw added some structure to the 2024 Contest. Technical Difficulties Summary The Draw handles the Semi-Final Allocation (0:27) VidBir (eventually) selects alyona alyona & Jerry Heil & "Maria & Teresa" (4:08) Gåte wins NRK MGP with "Ulveham" (11:05) Nebulossa conquers Spain's Benidorm Fest with "Zorra" (14:23) Malta has Sarah Bonnici on "Loop" (19:43) Il Senso and Monika Marija advance in Lithuania (25:21) Latvia's Supernova Semi-Final (28:29) Sweden kicks off Melodifestivalen 2024 (33:01) This week: Italy's Sanremo, Germany's Wildcard, Finland's UMK (38:59) Subscribe The EuroWhat? Podcast is available wherever you get your podcasts. Find your podcast app to subscribe here (https://www.eurowhat.com/subscribe). Comments, questions, and episode topic suggestions are always welcome. You can shoot us an email (mailto:eurowhatpodcast@gmail.com) or reach out on Bluesky @eurowhat.bsky.social (https://bsky.app/profile/eurowhat.bsky.social). Malmö 2024 Stay up to date on everything happening in the leadup to the Eurovision Song Contest on our page dedicated to Malmö 2024 (https://www.eurowhat.com/2024-malmo). You can keep tabs on the countries, artists, and songs, set your laundry folding schedule with our EuroWhat's On calendar, and futz with your Spotify algorithm with our Selection Season playlist (https://eurowhat.com/selection-season)! Join the EuroWhat AV Club! If you would like to help financially support the show, we are hosting the EuroWhat AV Club over on Patreon! We have a slew of bonus episodes with deep dives on Eurovision-adjacent topics.
Episode 216: Squiggle Line Mouth Face
Jan 30 2024
Episode 216: Squiggle Line Mouth Face
Eurovision season clicks into second gear this week with Ireland and Luxembourg making selections, Norway setting its final field, Lithuania's holding its third heat, and Malta, Spain, and Ukraine getting ready to decide. How will The Draw shake up things in Malmö? Squiggle Line Mouth Face Summary Romania won't be part of The Draw (1:15) Ireland chooses Bambie Thug's "Doomsday Blue" (3:17) Tali will be Luxembourg's "Fighter" in Malmö (10:56) Iceland announces its intentions (20:44) Norway sets its final field for NRK MGP (24:47) Lithuania's Third Heat for Eurovizija.LT (31:45) This week: Malta, Spain's Benidorm Fest, Ukraine's VidBir (34:57) Subscribe The EuroWhat? Podcast is available wherever you get your podcasts. Find your podcast app to subscribe here (https://www.eurowhat.com/subscribe). Comments, questions, and episode topic suggestions are always welcome. You can shoot us an email (mailto:eurowhatpodcast@gmail.com) or reach out on Bluesky @eurowhat.bsky.social (https://bsky.app/profile/eurowhat.bsky.social). Malmö 2024 Stay up to date on everything happening in the leadup to the Eurovision Song Contest on our page dedicated to Malmö 2024 (https://www.eurowhat.com/2024-malmo). You can keep tabs on the countries, artists, and songs, set your laundry folding schedule with our EuroWhat's On calendar, and futz with your Spotify algorithm with our Selection Season playlist (https://eurowhat.com/selection-season)! Join the EuroWhat AV Club! If you would like to help financially support the show, we are hosting the EuroWhat AV Club over on Patreon! We have a slew of bonus episodes with deep dives on Eurovision-adjacent topics.
Episode 215: That's SLO Raiven
Jan 23 2024
Episode 215: That's SLO Raiven
Eurovision calmed down a bit this week with qualifying heats from Lithuania and Norway plus the semi-final for Estonia's Eesti Laul. Slovenia turned up the drama with Raiven's "Veronika" and Austria announced their artist for Malmö. Be warned: this is the last bit of calm until March... That's SLO Raiven Summary Raiven's "Veronika" debuts for Slovenia (1:02) Austria announces Kaleen for Malmö (3:40) Portugal and Germany release National Final details (5:29) Eesti Laul Semi-final (9:16) NRK MGP Heat 2 (12:05) Eurovizija.lt Heat 2 (20:49) This week: Romania, Denmark, Serbia, Ireland, Luxembourg, Malta, and The Draw (25:34) Subscribe The EuroWhat? Podcast is available wherever you get your podcasts. Find your podcast app to subscribe here (https://www.eurowhat.com/subscribe). Comments, questions, and episode topic suggestions are always welcome. You can shoot us an email (mailto:eurowhatpodcast@gmail.com) or reach out on Bluesky @eurowhat.bsky.social (https://bsky.app/profile/eurowhat.bsky.social). Malmö 2024 Stay up to date on everything happening in the leadup to the Eurovision Song Contest on our page dedicated to Malmö 2024 (https://www.eurowhat.com/2024-malmo). You can keep tabs on the countries, artists, and songs, set your laundry folding schedule with our EuroWhat's On calendar, and futz with your Spotify algorithm with our Selection Season playlist (https://eurowhat.com/selection-season)! Join the EuroWhat AV Club! If you would like to help financially support the show, we are hosting the EuroWhat AV Club over on Patreon! We have a slew of bonus episodes with deep dives on Eurovision-adjacent topics.
Episode 214: Floodgates
Jan 16 2024
Episode 214: Floodgates
The search for the next Eurovision winner began officially this week, with Moldova holding auditions, Norway kicking off NRK MGP, and Lithuania launching its new process Eurovizija.lt. Georgia announced their artist, and everybody had to issue a press release the week that Mike is home alone 😱 Floodgates Summary Georgia announces Nutsa for Malmö (1:33) Video links for The Draw, Semis, and Grand Final are live (3:44) Cyprus and Belgium release some song details (4:31) Songs revealed for Ireland, Finland, Luxembourg, Ukraine, Latvia (5:48) Moldova's Etapa Nationala Auditions (11:40) Norway's NRK MGP 2024 Begins (13:15) Lithuania launches Eurovizija.lt (16:28) This week: Slovenia, Estonia, Austria, Germany, and Portugal (19:26) Subscribe The EuroWhat? Podcast is available wherever you get your podcasts. Find your podcast app to subscribe here (https://www.eurowhat.com/subscribe). Comments, questions, and episode topic suggestions are always welcome. You can shoot us an email (mailto:eurowhatpodcast@gmail.com) or reach out on Bluesky @eurowhat.bsky.social (https://bsky.app/profile/eurowhat.bsky.social). Malmö 2024 Stay up to date on everything happening in the leadup to the Eurovision Song Contest on our page dedicated to Malmö 2024 (https://www.eurowhat.com/2024-malmo). You can keep tabs on the countries, artists, and songs, set your laundry folding schedule with our EuroWhat's On calendar, and futz with your Spotify algorithm with our Selection Season playlist (https://eurowhat.com/selection-season)! Join the EuroWhat AV Club! If you would like to help financially support the show, we are hosting the EuroWhat AV Club over on Patreon! We have a slew of bonus episodes with deep dives on Eurovision-adjacent topics.
Episode 213: Trickle
Jan 9 2024
Episode 213: Trickle
Eurovision 2024 barely took a break for the holidays! We get caught up on Albania's Festivali i Këngës, the results of the ESC 250 Countdown, and look forward to Moldova, Norway, and Lithuania this coming weekend. Trickle Summary Albania chooses Besa and "Zemren n'dore" (0:46) The Eurovision 2024 Stage Concept (5:31) Eurovision announces The Draw and a new sponsor (7:04) "Cha Cha Cha" wins the ESC250 Countdown (10:07) National Selection updates: Ukraine, Serbia, Ireland, Croatia, Finland (19:01) TV This Week: Norway's NRK MGP, Moldova's Auditions, Lithuania's Eurovizija.LT (23:21) Subscribe The EuroWhat? Podcast is available wherever you get your podcasts. Find your podcast app to subscribe here (https://www.eurowhat.com/subscribe). Comments, questions, and episode topic suggestions are always welcome. You can shoot us an email (mailto:eurowhatpodcast@gmail.com) or reach out on Bluesky @eurowhat.bsky.social (https://bsky.app/profile/eurowhat.bsky.social). Malmö 2024 Stay up to date on everything happening in the leadup to the Eurovision Song Contest on our page dedicated to Malmö 2024 (https://www.eurowhat.com/2024-malmo). You can keep tabs on the countries, artists, and songs, set your laundry folding schedule with our EuroWhat's On calendar, and futz with your Spotify algorithm with our Selection Season playlist (https://eurowhat.com/selection-season)! Join the EuroWhat AV Club! If you would like to help financially support the show, we are hosting the EuroWhat AV Club over on Patreon! We have a slew of bonus episodes with deep dives on Eurovision-adjacent topics.
Episode 210: Wilderness
Nov 21 2023
Episode 210: Wilderness
Ireland Gut Rehab We welcome back Alex McMillan to discuss the state of Ireland's Eurovision Song Contest selections and reflect on the nation's historical successes and recent failures. Is Eurosong on the Late Late Show the best selection method? Is Ireland stuck in the nostalgia for their dominance in the 90s? What risks can the delegation take to make a splash in Malmö? Alex McMillan Alex is a game designer, question setter, and American Song Contest apologist, best known for their work on Only Connect. They’ve worked on a range of game shows in both the UK and US, and when they’re not doing that they can be found writing articles for Hard Drive or performing stand-up as Céilí Rae Minogue. They have been watching Eurovision for the last 20 years and attended their first contest in person in 2023. Wilderness Summary Welcome back, Alex McMillan! (1:10) Ireland Since the '90s at Eurovision (5:30) The Late Late Show Problem (13:40) Finding the Irish Sound (19:15) How to Tweak Ireland's Selection Method (25:07) Who Should Represent Ireland at Eurovision? (29:44) Subscribe The EuroWhat? Podcast is available wherever you get your podcasts. Find your podcast app to subscribe here (https://www.eurowhat.com/subscribe). Comments, questions, and episode topic suggestions are always welcome. You can shoot us an email (mailto:eurowhatpodcast@gmail.com) or reach out on Bluesky @eurowhat.bsky.social (https://bsky.app/profile/eurowhat.bsky.social). Join the EuroWhat AV Club! If you would like to help financially support the show, we are hosting the EuroWhat AV Club over on Patreon! We have a slew of bonus episodes with deep dives on Eurovision-adjacent topics. Special Guest: Alex McMillan.