Eurovision Song Contest 2017
Country Georgia
National selection
Selection processEvroviizis erovnul konkurss
Selection date(s)20 January 2017
Selected entrantTamara Gachechiladze
Selected song"Keep the Faith"
Selected songwriter(s)
Finals performance
Semi-final resultFailed to qualify (11th)
Georgia in the Eurovision Song Contest
◄2016 • 2017 • 2018►

Georgia participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2017 with the song "Keep the Faith" written by Anri Jokhadze and Tamara Gachechiladze. The song was performed by Tamara Gachechiladze, who was due to represent Georgia in the Eurovision Song Contest 2009 as part of Stephane and 3G with the song "We Don't Wanna Put In" before the nation's withdrawal in protest of the Russo-Georgian War. Songwriter Anri Jokhadze represented Georgia in the 2012 contest where he failed to qualify to the final with the song "I'm a Joker". The Georgian broadcaster Georgian Public Broadcaster (GPB) held a national final in order to select the Georgian entry for the 2017 contest in Kyiv, Ukraine. An open call for submissions was held which resulted in the submission of twenty-five entries that were presented to the public during a televised production on 20 January 2017. The results of a public televote combined with the votes of an international jury resulted in the selection of "Keep the Faith" performed by Tamara Gachechiladze as the Georgian entry.

Georgia was drawn to compete in the first semi-final of the Eurovision Song Contest which took place on 9 May 2017. Performing during the show in position 2, "Keep the Faith" was not announced among the top 10 entries of the second semi-final and therefore did not qualify to compete in the final. It was later revealed that Georgia placed eleventh out of the 18 participating countries in the semi-final with 99 points.

Background

Prior to the 2017 contest, Georgia had participated in the Eurovision Song Contest nine times since their first entry in 2007.[1] The nation's highest placing in the contest, to this point, has been ninth place, which was achieved on two occasions: in 2010 with the song "Shine" performed by Sofia Nizharadze and in 2011 with the song "One More Day" performed by Eldrine. The nation briefly withdrew from the contest in 2009 after the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) rejected the Georgian entry, "We Don't Wanna Put In", for perceived political references to Vladimir Putin who was the Russian Prime Minister at the time.[2][3] The withdrawal and fallout was tied to tense relations between Georgia and then host country Russia, which stemmed from the 2008 Russo-Georgian War.[4] Following the introduction of semi-finals, Georgia has, to this point, failed to qualify to the final on only two occasions. In 2016, Georgia qualified to the final where the country placed 20th with the song "Midnight Gold" performed by Nika Kocharov and Young Georgian Lolitaz.

The Georgian national broadcaster, Georgian Public Broadcaster (GPB), broadcasts the event within Georgia and organises the selection process for the nation's entry. GPB confirmed their intentions to participate at the 2017 Eurovision Song Contest on 3 October 2016.[5] Georgia has selected their entry for the Eurovision Song Contest both through national finals and internal selections in the past. In 2016, GPB opted to internally select the Georgian artist while the song was chosen in a national final. For their 2017 participation, both the artist and song was selected via a national final.

Before Eurovision

Evroviizis erovnuli konkursi

GPB opened a public submission from 7 November 2016 until 7 December 2016.[6] 28 entries were received by the submission deadline, of which three were later withdrawn.[7][8] The 25 entries were presented to the public via a special programme on 20 January 2017 at the Philharmonic Hall in Tbilisi, hosted by 2013 Georgian Eurovision entrant Nodiko Tatishvili and Liza Tsiklauri and broadcast on the GPB First Channel as well as online at the broadcaster's website 1tv.ge.[9][10] The winner, "Keep the Faith" performed by Tako Gachechiladze, was determined upon by the combination of the votes of an international jury (80%) and a public televote (20%).[11] The international jury consisted of Tali Eshkoli (television director), Ralf Reinink (journalist), Sacha Jean-Baptiste (staging director) and Borislav Milanov (composer and producer).[12]

Draw Artist Song Songwriter(s) Jury Televote Total Place
1 Giorgi Chikovani "Make It Right" Giorgi Chikovani 76 3 79 7
2 Brandon Stone, Eteri Beriashvili and Vahtang "Heyo Song" Brandon Stone 43 4 47 18
3 Rati Durglishvili "Why" Rati Durglishvili 32 13 45 21
4 Andria Gvelesiani "Revolutionise" Giorgi Laghidze 58 12 70 10
5 Alisa Danelia "We Are Eternity" Alisa Danelia 47 1 48 17
6 Nutsa Buzaladze "White Horses Run" Andy Vitolo, John King 89 18 107 2
7 Maliibu "We Live Once" Malibu Tugushi 95 10 105 3
8 Eos "Urban Signs" Giorgi Kochoradze, Gedevan Levlishvili 16 7 23 25
9 Dima Kobeshavidze "Scream" Dima Kobeshavidze 53 2 55 14
10 Trio Mandili "Me da shen" (მე და შენ) Vadim Estreman, Rostislav Maslovich 60 5 65 12
11 Tako Gachechiladze "Keep the Faith" Anri Jokhadze, Tamara Gachechiladze 98 24 122 1
12 Nino Basharuli "Lileo" (ლილეო) Nino Basharuli 52 20 72 9
13 Elene Mikiashvili "Fighter" Ylva Persson, Linda Persson, Will Taylor 44 11 55 14
14 Misha Sulukhia "Magic" Misha Sulukhia 49 14 63 13
15 Mariko Lezhava "Light It Up" Boris Skhiani, Gigi Bezhanishvili 66 16 82 6
16 The Mins "Crime" Zviad Mghebrishvili 83 22 105 3
17 Sparkle "On the Top" Aleko Berdzenishvili 54 23 77 8
18 Tornike Kipiani and Giorgi Bolotashvili "You Are My Sunshine" Tornike Kipiani 26 9 35 23
19 Temo Sajaia "All the Same" Temo Sajaia 48 6 54 16
20 Sabina Chantouria "Stranger" Sabina Chantouria 39 8 47 18
21 Mariam Chachkhiani "Fly" Joni Titirashvili 68 15 83 5
22 Asea Sool "Nature" Asea Sool 25 21 46 20
23 Nanuka Giorgobiani "Let the Sunshine In" Edisher Lomadze 17 17 34 24
24 Oto Nemsadze and Group Limbo "Dear God" Beso Nemsadze 45 25 70 10
25 Davit Shanidze "Mtveris katsi" (მტვერის კაცი) Davit Shanidze 17 19 36 22

Promotion

Tamara Gachechiladze made several appearances across Europe to specifically promote "Keep the Faith" as the Georgian Eurovision entry. On 4 February, Tamara Gachechiladze performed "Keep the Faith" during the first semi-final of the Ukrainian Eurovision national final. Between 3 and 6 April, Gachechiladze took part in promotional activities in Tel Aviv, Israel where she performed during the Israel Calling event held at the Ha'teatron venue.[13][14] On 8 April, she performed during the Eurovision in Concert event which was held at the Melkweg venue in Amsterdam, Netherlands and hosted by Cornald Maas and Selma Björnsdóttir.[15] On 15 April, Tamara Gachechiladze performed during the Eurovision Spain Pre-Party, which was held at the Sala La Riviera venue in Madrid, Spain.[16]

At Eurovision

Tamara Gachechiladze during a press meet and greet

According to Eurovision rules, all nations with the exceptions of the host country and the "Big Five" (France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom) are required to qualify from one of two semi-finals in order to compete for the final; the top ten countries from each semi-final progress to the final. The European Broadcasting Union (EBU) split up the competing countries into six different pots based on voting patterns from previous contests, with countries with favourable voting histories put into the same pot.[17] On 31 January 2017, a special allocation draw was held which placed each country into one of the two semi-finals, as well as which half of the show they would perform in. Georgia was placed into the first semi-final, to be held on 9 May 2017, and was scheduled to perform in the first half of the show.[18]

Once all the competing songs for the 2017 contest had been released, the running order for the semi-finals was decided by the shows' producers rather than through another draw, so that similar songs were not placed next to each other. Georgia was set to perform in position 2, following the entry from Sweden and before the entry from Australia.[19]

The two semi-finals and the final were broadcast in Georgia on GPB First Channel with commentary by Demetre Ergemlidze. The Georgian spokesperson, who announced the top 12-point score awarded by the Georgian jury during the final, was 2016 Georgian Eurovision entrant Nika Kocharov.

Semi-final

Tamara Gachechiladze during a rehearsal before the first semi-final

Tamara Gachechiladze took part in technical rehearsals on 30 April and 4 May, followed by dress rehearsals on 8 and 9 May. This included the jury show on 8 May where the professional juries of each country watched and voted on the competing entries.

The Georgian performance featured Tamara Gachechiladze in a full-length red dress with a cape, the latter which she later ripped off. The stage colours were red, white and black with the LED screen displaying a space theme. The performance also featured pyrotechnic flame effects.[20][21] The staging director for the Georgian performance was Sacha Jean-Baptiste.[22] Tamara Gachechiladze was joined by five off-stage backing vocalists: Giorgi Tskhvariashvili, Guri Pasikashvili, Mariam Akobia, Mariam Jomardidze and Natia Oqruashvili.[23]

At the end of the show, Georgia was not announced among the top 10 entries in the first semi-final and therefore failed to qualify to compete in the final. It was later revealed that Georgia placed eleventh in the semi-final, receiving a total of 99 points: 37 points from the televoting and 62 points from the juries.

Voting

Voting during the three shows involved each country awarding two sets of points from 1-8, 10 and 12: one from their professional jury and the other from televoting. Each nation's jury consisted of five music industry professionals who are citizens of the country they represent, with their names published before the contest to ensure transparency. This jury judged each entry based on: vocal capacity; the stage performance; the song's composition and originality; and the overall impression by the act. In addition, no member of a national jury was permitted to be related in any way to any of the competing acts in such a way that they cannot vote impartially and independently. The individual rankings of each jury member as well as the nation's televoting results were released shortly after the grand final.

Below is a breakdown of points awarded to Georgia and awarded by Georgia in the first semi-final and grand final of the contest, and the breakdown of the jury voting and televoting conducted during the two shows:[24][25]

Points awarded to Georgia

Points awarded to Georgia (Semi-final 1)[24]
Score Televote Jury
12 points  Azerbaijan
10 points  Poland
8 points  Armenia
7 points  Iceland
6 points
5 points
4 points  Greece
3 points
2 points  Italy
1 point  Cyprus

Points awarded by Georgia

Detailed voting results

The following members comprised the Georgian jury:[26]

  • Maia Baratashvili (jury chairperson) – singer, musician
  • Medea Kavtaradze – vocal coach
  • Mirian Kukulashvili – musical producer
  • Gvantsa Kilasonia – TV producer
  • Mamuka Begashvili – composer, sound engineer
Detailed voting results from Georgia (Semi-final 1)[24]
Draw Country Jury Televote
M. Kavtaradze M. Kukulashvili M. Baratashvili G. Kilasonia M. Begashvili Rank Points Rank Points
01  Sweden 6 5 12 2 7 3 8 7 4
02  Georgia
03  Australia 12 9 3 9 3 5 6 12
04  Albania 17 17 15 14 17 17 16
05  Belgium 16 3 14 8 15 13 6 5
06  Montenegro 11 15 16 3 16 14 14
07  Finland 15 6 13 11 5 11 11
08  Azerbaijan 4 1 2 6 2 2 10 1 12
09  Portugal 1 4 1 1 1 1 12 3 8
10  Greece 13 7 17 16 8 15 9 2
11  Poland 10 8 10 17 10 12 8 3
12  Moldova 5 14 9 12 6 8 3 5 6
13  Iceland 9 10 8 7 12 9 2 10 1
14  Czech Republic 14 12 7 5 11 10 1 17
15  Cyprus 7 2 5 13 9 6 5 4 7
16  Armenia 3 11 4 10 4 4 7 2 10
17  Slovenia 2 13 6 4 14 7 4 13
18  Latvia 8 16 11 15 13 16 15
Detailed voting results from Georgia (Final)[25]
Draw Country Jury Televote
M. Kavtaradze M. Kukulashvili M. Baratashvili G. Kilasonia M. Begashvili Rank Points Rank Points
01  Israel 23 26 23 16 17 25 11
02  Poland 6 22 22 9 22 18 20
03  Belarus 20 25 24 25 8 23 5 6
04  Austria 10 7 12 8 9 6 5 22
05  Armenia 8 13 13 11 13 8 3 2 10
06  Netherlands 11 9 10 15 16 10 1 19
07  Moldova 7 23 18 19 10 16 12
08  Hungary 13 16 20 5 26 17 23
09  Italy 3 17 11 4 24 9 2 6 5
10  Denmark 14 10 8 14 19 12 25
11  Portugal 1 3 1 1 1 1 12 3 8
12  Azerbaijan 2 2 2 3 6 2 10 1 12
13  Croatia 12 8 16 13 20 14 17
14  Australia 15 18 17 17 3 15 26
15  Greece 17 11 25 18 23 21 15
16  Spain 19 24 26 26 21 26 24
17  Norway 16 1 6 6 2 4 7 21
18  United Kingdom 24 20 9 20 18 19 16
19  Cyprus 5 6 19 7 14 7 4 9 2
20  Romania 21 21 15 24 11 20 18
21  Germany 22 5 5 21 12 13 14
22  Ukraine 25 15 21 22 15 22 7 4
23  Belgium 26 14 14 23 25 24 13
24  Sweden 4 4 3 2 5 3 8 10 1
25  Bulgaria 9 12 4 12 4 5 6 4 7
26  France 18 19 7 10 7 11 8 3

References

  1. ↑ "Georgia Country Profile". EBU. Retrieved 20 November 2014.
  2. ↑ Bakker, Sietse (10 March 2009). "Georgian song lyrics do not comply with Rules". Eurovision.tv. Retrieved 20 November 2014.
  3. ↑ Jonze, Tim (11 March 2009). "Eurovision 2009: Georgia pulls out of contest over 'Putin song'". The Guardian. Retrieved 20 November 2014.
  4. ↑ "Putin jibe picked for Eurovision". BBC News. 19 February 2009. Retrieved 20 November 2014.
  5. ↑ "Georgia: Eurovision 2017 participation confirmed". eurovoix.com. Eurovoix. 3 October 2016. Retrieved 24 December 2016.
  6. ↑ Granger, Anthony (4 November 2016). "Georgia: Call for Eurovision 2017 entries". eurovoix.com. Eurovoix.
  7. ↑ Granger, Anthony (24 December 2016). "Georgia: 27 artists apply to compete in Eurovision 2017". eurovoix.com. Eurovoix.
  8. ↑ Granger, Anthony (11 December 2016). "Georgia: Sabina Chantouria makes it 28 hopefuls". eurovoix.com. Eurovoix.
  9. ↑ Granger, Anthony (19 December 2016). "Georgia: Selects for Eurovision 2017 on January 20". eurovoix.com. Eurovoix.
  10. ↑ Oliver, Eliza-Jane (20 January 2017). "Watch now: Georgia decides for Eurovision 2017". Esctoday. Retrieved 11 February 2021.
  11. ↑ Jordan, Paul (20 January 2017). "Tako Gachechiladze will Keep The Faith for Georgia in 2017". eurovision.tv. Retrieved 17 February 2022.
  12. ↑ "2017". Eurovision Georgia. Georgia Public Broadcaster. Retrieved 26 December 2016.
  13. ↑ Kavaler, Ron (22 March 2017). "ISRAEL CALLING! EUROVISION PROMO EVENT SET FOR APRIL 3 TO 6". wiwibloggs.com. Retrieved 30 April 2017.
  14. ↑ Laufer, Gil (5 April 2017). "Tonight: Israel Calling 2017 to be held with 28 participating countries". esctoday.com. Retrieved 30 April 2017.
  15. ↑ Jordan, Paul (29 March 2017). "Eurovision in Concert sets a new record with 33 acts". European Broadcasting Union. Retrieved 30 April 2017.
  16. ↑ Fuster, Luis (1 April 2017). "MADRID CALLING! 19 ACTS WILL TAKE PART IN EUROVISION SPAIN PRE-PARTY". wiwibloggs.com. Retrieved 30 April 2017.
  17. ↑ Jordan, Paul (25 January 2017). "Semi-Final Allocation draw to take place in Kyiv". eurovision.tv. Retrieved 25 January 2017.
  18. ↑ Jordan, Paul (31 January 2017). "Results of the Semi-Final Allocation Draw". eurovision.tv. European Broadcasting Union. Retrieved 31 January 2017.
  19. ↑ Jordan, Paul (31 March 2017). "Semi-Final running order for Eurovision 2017 revealed". eurovision.tv. European Broadcasting Union. Retrieved 12 April 2017.
  20. ↑ Davidson, Brent (30 April 2017). "Day 1: Tamara Gachechiladze completes first rehearsal for Georgia – REVIEW". escXtra. Retrieved 17 February 2022.
  21. ↑ Cobb, Ryan (4 May 2017). "Day 5: Tamara Gachechiladze completes second rehearsal for Georgia – PREDICTION & REVIEW". escXtra. Retrieved 17 February 2022.
  22. ↑ Jordan, Paul (30 April 2017). "Georgia's Tamara keeps the faith... and staging secrets!". eurovision.tv. Retrieved 17 February 2022.
  23. ↑ "Georgia". Six on Stage. Retrieved 17 February 2022.
  24. 1 2 3 4 "Results of the First Semi-Final of Kyiv 2017". European Broadcasting Union. Archived from the original on 12 May 2021. Retrieved 12 May 2021.
  25. 1 2 3 "Results of the Grand Final of Kyiv 2017". European Broadcasting Union. Archived from the original on 12 May 2021. Retrieved 12 May 2021.
  26. ↑ Jordan, Paul (29 April 2017). "Who will be the expert jurors for Eurovision 2017?". eurovision.tv. European Broadcasting Union. Retrieved 3 May 2017.
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