15 November 2024

The Junior Eurovision Song Contest of 2024 has crept up on us this year. Held in late November and into December in recent years, I’ve had to emerge early from my decompression cycle following senior Eurovision in May, and I don’t think I’m ready. Here goes, anyway!

The theme for this year’s contest is Let’s Bloom and that has materialised into 17 entries that will compete in Madrid, Spain. That is one more than last year, with the United Kingdom dropping out after just a short return of just 2 years, while Cyprus and San Marino return after a break of 6 years and 8 years, respectively. After successive wins, and three wins in 4 years, France declined to host the 2024 event, which brought it to Spain following their second placed finish in 2023.

Playlist of My Top 17

The Running Order

01 Italy – Simone Grande – Pigiama Party
02 Estonia – Annabelle – Tänavad
03 Albania – Nikol Cabeli – Vallëzoj
04 Armenia – Leo – Cosmic Friend
05 Cyprus – Maria Pissarides – Crystal Waters
06 France – Titouan – Comme ci comme ca
07 North Macedonia – Ana and Aleksej – Marathon
08 Poland – Dominik Arim – All Together
09 Georgia – Andria Putkaradze – To My Mom
10 Spain – Chloe DelaRosa – Como la Lola
11 Germany – Bjarne – Save The Best For Us
12 Netherlands – Stay Tuned – Music
13 San Marino – Idols SM – Come Noi
14 Ukraine – Artem Kotenko – Hear Me Now
15 Portugal – Victoria Nicole – Esperanca
16 Ireland – Enya Cox Dempsey – Le Cheile
17 Malta – Ramires Sciberras – Stilla Ckejkna

Unusual for JESC is that there are so many boys this year, with eight solo entries alone. I can recall a year when there was just one, in 2014, in which Italy’s nauseating Vincenzo Cantiello won. JESC is back to an evening Saturday broadcast, reverting from the late Sunday afternoon schedule it held since 2016, which is an excellent decision. That allows us in Australia to watch it early on a Sunday morning rather than stay up really late on a Sunday night.

Playlist of My Top 17

My Top 17

17 Albania – Nikol Cabeli – Vallëzoj

Voice too whiny. Arrangement is terrible.

16 Georgia – Andria Putkaradze – To My Mom

Too whiny for me.

15 San Marino – Idols SM – Come Noi

Nice harmonies with the four girls singing together. The song lacks anything of great interest.

14 Ireland – Enya Cox Dempsey – Le Cheile

Nice girl, and can hit some notes. The song mostly plods.

13 Armenia – Leo – Cosmic Friend

Fun without reaching any stratospheric heights.

12 North Macedonia – Ana & Aleksej – Marathon

Run run run, like a marathon. That’s the vibe. Fun enough, and thankfully it doesn’t last as long as a marathon.

11 Ukraine – Artem Kotenko – Hear Me Now

Fun song, if not a little repetitive. Decent voice. Ukraine are one country definitely trying to hook into the winning formula set by France in recent years.

10 Netherlands – Stay Tuned – Music

The Dutch always bring something fun and usually dance oriented. No different here, nor does it disappoint.

09 Germany – Bjarne – Save The Best For Us

Sounds like the official song of a JESC. Anthemic and a catchy chorus. Good vocals too.

08 Poland – Dominik Arim – All Together

Very nice song. Not a fan of the voice. Too kid-like, even for a kid.

07 Malta – Ramires Sciberras – Stilla Ckejkna

The most impressive of the boy ballads.

06 Spain – Chloe DelaRosa – Como la Lola

The host nation is definitely trying to pick up on that fun, effervescent vibe of France’s recent songs, and it works. Very catchy, even if a bit simplistic.

05 Cyprus – Maria Pissarides – Crystal Waters

Crystal Waters could be the name of a porn actress. Let’s move on! A welcome return for Cyprus. A very boppy song with a hypnotic feel, and I appreciate the Greek influence in the arrangement.

04 France – Titouan – Comme ci comme ca

France hit on a winning formula in recent years with their effervescent songs and charismatic artists. This starts a little sedate before bursting into life with its chirpy vibe. Titouan then brings some drama with an energetic finale. Could that be four wins in 5 years for France?

03 Italy – Simone Grande – Pigiama Party

The most polished song this year. Good energy, a great voice, and so catchy. It stuck out immediately and still feels like one the best entries this year.

02 Portugal – Victoria Nicole – Esperanca

The strongest female voice in this year’s contest. Victoria oozes quality with her vocal prowess, and the song oozes quality too. Given the paucity of mini divas this year, Victoria will stand out and be among the contenders to win.

01 Estonia – Annabelle – Tänavad

Wow. Such a beautiful tone to Annabelle’s voice, and that Estonian language is so beautiful in this song. Highly evocative and instantly recognisable as written by noted Estonian writer and producer, Sven Lõhmus. An outstanding package and really sticks out from the pack for me.

Junior Eurovision 2024 will be held at 18:00 CET on Saturday 16 November (04:00 AEST on 17 November in Australia) and can be watched live on the official youtube channel.

Nice 2023: France repeats after Zoe Clauzure wins Junior Eurovision with Coeur