Yolanda’s song “The Scream” was heard and secured a place for Portugal in the final of the Eurovision Song Contest 2024. In the first semi-final, held on Tuesday evening, in Malmö, Sweden, nine other countries participated: Serbia, Slovenia and Ukraine. Lithuania, Finland, Cyprus, Croatia, Ireland and Luxembourg.
On the Malmo Arena stage, Iolanda was the penultimate performer. The singer from Figueira da Foz was accompanied by five dancers, dressed in white in an original design by designer Thiago Bessa, and performed by the Portuguese artist “Gritto”, a song she co-wrote with Loire that won the festival in March. da Canção, where she arrived as a clear favourite.
The performance will have pleased the competition’s fans, as immediately after the performance, Yolanda’s chances of reaching the Eurovision final increased, according to the “Eurovision World” website, which collects the predictions of many bookmakers.
[A atuação de Iolanda na primeira semifinal da Eurovisão:]
It was a quiet ceremony, in contrast to the tense atmosphere that has characterized this edition of Eurovision, largely due to Israel’s controversial participation – there was public pressure on the country not to participate in the contest, but the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) was indifferent. (The organization organizing the event did not respond to multiple calls regarding the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza, and confirmed the participation of singer Eden Golan, who will take the stage for the second semi-final scheduled for next Thursday.
That night, on May 9, the finalists of the 68th Eurovision Song Contest will be determined. These countries are joined by France, Germany, Spain, Italy and the United Kingdom, which are part of the so-called “Big Five” and which qualify directly to the final, in addition to Sweden, which won last year. In the grand final, on Saturday, May 11, 26 countries will compete.
Remember the winners’ performances on Tuesday and the songs from Germany, Sweden and the UK performed at the ceremony broadcast live on RTP1:
