France’s Eurovision entrant, Bilal, has withdrawn from appearing at Eurovision in Concert.
The Eurovision in Concert team has confirmed that Bilal will no longer be appearing at the event which will take place this upcoming weekend. The singer, who is set to represent France at the Eurovision Song Contest next month, took to his social media, stating that the decision was out of his control.
Hi guys , i am extremely saddened to announce that i won’t be able to attend the @ESCinConcert in Amsterdam (for reasons that are not out my will or control) i hope to see you all in London very soon, i was really excited for this moment with u all…
— Bilal Hassani (@iambilalhassani) April 1, 2019
Malta’s Michela Pace also announced last week that she will no longer be attending any promotional parties due to her rehearsal schedule.
Eurovision in Concert will take place this weekend at AFAS Live. To date, over thirty 2019 participants and special guests have confirmed their participation.
Who is Bilal Hassani?
Bilal first came to the attention of the French public in 2015 when he participated in The Voice Kids. He performed “Rise Like a Phoenix” which won the 2014 Eurovision Song Contest at his audition, before being knocked out in the battle rounds.
He swept to victory in Destination Eurovision having received 50 points from the international jury, but 35.7% of the televote. From the first performance of “Roi” it took just 10 days before it had exceeded 3 million views.
Source: Bilal / Eurovision in Concert
France was one of seven countries to participate in the first Eurovision Song Contest in 1956. Since then they have participated in every contest aside from 1974 and 1982. Their withdrawal in 1974 was caused by the death of President Georges Pompidou, while 1982’s withdrawal was a result of TF1 declining to enter the contest. France has won the contest on five occasions, the most recent being in 1977 when Marie Myriam performed “L’oiseau et l’enfant”. France’s best result of the 2000s came in 2001 when Natasha St-Pier finished 4th in Copenhagen, Denmark.
