Three artists have been selected for the final of Junior Eurovision Éire 2019, which will be broadcasted next week.
The Semi-Final of Junior Eurovision Éire 2019 took place this evening, with eight acts competing for just three places in the Grand Final. The eight acts performed covers of English-language songs in Irish. The judging panel chose two performers to advance directly to the final and another two to compete in a sing-off for the last spot in the final. Unlike in the heats, the judges did not award points to the performers. Instead, they announced the results after all of the semi-finalists had performed.
The judging panel was made up of Gráinne Bleasdale, who was returning to the jury for the second year and Chris Greene, who was replacing former judge Fiachna Ó Braonáin. Joining Gráinne and Chris as a guest judge was Niamh Kavanagh, who won the Eurovision Song Contest 1993 and represented Ireland again in 2010. Niamh was also a regular judge on the first edition of Junior Eurovision Éire and has returned as a guest judge every year since then. Mícheál Ó Ciarraidh was also backstage to interview the contestants.
Tonight’s results were as follows:
- Anna Kearney – “This Is Me” – Final
- Alison McGrath – “Stay With Me” – Sing-Off
- Caoimhe McBride – “Waiting For Love”
- Seisear Séiseach – “Pompeii”
- Savannah Phoenix-Munroe – “The Circle of Life” – Final
- Arabella Dolan – “Friday I’m in Love”
- Orla Mc Dermott – “Hold Back the River” – Sing-Off
- Skye Murphy Darrer – “Shake It Off”
Orla Mc Dermott and Alisaon McGrath faced each other in the sing-off. Orla Mc Dermott was chosen by the judges to advance to the semi-final. Niamh and Gráinne voted for Orla while Chris voted for Alison.
The line-up for next week’s final is:
- Anna Kearney
- Savannah Phoenix-Munroe
- Orla Mc Dermott
In next week’s final, all three finalists will perform two songs; one which they previously performed during the competition and a song that won Eurovision for Ireland. The judges will then chose two of the finalists to advance to the final sing-off. The winner of this sing-off will represent Ireland in the Junior Eurovision Song Contest 2019 in Gliwice.
Ireland was represented by Taylor Hynes at Junior Eurovision 2018 in Minsk, Belarus. He performed the song “IOU” and went on to finish 15th with a total of 48 points. Ireland was 16th with juries scoring 12 points and 15th with the online vote receiving 36 points.
Savannah is my favorite 🙂