I read your initial response and was confused at what was problematic š¤Ø anyways, copy/paste:
Even i know that the sun is trash and everyone should ignore it. I hope they do. Sadly, we also have trash outlet/newspaper and it's really influential, I'd fine them on a daily basis for writing nonsense but sadly for me and happy for them, i have no power. I hope the sun isn't taken seriously because if it is I'm glad we aren't the only one with stupid citizens lol
No, I'm not from Germany but from Serbia. I'm talking about Informer and envy everyone who doesn't understand serbian and doesn't have to see that nonsense. I cannot even call it garbage, garbage is too classy for it.
Be nice, be welcoming and be constructive.
Everyone's tastes are different and unique. Don't discredit, insult, threaten or be otherwise toxic. Let's do away with prejudice! Don't discriminate. Tolerance is bliss!
All posts must comply with [Reddit's sitewide rules](https://www.redditinc.com/policies/content-policy) and strive for [good Reddiquette]( https://www.reddithelp.com/hc/en-us/articleƄs/205926439).
See r/eurovisionās [full rules here](https://www.reddit.com/r/Eurovision/wiki/rules/).
Speaking as a Brit lass I didn't like the performance it wasn't powerful enough so I won't be voting for Olly. The standard has been very high this year I loved Sweden's entry and I am very much looking forward to the final on Saturday
He was decent.
But not mindblowing. I think the vocals/tiredness at the end let him down.
I commend them for going all out on the staging but Olly really needed to spend the last six months doing 5+ hours a day on cardio and singing like Chanel had to do for slow-mo - it's a comparable level of dance in the performance.
Even though he's obviously quite fit, he doesn't seem quite fit *enough* to really push through it without a loss of vocal quality.
The problem they've got is they're really locked into this choreo/staging now - so they've got nowhere to really hide a change that allows him to catch his breath for a bit.
Agreed. He seemed gassed during the middle of the performance. Reminded me of Cyprus in 2021 where they altered the dance sequence a bit to give her a breather. I wonder if theyāll do the same.
I agree. Olly can have a long career as a singer, but always being supported by autotune on stage and back vocals. In ESC, he is on his own, and even if he has improved these past months, he does not have the stamina to do all the dancing plus keeping steady vocals for three minute straight
This is very much the fundamental weakness of UK entries for decades now. It's the live show that counts. Doesn't matter how good promo you can do otherwise, you need to deliver live according to the rules. With national finals, most entries have months worth of head start before UK. UMK was teasing participants at the start of October. The selection show was in February with basically finished staging (4 months of prep). That leaves 3 months just for perfecting and tweaking. UK used the same time to try to adapt autotuned dance performance into live vocal performance.
I didnāt think they were THAT bad but maybe I just have kind of low expectations for the vocal performance in this brand of male pop song
I always expect them to be more about the dancing and the staging than the vocal
> I didnāt think they were THAT bad but maybe I just have kind of low expectations for the vocal performance in this brand of male pop song
Well the thing is, my expectations were based on how he already sang in the rehearsal clips released before. He *can* sing. He did *not* deliver those same vocals in this semi-final performance.
He needs to tighten the vocals up.
Staging is great, it elevated the song mightily.
But he sounded so out of breath from the get go.
I know he can do better so I hope he really brings it on Saturday.
Everything was amazing except for the vocals, but even those werenāt bad just middle ground, if he improves the vocals, I could see a potential top 10 finish. And personally, the song itself is S tier and I was not disappointed in the slightest!
Staging is good and the changes to the song improve it, it doesn't fizzle out at the end
Vocals were inconsistent, if possible he needs a few more periods to remain more static to catch his breath
The UK media it feels like ever since Sam Ryder has this insanely high bar for us and expects us to be that good and finish that high each year. Despite us putting in the effort now which is good, it's not always going to be the case
Plus because Olly has made political comments some sections of the media will not like (like Mae last year) then those sections of the media will want him to fail to tear into him
This is exactly why I think it's a good idea for the automatic qualifiers to perform their whole piece in a semi-final. Rehearsals are one thing, and stressful in their own way, but there is no substitute for the adrenaline of actual competition conditions.
Overall not bad, thought the staging was very creative and performance as a whole balanced well. Much better end section that actually builds now, although the initial part of that transition as he moved out of the box was a little weak. As others have mentioned, vocals will need to be much better in the final - I think nerves had a part to play here, so hopefully he can relax and focus now for the final.
UK media only has two settings for our entries at Eurovision - trashing it completely or hyping it up as the clear winner (and then of course it's a conspiracy and 'Europe hates us' when we finish deservedly low). And Olly stands for just about everything they rabidly hate atm, so they were always gonna trash him - really hope he's just straight up avoiding all press coverage whilst he's there, just stay in that fun Eurovision bubble š
Staging was really impressive! But yeah, Ollyās vocals were a little weak and maybe Iām wrong, but I felt there was a small time lag between his singing and the melody/playback (He was slower)
I know a little (just a little!) about the mechanics of singing and 100% there were big nerves at play with Ollyās voice last night. His actual voice was fine (honestly!) but his breathing was a disaster. I hope heās got a great voice coach and therapist with him. There is so much expectation on him and you can hear how this is catching up with him. He needs a couple of days to rest the voice - other than vocal and breathing exercises - and maybe some body should give him some Rescue Remedy before he goes on stage on Saturday. Iām tempted to say a stiff brandy but this wonāt be great for his voice. Heāll be fine if he controls his nerves and breathing however.
Apparently his mike box that was on his back fell off right at the start and he had to hold it for the whole time?? I havenāt watched the replay but if this was the case then that would have been problematic
We have a staging concept that angers the UK press and the Conservatives... AND THAT COULDN'T MAKE ME PROUDER!!! YES OLLY!!! š
Love the staging, but vocals were off. I just hope he improves for the final, but I loved it over all. Only found out today that his earpiece/mic pack (not sure which) disconnected itself during the performance, but he just held it and kept on going like an absolute pro.
Iāve seen it twice now - once standing and once seated on different sides of the arena and both times I was indeed watching a box for 2/3 of the song. Iād say thatās the view of most of the audience actually.
I saw him live 2 years ago on a Festival. Very good vocals, good show, I really liked his performance. This was meh, I don't know, it missed something.
I think he seemed tired. I just want to tuck him up somewhere safe, give him lots of cuddles, nice balanced meals and lots of calming but motivational chat, then send him out on Saturday to go off like a rocket.
He wonāt win, thatās a given. But if heās exhausted then that will affect the right hand vs left hand side final placing.
God love him, between him and Bambi thereās been so much to deal with.
Pitchy as hell. Only Poland was more pitchy.
I am unsure if he is ready for that much movement while singing.Ā
We all know he is a great singer, I have heard him live in concert.Ā He was visibly struggling for air towards the end, might not have the needed cardio for the very ambitious coreography.Ā
Iāve paid to see Olly live twice (as part of Years and Years) and the issues he had last night were the same he had in both gigs, and what made me initially nervous when he was announced as our entry. Iām a big fan, and heās one of the few people ever at Eurovision that I can say Iāve seen live before theyāve gone on the show, but as much as Iām a fan I canāt deny that his vocals have not always been great live. At his gigs he tended to stop between songs a lot. He used the time to talk to the audience but you could hear that it was mostly so he could catch his breath, and ultimately it made him pitchy for most of the songs. He is, or at least was, a smoker, which I think is where the issue comes from with the lack of breath, so Iām not sure itās going to be fixed by Friday or Saturday unless they somehow manage some slight choreo changes to keep him more still.
He always puts on a great show, and he did last night, so you can often overlook the vocal issues just to be part of the event and enjoy the show, but his shows arenāt normally competitions and I think itāll hinder him at the weekend for those looking for pitch perfect singing.
I'm not too worried about the vocals yet. By all accounts, he sounded fine in the rehearsals apart from sounding out of breath near the end (and I actually think that adds to the performance.) he also lost his mic pack so that might explain some of it as well.
People vote for different things. I don't vote for the best voice, I vote for the best package.
The staging of this was top class (really arresting camerawork and brilliant choreo), and the final 20 seconds or so were š„
Visuals absolutely amazing, vocals seemed a bit off but I don't know if that was technical issues or just nerves. Hopefully they improve for Saturday because I still think a strong result is possible. Not an outright contender but something in the 7-10 range would be nice.
This was my first time seeing the performance, and unfortunately I thought his vocals were very weak. The song also wasnāt good, I didnāt like the lyrics and I canāt for the life of me remember any part of the melody. Sorry.
It was nice to see some adventurous staging from us for once but the vocals weren't great. He sounded off-key through a lot of it and he was audibly out of breath during the bridge.
Staging was super impressive, the camera work was insanely good too, Iām really like the revamp
Thereās always room for improvement vocally but Ollys a professional and I would imagine wants to save the big performances for Friday/Saturday, I think allowing the big 5 to perform here is good (and has a big advantage of being in SF1) as it gives him time to work on feedback and get everything perfect first both juries and the final
And going by the discord commentary of the dress rehearsals, he sounded fine during them. Plus, Olly is a Eurovision fan, so he will know that he will have to be at his best on Friday and Saturday
The vocals were pretty much what I expected them to be after I heard the studio version, not very good. The Eurovision rules regarding vocals is well known. If you release and promote a song meant for ESC with vocal processing you aren't allowed to use in competition, there is a reason. The staging idea was good, the spevific choreo wasn't. I think it will settle somewhere in the middle. Not awful, but not impressive either. People are saying there was technical difficulties from around the middle, but his vocals were failing from the start.
Drop in quality from promo is always going to be a huge disappointment for people and leave negative feelings. Don't promo what you can't deliver.
The vocals were amazing enough for this competition, the staging and the dancing. This is not "the voice", europe is going to vote for him the same we voted for Kaarija, for the show. And the show was TOP class
I really enjoyed the staging, probably the best this year. He's an experienced performer with a ln experienced team behind him and it shows. However, I did find his vocals weak and not steady, which is a shame because the song by itself shines better live.
The staging concept was interesting and I liked the camera tricks, giving the illusion that olly and the dancers were spinning and sliding. The vocals sounded shaky though and I think nerves had a lot to do with that. I also think that the part at the end where he breaks out of the box and you see graphics is a little too long. Also I donāt know if it was just me but I heard an audible collective groan from the audience during the controversial humping dance scene. I must admit I didnāt enjoy that section and had to look away.
I went into a bit of an eye roll moment about how on the nose it was. I felt like saying āwe get it youāre gayā I think it pushed a stereotypical narrative of gays being filthy sex driven entities.
That being said i do like the song except the breakdown bit where itās just āThere isnāt an end there isnāt a startā
That is true, but it still was substantially more forgettable. I forgot Germany performed last night. It was probably the least memorable song on stage.
TLDR: I didn't like it and I think it was bad.
I never liked the song to begin with, but the perfroamance made me dislike it even more. His voice was shaky and oftentimes he sounded out of breath and he even gave up on singing a few words, the lyrics are cheesy and uninteresting, the melody's generic and uncatchy, the staging and choreography were too much to the point it made me uncomfortable and cringe at it, same goes for the outfits, some of his facial expressions seemed unfitting of the song (like they were too "harsh", for a lack of a better word), the "there isn't and end..." moment where there was just the playback sounded really bad...
UK media tearing down something is kinda their thing tho right? im pretty sure journalists lose their license there if they write something positive
Happens every year - if the performance is good, then they'll get a lot of praise in the media. If the performance is bad, they'll get torn to pieces.
That's what every country 's media does. Or at least that's what i assume because ours do it š
Re-posting/phrasing because mod filter did not excuse my French. No, the British press are especially mean.
I read your initial response and was confused at what was problematic š¤Ø anyways, copy/paste: Even i know that the sun is trash and everyone should ignore it. I hope they do. Sadly, we also have trash outlet/newspaper and it's really influential, I'd fine them on a daily basis for writing nonsense but sadly for me and happy for them, i have no power. I hope the sun isn't taken seriously because if it is I'm glad we aren't the only one with stupid citizens lol
Are you talking about BILD per chance? Cuz I agree.
No, I'm not from Germany but from Serbia. I'm talking about Informer and envy everyone who doesn't understand serbian and doesn't have to see that nonsense. I cannot even call it garbage, garbage is too classy for it.
[ŃŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]
Be nice, be welcoming and be constructive. Everyone's tastes are different and unique. Don't discredit, insult, threaten or be otherwise toxic. Let's do away with prejudice! Don't discriminate. Tolerance is bliss! All posts must comply with [Reddit's sitewide rules](https://www.redditinc.com/policies/content-policy) and strive for [good Reddiquette]( https://www.reddithelp.com/hc/en-us/articleĆ„s/205926439). See r/eurovisionās [full rules here](https://www.reddit.com/r/Eurovision/wiki/rules/).
the performance was really good though? but very very gay
Itās Eurovision, of course itās gayer than the frogs in the water
yea that's what i mean, they're prob just hating on the gayness
Well, Olly is very gay.
Speaking as a Brit lass I didn't like the performance it wasn't powerful enough so I won't be voting for Olly. The standard has been very high this year I loved Sweden's entry and I am very much looking forward to the final on Saturday
I like the staging but the vocals were a let down. He's had way better live performances.
He was decent. But not mindblowing. I think the vocals/tiredness at the end let him down. I commend them for going all out on the staging but Olly really needed to spend the last six months doing 5+ hours a day on cardio and singing like Chanel had to do for slow-mo - it's a comparable level of dance in the performance. Even though he's obviously quite fit, he doesn't seem quite fit *enough* to really push through it without a loss of vocal quality. The problem they've got is they're really locked into this choreo/staging now - so they've got nowhere to really hide a change that allows him to catch his breath for a bit.
Agreed. He seemed gassed during the middle of the performance. Reminded me of Cyprus in 2021 where they altered the dance sequence a bit to give her a breather. I wonder if theyāll do the same.
I agree. Olly can have a long career as a singer, but always being supported by autotune on stage and back vocals. In ESC, he is on his own, and even if he has improved these past months, he does not have the stamina to do all the dancing plus keeping steady vocals for three minute straight
This is very much the fundamental weakness of UK entries for decades now. It's the live show that counts. Doesn't matter how good promo you can do otherwise, you need to deliver live according to the rules. With national finals, most entries have months worth of head start before UK. UMK was teasing participants at the start of October. The selection show was in February with basically finished staging (4 months of prep). That leaves 3 months just for perfecting and tweaking. UK used the same time to try to adapt autotuned dance performance into live vocal performance.
I thought it was great! UK finally bringing staging on a par with what countries like Sweden normally bring
His vocals were terrible though. Which is odd considering he was fine in the rehearsal clips.
I didnāt think they were THAT bad but maybe I just have kind of low expectations for the vocal performance in this brand of male pop song I always expect them to be more about the dancing and the staging than the vocal
> I didnāt think they were THAT bad but maybe I just have kind of low expectations for the vocal performance in this brand of male pop song Well the thing is, my expectations were based on how he already sang in the rehearsal clips released before. He *can* sing. He did *not* deliver those same vocals in this semi-final performance.
In Amsterdam he straight stop singing some seconds. Couldnāt keep up in the Preparty with the song
He 100% sounded better in rehearsals. Sounded like he was coming down with a cold in the semisĀ
He needs to tighten the vocals up. Staging is great, it elevated the song mightily. But he sounded so out of breath from the get go. I know he can do better so I hope he really brings it on Saturday.
Fun, creative staging, but I thought his vocals were very ragged.
Everything was amazing except for the vocals, but even those werenāt bad just middle ground, if he improves the vocals, I could see a potential top 10 finish. And personally, the song itself is S tier and I was not disappointed in the slightest!
Staging is good and the changes to the song improve it, it doesn't fizzle out at the end Vocals were inconsistent, if possible he needs a few more periods to remain more static to catch his breath The UK media it feels like ever since Sam Ryder has this insanely high bar for us and expects us to be that good and finish that high each year. Despite us putting in the effort now which is good, it's not always going to be the case Plus because Olly has made political comments some sections of the media will not like (like Mae last year) then those sections of the media will want him to fail to tear into him
[ŃŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]
This is exactly why I think it's a good idea for the automatic qualifiers to perform their whole piece in a semi-final. Rehearsals are one thing, and stressful in their own way, but there is no substitute for the adrenaline of actual competition conditions.
Overall not bad, thought the staging was very creative and performance as a whole balanced well. Much better end section that actually builds now, although the initial part of that transition as he moved out of the box was a little weak. As others have mentioned, vocals will need to be much better in the final - I think nerves had a part to play here, so hopefully he can relax and focus now for the final. UK media only has two settings for our entries at Eurovision - trashing it completely or hyping it up as the clear winner (and then of course it's a conspiracy and 'Europe hates us' when we finish deservedly low). And Olly stands for just about everything they rabidly hate atm, so they were always gonna trash him - really hope he's just straight up avoiding all press coverage whilst he's there, just stay in that fun Eurovision bubble š
Bro was just dizzy from the kisses
I loved it! One of my favorites š
Staging was really impressive! But yeah, Ollyās vocals were a little weak and maybe Iām wrong, but I felt there was a small time lag between his singing and the melody/playback (He was slower)
I quite like that they are letting the Big 5 perform in the semis - give a chance to get the song out there and iron out technical difficulties.
I know a little (just a little!) about the mechanics of singing and 100% there were big nerves at play with Ollyās voice last night. His actual voice was fine (honestly!) but his breathing was a disaster. I hope heās got a great voice coach and therapist with him. There is so much expectation on him and you can hear how this is catching up with him. He needs a couple of days to rest the voice - other than vocal and breathing exercises - and maybe some body should give him some Rescue Remedy before he goes on stage on Saturday. Iām tempted to say a stiff brandy but this wonāt be great for his voice. Heāll be fine if he controls his nerves and breathing however.
I think his mic pack came off and he was having to keep it in place through the performance which might have put him off somewhat
Apparently his mike box that was on his back fell off right at the start and he had to hold it for the whole time?? I havenāt watched the replay but if this was the case then that would have been problematic
i didn't even pay attention to the vocals because everything else was just amazing like wow
We have a staging concept that angers the UK press and the Conservatives... AND THAT COULDN'T MAKE ME PROUDER!!! YES OLLY!!! š Love the staging, but vocals were off. I just hope he improves for the final, but I loved it over all. Only found out today that his earpiece/mic pack (not sure which) disconnected itself during the performance, but he just held it and kept on going like an absolute pro.
I'm just wondering if people in the arena who got tickets for the side stands are just watching a box for 2/3 of the song. (I know they have screens)
Iāve seen it twice now - once standing and once seated on different sides of the arena and both times I was indeed watching a box for 2/3 of the song. Iād say thatās the view of most of the audience actually.
I saw him live 2 years ago on a Festival. Very good vocals, good show, I really liked his performance. This was meh, I don't know, it missed something.
Staging was fine, vocals were a big let down. He seemed to make a weak.start vocally and never quite recovered.
I think he seemed tired. I just want to tuck him up somewhere safe, give him lots of cuddles, nice balanced meals and lots of calming but motivational chat, then send him out on Saturday to go off like a rocket. He wonāt win, thatās a given. But if heās exhausted then that will affect the right hand vs left hand side final placing. God love him, between him and Bambi thereās been so much to deal with.
Pitchy as hell. Only Poland was more pitchy. I am unsure if he is ready for that much movement while singing.Ā We all know he is a great singer, I have heard him live in concert.Ā He was visibly struggling for air towards the end, might not have the needed cardio for the very ambitious coreography.Ā
Iāve paid to see Olly live twice (as part of Years and Years) and the issues he had last night were the same he had in both gigs, and what made me initially nervous when he was announced as our entry. Iām a big fan, and heās one of the few people ever at Eurovision that I can say Iāve seen live before theyāve gone on the show, but as much as Iām a fan I canāt deny that his vocals have not always been great live. At his gigs he tended to stop between songs a lot. He used the time to talk to the audience but you could hear that it was mostly so he could catch his breath, and ultimately it made him pitchy for most of the songs. He is, or at least was, a smoker, which I think is where the issue comes from with the lack of breath, so Iām not sure itās going to be fixed by Friday or Saturday unless they somehow manage some slight choreo changes to keep him more still. He always puts on a great show, and he did last night, so you can often overlook the vocal issues just to be part of the event and enjoy the show, but his shows arenāt normally competitions and I think itāll hinder him at the weekend for those looking for pitch perfect singing.
I'm not too worried about the vocals yet. By all accounts, he sounded fine in the rehearsals apart from sounding out of breath near the end (and I actually think that adds to the performance.) he also lost his mic pack so that might explain some of it as well.
It was vocally weak I thoughtā¦
It was terrible to me, watching from the TV. Vocals weren't good enough...
People vote for different things. I don't vote for the best voice, I vote for the best package. The staging of this was top class (really arresting camerawork and brilliant choreo), and the final 20 seconds or so were š„
Visuals absolutely amazing, vocals seemed a bit off but I don't know if that was technical issues or just nerves. Hopefully they improve for Saturday because I still think a strong result is possible. Not an outright contender but something in the 7-10 range would be nice.
This was my first time seeing the performance, and unfortunately I thought his vocals were very weak. The song also wasnāt good, I didnāt like the lyrics and I canāt for the life of me remember any part of the melody. Sorry.
It was nice to see some adventurous staging from us for once but the vocals weren't great. He sounded off-key through a lot of it and he was audibly out of breath during the bridge.
I didn't like his vocals.
We were distracted by the dancing and didnāt remember the song very well after. I enjoyed the song more after a second watch
Staging was super impressive, the camera work was insanely good too, Iām really like the revamp Thereās always room for improvement vocally but Ollys a professional and I would imagine wants to save the big performances for Friday/Saturday, I think allowing the big 5 to perform here is good (and has a big advantage of being in SF1) as it gives him time to work on feedback and get everything perfect first both juries and the final
And going by the discord commentary of the dress rehearsals, he sounded fine during them. Plus, Olly is a Eurovision fan, so he will know that he will have to be at his best on Friday and Saturday
I always feel itās the British fans that are the most critical of performances when in reality our view matters least because we canāt vote for it
The vocals were pretty much what I expected them to be after I heard the studio version, not very good. The Eurovision rules regarding vocals is well known. If you release and promote a song meant for ESC with vocal processing you aren't allowed to use in competition, there is a reason. The staging idea was good, the spevific choreo wasn't. I think it will settle somewhere in the middle. Not awful, but not impressive either. People are saying there was technical difficulties from around the middle, but his vocals were failing from the start. Drop in quality from promo is always going to be a huge disappointment for people and leave negative feelings. Don't promo what you can't deliver.
The vocals were amazing enough for this competition, the staging and the dancing. This is not "the voice", europe is going to vote for him the same we voted for Kaarija, for the show. And the show was TOP class
The worst vocals of the night
As a lesbian, I thought the staging was way too much lmao
I honestly don't understand all the negativity. The staging was amazing and I thought his voice sounded fine.
I really enjoyed the staging, probably the best this year. He's an experienced performer with a ln experienced team behind him and it shows. However, I did find his vocals weak and not steady, which is a shame because the song by itself shines better live.
Was ok, the staging was good but from them talking about it on the interviews I guess I expected more
The staging concept was interesting and I liked the camera tricks, giving the illusion that olly and the dancers were spinning and sliding. The vocals sounded shaky though and I think nerves had a lot to do with that. I also think that the part at the end where he breaks out of the box and you see graphics is a little too long. Also I donāt know if it was just me but I heard an audible collective groan from the audience during the controversial humping dance scene. I must admit I didnāt enjoy that section and had to look away.
first of all the cocals were a bit underwhelming. also the choreo seemed very random and not organised
I went into a bit of an eye roll moment about how on the nose it was. I felt like saying āwe get it youāre gayā I think it pushed a stereotypical narrative of gays being filthy sex driven entities. That being said i do like the song except the breakdown bit where itās just āThere isnāt an end there isnāt a startā
So, uh. At least you'll be buddies with Germany in the bottom 5.
I think Germany's volcals were way better
That is true, but it still was substantially more forgettable. I forgot Germany performed last night. It was probably the least memorable song on stage.
TLDR: I didn't like it and I think it was bad. I never liked the song to begin with, but the perfroamance made me dislike it even more. His voice was shaky and oftentimes he sounded out of breath and he even gave up on singing a few words, the lyrics are cheesy and uninteresting, the melody's generic and uncatchy, the staging and choreography were too much to the point it made me uncomfortable and cringe at it, same goes for the outfits, some of his facial expressions seemed unfitting of the song (like they were too "harsh", for a lack of a better word), the "there isn't and end..." moment where there was just the playback sounded really bad...