Jorge González is a Eurovision wannabe. He has tried to represent Spain quite a few times, at least two that I can remember without digging very deep in his Eurovision history: once as an applicant, once as a full participant. No luck so far in waving the flag, and after his statement last week about the Spanish Eurovision fans and national selections it is unlikely that he will even give it another shot…
It is easy to get lost in the Eurodrama when you read what a second or third hand report tells what someone said, so I took the time to go to the original source, Sangonera La Verde Murcia, the local channel of a town in Murcia, Spain. Jorge happened to be performing there and during a brief interview he said that he would not try anymore to represent Spain because it is a waste of time. It appears that, according to him, it is harder to win a national selection in Spain than the Eurovision Song Contest itself because the [Spanish] Eurofans choose what they prefer and make it very difficult…
Astonishing, but those words came from a self-declared Eurofan.
Well, well, well… Mr. González seems to believe that people who have followed the Eurovision Song Contest for years have poor judgment and do not choose the best option for the show they love and know very well. Not just that, they do not want to see their country winning the competition and have the opportunity to have Spain hosting it.
I can go on and on tearing Jorge’s analysis into pieces. I could go on for weeks. But I’ll contain myself and will focus on just a few more points.
Eurofans are not a monolithic army with no dissension within its ranks. Each fan has a different taste for music, and I am sure that many did like the songs that Jorge González presented for the Spanish national selections. There is no all for one in the decision-making. Some like one entry, some like another. The winning one just happens to gather more support, and that is why it wins the national selection.
This previous point leads us to another one: Jorge’s bid in 2014 ended up third in the national selection. Third out of five. It is not like Aunque Se Acabe el Mundo ended up last. Many people, Eurofans among them, did support Jorge in his attempt to represent Spain. Of course many did not, and instead voted for Ruth Lorenzo and Brequette, as did the jury (remember that). There were two artist with poorer results and two more who achieved a better outcome. Seeing these results I would not say that there was a Eurofan conspiracy pointing against Jorge González… But based on his words last weeks one would think that he suspects there was.
Winning a Spanish National Selection being harder than Eurovision itself…? If that were the case Ruth Lorenzo, Daniel Diges, and Lucía Pérez should have brought the trophies back from Copenhagen, Oslo and Düsseldorf respectively. Clearly that was not the case, and for Lucía the outcome in the Grand Final was catastrophic. I would dare say that Jorge was blinded by frustration when he uttered those words. I do not see another explanation…
There is a particular winner of a Spanish national selection that you can be sure was not the favorite of the Spanish Eurofans. Rodolfo Chikilicuatre (how could I forget you…) and his Eurovision entry were a joke from their very inception. I would need a whole column to state my opinion about this particular Spanish entry, so for now I will only ask myself this: does Jorge González really believe that the Spanish fans chose Rodolfo Chikilicuatre in 2008? I rest my case.
I once heard that if you want to be successful in the Eurovision Song Contest (not even win) you must respect its fans. We can be harsh sometimes, sure, but we do recognize and appreciate a good artist. Unpretentiousness is a plus.
I would like to see Jorge González try his luck again and give it a go in a Spanish national selection. A good song and a good presentation are the credentials that you need to earn the votes of the Eurofans, the rest of the audience and a jury in a national selection and in the Contest. Good luck!