The “US Eurovision” Debuts on TV as a Weekly Program

Los Angeles (USA), 21 Mar American Song Contest, the US adaptation of the Eurovision Song Contest, debuted on Monday on NBC as a musical competition between different US states but with weekly installments instead of a single annual meeting.
The programme, which has the approval of the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), presented the performances of the first 11 participating states, including the presence of Michael Bolton, winner of two Grammys in the 1990s and Connecticut’s representative in the competition.
Mississippi, Wyoming, Arkansas, Rhode Island, Wisconsin, Indiana, Iowa, Oklahoma, Minnesota and Puerto Rico were the other states participating in the first semifinal.
Puerto Rico competes as the 50 states of the country plus Washington DC (the capital), and the five autonomous territories: Puerto Rico, Guam, Northern Mariana Islands, Virgin Islands and Samoa compete in the US festival.
In fact, the Caribbean country was the one that was most noticeable during the program thanks to its flag and the song they presented, “Loko”, sung in English and Spanish by Christian Pagán.
The US program has copied the most characteristic elements of the Eurovision Song Contest, such as the presentation videos of the contestants and the labels of each territory, albeit modifying the flags with the car license plates of the states.
The NBC network, which after years of negotiations won the rights to the festival, has transformed the idea into a program that is more like talent shows, such as Factor X, than the European event.
Its hosts, Kelly Klarkson and Snoop Dogg, will host a weekly one-hour program featuring eleven or twelve representatives and only one will go to the final by decision of the jury. The rest will compete for a place through the public vote.
The final will be held on May 9, just before the Eurovision week begins in Turin (Italy).
The European Broadcasting Union (EBU) already announced in 2019 that it was negotiating to export to the North American country its historic program, which this year will reach its 66th edition.
“For 65 years, the Eurovision Song Contest has connected people everywhere. As owners of this hugely successful format, we have seen how it has found its place in millions of hearts across Europe and beyond. Now we are excited to have found the perfect partners,” said Martin Österdahl, executive producer of the competition, confirming the sale of the rights. CHIEF
romu/cc