Before September 1 hits, and we get sucked into everything Eurovision/Junior Eurovision, we wanted to take the opportunity to give our readers a chance to get to know our team a bit better. There’s no other way to do this other than to do a series where we introduce ourselves. The first one to introduce themselves is Tim, who is in charge of the News Content over here at That Eurovision Site.
Name: Tim Jumawan
Age: 26 (Yikes)
Pronouns: He/Him
You are also able to follow Tim, on the following social media platforms:
- Twitter – @esc_tim
- Instagram – @eurovisiontj
- Facebook – @eurovisiontj
- Youtube – That Euro Vlog
How did I get into the Eurovision Song Contest?
My first encounter with the competition was back in 2007. It had only been about nine months since I moved to the United Kingdom from the Philippines. One Saturday evening, I was just bored and then the contest was on BBC One. I actually did watch Scooch’s performance somewhere before that. At the time, I thought they gave a great performance (if only I could turn back time and tell past Tim how wrong he was).
Since then, I have just watched the competition every year, on a Saturday. I did not know the Semi-Finals existed and I did not just bother knowing more about it. This was the case until 2012 when everything changed.
What point did I consider myself as a “Eurofan”?
I did not delve into the competition much further until after the 2012 Eurovision Song Contest took place in Baku. I had “Euphoria” by Loreen on a loop (I mean it did reach number 3 in the UK charts). After having it on a loop, I delved deeper into Eurovision. I found out that Semi-Finals existed, I slowly learned more about NFs (e.g. Melodifestivalen DMGP, MGP, etc.) and I was sucked into a black hole of just Eurovision-related shows.
How has my life changed since becoming a Eurofan?
Ever since I became a Eurofan, my life has completely changed (and in a good way), I’ve actually gained a lot of new friends, especially in the UK fandom, where we are tight-knit and friends with everyone. I’ve actually gone on to cover National Finals and even went on to cover the 2019 and 2021 Eurovision Song Contest as a member of the press. Either way, I’m so happy I found the Eurovision Song Contest and met the people I have over the past few years.
What are my favourite Eurovision Songs and Countries
Even though my main love is the Eurovision Song Contest from 2012 onwards (how basic), I do have a love for entries from entries way before that, and I do play it now and again. Anyways, here’s five entries that I have on my playlist to this date.
- ๐ธ๐ช Sweden (2012) Loreen with “Euphoria”
- ๐ฒ๐ฐ North Macedonia (2019) Tamara Todevska with “Proud”
- ๐ฌ๐ง United Kingdom (1997) Katrina and the Waves with “Love Shine A Light”
- ๐ณ๐ฑ The Netherlands (2019) Duncan Laurence with “Arcade”
- ๐จ๐พ Cyprus (2018) – Eleni Foureira with “Fuego”
What are my favourite National Final songs
As I consider myself as a Eurofan (I’d like to think that I am), I of course have the beautiful problem of having my calendar filled between December and March, as I watch countless TV in countries in which I don’t even understand the language. As a Filipino, I do see some artists of Filipino descent compete and even make it to Eurovision, but looking into it I respect the decision of the voting public. I mean despite the songs not winning their respective National Finals I still have some of them on my playlist
- ๐ท๐ด Bella Santiago with “Army of Love” (Selecศia Naศionalฤ 2019 – Romania)
- ๐ช๐ช Kerli with “Spirit Animal” (Eesti Laul 2017 – Estonia)
- ๐ธ๐ช Dotter with “Bulletproof” (Melodifestivalen 2020 – Sweden)
- ๐ฑ๐ป Edgars Kreilis with “Tridymite” (Supernova 2020 – Latvia)
- ๐ซ๐ฎ Saara Aalto with “Queens” (UMK18 – Finland)
What am I looking forward to in the next Eurovision season?
The thing I am looking forward to first is the Junior Eurovision Song Contest in France in December, which I am working hard to attend this year. The next thing will be going to Italy for the Eurovision Song Contest. I will be going to Italy for a wedding in late May, so fingers crossed that there are no clashes. Lastly, I’m looking forward to being part of a team that is adding “a slice of life” to bring you Eurovision coverage.
What do you think of Tim’s favorite songs? Want to learn more about our team? Let us know in the comments below or on social media. Donโt forget to follow โTHAT Eurovision Siteโ over at Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
