Today the rehearsals for Eurovision 2023 continue in Liverpool. Countries rehearsing on Day 5 include Germany, France, Italy, Ukraine, Spain and the UK, who are having their first rehearsal on the Liverpool stage. Up next is Blanca Paloma, representing Spain.
Blanca Paloma’s first rehearsal
The fifth act to take to the Eurovision 2023 stage at M&S Bank Arena today in Liverpool was Spain’s Blanca Paloma. Blanca Paloma will be competing in this year’s competition with her entry “Eaea” following on from her victory at Benidorm Fest.
Following Blanca Paloma’s first rehearsal, a clip of what went on was posted on the official Eurovision Song Contest TikTok account. The clip showed Paloma before and after she took to the Eurovision stage for the first time, as well as giving us some insight into how her first rehearsal went.
What did we learn about Spain’s staging?
Photo credit: Sarah Louise Bennett
Why fix what ain’t broke? Blanca Paloma has kept with a very similar staging to what we saw from her at Benidorm Fest. The two red fringe curtains are back, made in two semi-circles, creating an “intimate” space for Paloma and her five dancers. She, like other acts this year, is using a red, black and white colour scheme. Her outfit has been taken up a level from what we saw in Benidorm Fest – she wears white trousers, a metallic red top which feels like a modern take on breastplate armour, and a black wrap around her left arm. She also uses some low smoke in the performance, which gives a mystical atmosphere.
What we thought of Blanca Paloma’s first rehearsal
After Blanca Paloma’s first rehearsal, Rosie gave her initial thoughts on the snippet that we saw.
Who is Blanca Paloma?
Blanca Paloma is the stage name of Blanca Paloma Ramos Baeza, a 33-year-old singer songwriter from Spain.
Born in the Valencian town of Elche, Blanca stayed local to her town for her education. She graduated from the Miguel Hernández University of Elche with a degree in Fine Arts. However, soon after, Blanca moved to Madrid to pursue a career in musical theatre.
Blanca’s signature genre of music is ‘new flamenco’, taking inspiration from the likes of former Eurovision alumni Remedios Amaya and Azúcar Moreno.
After being linked to several bands including Afalkay and De Mar A Mar, Blanca first made her name competing at Benidorm Fest 2022 with her song ‘Secreto de Agua’. Initially finishing 3rd in her semi-final, Blanca qualified for the final, finishing in 5th place with 61 points at the close of voting.
Following some collaborations, Blanca was the only artist to return to Benidorm Fest for 2023. Her song for the competition – ‘EAEA’ – comfortably won the selection and will now represent Spain at Eurovision 2023. The song is written by Blanca herself, alongside José Pablo Polo and Álvaro Tato.
Spain’s Eurovision Journey
Spain debuted at the Eurovision Song Contest in 1961 with Conchita Bautista’s “Estando Contigo”. The country earned its first win in 1968 with Massiel’s “La La La”, and won again in 1969 with Salome’s “Vivo Cantando” in an infamous four-way tie. Although they have yet to win again, Spain earned several 2nd place finishes, most famously with Mocedades’ “Eres tu” in 1973 and Anabel Conde’s “Vuelve conmigo” in 1996.
Spain has been less successful in recent years. Although they achieved two 10th place finishes in 2012 and 2014, the country has not finished above 20th place since 2015, including one last-place in 2017. This poor running streak was broken in 2022, when Chanel finished in 3rd place with 459 points from the jury and televoters with her song “SloMo”.
What do you think of Eaea? Can Blanca Paloma bring Eurovision back to Spain? Let us know your thoughts! Also, be sure to follow “That Eurovision Site” on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok as we prepare for Eurovision 2023!
News Source: That Eurovision Site
Photo Credit: Corinne Cumming/EBU
