France in the Eurovision Song Contest 2018
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France| France in the Eurovision Song Contest 2018 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eurovision Song Contest 2018 | ||||
| Participating broadcaster | France Télévisions | |||
| Country | France | |||
| Selection process | Destination Eurovision | |||
| Selection date | 27 January 2018 | |||
| Competing entry | ||||
| Song | "Mercy" | |||
| Artist | Madame Monsieur | |||
| Songwriters |
| |||
| Placement | ||||
| Final result | 13th, 173 points | |||
| Participation chronology | ||||
| ||||
France was represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 2018 with the song "Mercy" written by Émilie Satt and Jean-Karl Lucas, and performed by themselves as Madame Monsieur. The French entry for the 2018 contest in Lisbon, Portugal was selected through the national selection Destination Eurovision, organised by the French broadcaster France Télévisions in collaboration with the television channel France 2. The selection consisted of two semi-finals and a final. Madame Monsieur became the winner, placing third with the international juries but winning a landslide share of the vote from the French public, amassing enough points to win the competition. This was the first time France used a national final since 2014.
As a member of the "Big Five", France automatically qualified to compete in the final of the Eurovision Song Contest.
Before the 2018 contest, France had participated in the Eurovision Song Contest sixty times since its debut as one of seven countries to take part in 1956.[1] France first won the contest in 1958 with "Dors, mon amour" performed by André Claveau. In the 1960s, they won three times, with "Tom Pillibi" performed by Jacqueline Boyer in 1960, "Un premier amour" performed by Isabelle Aubret in 1962 and "Un jour, un enfant" performed by Frida Boccara, who won in 1969 in a four-way tie with the Netherlands, Spain and the United Kingdom. France's fifth victory came in 1977, when Marie Myriam won with the song "L'oiseau et l'enfant". France has also finished second four times, with Paule Desjardins in 1957, Catherine Ferry in 1976, Joëlle Ursull in 1990 and Amina in 1991, who lost out to Sweden's Carola in a tie-break. Since 2000, France has managed to place within the top ten four times, with Natasha St-Pier finishing fourth in 2001, Sandrine François finishing fifth in 2002, Patricia Kaas finishing eighth in 2009 and Amir finishing sixth in 2016. In 2017, France was represented by Alma and the song "Requiem". The country ended in twelfth place with 135 points.
The French national broadcaster, France Télévisions, broadcasts the event within France and delegates the selection of the nation's entry to the television channel France 2.[2] The French broadcaster had used both national finals and internal selection to choose the French entry in the past. The 2014 French entry was selected via a national final that featured three competing acts. Since 2015, the broadcaster had opted to internally select the French entry. For their 2018 entry, it was announced on 21 June 2017 that the broadcaster would organise a national final.[3]
Before Eurovision
Destination Eurovision
Destination Eurovision was the national final organised by France 2 to select France's entry for the Eurovision Song Contest 2018. The competition consisted of two semi-finals on 13 and 20 January 2018 and a final on 27 January 2018, all produced at the Studio Visual – Bât 210 in Saint-Denis and broadcast on France 2, TV5Monde and TV5 Québec Canada.[4] All three shows in the competition were hosted by French-Canadian singer Garou.[5][6]
Format
The format of the competition consisted of three shows: two pre-recorded semi-finals on 13 and 20 January 2018, and a live final on 27 January 2018.[7] Nine entries competed in each semi-final, from which four were selected to advance to the final from each show.[4] Results during the semi-finals were determined by the combination of votes from two jury groups: a three-member Francophone jury panel and a three-member international jury panel.
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The Francophone jury panel consisted of:
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The international jury panel consisted of:
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Results in the final were determined by the combination of public televoting (50%) and a ten-member international jury panel (50%). The three international jury members in the semi-finals were joined by an additional seven members from Armenia, Bulgaria, Finland, Iceland, Israel, Russia and Switzerland.[9] The public and the juries each had a total of 420 points to award, with each jury member awarding 2, 4, 6, 8, 10 and 12 points to their top six entries. The public vote was based on the percentage of votes each song achieved through telephone and SMS voting. For example, if a song gained 10% of the viewer vote, then that entry would be awarded 10% of 420 points rounded to the nearest integer: 42 points.
Competing entries
France 2 opened a submission period on 21 June 2017 in order for interested artists and songwriters to submit their proposals through an online submission form up until the deadline on 30 November 2017. Songs were required to contain at least 70% French language lyrics with a free language allowance for the remaining lyrics. In addition to the open submissions, France 2 also requested proposals from record companies.[10] At the closing of the deadline, the French broadcaster received 1,500 submissions. A selection committee reviewed the received submissions and selected eighteen entries to compete in the national final.[7] The competing artists and songs were announced gradually via social media from 29 December 2017 to 7 January 2018.[11][12][13]
| Artist | Song | Songwriter(s) |
|---|---|---|
| Ehla | "J'ai cru" | Grand Corps Malade, Fred Savio |
| Emmy Liyana | "OK ou KO" | Olivier Schultheis, Zazie, Jean-Pierre Pilot, William Rousseau |
| Enea | "I'll Be There" | Sonia Boraso |
| Igit | "Lisboa Jérusalem" | Antoine Barrau, Alex Finkin |
| Jane Constance | "Un jour j'ai rêvé" | Jane Constance, Pascal Obispo |
| June The Girl | "Same" | Marine Bollengier, François Welgryn, Antoine Essertier[14] |
| Lisandro Cuxi | "Eva" | Felipe Saldivia, Fred Savio, Freddy Marche |
| Louka | "Mamma Mia" | Maître Gims, Vitaa, Renaud Rebillaud, Luca Bennici |
| Lucie Vagenheim | "My World" | François Welgryn, William Rousseau, Mathieu Johann |
| Madame Monsieur | "Mercy" | Émilie Satt, Jean-Karl Lucas |
| Malo' | "Ciao" | Malory Legardinier |
| Masoe | "Paradis" | Dany Synthé, Jonah |
| Max Cinnamon | "Ailleurs" | Max Cinnamon, Stéphanie Petrequin |
| Nassi | "Rêves de gamin" | Nassi, Raphaël Nyadjiko |
| Noée | "L'un près de l'autre" | Barbara Pravi, Tomislav Matosin, Jules Jaconelli, Mélanie Di Petrantonio |
| Pheno Men | "Jamais sans toi" | François Welgryn, Gabin Lesieur, Pheno Men |
| Sarah Caillibot | "Tu me manques" | Sarah Caillibot |
| Sweem | "Là-haut" | Sweem |
Shows
Semi-finals
Two pre-recorded semi-finals were held; the first semi-final was filmed on 8 January 2018 and aired on 13 January 2018, and the second semi-final was filmed on 9 January 2018 and aired on 20 January 2018. In each semi-final nine entries competed and four qualified to the final determined by the combination of votes from a three-member Francophone jury panel and a three-member international jury panel. In addition to performing their contest entry, each artist performed a cover version of a popular song.[7][15]
| R/O | Artist | Song | Cover (Original artist) | Points | Place |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Masoe | "Paradis" | "Pas là" (Vianney) | 6 | 7 |
| 2 | Noée | "L'un près de l'autre" | "Le paradis blanc" (Michel Berger) | 26 | 6 |
| 3 | Lisandro Cuxi | "Eva" | "Billie Jean" (Michael Jackson) | 66 | 1 |
| 4 | Malo' | "Ciao" | "Wasting My Young Years" (London Grammar) | 46 | 3 |
| 5 | Emmy Liyana | "OK ou KO" | "Je te promets" (Johnny Hallyday) | 50 | 2 |
| 6 | Enea | "I'll Be There" | "Tous les cris les S.O.S" (Daniel Balavoine) | 0 | 8 |
| 7 | Pheno Men | "Jamais sans toi" | "ABC" (The Jackson 5) | 0 | 8 |
| 8 | Louka | "Mamma Mia" | "Alors regarde" (Patrick Bruel) | 30 | 4 |
| 9 | Ehla | "J'ai cru" | "Time After Time" (Cyndi Lauper) | 28 | 5 |
| R/O | Song | International Panel | Francophone Panel | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
C. Björkman |
O. Salamakha |
N. Caligiore |
Total | I. Boulay |
C. Willem |
Amir |
Total | ||
 SWE |
 BLR |
 ITA | |||||||
| 1 | "Paradis" | 0 | 4 | 2 | 6 | ||||
| 2 | "L'un près de l'autre" | 2 | 8 | 10 | 20 | 6 | 6 | ||
| 3 | "Eva" | 10 | 12 | 12 | 34 | 10 | 10 | 12 | 32 |
| 4 | "Ciao" | 8 | 6 | 6 | 20 | 12 | 12 | 2 | 26 |
| 5 | "OK ou KO" | 12 | 10 | 8 | 30 | 6 | 6 | 8 | 20 |
| 6 | "I'll Be There" | 0 | 0 | ||||||
| 7 | "Jamais sans toi" | 0 | 0 | ||||||
| 8 | "Mamma Mia" | 6 | 4 | 4 | 14 | 2 | 4 | 10 | 16 |
| 9 | "J'ai cru" | 4 | 2 | 2 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 4 | 20 |
| R/O | Artist | Song | Cover (Original artist) | Points | Place |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lucie Vagenheim | "My World" | "Savoir aimer" (Florent Pagny) | 0 | 9 |
| 2 | Madame Monsieur | "Mercy" | "Désenchantée" (Mylène Farmer) | 56 | 1 |
| 3 | Jane Constance | "Un jour j'ai rêvé" | "What a Wonderful World" (Louis Armstrong) | 8 | 6 |
| 4 | Nassi | "Rêves de gamin" | "Superstition" (Stevie Wonder) | 46 | 3 |
| 5 | Igit | "Lisboa Jérusalem" | "Tout va bien" (Orelsan) | 46 | 3 |
| 6 | Max Cinnamon | "Ailleurs" | "Perfect" (Ed Sheeran) | 54 | 2 |
| 7 | Sarah Caillibot | "Tu me manques" | "Tu m'oublieras" (Larusso) | 8 | 6 |
| 8 | Sweem | "Là-haut" | "Quelques mots d'amour" (Michel Berger) | 26 | 5 |
| 9 | June The Girl | "Same" | "Poupée de cire, poupée de son" (France Gall) | 8 | 6 |
| R/O | Song | International Panel | Francophone Panel | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
C. Björkman |
O. Salamakha |
N. Caligiore |
Total | I. Boulay |
C. Willem |
Amir |
Total | ||
SWE |
BLR |
ITA | |||||||
| 1 | "My World" | 0 | 0 | ||||||
| 2 | "Mercy" | 12 | 10 | 8 | 30 | 12 | 12 | 2 | 26 |
| 3 | "Un jour j’ai rêvé" | 2 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 4 | |||
| 4 | "Rêve de gamin" | 8 | 6 | 12 | 26 | 4 | 4 | 12 | 20 |
| 5 | "Lisboa Jérusalem" | 4 | 12 | 6 | 22 | 10 | 8 | 6 | 24 |
| 6 | "Ailleurs" | 10 | 8 | 10 | 28 | 6 | 10 | 10 | 26 |
| 7 | "Tu me manques" | 6 | 2 | 8 | 0 | ||||
| 8 | "Là-haut" | 4 | 4 | 8 | 6 | 8 | 22 | ||
| 9 | "Same" | 4 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 4 | |||
Final
The final aired live on 27 January 2018.[7] The four entries that qualified from the preceding two semi-finals competed and "Mercy" performed by Madame Monsieur was selected as the winner. In addition to performing their contest entry, each artist performed a duet with a well-known artist.[16] Alma, who represented France in the 2017 Contest, replaced Amir in the Francophone jury panel who provided feedback to the competing artists.[8]
| R/O | Artist | Song | Duet | Jury | Televote | Total | Place |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Louka | "Mamma Mia" | "Caméléon" (with Maître Gims) | 8 | 7 | 15 | 8 |
| 2 | Igit | "Lisboa Jérusalem" | "L'amour à la machine" (with Alain Souchon) | 60 | 50 | 110 | 5 |
| 3 | Emmy Liyana | "OK ou KO" | "Viens on s'aime" (with Slimane) | 82 | 30 | 112 | 4 |
| 4 | Madame Monsieur | "Mercy" | "Reine" (with Dadju) | 68 | 118 | 186 | 1 |
| 5 | Lisandro Cuxi | "Eva" | "Zombie" (with Nolwenn Leroy) | 90 | 72 | 162 | 2 |
| 6 | Max Cinnamon | "Ailleurs" | "Où je vis" (with Patrick Fiori) | 54 | 36 | 90 | 6 |
| 7 | Nassi | "Rêves de gamin" | "Elle m'a aimé" (with Gipsy Kings) | 30 | 18 | 48 | 7 |
| 8 | Malo' | "Ciao" | "Sirens Call" (with Cats on Trees) | 28 | 89 | 117 | 3 |
| R/O | Song | Iveta Mukuchyan |
Olga Salamakha |
Ivan Katsarev |
Terhi Norvasto |
Felix Bergsson |
Tali Eshkoli |
Nicola Caligiore |
Sergueï Pavlov |
Christer Björkman |
Reto Peritz |
Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 ARM |
BLR |
 BUL |
 FIN |
 ISL |
 ISR |
ITA |
 RUS |
SWE |
 SWI | |||
| 1 | "Mamma Mia" | 6 | 2 | 8 | ||||||||
| 2 | "Lisboa Jerusalem" | 8 | 10 | 8 | 2 | 10 | 4 | 8 | 10 | 60 | ||
| 3 | "OK ou KO" | 12 | 6 | 6 | 12 | 8 | 2 | 10 | 4 | 10 | 12 | 82 |
| 4 | "Mercy" | 8 | 12 | 6 | 12 | 6 | 8 | 6 | 2 | 8 | 68 | |
| 5 | "Eva" | 12 | 10 | 4 | 10 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 6 | 90 | |
| 6 | "Ailleurs" | 2 | 4 | 2 | 10 | 6 | 4 | 6 | 10 | 8 | 2 | 54 |
| 7 | "Rêves de gamin" | 10 | 2 | 2 | 8 | 2 | 6 | 30 | ||||
| 8 | "Ciao" | 4 | 4 | 8 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 28 |
Ratings
| Show | Date | Viewing figures | Night Rank | Source | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nominal | Share | ||||
| Semi-final 1 | 13 January 2018 | 2,486,000 | 12.4% | #3 | [17] |
| Semi-final 2 | 20 January 2018 | 2,084,000 | 10.7% | [18] | |
| Final | 27 January 2018 | 1,795,000 | 8.9% | #4 | [19] |
Promotion
Madame Monsieur made appearances across Europe to specifically promote "Mercy" as the French Eurovision entry. On 17 February 2018, they performed "Mercy" at the second semi-final of Vidbir 2018 in Ukraine.[20] They also participated in the London Eurovision Party at the Café de Paris venue in London, United Kingdom on 5 April; Israel Calling at Rabin Square in Tel Aviv, Israel on 8–11 April; the Eurovision in Concert at the AFAS Live venue in Amsterdam, Netherlands on 14 April; and the Eurovision-Spain Pre-Party at the Sala La Riviera venue in Madrid, Spain on 21 April. For the Amsterdam event, 2018 United Kingdom representative SuRie performed the English version of the song alongside Jean-Karl Lucas as Satt was unable to travel due to illness.[21][22][23][24][25]
