After Will Ferrell's Eurovision-inspired comedy (Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga) was released earlier this year to, er, mixed reviews, American audiences have suddenly taken notice of the international, decades-old phenomenon that is the Eurovision Song Contest.
And now they're getting their very own.
“The Eurovision Song Contest’s unique legacy dates back 65 years and its worldwide popularity is still rising. It’s time for America to experience this spectacle, through its sister competition, the American Song Contest,” Martin Österdahl, Executive Supervisor of the Eurovision Song Contest, revealed in a statement.
“Love of music is universal and celebration of music in different genres and styles can transcend boundaries and unite people. We are excited to have found the right partners to offer another series that our fans across the globe can fall in love with and to share this unique competition with the American people.”
According to Variety, The American Song Contest will retain Eurovision's famous format, seeing “professional musical artists - solo singers, duos or groups up to six members - from each of the 50 states and across every musical genre will perform all original songs on the live televised event.”
The 50 states representatives will then compete in a series of televised Qualifier Competitions, leading to Semi-Finals and then, of course, the Grand Final.
“When America is more fractionalised than ever and we are dealing with so many issues that divide us, the one [thing] that truly unites us is our culture,” said executive producer Ben Silverman.
“It can unite it by celebrating its diversity, its distinctions and in pulling everyone around its love of music and its love of song.”
Well, we can't wait to see how this turns out.
