America Decided It Needs to Make Its Own Eurovision Song Contest

American Song Contest is coming whether you like it or not

BY Brock ThiessenPublished Aug 6, 2020

Further proving America will attempt to remake anything in its image, the long-running Eurovision Song Contest is now getting its own U.S. version.

Called American Song Contest, the American spinoff will start in 2021, with musical acts coming from all 50 states. Much like the European version — which started way back in 1956 — each artist will be trying to win the honours of best original song during the live television series.

American Song Contest is being spearheaded by the Eurovision rights owners Anders Lenhoff, Christer Björkman, Ola Melzig and Peter Settman, who are joining forces with television exec Ben Silverman.

As of press time, it's unclear why the hell they have decided to do this now instead of, say, 60 years ago.

For Eurovision newbies, Lenhoff explained the following:

Imagine if music was an Olympic sport and artists from all over the world came together to compete for the gold. That's the Eurovision Song Contest. The American version will be different than anything seen before on U.S. television, marrying the fanfare and excitement of March Madness and the NFL playoffs with the artistry and beauty of world-class performances. The American Song Contest is a competition that happens to be televised, rather than a contest created to make a television show. And it's open to all singers with a song, whether they are amateur artists or already signed to a major record label. No one is excluded from the competition.

If the American Song Contest itself wasn't enough, there will also be a precursor event called American Song Contest Academy, where juries of artists and music execs will handpick artists from all 50 states.

According to a press release, "The format, as it is currently conceived, will position the artists head to head against other states' representatives in a series of 5-10 televised Qualifier Competitions, leading to semi-finals and the ultimate primetime Grand Finale March Madness-style."

In a statement, Silverman added: "The sheer spectacle is amazing. It is a pure celebration of the best in music and the best of what music can be, produced by the world's elite artisans in all fields of production. The Eurovision Song Contest has shown that it can unite different countries and artists for a few nights every year to focus on their mutual love and respect for music. Bringing American Song Contest and the Eurovision brand to the U.S. is an incredibly ambitious project, but one worth doing, since we think these inherent values are intrinsic to uniting a fractional America through its greatest export and global impact … culture!"

Down below, you can watch a seriously amped trailer.

Of course, the news follows the seriously lukewarm Netflix comedy Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga, starring Will Ferrell and Sigrit Ericksdottir Rachel McAdams.

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