The 2012 Eurovision Song Contest
Eurovision Song Contest 2012
The 2012 Eurovision Song Contest was staged in Baku, Azerbaijan following the victory by Ell and Nicki at the 56th Contest in Germany with the song Running Scared.
42 countries across the Eurovision catchment area participated at the 2012 competition (Armenia decided to withdraw).
2012 welcomed the return of Montenegro to the Contest, although Poland did not participate this time. The semi-finals took place on May 22 and 24, while the grand final was presented on the evening of May 26.
Welcome to Eurovision 2012
Azerbaijan's Winning 2011 Eurovision Song: Ell & Nikki: Running Scared
Why was the Eurovision Song Contest 2009 held in Baku?
Under the rules of the European Broadcasting Union, the winning country from the previous year hosts the current year's event.
In 2011, Ell and Nikki won the Contest with the song Running Scared and thus the competition was staged in Azerbaijan in 2012.
Here is a reminder of the winning song from 2011.
- Baku Crystal Hall
Baku Crystal Hall is an indoor arena in Baku, Azerbaijan. Located on the coast of Baku near National Flag Square, construction of the arena began in August 2011 and finished in April 2012.
Eurovision Reviews
- The Eurovision Song Reviews
Reviews of the songs, along with their videos, which have represented various nations at The Eurovision Song Contest.
Eurovision 2012: The Participants
After two years away, Montenegro returned to the Eurovision fold, while both Armenia and Poland withdrew.
The following countries were represented in the two Semi-Finals of the 2012 Eurovision Song Contest, which took place on the 22nd and 24th of May:
Albania; Austria; Belarus; Belgium; Bosnia & Herzegovina; Bulgaria; Croatia; Cyprus; Denmark; Estonia; Finland; Georgia; Greece; Hungary; Iceland; Ireland; Israel; Latvia; Lithuania; Macedonia; Malta; Moldova; Montenegro; Netherlands; Norway; Portugal; Romania; Russia; San Marino; Serbia; Slovakia; Slovenia; Sweden; Switzerland; Turkey and Ukraine.
France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom - known as the Big Five - automatically qualified for the Final, together with 2011's winning country, Azerbaijan.
Semi-Final 1: May 22, 2012
Result: Semi-Final 1: Top 10 Qualify For Final
Country
| Song
| Artist
| Points
|
|---|---|---|---|
1. Russia
| Party for Everybody
| Buranovskiye Babushki
| 152
|
2. Albania
| Suus (Personal)
| Rona Nishliu
| 146
|
3. Romania
| Zaleilah
| Mandinga
| 120
|
4. Greece
| Aphrodisiac
| Eleftheria Eleftheriou
| 116
|
5. Moldova
| Lăutar (Traditional Musician)
| Pasha Parfeny
| 100
|
6. Ireland
| Waterline
| Jedward
| 92
|
7. Cyprus
| La La Love
| Ivi Adamou
| 91
|
8. Iceland
| Never Forget
| Gréta Salóme & Jónsi
| 75
|
9. Denmark
| Should've Known Better
| Soluna Samay
| 63
|
10. Hungary
| Sound of Our Hearts
| Compact Disco
| 52
|
11. Switzerland
| Unbreakable
| Sinplus
| 45
|
12. Finland
| När jag blundar (When I Close My Eyes)
| Pernilla Karlsson
| 41
|
13. Israel
| Time
| Izabo
| 33
|
14. San Marino
| The Social Network Song (Oh Oh-Uh-Oh Oh)
| Valentina Monetta
| 31
|
15. Montenegro
| Euro Neuro
| Rambo Amadeus
| 20
|
16. Latvia
| Beautiful Song
| Anmary
| 17
|
17. Belgium
| Would You?
| Iris
| 16
|
18. Austria
| Woki mit deim Popo (Shake Your Booty)
| Trackshittaz
| 8
|
Azerbaijan, Italy and Spain also voted in this semi-final.
Party For Everybody: Russia: Winner Semi-Final 1
Semi-Final 2: May 24, 2012
Result: Semi-Final 2: Top 10 Qualify For Final
Country
| Song
| Artist
| Points
|
|---|---|---|---|
1. Sweden
| Euphoria
| Loreen
| 181
|
2. Serbia
| Nije ljubav stvar (It's Not a Matter of Love)
| Željko Joksimović
| 159
|
3. Lithuania
| Love Is Blind
| Donny Montell
| 104
|
4. Estonia
| Kuula (Listen)
| Ott Lepland
| 100
|
5. Turkey
| Love Me Back
| Can Bonomo
| 80
|
6. Bosnia & Herzegovina
| Korake ti znam (I Know These Steps)
| Maya Sar
| 77
|
7. Malta
| This is the Night
| Kurt Calleja
| 70
|
8. Ukraine
| Be My Guest
| Gaitana
| 64
|
9. Macedonia
| Crno i belo (Black and White)
| Kaliopi
| 53
|
10. Norway
| Stay
| Tooji
| 45
|
11. Bulgaria
| Love Unlimited
| Sofi Marinova
| 45
|
12. Croatia
| Nebo (Heaven)
| Nina Badrić
| 42
|
13. Portugal
| Vida minha (My Life)
| Filipa Sousa
| 39
|
14. Georgia
| I'm a Joker
| Anri Jokhadze
| 36
|
15. The Netherlands
| You and Me
| Joan Franka
| 35
|
16. Belarus
| We Are the Heroes
| Litesound
| 35
|
17. Slovenia
| Verjamem (I Believe)
| Eva Boto
| 31
|
18. Slovakia
| Don't Close Your Eyes
| Max Jason Mai
| 22
|
France, Germany and the United Kingdom also voted in this semi-final
Euphoria: Sweden: Winner Semi-Final 2
Final: May 26, 2012
Image by Vugarİbadov (Own work) [CC-BY-SA-3.0], via Wikimedia Commons
Eurovision CD in the UK
If you're wanting to listen to a compilation of all of the entries at the 57th Eurovision Song Contest, this is the CD to have.
All 42 songs from the countries which participated are included and, as usual with Eurovision, there is a quirky and groovy mix of tracks, some fantastic and some a little offbeat.
However, I think 2012 will be remembered for a winning song, representing Sweden, which received one of the highest total scores for its contemporary sound!
[Available in CD format and some tracks can be downloaded.]
Result: The Final
Country
| Song
| Artist
| Points
|
|---|---|---|---|
1. Sweden
| Euphoria
| Loreen
| 372
|
2. Russia
| Party for Everybody
| Buranovskiye Babushki
| 259
|
3. Serbia
| Nije ljubav stvar (It's Not a Matter of Love)
| Željko Joksimović
| 214
|
4. Azerbaijan
| When the Music Dies
| Sabina Babayeva
| 150
|
5. Albania
| Suus (Personal)
| Rona Nishliu
| 146
|
6. Estonia
| Kuula (Listen)
| Ott Lepland
| 120
|
7. Turkey
| Love Me Back
| Can Bonomo
| 112
|
8. Germany
| Standing Still
| Roman Lob
| 110
|
9. Italy
| L'amore è femmina (Out of Love)
| Nina Zilli
| 101
|
10. Spain
| Quédate conmigo (Stay With Me)
| Pastora Soler
| 97
|
11. Moldova
| Lăutar (Fiddler/Traditional Musician)
| Pasha Parfeny
| 81
|
12. Romania
| Zaleilah
| Mandinga
| 71
|
13. Macedonia
| Crno i belo (Black & White)
| Kaliopi
| 71
|
14. Lithuania
| Love Is Blind
| Donny Montell
| 70
|
15. Ukraine
| Be My Guest
| Gaitana
| 65
|
16. Cyprus
| La La Love
| Ivi Adamou
| 65
|
17. Greece
| Aphrodisiac
| Eleftheria Eleftheriou
| 64
|
18. Bosnia & Herzegovina
| Korake ti znam (I Know These Steps)
| Maya Sar
| 55
|
19. Ireland
| Waterline
| Jedward
| 46
|
20. Iceland
| Never Forget
| Gréta Salóme & Jónsi
| 46
|
21. Malta
| This is the Night
| Kurt Calleja
| 41
|
22. France
| Echo (You and I)
| Anggun
| 21
|
23. Denmark
| Should've Known Better
| Soluna Samay
| 21
|
24. Hungary
| Sound of Our Hearts
| Compact Disco
| 19
|
25. United Kingdom
| Love Will Set You Free
| Engelbert Humperdinck
| 12
|
26. Norway
| Stay
| Tooji
| 7
|
Italy, Spain, France, Germany, United Kingdom and Azerbaijan automatically qualified for the Final
Euphoria: Sweden: Winner 2012
Party For Everybody: Russia: Runner-Up
Nije ljubav stvar: Serbia: Third Place
Information About Other Eurovision Contests
The Eurovision Song Contest 2008
The 2008 Eurovision Song Contest took place in Belgrade, Serbia where a new format premiered, which included two semi finals on 20th and 22nd May 2008.
The 2009 Eurovision Song Contest
Eurovision 2009: In 2008, Russia won the Eurovision Song Contest with singer Dima Bilan, who performed the song Believe.
The Eurovision Song Contest 2010
Eurovision 2010: In 2009, Norway won the Eurovision Song Contest with singer Alexander Rybak, who performed the song Fairytale.
The Eurovision Song Contest 2011
The Eurovision Song Contest 2011 took place in Dusseldorf, Germany following Lena Meyer-Landrut having sung the winning song for that country in the 2010.
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- 2013 Eurovision Song Contest
The 2013 Eurovision Song Contest took place in Malmo, Sweden following the victory by Swedish singer Loreen with the song Euphoria at the 57th Contest in Azerbaijan. - 2014 Eurovision Song Contest
Information, results and videos from the Eurovision Song Contest 2014, held in Copenhagen, Denmark.
About Your Author
With each article, Richard invites you to step into his world of music, television and entertainment. He will introduce you to British Glam Rock, share The 20 Scariest Film Scores Ever? and even give you an up close look at some classic actors such as Christopher Lee as Dracula.
For a complete list of Richard's articles, please visit Richard's profile.
© 2011 Richard
Are You A Fan of Eurovision?
I used to watch avidly, and was cheering on when Katrina and the Waves took us to victory! Not watched in a while because the voting got so political, but might have to watch it this year if the Hump is singing for us! :D Not that I am a fan as such but my mum loves him and have been dragged to a concert or two in my time... call it a nostalgia thing!
Wish I could be there!
Nice job you have done about this yearly contest. Swedens contribution is still unknown. The votes are going on to a final soon.
Actually, until now, I had no idea what Eurovision was. It's really interesting, but I don't think I'd like to go to Eurovision because that is a bit too much crowd for me. I begin feeling crowded when there are six people in a room, so you can imagine how I would react to that many people all scrunched together. No, thank you very much. I really like my extra breathing space. *grin*
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