Former Eurovision participant Omar Naber and three others qualified from the first Semi-Final of EMA 2017. Indeed, contrary to last year, the Slovenian national selection will have two semi finals this year. Each semi final will have eight songs but only four of them will go through to the final round.
The public will choose their two favourites songs and then the jury members will choose two more songs. This is different to last year, when the top 2 songs chosen by the juries, competed in a superfinal and the winner was chosen by public voting.
The Songs
KiNG FOO – Wild Ride
Their song is a pop rock type number. The vocals of the main singer are good and a bit broken, which added something deep. It is a bit dated but enjoyable. The staging was simple with some blue and green lights.
Nika Zorjan – Fse
Nina is experienced in the Eurovision world. Indeed, she finished 3rd in EMA 2012 and competed as backing vocalist in 2014 for Tinkara Kovac and in 2015 for Maraaya. Her song is in Slovenian and is a catchy tune. She has a powerful voice. Maraaya composed the song and it began slowly and softly and the powerful voice came out slowly too. The staging had a space theme with pink colors like her hair.
Tosca Beat – Free World
The song of Tosca Beat is mystical due to being of the opera genre. It is a mix between opera and modernity. The three women had good vocals. The scenery showed the mystical atmosphere delivered by the song. In some parts, a spoken part with a megaphone is shown.
Lea Sirk – Freedom
Lea competed twice in EMA. Once in 2009 and the second time in 2010. Furthermore, she was also a backing vocalist for Tinkara Kovac in 2014, alongside Nika Zorjan. The song is soft and delivers a surprising chorus with a French sentence “Moi je suis libre” (I am free). She has good and strong vocals which help deliver the message of the song. The stage was filled with blue lights and dancers around the singer, with a costume of mime.
Sell Out – Ni Panike
The song of this group is entirely sung in Slovenian and is an uptempo song. It is almost like a mix between Leto Svet (Estonia 2008) and European Funk (Lithuania 2010). the staging was colorful and the performance was delivered with a joyful atmosphere where we want to dance with everyone. It had a small break in the song to do a small mannequin challenge.
Zala Đurić Ribič – Lalalatino
Zala is maybe unknown in the Eurovision world but her mother already participated in a Eurovision edition. Indeed, she is the daughter of Tanja Ribic who represented Slovenia in 1997. The song has a warm atmosphere reminding of the sun, the beach, with a smooth voice and a regular beat. Then, some dancers join her on the stage to embody the “latino” side. There are some parts in Slovenian.
Alya – Halo
Alya is well-known in EMA and in Slovenia. She participated seven times including EMA 2017. Her best ranking in the show is fourth. Her entry is very catchy and in Slovenian and English. The voice of Alya is memorable and can easily qualify with a good staging. About the staging, it was a warm atmosphere and had a Spanish influence in the instrumental of the song.
Omar Naber – On My Way
Finally, Omar is also known in the Eurovision world. He already represented Slovenia in Ukraine, in 2005. Will he return to Kyiv a second time ? This time he competes with a ballad in English. His voice is smooth and powerful when he reaches the high notes. The staging was black and white and then when the chorus starts, the colors appeared. His live vocals were on point and it was a memorable performance.
The Show
The opening act began with some dancers and the hosts entered the stage with a song about the national final. After that performance, the presentation of the artists took place .
After a performance, the 3 hosts talked to the performers by joking with them. It was like a comedy during the entire show. The hosts did a great job by making the audience laugh.
After a TV break, another interval act was proposed, it was the song Energy sang by Nusa Derenda. She represented Slovenia in 2001. This is the last time that Slovenia was in the top 10.
After another break, the hosts went again to the green room. They talked with Tosca Beat and they performed acapella a different song. They had powerful opera skills during that small performance.
After the recap, there was another interval act. This one was the last winning song from the UK Love Shines A Light originally performed by Katrina & The Waves. There, it was performed by Eva Botto. Then, ManuElla performed her last year entry Blue and Red.
The Results
This is the results of the first semi final of EMA 2017.
| Draw | Artist | Song | Result |
| 01 | KiNG FOO | Wild Ride | Qualified |
| 02 | Nika Zorjan | Fse | Qualified |
| 03 | Tosca Beat | Free World | Eliminated |
| 04 | Lea Sirk | Freedom | Eliminated |
| 05 | Sell Out | Ni Panike | Qualified |
| 06 | Zala Duric Ribic | Lalalatino | Eliminated |
| 07 | Alya | Halo | Eliminated |
| 08 | Omar Naber | On My Way | Qualified |
Slovenia in Eurovision Song Contest
The country participated for the first time in 1993, thanks to the pre-qualifying round and where they finished first. In the final of 1993, they ended up in the 22nd place.
Yet, Slovenia never won the contest and struggle to have good rankings. For instance, the country managed to be in the top 10 three times since their debut. The most recent one was in 2001 with the song Eneregy performed by Nusa Derenda.
Last year, Slovenia selected ManuElla and her song Blue And Red in Stockholm. She performed in the Second Semi Final and did not qualify for the Final. She placed 14th with 57 points.
Down below, you can watch our video from the dress rehearsal of ManuElla in Stockholm.
