Eurovision Asia 2026: Aussievision's Rhythm of Bhutan song rankings

The five songs competing to represent Bhutan at the inaugural Eurovision Song Contest Asia are out, and the Aussievision team has been busy ranking them to find our favourites.

Bhutan will become the first country to select its Eurovision Asia entry when Rhythm of Bhutan takes place on Tuesday 11 August.

Eleven Aussievision team members have ranked the Bhutanese songs from first to fifth place with points awarded from 12 points to most favourite and 4 points to least favourite (12, 10, 8, 6 and 4 points). Rankings are made on personal taste, not a prediction on how the songs will place on the night.

Results

5. Pelden Wangchuk – གྱོ་འགྲུལ། – Jo’druel (The Journey) 62 points

Highs: 12 points from Liv. 10 points from Srdjan.

Lows: 4 points from Kyriakos, Will, Paul, Laura, Fleur, Craig & Michael.

"What a delight and novelty to be ranking these songs - I am proud to say The Journey is my first ranking winner for Eurovision Asia! There is something sweet and catchy about the feel and guitar and lyrics in this entry that makes me bop along every listen." ~ Liv

4. Sangay Lhaden Band – པད་མའི་ཚེ་དབང་བཀྲ་ཤིས། – Pemi Tshewang Tashi (The Legend) 80 points

Highs: 12 points from Michael. 10 points from Kyriakos.

Lows: 4 points from Srdjan and Cooper.

"The Sangay Lhaden Band just released "Pemi Tshewang Tashi" (The Legend), one of five songs competing to represent Bhutan at Eurovision Asia 2026. It's based on an old Bhutanese legend that's been told for years through traditional songs and performances. This new version has a different feel: it leans into a pop rock sound, with guitars, more energy, and a fuller band arrangement. It's the same legend at its core, just given a modern sound for a bigger stage. The best among the lot!" ~ Michael

3. Baeyul 301 – དྲན་པ། – Drenpa (The Memories) 90 points

Highs: 12 points from Fleur. 10 points from Will, Paul, Michael, Cooper .

Lows: 4 points from Dale.

"Bubblegum pop, easy on the ears, and full of melody." ~ Michael

2. Thukten Nyendra – ལྷ་ཡི་སྲས་མོ། – Lhayi Semo (The Angel) 96 points

Highs: 12 points from Will and Laura. 10 points from Dale, Fleur and Craig.

Lows: 4 points from Liv.

"Nyendra’s voice is ethereal, and the song opening is unlike anything I’ve heard before. By far my favourite of the entries here." ~ Will

"Thukten Nyendra’s stunning vocal performance makes this song the clear standout of the Rhythm of Bhutan lineup to me - it captured my attention from the very first listen. I love the blend of modern sounds with traditional instruments!" ~ Laura

1. Karma Drupchu – ཕ་གཡུས། – Pha Yuel (The Homeland) 112 points

Highs: 12 points from Kyriakos, Srdjan, Paul, Cooper, Dale and Craig. 10 points from Laura and Liv.

Lows: 6 points from Michael and Will.

"This song has that sweeping epic mid-tempo brilliance that just leaves you breathless. A beautiful mix of pop, tradition, and native language and music that is accessible enough to pique people's interest in diving into Bhutanese music. This deserves pretty epic staging as well." ~ Paul

"This song is a clear standout to me from the pack, it is current and fresh and sounds like something I would already listen to in my free time." ~ Srdjan "This just ticks every box of what I'd love to see in Eurovision Asia. Something traditional but also had a touch of modern production and a hook. This is the one song that really stood out, that I was still "singing" afterwards and that opening sounds incredible. Staging could really work well for this!" ~ Dale

"Among a great lineup of songs for our first ever Eurovision Asia national final, this is a really interesting and impactful production, which feels like it could leap out of the studio into a memorable live performance." ~ Craig "Taylor Swift once said ‘Karma is the guy on the screen’ and she’d be right cause My man Karma needs to make it to the inaugural Eurovision Asia stage. I’m genuinely shocked how strong this line-up of songs is and Pha Yuel (The Homeland) is the clear headliner of these." ~ Cooper

How to watch the Rhythm of Bhutan national final

Rhythm of Bhutan will take place on Tuesday 11 August at 7:00pm Bhutan Time, or 11:00pm AEST.

It will be aired live via the official Eurovision YouTube channel.

The national final will mark the beginning of the Eurovision Asia selection season, with seven countries having confirmed dates for televised selections across August and September.

Check out all the latest on Eurovision Asia here.

For continued updates on all Eurovision Song Contest Asia news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, TikTok, YouTube, Threads, Bluesky and Instagram. All the links can be found at: https://linktr.ee/aussievisionnet