With 26 of this year's 39 entrants being artists who were due to compete in Rotterdam 2020, we wanted to know who fans thought came back with a superior entry.
We polled fans from across the world and this is The Top 10 'glow ups' competing this year:
10. Lithuania: The Roop - ‘Discoteque’ (54%)
Lithuania’s 2020 entry, ‘On Fire’ was one of the favourites to win the 2020 contest, so The Roop had a challenge of coming back with another song that fans loved. ‘Discoteque’ continued to bring the same upbeat, fun and strange energy that ‘On Fire’ and won the Lithuanian national final in a landslide.
9. Slovenia: Ana Soklič - ‘Amen (55.8%)
One of the two songs called 'Amen' in this years contest, Ana Soklič brings a strong ballad, well suited to her powerful voice. This just beats out her EMA winning power ballad of 2020, 'Voda'.
8. Malta: Destiny - ‘Je me casse’ (67%)
Junior Eurovision 2015 winner Destiny was highly anticipated by many fans coming into the 2020 season, and met many expectations with ‘All My Love’ being a fan favourite for 2020. With such a high bar set for 2021, it was going to be a challenge to win over fans a second time around. She has managed to not only meet those expectations, but she has exceeded them, with ‘Je Me Casse’ being one of the frontrunners to win the 2021 contest.
7. Estonia: Uku Suviste - ‘The Lucky One’ (69.4%)
Unlike many entrants on this list, Uku Suviste was not internally selected as the entrant for Estonia and had to win his second Eesti Laul (Estonian national final) for another attempt at Rotterdam. Keeping a similar style to his 2020 entry, that decision appears to have paid off with fans comfortably preferring this entry.
=5. Czech Republic: Benny Cristo ‘Omaga’ (72.7%)
Benny Cristo came back with a more radio-friendly dance pop song that was warmly received among many With almost three-quarters of fans preferring this song to 'Kemama', Cristo will be hoping he can keep Czech Republic's qualifying streak going.
=5. Ireland: Lesley Roy - ‘Maps’ (72.7%)
Lesley Roy quickly became a fan favourite pre and post the cancellation of Eurovision 2020. 'Maps' is a song about soul searching and finding your true self and that has resonated with fans. While many did love 'Story of My Life' fans strongly prefer 'Maps' out of the two entries.
4. United Kingdom: James Newman - ‘Embers’ (75.9%)
Departing from the mid-tempo approach of his 2020 entry James Newman brings an up-tempo dance number for the UK in 2021. This is a departure from what UK has sent recently and Eurovision fans strongly prefer this approach. Over 75% going for 'Embers' over 'My Last Breath'.
3. Belgium: Hooverphonic - 'The Wrong Place' (83.9%)
Despite a lead singer change, Hooverphonic are back with a song in their typical style. However there certainly has been a lot more love for the 2021 entry compared to their 2020 effort.
2. Moldova: Natalia Gordienko - ‘Sugar’ (85.1%)
In what is becoming a pattern around the top of this list, Moldova have also taken a more upbeat dance approach compared to their 2020 entry. Moldova have also found a lot more favour with the bookmakers as (at the time of writing), they sit at around 16th in the odds, compared to being down around 38th for the 2020 contest.
1. San Marino: Senhit - ‘Adrenalina’ (96.6%)
Skyrocketing up the odds upon the song’s release, San Marino’s 2021 entrant became a very unexpected contender. The music video features American rapper Flo Rida (though whether he will be in Rotterdam ais another matter). Regardless it's an entry that fans have fallen for with almost every survey respondent preferring this over 'Freaky!'.
The rest of the results you can see below in reverse order.
26. Iceland: ‘10 Years’ (12.6%)
25. Azerbaijan: ‘Mata Hari’ (14.9%)
24. Greece: ‘Last Dance’ (23%)
23. Spain: ‘Voy a quedarme’ (26.7%)
22. North Macedonia: ‘Here I Stand’ (27.1%)
21. Israel: ‘Set Me Free’ (27.3%)
20. Georgia: ‘You’ (27.6%)
19. Serbia: ‘Loco Loco’ (27.8%)
18. Bulgaria: ‘Growing Up is Getting Old’ (31.4%)
17. Latvia: ‘The Moon is Rising’ (39.8%)
16. Austria: ‘Amen’ (41.4%)
15. The Netherlands: ‘Birth of a New Age’ (48.8%)
14. Switzerland ‘Tout l'Univers’ (50%)
13. Ukraine ‘Shum’ (51.2%)
12. Romania ‘Amnesia’ (51.8%)
11. Australia 'Technicolour' (53.4%)