A Very Special Episode - Eurovision 2024

Today's episode breaks down what Eurovision is and why you might enjoy it.  Eurovision is a bit like hockey in that people rarely just start watching hockey out of the blue and it really helps if someone else turns you onto it. 

Here's the playlist we mention on the show.  Click each link to follow along as we discuss each one.

Think About Things - Iceland

Last Year’s (2023) Winner - Tattoo by Loreen representing Sweden

Last Year’s (2023) Runner Up - Cha Cha Cha by Käärijä representing Finland

A Protest Song I Loved - Mama ŠČ! by Let 3 -representing Croatia

My Favorite of Eurovision 2023 - My Sister's Crown by Vesna representing Czechia 

2024 Eurovision - Teresa & Maria by alyona alyona & Jerry Heil representing Ukraine

2024 Eurovision - La Noia by Angelina Mango representing Italy 

2024 Eurovision - Rim Tim Tagi Dim by Baby Lasagna representing Croatia

2024 Eurovision -  Europapa by Joost Klein representing Netherlands

Hope you enjoy Eurovision!

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Sponsored by Pajiba and The Antagonist, join Boss Emily Chambers and Coaches Bishop and Castleton as they ruminate on all things AFC Richmond.

Boss Emily Chambers
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Coach Castleton

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:22

Welcome to our Ted Lasso talk, the Tedcast. Welcome all Greyhound fans, welcome all you sinners from the dog track and all the AFC Richmond fans around the world. It's the Lasso way around these parts with Coach, coach and Boss, without further ado, coach Castleton.

Speaker 2: 0:39

Welcome back, beautiful people. Thank you for joining us today for a very special episode. We're going to talk about eurovision 2024. Uh, for those of you who are joining us for the first time, we typically talk about, uh, television shows and then, here and there, we add uh sort of things that interest us. And, um, this is one of those things where I have a little bit of knowledge about it Not a lot, but it's something I really, really enjoy and, I thought, something that the listening community would enjoy with me, and Coach and Boss know almost nothing about it, I think. So we're going to talk to them and see, I am your host, coach Castleton, and with me, as always, is Coach Bishop.

Speaker 3: 1:27

I am your host, coach Castleton, and with me, as always, is Coach Bishop, just make sure we have an AfricaVision episode.

Speaker 2: 1:35

Yeah, no, that's a good point, coach, that's a good point, coach. No, no, listen, hey, coach doesn't know what to expect. So right before we started rolling, he's like, all right, show me some white nonsense, Like we, we, we. He doesn't know, coach doesn't know what to expect, so he just said, right before we started rolling, he's like, all right, show me some white nonsense, like, we'll see. We'll see what the. So this is okay. No, but this is part of it. This is really good With us is our boss, emily Chambers.

Speaker 4: 1:56

He's got a point is all I'm going to say. He does have a point.

Speaker 2: 2:00

All right, so let's start there.

Speaker 3: 2:02

I like that point and I want to start there, Coach.

Speaker 2: 2:05

what do you know about Eurovision? List it all out, Every single thing you know and everything you think you know. I want to hear you blather right now. We're starting with Coach. I think Boss has slightly more knowledge than you there's.

Speaker 3: 2:18

Euro. There's Euro, so I'm assuming that stands for Europe and vision. There's going to be some shit to be seen, okay, in 2024, I assume is a reference to the year Okay. We have what else.

Speaker 2: 2:39

Okay, that is it.

Speaker 3: 2:40

You're saying that, but you said white. That is it, you said white nonsense.

Speaker 2: 2:46

Why'd you say white nonsense? I mean listen, most things are white nonsense.

Speaker 3: 2:50

I really don't know anything about it.

Speaker 2: 2:52

I, somewhere in your psyche you have an idea that it's white. I guess in part.

Speaker 3: 3:01

I don't like some kind of just crazy festival. Like I don't know, I have no kind of just crazy festival, like I don't know, I have no idea of like specifics of it, but like, is it like Coachella? Yeah, you know, like would there be? No, I would think more in the. My brain went more to like a cross between like Live Aid and Fringe Got it. Okay, probably kind of star-studded-y and big yeah, but very taken pride in that this is the real, whatever they're being real about.

Speaker 2: 3:37

Okay, cool. Thank you, that's exactly what I was hoping for, boss. What do you know about?

Speaker 4: 3:43

Eurovision A little bit more. I do know that it is a singing competition that a number of countries in Europe participate. It is a big deal to host the Eurovision. I know that ABBA won in 74, but I just learned that recently I have seen clips of Eurovision. I have never watched. I am not as theatrical as I believe Eurovision would require. Like I'm not a musical person, I am not a drag show person. That is not because I have any issues with drag whatsoever. I don't like that much. Pageantry is my thing. You don't like the pageantry, I don't care for the pageantry.

Speaker 2: 4:32

It's not my thing, yeah right, what do you like? Putting people in graves?

Speaker 4: 4:39

I mean, I feel like there's a big, big difference between full-on Broadway musicals and putting people in graves like yeah there's a little there's a spectrum. There's like a sliver in between those that is true.

Speaker 2: 4:51

That is true.

Speaker 4: 4:52

My apologies, I've gone too far I will fully admit there's a small possibility. I will be seeing the huey lewis musical this summer. I haven't yet but it is a possibility.

Speaker 2: 5:05

Ah, okay. All right, I don't know how, uh, I don't know much about that. Uh, so maybe that's something that you can.

Speaker 4: 5:11

uh, you can, you can it's just that I loved Huey Lewis as a child, and so this is not.

Speaker 2: 5:17

This is not mentioned. Uh, no mention of the news whatsoever.

Speaker 4: 5:21

I mean that's fine, Like if they should have put their names in the band if they wanted to be known. This is why the Dave Matthews band All Gladys Knight.

Speaker 4: 5:29

Dave Matthews knew exactly what he was doing. And also I am really pissed off. This is a joke from my Brother. My Brother and Me a different podcast. Don't listen to that one, Only listen to ours. But Dave Matthews himself does a lot of solo shows, like they tour all the time because they're the new grateful dad or whatever. Dave matthews band tours all the time and then dave matthews goes out and does solo shows, usually him and tim reynolds. I cannot figure out why he doesn't refer to those shows as the dave matthews man. So you would know it's not the band.

Speaker 2: 6:05

It's the dave matthews man that's a terrible pun, okay, well listen, terrible puns are part of eurovision. This is you're, we're, really, we're off to a good start, perfect. Um, I'm gonna say I'm gonna own right up front. We have a lot of people from all over the world who who are listening to this show, this podcast. I do not have an encyclopedic knowledge of Eurovision. I am coming at it from the perspective of an American who has fallen in love with it. It's up there for me now. It's a family event for us, so it gets fun in that way.

Speaker 2: 6:52

In that way, I did a thing for kids and didn't have a lot of money. I didn't want my kids to grow up being locked into a certain mindset and Mark Twain talks about, samuel Clements talks about how travel is the best thing for kids to remove uh, you know, their, their, their ignorance and that sort of thing. Uh, for for all human beings, not just kids. Um, I couldn't take, I couldn't afford to take the kids all over the world, even though I wanted to. So I approximated that by um playing lots of music from all over the world, and then I, for Pajiba, who sponsors the podcast here, I enlisted some help from people all over the world and they started making collaborative playlists and it was just really amazing and my eyes were opened and that was sort of the start of it. Then, when the pandemic hit, people were even more into it because, you know, you couldn't go, no one could go anywhere, but it didn't mean you wanted to miss out on things that were happening elsewhere. I was first interested in Eurovision. It was weird and nuts From what I knew. Once upon a time I knew there was something that happened in Europe, but we couldn't really see it in America. We just didn't have access and it was like oh yeah, that's what a bunch of campy weirdos do in Europe. They're crazy. You know how crazy Germans are? It's like that sort of thing. Or you know how man these crazy Swedes. So it started out that way and then, during the pandemic, they had to cancel Eurovision, the first year of the pandemic in 2020.

Speaker 2: 8:29

But someone shared with me. One of our writers at Antagonist Blog shared a video with me and this is really the video that sort of got me into it, because I was like oh, I really, this is really good. Something about this just really works for me. So here's how we're going to do the format today I am going to show Coach and Boss videos. Because of rights issues, we can't play the music or show the videos here on the site, but what I'm going to do is I'm going to put a link for a playlist so that you guys can watch the videos as we watch them and then come back and hear the commentary. This is super fun because Boss and Coach are coming in totally naked. They just do not know anything, so they don't know what to expect, and my goal here is again I'm not an expert. I know a little bit about what it is and hopefully, throughout this process, I'll try to explain so people have a better sense of it. The reason we're doing it now is because Eurovision will air on Peacock.

Speaker 2: 9:37

You can now see Once Upon a Time. I think the first time it was shown in America was in 2016 or 15 or 16, right around there. Shown in america was in 2016 or 15 or 16, right around there, and it was like oh, uh, viacom, uh, channel logo has acquired the rights to what? And you're like logo? Who the fuck you're like? Oh, what is that? That means nothing. That's as good as me, not. I don't even. I've never been. I don't think logo exists anymore, or if it does, my apologies.

Speaker 3: 10:01

Uh, to the logo channel which I'm gonna say cut to the president of logo.

Speaker 2: 10:05

We're doing our best, exactly, exactly, but now it's on peacock and you can see it live. You can watch it live. Uh, it's super fun. Um, it will be uh may, uh, 7th, 9th and 11th the finals on the 11th, 7th and 9th of the semis, and it is fun and for people who have families whether it's a family thing or not it's just something that you can do with friends.

Speaker 2: 10:37

It's music in your home. It's all original concepts. You can't use songs that were not made specifically for this. You have to write your own music and then each country sends they have, like their internal sort of songs, a little competition and then the country decides, hey, this is who we're sending Eurovision this year. It originally started in 1956, I believe, and it was only seven countries or so, and then it's grown and grown and grown and grown and now the country is, like Coach points out, yes, it's primarily European, but in 2015, I believe, australia is such like diehard, insane Eurovision fans that they invited Australia to participate as a one-time thing for the 60th anniversary. They just, you know, people loved it, and so now Australia has been invited back and now Australia is like part of the Eurovision thing and it has to do with the SBS, which is the broadcasting system.

Speaker 3: 11:43

Anytime I hear Australia, somebody is having a good time. Yes, no, no is having a good time? Yes?

Speaker 2: 11:46

No, no, they're maniacs, like they have always they're so. So the thing about oh, why is Australia allowed? Yeah, no, no, no, a hundred percent. A lot of people say why is Australia allowed to be part of Eurovision? They're not, whatever, all that stuff, yes, but they're so excited about australia, so so in love with eurovision, and always has been that they. They often bring so much to the competition and, and one of the knocks on some of the european nations is that, you know, sometimes people don't always put their best, you know, act out.

Speaker 2: 12:18

So anyway, um, what we're going to start with is my entree into Eurovision, and I saw this video. This is from Iceland. It's an artist named Dodi Frer and Dodi and Gagnamagnet, and it's a song called Think About Things, and so what we're going to do now is I'm going to play this for Coach and Boss. We will come back once they have seen it and and then hopefully you guys can at home, can can follow along. My apologies to people in the car. I know sometimes some of you out there, all the the Willie Lomans of the world, are going to have to sort of suffer, suffer through this, but hopefully, like those of you who didn't watch Wayne and just listened to the commentary. Maybe this will suffice. So, coach and Boss, this is four minutes and five seconds.

Speaker 3: 13:13

I caught that on the Omen line, by the way. Oh, thank you yes.

Speaker 2: 13:17

Listen, some people are going to be out on the road. I'm going to share this with you and we're going to start. A man is not a piece of fruit Damn straight. Damn straight. Alright, here we go and enjoy, think about things, coach and boss Okay, so reactions Thoughts no, okay. So reactions, thoughts no, no, no, okay listen this is not for me this is not this.

Speaker 4: 13:55

None of this was made for me, um, and if you didn't see the video, it's like sort of a vaguely synthy poppy type sort of humorous song, but not going all the way into humor, I prefer either lean in or don't. I will need to find it, but there's a comedian who did a song about how, anytime anybody asks him if he's seen something like hey, have you seen my keys? And he always responds with have you checked your butthole? And that makes me laugh. I like that. I do think that that's funny, um, but I feel like lean into it or be more humorous is fine. If the point is to be funny, you got to be full funny, like I'm gonna need you to get all the way there.

Speaker 4: 14:44

Um, yeah, the thing that bothered me a lot about it, though and this is because I just watched conan o'brien on hot ones he was talking about how, every once in a while, you'll get a comedian or stand-up specifically where, if things aren't going as well as they hoped it would, they will turn to audience or like, look directly into the camera. At some point it'll they will be connecting with the audience member and say, oh, this isn't going well at all is it, and they are attempting to break some tension, to like highlight the fact that things aren't going well. And conan said no man, you're putting on a fucking show like, even if you are failing, what you want them to get to is this is the best goddamn thing anybody's ever seen.

Speaker 4: 15:27

So the fact that the audience within the video is like we don't like this like how am I supposed to like it if the audience that you came up with doesn't like it?

Speaker 2: 15:37

ah, okay, that's how you, yeah, man interesting like don't. Yeah, do not half-ass this shit with me.

Speaker 4: 15:42

You fucking put it all the way out there. You dance as hard as you can. You try for as much comedy as you can. Go big.

Speaker 2: 15:52

Okay, yeah, I think the.

Speaker 4: 15:57

I get what they're going for.

Speaker 2: 15:59

That's a commentary. So the people who didn't like it are it's a historical representation of the old school Eurovision viewer who thought, when they turn around and shake their butts like you can't even look at that, you know, like it's things like that. So, yes, absolutely, I hear what you're saying, coach.

Speaker 3: 16:21

Coach heard the song, only saw stills. Coach heard the song, only saw stills because of some technical difficulties. So that was fascinating. There were keytars involved. Yep, some sweaters of the sort of ugly Christmas sweater adjacent genre. I got the sense that. I got a sense of it. It was a little crazy. It was a little bit crazy, but the keytars made me go okay, so we're all on the same page here. You know what you're doing.

Speaker 2: 17:02

Yeah, yeah, listen, it's less. Camp is certainly part of the eurovision experience. Um, it's less uh. It's not uh for the purpose of this conversation.

Speaker 3: 17:13

You don't have to love the music, you don't have to love the whatever you, it's, it's actually I was I would I actually like the song more than I expected to, based on how you were he's got a.

Speaker 2: 17:22

He's got a great voice. Um, does it affect? I? I brought up the lyrics here on the screen. Does it affect? Here's the thing I took away from you. If anyone knows who, whenever we talk about music, I always talk about how important the lyrics are to me. Um, this is a song where I thought, oh, this is a little creepy. Um, you know, believe me, I'll always be there. You can tell me anything and I'll listen. Anyway, I thought, oh, what's the? I just thought, okay, it's a little aspirational, believe me, I'll always be there, you know. I thought, oh, just okay, that's notable. Until I found out that this is a literal.

Speaker 3: 18:09

Did Boss write this? This is a literal baby. This sounds like her, like love he was having a.

Speaker 2: 18:13

He was having a child.

Speaker 2: 18:15

This is like so it's a baby, he's singing to his baby, that's coming, and I thought it was so cool. I went from like oh god. He says like um, uh, because I don't understand you. You have let you learn how to speak. When we first met, I'll never forget because, even though I didn't know you yet, we were bound together then and forever, and I could never let you go. So at first, you're like oh god, that's like a little intense for a relate, but you're like no, they're singing.

Speaker 2: 18:38

As a child, I can't wait to know what do you think about things? Which I was like yes, so this is Ted Lassoy for me, lyrics wise, where I was like wait a second, you got me Like I did not expect, and I love that. Like when you have, when you parent children and they come up and they surprise you and I'm sure your nieces and nephews do the same thing, boss, you always are conveying things, that who's church and things like that, like these great moments that you have, where you're like wow, and when you find out what they think about things, uh, it can be uh, you know one of the one of the best uh parts of it. So I only show you this to say this is what got me into that. Okay, um, uh, I want to give you a couple examples of it. Here's what happens. The countries put together yeah, they're, they're, um, they're, uh, they're best, you know, or whatever they vote on it. There's often inside the countries, there's often, you know, division and you know, sometimes countries put out things that the, the people of the country don't love, like the musical sort of entity inside each country is a little different. Uh, as I understand it, um, this is something where uh feel free if you are somebody who knows more than I do, uh, and listening group, you can jump onto the community site and and uh, correct us and let me know where I've gone wrong. But in general, you send your, your, your thing to eurovision, your song, your final product, and what you do is you start out.

Speaker 2: 20:08

Everybody makes a video, okay, so you have, what you're seeing is a video. This is a video. These guys never competed because it was canceled, but I thought it was. It captured a lot of the spirit of eurovision, um and um. Then what happens is on the actual. So there's the, the video, and this is what gets people hyped up. Everybody gets the videos ahead of the competition. And then people go oh, yeah, this is my jam, I love this song, right, but then your person, your group, which is a max of six people, has to go on stage and then do it. So it's one thing and you can't use.

Speaker 2: 20:44

I think it's only been a couple of years, I think because of the pandemic, they allowed background vocals to be um recorded for the first time, but historically, uh, you had to sing, yeah, you gotta be right, and and and still, the, the lead singers still have to sing. Uh, the main singers have to sing actually on stage. So what you get is um, is this really interesting? Sort of strange environment where you might get a super kick-ass video, but then is the person charismatic enough? Are the singers good enough live? Can they hit their notes? Do they have the voices required?

Speaker 2: 21:21

I'm going to show you and, like I said to everyone listening at home, I'm going to make the playlist and put it right in the show notes so you should be able to click on the playlist. It'll go right through every song, and what I want to show you is the winner last year, now Coach or no Boss, said oh, it's an honor to host it. That is correct. The reason it's an honor to host it is because it means you won it the previous year. So if you win it, you host it.

Speaker 4: 21:48

Oh, okay.

Speaker 2: 21:49

Except for last year, which Ukraine had won the year before. But a little thing happened in Ukraine. They were busy, yeah, they were busy. So the UK hosted it for Ukraine, and there was this great series of things where they would show a place in the UK and then they would show a place like they would show, let's say, a beach in the UK Not that beaches are a big thing, I'm pulling something out Then they would show a beach in Ukraine and then they would show a beach in whatever country was competing. It was kind of interesting how they did this.

Speaker 2: 22:24

The connectivity, eurovision will tell you that it's all about inclusivity and acceptance and unity, and that's where it differs thematically from a lot of what we're experiencing in the United States, and this is something I really. You know you have your critics who are like oh bullshit, it's not, it's all about whatever. You know, everyone can have come at it from their different perspectives, but when you watch it, for example, people will make political statements, but political statements are not allowed. So you have to hide your political statements cleverly, and I'm going to show you an example of one that I just absolutely loved. I'm going to show you an example of one that I just absolutely loved. And it's how you go about. It is so interesting and it requires creativity, and then that contributes to the feel and it also, you know, contributes to your national pride in the same way, like you put a country, like has a soccer team in the World Cup, right, and it becomes this, this point of passion for the country. If they win eurovision, even if they have a great video and a great performance, it is, it is something that people rally around, um, so I'm going to show you last year's winner uh was won by sweden.

Speaker 2: 23:37

It was a two-time winner, which has only been done by ireland one time before. Uh, uh, johnny, um, oh god, johnny hogan, I think it was for ireland. This is a cigarette. Uh, by the name of laureen, and she won last year. And so those following along at home uh, as I cue this up here again, uh, you won't hear it, but you will hear us come back after boss and coach have listened of listen, okay, that was your winner. Um, thoughts, anything, it doesn't again, doesn't matter if you like it or not. It just just to give you, just to give you, a sense, uh-huh, um, any anything, uh, did it seem different, uh, from the one I showed you before yeah, actually, actually I like that there was not any ironic distance between the song and the performer.

Speaker 4: 24:31

I think that was my issue with the first one is that they were like you were writing a song about your child being born and it felt a little bit like a joke, which I'm not trying to critique the artistic process In the same way that SemSonic's Closing Time, which closed out every dance in the late 90s Like every single fucking one, and then also the bars. When I went to college it was great for that. That was about his wife being pregnant and him having a kid.

Speaker 4: 25:04

So like sometimes you extrapolate shit. I've liked that there was not the ironic distance. She meant it. Her voice is great. This is not a song I would listen to regularly, but I understand why people like it Got it Coach.

Speaker 3: 25:20

Yeah, it felt. It felt like, well, the funny version of it or funny to me at least that I thought of it. It feels like a Grammy performance that would lead me to go. Huh, she could sing. Who's she? Yes, you know what I mean. I just realized I'm old, she's not here for me, but I was like, yeah, that's all right, that's all right, I'd be curious to what else.

Speaker 3: 25:46

I was curious for what else to do. I'm a big boss that I probably wouldn't be like driving through the streets of LA just banging this, but I mean, I got it.

Speaker 2: 25:54

Again, totally, I don't mean to be putting on the spot. Here's the thing is this is.

Speaker 2: 26:05

This is um, I'm going to show you now the runner up. Last year, oh dear. And everybody was hoping I mean, not everybody she won and she won because most countries cast her. So when you vote, you cannot vote for your own country, you have to vote for someone else, and so the countries all have to decide. You know who they want, and it's a really complicated thing, and Finland came right up to the edge to decide who they want. It's a really complicated thing. Finland came right up to the edge. If they had gotten a couple more votes they would have put them over. But it's a different vibe.

Speaker 2: 26:32

I'm going to play that for you now. Folks listening at home, you can move on to the third song here on your playlist. I'm going to play this here now for Boss and for Coach. Okay, you see everybody losing their fucking minds. People showed up with cha-cha-cha shirts or and again, it's because the the video was out there. People fell in love with the song. They pick their winner, you know, they pick their horse, and then they attend the event and they lose their minds and the audience hoping that their choice will win. It doesn't necessarily have to be their country.

Speaker 3: 27:09

But it's not like an audience response situation. There are votes from the countries and all that. So the fact that they went crazy is exciting and might influence a judge, but it's not part of how you win.

Speaker 2: 27:24

Well, that's true, there is a new part of how you win. Well, that's true, there is a new part of the voting session. It's not just the countries now. Now, for example, we can vote in the United States. It gets lumped into something called other countries. So if you call and vote, each country, so you can vote.

Speaker 3: 27:39

You can watch this on YouTube and be like cha-cha-cha, motherfucker, let's do it.

Speaker 2: 27:44

Well, you watch it on Peacock because otherwise? Yeah, because Peacock's the only place to watch it live. Oh, peacock. I'm sorry.

Speaker 3: 27:49

No, no, I'm just.

Speaker 2: 27:50

I'm not stealing from Peacock.

Speaker 3: 27:51

I don't want to be added by Peacock either. Like relax. My point is yes, I can watch it on my computers.

Speaker 2: 28:00

And then you could vote Uh, there's a, there's a window in inside which you can vote, and then so there's a country vote, the official vote for the country, and then there's the, the, the uh, public vote for each country, um, and because the United States is not, um, uh, a member country, we go into an other category and then that vote, you know. So, anyway, people do have some say in how it all shifts out. Where's the window? It's 24 hours from the final show.

Speaker 3: 28:29

No, I'm fucking around man. I was just Ted Lasso-ing you.

Speaker 2: 28:33

Oh, okay, got it.

Speaker 3: 28:34

Like where is it?

Speaker 2: 28:37

Oh, now, where is that window? Now, where is that? Window.

Speaker 3: 28:40

I have a little fancy latch on it. It's over in Virginia waiting on us. I would hate to have a little fancy latch on it.

Speaker 2: 28:44

I would hate to think Zava's over in Virginia waiting on us Now. Okay, I don't want to take up too much. Listen, the songs are three minutes max.

Speaker 3: 28:54

I know the first one I showed you is four because it had little, you know whatever, but the songs are actually three minutes To talk about the actual performance for a second, especially for those who don't have not yet or don't actually go and watch each of the videos, that was kind of crazy. I feel like we also moved past the actual discussion of that performance, first of all, because I'm watching the video from you sharing it with us. When those people came out with, admittedly, tanned skin, I thought the people in pink might be black, the couple on the end, and I thought this white man got black marionettes going on. This got interesting. Oh Jesus, wow. I was like oh, wow, okay, then we're doing it.

Speaker 3: 29:43

But then I realized, no, they're just outside, it's okay.

Speaker 4: 29:48

So, I had that whole process go on for me. Just buying a lot of spray tan. Yeah, no, I like that you went with that possible version of maybe racism, Because I did think if somebody from the United States made this video it would be racist against Eastern Europeans. Because like it's not that I didn't enjoy it, it's that it was kind of like watching Dancing with the Stars on acid at a rave or something Like it had a lot. It had a lot going on.

Speaker 3: 30:25

Yeah, I'm glad you said that because yeah, I liked it. I like dancing with the stars. A good one, I was trying to think, but it had a certain.

Speaker 4: 30:32

Yeah, it did it was like a strictly ballroom type vibe to it yeah it not bad. It's not that I hated it. I didn't even dislike it it's just that I was like, well, not that I hated it.

Speaker 3: 30:45

I didn't even dislike it, it's just that I was like, well, there's Some of it felt like those of you of a certain age might get this one. This might be for the kids it had some Solid Gold vibes.

Speaker 4: 30:53

Yes, yes, yeah.

Speaker 2: 30:55

Solid Gold moments. Yes, that's a good call.

Speaker 4: 30:58

Up to date you know what I'm saying Like it had, like you know, the dancing and the big smiles you know, yeah, yeah, I couldn't tell if they were in on the joke or if this was very real for them. Whatever it was, I'm I'm glad that they I I am glad that the audience found it yeah, I, I.

Speaker 3: 31:17

I find that if you put too many body rolls in a row, things tend to get a little out of hand. Okay, just as a rule, if you're ever doing choreography, do it if you want, I'm just saying body rolls I feel like people get a little out of control. You do too much body rolling at one time.

Speaker 4: 31:34

This is not Eurovision related, but still musically related. This is the only time I will ever say anything bad about Beyonce, ever in my entire life. This is it.

Speaker 2: 31:44

Listen this is it?

Speaker 4: 31:45

This is she might have done one too many key change on Love on Top, maybe one too many.

Speaker 3: 31:56

It's a fair discussion to have Now. The Beehive is not known for rational discussion, so you can address your emails to only chambers Nobody, I don't.

Speaker 4: 32:16

I burned my computer to the ground.

Speaker 2: 32:19

All right, I'm going to show you another video. There's two more. These are from last year. There's a reason I'm showing you these videos. I want to give you a sense. Then I'm going to show you one other videos, two more that these are from last year, and there's a reason I'm showing you these videos. Um, I want to give you a sense and then I'm gonna show you a couple from this year and show you and just just show you.

Speaker 2: 32:31

This is, this is all about trying to get people, uh, to understand it. Whether you like it or not Again, immaterial to me whether the music uh, uh, uh, sort of speaks to you. I sort of speaks to you. I am hoping that you're getting a sense about what we're talking about. This one is Croatia. It's a. It's a. It was.

Speaker 2: 32:52

There's a punk rock band called Let Three and they wrote this song to attack Vladimir Putin. And. But you can't attack Vladimir Putin. But you can't attack Vladimir Putin. You're not allowed to.

Speaker 2: 33:13

Now the history of this is Vladimir Putin ostensibly controls the vassal states around him, one of which is Belarus, and for his birthday, we believe, if I have my story correct, the president of Belarus purchased a lawn tractor for Putin as a gift. It says, mama, this guy bought a tractor or something like that or was gifted a tractor, and then it's like the moron is on the tractor. So you know what I mean. So they're not saying Putin, but everybody knows they're talking about Putin and in the end they have this Rasputin come out holding like rockets. So anyway, just watch this one. I, I, I love it so much, it's so crazy. But like this one, uh, I, I just, I just love it. I absolutely love it and um, the, the, the tone of it and the and the whole vibe. So check this one out. Everybody. Move to the next song in your playlist. I'm adding it now to. I'm doing it while we speak, folks, so that because ADHD coach, I won't know which one came when.

Speaker 3: 34:36

Oh yeah, no, no, no, we do that. We don't depend on memory.

Speaker 3: 34:41

We're going to try this here okay, so I'm actually really glad you gave the um the setup for that, because I mean I obviously had no idea what they were saying, but also it did create a context for all of that great, because it was like, oh, they're court jesters, so like then I could, like I was watching it sort of through that lens um, yeah, it was good, it was good damn crazy, but I get where, like if you're gonna say something about vladimir putin dressing it up and all that ridiculousness might save your life. So like, yeah, I get it um.

Speaker 4: 35:26

So I think that the performance was way more punk than the song itself was. It's not that the song didn't have any punk to it, but it was a little more theatrical. While I was watching it I thought about how I told the boyfriend that I was watching Beforeiners, the Swedish show about people from the past who show up in the present and bring their culture. So they are essentially foreigners to our time, but they come from before foreigners. It's great Swedish show in Swedish. It's amazing. And also I was watching Dark, which is a German show about a time travel cave, and I watched these in quick succession and he said to me in quick succession, and he said to me I feel like Europe is very cutting edge for the 1980s and it made me like it's not accurate. He's not right, but it did make me laugh really hard that there is something about European culture that is different enough from the culture that it seems both futuristic and wildly behind the times somehow.

Speaker 3: 36:31

Interesting. Yeah, I'm kind of like I get it A little bit right.

Speaker 4: 36:38

Cutting edge for the 1980s was him being an asshole, because he's a dick.

Speaker 2: 36:42

But, it did make me laugh. I mean, they might say the same thing about us.

Speaker 4: 36:47

And they would be right too.

Speaker 2: 36:48

In some ways America is ahead. In some ways they're like oh God, they might say the same thing about us. So in some ways, in some ways America is ahead. In some ways they're like oh God, they're children.

Speaker 4: 36:51

They're fucking children.

Speaker 3: 36:52

Yes, but I think I thought that was more specifically around like the performance and culture. No boss.

Speaker 4: 37:00

No, no, no, no, definitely that yeah, no, we're not. He wasn't critiquing any of their politics or anything like that, just that uh you know, like if you found out uh, that I don't know I don't want to pigeonhole any specific country, let's say france, because you know they could take it if you find out that france was very, very into, like howie mandel's stand-up, it would somehow seem fitting. It would be like, yeah, we're gonna going to go back to his great stuff from 1992. Somehow I would feel like, yeah, that makes sense.

Speaker 4: 37:33

Sorry, france, I'm just ripping you guys, new assholes all over the place.

Speaker 2: 37:39

Listen, it's not. I just want to point out the perspective taking. For example, I was talking with a friend from Finland yesterday and I made a Jan Moss joke, like you do when you talk about them, and he didn't get it and he was like, huh, there's like. I was like, yeah, you know the Dutch, the truth tellers, and you know they just kind of they don't, they don't waste a lot of people in scandinavia would think of them as self-serving and a little shady.

Speaker 3: 38:16

Oh wow, oh, like you know, yeah, yeah.

Speaker 2: 38:17

So I'm like whoa, whoa, well, you know so. So again, and we've talked about when you're a white person from, from, uh, america and you find out about the all of the um countries in central, central and South America and all the different relationships between those, and of course it makes sense, but if you don't know it, you don't know it. So, again, I was trying to. My effort here is to not make you like the music or anything like that. I want to show you how people come at it in different ways. How people come at it in different ways. The last one I'll show, from last year, is my favorite one. It's from Czechia. It is a. It's called my Sister's Crown. It is a response for women who are caught up in the Ukrainian war zone. It's comprised of, I think, six women from five different nationalities. They sing in, I think, four or five different languages in this song. It's powerful and I'm going to direct you to. I'm going to show you the performance, not the video. The video is good, but the performance I thought was epic. I thought the performance was so powerful and they do this thing and I just want to point it out because they have part of their costuming is these braids and they do this thing, and I just want to point it out because they have. They have part of their costuming is these braids and they do this thing, and I wrote about it on the antagonist blog last year. But they do this thing where they walk toward camera as part of the song. I think it's like the one minute mark or 109, something like that, if memory serves and they hold their braids out and then they drop them in defiance and I'm like I don't know what this is, but it's the most powerful shit I've ever seen and I love the song and I love them. And we talk, we again in. We try to talk about um, oh, americans are so dumb, you know, europeans are so advanced, right, things like that. And then you have brexit and you go god damn, people are in europe, right, so then and then, and then the someone in in, uh, serbia will say don't paint me with that fucking brush, I'm not in the UK, you know it's, it's so complicated, it's so interesting.

Speaker 2: 40:17

One of the things that affected this performance was one of the women was attacked because she was Russian. It was a. This is a response video to the invasion in Ukraine, again, not officially, but it's about my sister's crown. You'll hear the words in it. The big thing is, we're not your dolls. You can't steal our souls. All these, it's like really power. Like like I'm going to get choked up. I love it so much.

Speaker 2: 40:45

And instead of some some people saying like oh, it's amazing that a Russian national would be part of this, like they were saying like, oh, fuck that Russian, like you know, and you go no, no, you know what I mean. Like it's and you go, oh God, people are as dumb as we are everywhere, you know, not, probably not as quite as dumb as we are, but, um, but there's some, there's some, uh, uh, you know differing viewpoints. Anyway, folks, please move to the next one on your playlist, and I'm going to play this, for this is the last one I'm going to show you. This is who I think, hands down, I don't think anybody could have competed. I just love the performance so much. It was powerful, it was important. It's exactly what I think this type of performance should be, exactly what I think this type of performance should be. It's not the campy, wacko Eurovision that, you know, a lot of people expect, in which case you know. So that's why some people wouldn't vote for it, but anyway, I thought it was magical. I thought it was unbelievable.

Speaker 2: 41:50

All right. So I get choked up. I can barely hold it together when I watch that it's so I just think it's amazing. Um thoughts before we move on.

Speaker 3: 41:57

so for me it was interesting because I you know, obviously again you gave us some lead-ups, we had some, some context for the performance. So I again I saw it with that lens and part of me was like, oh, they're singing the song that matters. But I also think and I wonder how much this is part of the Eurovision vision that maybe it all doesn't have to matter like that. Like I think there's something romantic about like oh, they're doing a performance, that's, you know, speaking on what's going on in the world.

Speaker 3: 42:39

But I also think sometimes just making making whatever it is your move to make as an artist is is its own pushback against what's going on in the world. And so I guess I was thinking like how the part of me that would be dismissive of the song right before this and not of this or to some degree and I'm not sure that that's true to the artist in me that's coming from somewhere else than the artist, because my reaction is like I just actually was just thinking the other day of like I was thinking about waiting for a good dope and like what would it be like if somebody made a movie? That was basically just that, and it kind of made me a little sad that I was like I think you would have to be rich and make that with your own money, like nobody's gonna make some shit like that, you know and and there's value in it.

Speaker 3: 43:35

So, anyway, I found myself kind of going like, yeah, make, make a little more room in what is. You know what you're, what you're giving, that's respect as art you know it's interesting that you went that way with it.

Speaker 4: 43:51

I was thinking when was it? It has been various times during the US's history, I should say the Iraq invasion and then a few things after that. You got a lot of complaints about artists not writing political songs or artists not being interested in doing political things, and I was like, well, who are you listening to? Because the songs are out there, it's just, it's maybe not who you're aware of. Or then, like uh, the chicks famously came out at the time and said like we're not, we don't really support the war, and then people hated that because not, we don't really support the war. And then people hated that because if you're going to say something political, it needs to be the way that we would like you to.

Speaker 4: 44:35

So I I have gotten into not arguments, maybe debates or discussions uh, castleton, I think with you. I know, uh, years ago with uh producer of the show, years ago with a producer of the show, dustin Rolls, about the importance of FM radio and radio stations and alternative stations and how when those went away, then music changed and I'm like, oh well, when those went away, music went on to websites. So I still feel like there's the same amount of indie bands and people to discover and like different ways of doing that. Um, basically my idea, my thesis, is music changes, but a lot of the same themes stay the same. People want to talk about the same shit and they are doing it in the same ways. It's just maybe not what you are aware of, so I like that they are doing something so blatantly political when you know what they're talking about.

Speaker 4: 45:33

Like people are making that there is space for that. It's just you might need to look for it a little bit harder.

Speaker 2: 45:39

Right, right, got it, okay, so. So, to finish up here, I wanted to show you, I'm going to show you I had a couple lined up. We're running out of time. Um, I, I want to. I'm going to show you clips from a couple different songs. I'll put the full songs in the playlist, but I'm going to show you just a couple clips and I'm going to show you um through. I don't know how much time we have, but uh, I'm gonna. I'm gonna show you clips from from two songs, then I'm gonna show you you two full ones and we can talk about them Afterward.

Speaker 2: 46:11

These are the ones for this year that people are getting really fired up. These are like the main Contenders. I don't think To my ear or to my Eye. I think this is Not as strong of a year as Last year was. Last year. I could show you five more that I loved this one. There was one from Austria last year that I really this one. There was one from Austria last year that I really loved. There was a bunch. There was some really good ones last year.

Speaker 2: 46:33

This one I'm going to start with. I just want to do a little clip for Boss and Coach. This is Ukraine and this one's an earworm. This is the first one of this year's batch that got in my head and I couldn't turn it off. We'll start with that one and then and then we'll come back. So, everyone, go and click the next song on your playlist, please. Okay, I'm going to pause right there. I don't want to run out of time.

Speaker 2: 47:00

This is a song from Ukraine. This is a I don't, it's talking about dumb Americans. One of my kids said I don't, it's talking about dumb Americans. One of my kids said Alonya Alonya. I think it's Aliona Aliona, but we always say Alonya Alonya. This is a rapper from Ukraine who was just rapping. I guarantee I'm related to her. I just when I see her I go. That's I don't know which cousin, that's my cousin, for sure. And then Jerry Hale, who is the other singer, who's like a YouTuber and she does covers and things like that. This song, the premise of this song, is all women who, all the divas of the world, were born regular women and then became divas, and so the message is is pretty sweet and uh, uh, uh, alonia. Alonia was, uh, was featured in an article in uh new york times last year as like one of the 15 rappers to know outside of the us. Uh, she's really great and uh, I love this song and I think it'sa it's a great one. It's unlikely it's going to win, because Ukraine won a couple of years ago, but stranger things have happened. Um and I, so I just put that on your on your map, okay, um.

Speaker 2: 48:17

Next one on the show is, um, italy. Uh, I didn't. I wasn't crazy about Italy's Italy's last year, uh, kind Italy's last year. Kind of a yawner to me. No offense to everybody in my family, but me as Italian, my first wife was half Italian and Giuliano was half Italian, so all my kids are Italian and so I gotta be careful. But I, this song is fantastic and I'm gonna play a little bit of it and I'm gonna stop it when she does her shoulder shake, which I feel like she does this little shoulder shake and I go, god damn, like it is so fantastic and this song is super catchy.

Speaker 2: 48:58

This is Angelina Mango and this is the submission for 2024 Eurovision. Everybody, click the next one on your list, please. Everybody click the next one on your list, please. Okay, all right, that's enough of that one. Um, super catchy, she's fantastic and she's like a. She's got charisma on stage she can bring it. Uh, so she's a, she's a contender this year, like, like, I wanted to show you laureen singing for Sweden so you could say, oh yeah, like a lone female singer can bring the house down. You know that kind of thing and people will get you know, they can garner those votes. She has that kind of charisma and that kind of range and her voice is fantastic. So just another one of the of the now this one also is more playful.

Speaker 2: 49:49

This doesn't have a big message. She's bored, that that's. I don't know the full translation, but she's like I'm fucking bored. Oh, got it, which is where all the yeah. So what's going on with?

Speaker 3: 50:00

the hair stuff is interesting to me, like it's braids, but it's not like yeah, it's almost like tree roots. It looks like to my, to my yeah, I think that's.

Speaker 2: 50:08

That's the idea.

Speaker 3: 50:09

Yeah. So I was sort of yeah, anyway, that caught. That made me go like, hmm, I'm curious about that, what's going on with that. But yeah, I got it. I mean, you know, I don't think my gray beard is their target, but I get it, sure, okay.

Speaker 2: 50:28

This is currently the third most viewed video. I'm going to show you my favorite two and then we're done. Boss, I'm going as fast as I can. I'm sorry if it's going to be two minutes. I'm trying to stay inside boss's boundaries but it might go 30 seconds over, so I'm going to go as quickly as I can. This is last year.

Speaker 2: 50:49

I showed you from Croatia. I showed you the one from Mama, which was the guys making the one about Putin. This is a different one. This is so goddamn catchy to me anyway, and this is the second most played one. And this one has all of the elements of a Eurovision big winner. Croatia's never won, but they're so easy to get behind and they were amazing in the World Cup, and there's things about them where you just go, goddamn, croatia's just got some verve. Baby. This is a singer known as Baby Lasagna. The song is called Rim Tim Taggy Dim, which I don't do justice with my American mouth, but you will hear why. Oh, and also with this one. I'm going to pause here. This one I have captions on because I want you guys to be able to see what he's saying. It's in English, but it's just. We'll watch this one all the way through Everyone. Please click the next one on your playlist yeah, man, like I'm sorry.

Speaker 4: 52:03

I'm sorry to this man, but if you told me that this was the follow-up to um planet, of the base, I would be like, yeah, that makes sense planet of the what is that planet of the base was the the fake uh techno song that came out uh, last year, last summer, something.

Speaker 4: 52:21

It was uh like the spoof on the the the techno song, uh. The lyrics were like um uh, life it never die. Women are my favorite guy. Sex I'm wanting more. Tell the world stop the war. And it was like it, like it was so on point about how bad it was. And if you told me that this was the, the follow-up to that, I'd be be like well, it's not as funny, but it's still pretty good.

Speaker 2: 52:48

Ah okay. All right, Wait Coach, before you jump in boss you should, you might. I know you have to get up early for a flight, and so you might want to hop on. I can just finish. I can finish up with Coach.

Speaker 4: 53:06

And because it's yeah, I I don't mean to go over your time, yeah, I'm sorry I'm I'm gonna die. Do you want me to do a sign off? Or just tell everybody I'm bouncing now?

Speaker 2: 53:11

yeah, you can tell everybody you're bouncing now and then we'll finish with coach and uh, you've seen enough I've seen enough, and um, yeah, that's good. Um, and then, uh, we wish you a safe, safe travels hey, thanks.

Speaker 4: 53:24

Are we leaving this in the recording? Is this where I tell everybody?

Speaker 2: 53:26

goodbye. Yeah, this is going to be in the recording.

Speaker 4: 53:29

I mean, guys, you don't understand I fade so quick. It is immediate. I swear to God, I will be asleep in seven minutes.

Speaker 3: 53:37

You've heard the scarlet letter. The boss is the scarlet lady when she gets up.

Speaker 4: 53:42

I am. It's time for a bet. Anyway, yes, I hope everybody loves the Eurovision. I'm sorry if I insulted any European countries. I didn't mean to. I only meant to insult Asian countries. Actually, I didn't mean that. Okay, that's great.

Speaker 2: 53:57

Okay, fly safely Now, Coach, were you going to say?

Speaker 3: 54:09

something about that. Yes, and then I do want to see the other one and I do have, seriously, I do have a couple questions I want to ask you, but you can save them or we can go.

Speaker 2: 54:21

Yeah, let's save them.

Speaker 3: 54:22

I want to react to the videos first and then talk about it.

Speaker 2: 54:26

Yeah, this one has many components that make my understanding of a winner. It's got a real catchy refrain. Like the Cha-Cha-Cha did last year, People want to get behind it Again. It's the second most watched video so far. The video was very, very well done. For these videos videos. This one was a really good one oh no, I enjoyed the video.

Speaker 3: 54:47

I also thought, though I agreed with some of the lyrics I guess, some of the lyrics I found myself going well, well, shit if I had to write a poem in another language, you know, so I I left it at that.

Speaker 2: 54:59

But I did. Oh really, I thought it was clever, okay, yeah interesting it.

Speaker 3: 55:04

Oh, the meow line stuck out to me like I got it, but I was sort of like that's the weird.

Speaker 2: 55:10

Bye mom, bye.

Speaker 3: 55:11

Well, I said I'll miss you all, but mostly, the cat is an earlier line no, no, no, I got it and I was like okay, that's cool, I'm riding with you. But it was like I guess the thought I had was oh, that's not how you would say it if English were your first language, but I get what you're saying and I like the theme of it. Okay, I thought you would appreciate it. That was my reaction.

Speaker 2: 55:35

There's no going back. Giuliano saw this doc that he's sitting on at the end and she's like that doc is mental. I don't understand that. That's a't understand that.

Speaker 3: 55:43

Yeah, I don't know what's happening there but no, I like, I like that and I liked, like the older people in the video and even like at one point, like he says something like I miss your smile or whatever, and then he cuts to like this super stern looking old lady and like yeah, so I know it was fun like that, like I got it and I got the fun and I I got why I can see a stadium full of people having a great time singing that chorus and jumping around.

Speaker 2: 56:06

Yes, yeah, yeah, yeah, and you will if you watch it. I'm sure this one is a contender this year, so people are going to be pulling for it. All right, let me play the last one for you. This is the number one most watched video. This is from the Netherlands, netherlands. Uh, use klein, um, this one has.

Speaker 2: 56:28

It's like if you designed a show, a song, to win. This one not only talks about other countries, while in the song, um and and and. Uh, it's not not in english, but you'll get the, you'll get the sense of it when you. But again, it's catchy, it's weird, it's got all of the elements. It's the most watched video and the question is whether or not I can pull it off on the day. But and there are others for those of you listening, saying oh, why did Castle pick this? Nemo, the code from Switzerland? I was trying to do this as quickly as I could because Boss had to go. There are several songs that are really really good. The Code has a lot of the elements too. It's super catchy. This one right here, coach, that we're looking at Guy's got an unbelievable voice. It's sort of gender fluid, interesting stuff.

Speaker 3: 57:27

But let's watch the Netherlands one. I think you're going to get a sense of this. I think is the front runner going? That was really interesting. I yeah, I mean I'm sure I didn't catch everything there was something.

Speaker 3: 57:42

I don't watch a lot of videos anymore, you know, obviously, or not, obviously I just don't, yeah, and they don't kind of happen the same way they used to. Anyway, whatever, I don't watch a lot of videos anymore, but that video felt sort of in the theme of the joke earlier from Boss. That video felt very, um, I felt nostalgic watching it. It felt like early music video, when music video was really um, experimental film. People hadn't really figured out fully what they were going to do with it yet. People were just doing things and like moving cameras and seeing how that worked and cutting shit and just seeing like it was. It was, um, you know, people figured out the recipes and and that's going to happen with any kind of art, Right.

Speaker 3: 58:28

But when I got excited about music videos originally, it really felt like shit, you can do anything, Right, yeah, and that was wild, Like to think like you could do anything and to really ask yourself like, okay, if you can do anything, then what would you do and was wild, like to think like you could do anything and to really ask yourself like, okay, if you can do anything, then what would you do? And you know, over time that changed. This kind of had a vibe like that, Like there was some shit in it that I was like that looks cool, Okay, Like it wasn't, like, oh, I'm not tracking, Like I was like what I didn't track, I just went okay, that was visually cool and that's what they're doing. But yeah, I liked that, but yeah, I couldn't decide how seriously. It was odd, like weird, like offbeat, but it also seemed to be taking itself seriously.

Speaker 3: 59:30

It wasn't tongue in cheek, it didn't feel. I should say it didn't feel tongue in cheek to me, it felt weird. But it felt like it was weird because they decided to be weird or that's who they are and that's what they're trying to say. Not, oh ha ha, we're gonna do like a weird performance and, you know, show everybody how clever.

Speaker 2: 59:49

No, no, I assure you they are in it to win it. This one, this is like a, this is laser focused to win it so so yeah, I mean, it feels like that and I was gonna.

Speaker 3: 1:00:00

So that's one of the questions I was gonna ask by your description that like, oh, it has this, it has that it could be a winner. My sense of it is, if I were in that music scene, I'd be like, yeah, I've been working some on some eurovision shit, right, like oh yeah, my other shit, and then I'm working on some eurovision shit.

Speaker 3: 1:00:20

That would be my get these motherfuckers to vote for me shit. So I wonder so that was my first question Are people like Is it, they have these ideas and this is where they go, or is it that Eurovision is a thing and you come up with a Eurovision idea?

Speaker 2: 1:00:39

I would say yeah, number two they know what Eurovision is. This is an institution. It would be like coming up with a pro football team Got it. Everybody knows what this is. You ever see when a pro team says, oh, we're going to unveil a new jersey, and you're like that's a fucking USFL jersey. You know it's not. It doesn't fit the NFL.

Speaker 3: 1:01:03

You know what I mean.

Speaker 2: 1:01:05

That's what this is like. Everybody knows what eurovision. What is what that?

Speaker 3: 1:01:08

means, yeah, it's so. So, because I don't know. You know, I didn't know it before now and I'm like, okay, I get, I get it the videos and they do performances okay. Okay, I'm curious why you love it. Like when you say you share it with your family, like, oh, take me into it more, but like what is it? Like even, what's the feeling you have when you watch it? Because I was like, oh, cool, all right, cool, but I didn't necessarily feel moved by it, like I didn't feel, I didn't necessarily feel like, oh, let me go tell Daphne, let's check out Eurovision. I wasn't mad at it, and if you wanted to watch some more videos at some point I would be like, okay, cool. But it seems like it impacts you in a way that I'm curious about and I want to understand more.

Speaker 2: 1:01:56

Yeah, why does it impact me? I like to. I miss Europe a lot. I used to go there like every year, and since I've had kids I haven't been able to. It's just too. It is, I went a couple years ago, julianna and I flew. We went like two nights to Dublin. You know, flew from.

Speaker 2: 1:02:13

Boston to Dublin. I remember yeah, yeah, just like our de facto anniversary. We're not married, but it was like, okay, we've been together 15 years, we should do something. Yeah, so we snuck away for literally two nights to Dublin. I'd like to see what countries come up with this year. There's this we didn't have time for it.

Speaker 2: 1:02:46

There's a non-binary artist named Bambi Thug from Ireland and they have put out a video that has like witchcraft images and it is some interesting stuff. My first reaction was to be like Jesus, fucking Christ, like I was like holy and Juliana was like Ireland, the ireland and um, sweden have the have seven wins each and a lot of it's the old days. In the very beginning they had one sort of um, but this is the irish one and uh, it's, it's brought so much like the. You know there's like uh, uh campaigns in ireland from the far right to stop it and not make it the official thing of ireland. This like, it's like a big deal.

Speaker 2: 1:03:31

And the, the artist, um, it has had to fight through all this stuff and said listen, like, if you don't, I, you know you don't have to be part of the team, that's fine, this is my whatever. And my initial reaction was very much like the right wingers, but I I'm not proud of it. But my initial reaction was very much like the right wingers, but I I'm not proud of it but my initial reaction was like god damn, I don't like horror.

Speaker 2: 1:03:49

And so there's like a lot of like sigils and and witchcraft and crazy shit and it was funny. Um, juliana's like making fun of me. She's like you, stupid old man, like you don't like that because you know, hundreds of years ago, when your ancestors from Sweden got on their long ships to come down and attack Ireland, my people were, you know, my priestesses the.

Speaker 2: 1:04:15

Irish witches were up on the hills getting ready to, you know, on the bluffs overlooking the ocean, sending all kinds of uh right, magic to fight you off. And then it was funny, um, when we were driving home, uh, we were in the cape the other day, cape cod, and um, we were driving home, we looked up this artist, bambi thug, uh, and, and one of the things they say is that they're half their father's swedish and their mother is irish, oh, from county cork, and I was like, oh, this is like. And then when I, when I heard about their process and I heard about what they've been going through, it made me really reevaluate and I was like, yeah, no, no, wait a second, let's look at what this is. So, again, you get any insight into Ireland. You're getting an insight. Is it indicative of all of the Irish people? No, like, none of these songs are indicative of all of the irish people. No, like, none of these songs are indicative of the capture. Every, sure, sure, sure, yeah, I mean, but I like, I like the inside, I like to say, okay, yeah, I'd like to see, okay, what's going on in croatia, switzerland, which was a non-factor for many, many, many years in the euro version last.

Speaker 2: 1:05:18

Last year they had a great song called water gun, which was again a protest song for the war. It was talking about uh, I don't want to be a soldier, I don't want to fight with real guns like I. You know, I want to fight with water guns like I don't want to fight with real, like it's. It was really good. And this year they have this one by uh, another guy, nemo, who's called the code. And so, you know, when countries step up turkey dropped out in I think 2017, and they're ostensibly saying like uh, you know, when countries step up Turkey dropped out in I think 2017. And they're ostensibly saying like, you know, we don't need. You know, we have better things to do than waste our time with you. You know it's like because their leader is not a.

Speaker 3: 1:05:55

I was going to say, yeah, right with where they are right now politically. I'm not shocked that they.

Speaker 2: 1:06:00

That's the thing. Russia's been banned from this.

Speaker 3: 1:06:03

Russia's won it once or twice oh, like as a response to the aggression yeah, so so you see this.

Speaker 2: 1:06:09

So there's all these these competing, interesting sort of things. Georgia always has good ones, albania always had. Cyprus has had good ones lately. Um, there's a. My mother's home country of Greece was kind of lame last year and this year they have one that people think is a contender. I'm not so sure, but you see what I'm saying. So it's just like this interesting. It's the same way I love you. See me get fired up over the Olympics, right?

Speaker 3: 1:06:37

I just had the thought it's like artistic Olympics. I just had the thought, like, right before you said that sentence, I was like so it's like the artistic Olympics. Yeah, just add the thought I like. Right before you said that sentence, I was like so it's like the artistic Olympics, it's like everybody gets together and blah, blah, blah.

Speaker 2: 1:06:49

Yeah, you put out your best thing and you and you do your best, and everybody. I mean, look at the different. I tried to show you again, whether you like it, whether you're fired, gonna just go, I'm gonna go see a hockey game. Just doesn't somehow happen. You have to be in the family, you have to play it, you have to know someone, whatever. Um, eurovision is not exactly like that, but it helps if you have someone with a little, giving you a little roadmap. So all I wanted to do was give people an overlay, a sense of what it is, and then you know they can make their own decisions about whether it's something that's interest them or not. Um, but hopefully, um, well, at least, if you, if you came into this not having any goddamn idea in the world, what, what, uh, eurovision was at least, coach, I would think now, in the span of what? Just an hour and a half or so, and I think you could talk, you know, you know about what your wishes.

Speaker 3: 1:07:51

Listen, I think what's cool, what I find cool about it that would get me to watch it is I am I don't know what the right word is I'll say fascinated, although fascinated is a little it's. I find myself drawn to and wanting to really soak up great performances of a range in a range of of expressions and so like, for example, um, at one point I got really interested in marina abramovich, like the whole idea of performance art man is mind-blowing like it's like it's funny because there's a voice in my head.

Speaker 3: 1:08:36

It's like my boy, you ain't got no time for no goddamn performance art. You hear your shit, you're you know.

Speaker 3: 1:08:41

So there's like a little bit of that that gets mixed up in my game I hear that, but yeah, yes, but also I there are some ideas I have that I'm like that could be pretty fucking cool and but my point is I sat and I watched the documentary about the thing at the moma and then I went and I looked up some video stuff and whatever, and again, it's not my thing and at an earlier stage, like college, me would have been like. So there's white ladies looking at people and y'all all going to fuck down there, okay, okay. But as I've gotten older, I'm like I really have expanded. I was going to say grown and people who are in their lane are in their lane. Expanded, I was going to say grown and people who are in their lane are in their lane. But I've expanded as an artist to where I feel like I.

Speaker 3: 1:09:32

I'm open to the discussion of what it is you are doing as opposed, apart from whether what you are doing is for me Right, which is different, but I respect that. Apart from whether what you are doing is for me Right, which is different, but I respect the one with the women, with the braids. I liked how they put that together, the choreography I knew.

Speaker 3: 1:09:54

I liked it because they did one little thing that I was like ooh, I ought to tweet that. So I knew that I was in, because I was really watching it. Yeah, yeah, yeah, oh, your arm is blocking her face, like if you just went up, like that you would block her face you know, but that means I was in. You know what I mean. Like I wasn't but yeah, I like I think I'm rambling.

Speaker 3: 1:10:17

I may be, but I'll say this Seth Godin, who, you know, I have immense respect for and got to know just a little bit. I'm not pretending like Seth and I are great friends or whatever, but I know him. He was, you know, on the podcast and stuff and he talked about the importance of making art and his take on it is like we all make art or could, right, like that the manager at the local fast food restaurant who figures out how to get exactly everybody exactly the right number of hours and make sure that Thor has Tuesday afternoons off, because that's when he takes English, like that's art, like to him, right, like, and he has a whole conversation around that. And so, yeah, I've just opened up more and more, like the older I've gotten and the more I look at things that like, yeah, it's art and it's almost. I'm pretty much to the point of if you say it's art, it's art, that doesn't mean I want to see it anymore, like I may see it the one time or whatever. But if you say it's art, it's art.

Speaker 3: 1:11:18

And I remember being in high school and kind of rolling my eyes about it at the time high school, and kind of rolled my eyes about at the time that my art teacher al doyle, rest in peace. But al doyle said that it made him crazy when people would see like stuff at the met or whatever and they'd be like, oh my god, it's just a square on a piece of canvas. I could have done that. And he's like you you don't understand what is being explored in these things. So you just see this square. You're not understanding this exploration of negative space or whatever.

Speaker 3: 1:11:55

Whatever is the case for that piece of art, and I've tried to. The older I've gotten, the more I've understood that and the more I've tried to respect that that. Okay, if you say to me that corridor leaning on that wall is your piece of art, then my reaction is okay, I'm going to go over there and look at it, I'm going to see what kind of experience I have, and then I might ask you to tell me some shit about it and I might walk out of here going.

Speaker 2: 1:12:26

I don't know about that Carbador shit, I don't know. No, no, no, that's your purview. Yeah, you're never going to feel that. Yeah, so I can see myself watching more of these videos.

Speaker 3: 1:12:33

Yeah, I can see myself watching some more, just to be like huh, what's some other shit they're doing on stage, Like just creative.

Speaker 2: 1:12:41

It's fun. The live event is fun and that's why I put it on people's radar with enough time for them to see it. It's May 7th, 9th and 11th. Even if you only watch the final, you have to subscribe to Peacock or whatever. I think it's $5.99 or something. I don't know, I'm spitballing. It could be $7.99. I don't actually know. I don't know, I'm spitballing. Could be sick it could be seven.

Speaker 3: 1:13:04

I don't actually know. I don't care about peacock, I'm just. They all find their their right level to nickel dime us, it's fine.

Speaker 2: 1:13:09

They'll get the most out of you that that they can. Um, we can't right, uh, but yeah, no, I. I just wanted to bring it up now while people have time to plan and put it on their calendar. And, and again, it's not going to be for everyone. I clearly got the sense it was not for Boss, that's okay. Again, it doesn't have to be like that. It's just something that I've become aware of recently in the last few years. It brings me a lot of joy, it's something fun, it's music, it's artistic, it's a nice little community event Our friends up in Canada already know about because they they've had it for years. Uh, canada's, uh, you know, part of the same broadcasting. There's a whole thing about how it actually ended up, but, um, but yeah, I know it's something. Uh, I.

Speaker 3: 1:13:56

Again, the point of this was to yeah no, it's just to put it on people's radar. I like that and I like I mean it fits in thematically, right. I mean curious, not judgmental, right, I mean it's interesting. So I'm glad you answered around what you like about it and you answered my other question, naturally, which was like what did you see coming out of it? And you said you want to expose people to it and give them time to watch it on the 7th, 9th and 11th, and I think that's cool. So, yeah, I may, maybe, maybe, maybe, maybe we do a re, maybe do a revisit after the, after the finals. If, if, if boss spots out, I understand, but maybe we do a revisit to see you know who won and we can talk about that.

Speaker 2: 1:14:42

Yeah, yeah, I'm definitely going to cover it on the antagonist blog that's antagonistblogcom, and so I will definitely. You know, I got to write about it. I just want to put these videos up there.

Speaker 1: 1:14:59

It's cool, it's something that's fun, and again, you know, I've said again 17 times tonight I don't know why.

Speaker 2: 1:15:05

but I'm reiterating that, yeah, know it, it's, it's, it's good, clean, fun, and uh, you get a little glimpse. It's not, it's not. I don't know how telling the glimpse is into other cultures, into other countries, into uh, uh, you know, sort of a worldview that's a little different than ours here in america. The thing is, I I think there's a reason why America is not part of this, and you know we talk about oh it's not for you, kind of thing. We have the voice and we have America's got talent. We've got, you know, world of dance. We have all these different competitions that are sort of, you know they're, they're sort of catering to what we think is good or what we prioritize, and, at the very least, you look at this and you go this is not for Americans necessarily like, by and large, this is a little corny.

Speaker 3: 1:15:53

I mean, if you think about and I shouldn't quite say this because I haven't watched it in years, actually I have a video. I'm going to see if I can find those old videos. I had these rant videos I used to do, but one was about American Idol, and when I stopped watching it and it was when LaToya, london and Fantasia and who was the other one, oh and Jennifer Hudson were all in the bottom three and I was like y'all must be out, y'all got their mind. I said now those three girls can sing. Each one of those motherfuckers can sing. I don't know what y'all are up to America, but I'm out. I was like nope, nope, all three can't be in the bottom three, absolutely not. This is bullshit. I swear to you. I started out kind of half joking. I never watched it again, I, just I. It was easy enough to walk away from um and I know it's still going, which I find fucking astounding. Every time I see a commercial for it I'm like you have got to be kidding me. But yeah, so anyway.

Speaker 2: 1:16:59

But I think it's a format that people like yeah, I don't know I took one look at simon cowell and and his negative energy and I understand what his role is, right. I know I couldn't even watch one episode with that bullshit. Just something that does not work with my personality, um which, you know, boss, is a little bit of our simon cowell, but um but well, you know, yeah, I here.

Speaker 3: 1:17:21

Here's the thing with it, though that, I think, does stand in contrast to what you just shared with me and what you've shared about Eurovision. It seems to me that part of the fun of Eurovision and why part, why I asked about what you like about it yeah, is you like specific things? Yeah, is you like specific things, like one of the things that we've learned about in school? I know you know this concept, but for those who don't know it, there's this there's least objectionable. Programming was a concept that was really important in American entertainment generally, specifically in TV, for a long time, because there were three networks and it meant like you got in for like a third of the fucking country.

Speaker 3: 1:18:09

You can't make Better Call Saul in that setting, america's Funniest Home Videos, that's goddamn right. And so I think one of the things I'm liking about what I see here that I think that for me, sort of like, I felt like at a certain point with American Idol, which I know a guy who was on there, I guess whatever is American Idol to me feels like the winner needs to fit the American Idol mold to some in some way. They may look different, but there's a certain, like least objectionable pop song is going to come out your mouth in the next month, whereas Eurovision strikes me as the land of specificity, the land of ugly ducklings, the land of I'm going to do some shit, that's so motherfucking crazy and I might win this motherfucker because everybody's like god damn, that was nuts.

Speaker 1: 1:19:10

You know what I mean, and I think that's just a different energy.

Speaker 3: 1:19:14

All together, it doesn't feel like that video. Yes, it's done a specific way to win in this setting, okay, fine, but it doesn't feel like let's make something everyone will like oh god, yeah, and I like it's not that I like make some fucking decisions like I like you know the competition element of american idol and those things where there's like this, I don't know, there's this we get.

Speaker 2: 1:19:40

We are fascinated by shutting people down. Yeah, like, like we're more. People have a lot of schadenfreude about the losers. Yeah, there's none of that in europe, none, oh really. Zero. Zero is not about the the competition. Yes, it's a competition, everybody wants to win and all that stuff, but it's like everybody's cheering for everybody. There's, there's zero negative energy. Interesting, uh, it's just fun when you say fun, like, what do you like about it? It's like everybody's cheering for everybody, there's zero negative energy. It's just fun. When you say fun, like, what do you like about it? It's fun, it is fun, it's like a party.

Speaker 3: 1:20:11

Yeah, it has that vibe, it's about inclusion, it's about unity.

Speaker 2: 1:20:14

Any messages of you know? Again you have protest songs and things like that but, it's not about like I don't know, I don't know, I. It's not about like I don't know, I don't know. I'm not articulating this very well, but for at least in the years that I've been watching, I have not seen the desperation around oh shit, if we lose, we're fucked. You know, there's no.

Speaker 3: 1:20:36

No, I get that. It also sounds like though there can be a vibe generally in life in America. But you know around me of like I like this music and you like that music and therefore I have to say your music sucks Like. Why can't you just like what the fuck you like Like why? Why? You know like, think about the famous like disco sucks Like. Why is disco gotta suck, bro? Just go listen to your motherfucking rock band and leave them alone like they wasn't bothering you.

Speaker 3: 1:21:07

Yeah, but we have that about us though, like, and I can think of, like, you know, mc hammer, with the 50th anniversary of uh, hip-hop. Recently, mc hammer, you know, kind of expressed himself that like hey, I like my motherfucking friends. Like a lot of you, people gave me a lot of shit back in the day and I remember and part of me was like he's not wrong, right. And I remember feeling like oh well, you know, that ain't real, that ain't real hip hop. You know, come on man, that's bubble gum shit.

Speaker 2: 1:21:36

Ah, interesting.

Speaker 3: 1:21:38

Oh yeah, oh no, I was anything of that ilk. I was like come on with that bubblegum shit. You know, come on now.

Speaker 2: 1:21:45

Wait, come on with that. What Bubblegum shit.

Speaker 3: 1:21:49

Yeah, to me that was like bubblegum silliness, like okay, that's very nice Okay.

Speaker 2: 1:21:55

All right, you're going to have to do this. You're going to have to walk down what I just did for Eurovision.

Speaker 3: 1:22:00

You might have to do this for, yeah, you know what it could be fun, but yeah, but it's a real thing, but I think, but I guess I bring it up to say like even in more recent history, like Beyonce doing the country thing, and then you've got people and of course race plays into that and that's fine, but you just in a in a vacuum, like people, there's a lot of guard up and there's a lot of like this is our genre. Don't come wandering in here and or your genre sucks. And the vibe I got even as you were showing the audience there and they're going nuts and like I'm like oh yeah, I don't speak all these languages. It's like it's the opposite of that, like it's more like yes.

Speaker 3: 1:22:39

Oh, you're doing a different thing. What's that about?

Speaker 2: 1:22:41

Yes, yes, you're doing a different thing. What's that about? Yes, yes, yes, you don't have to put another, another country down. You have to put another type of song down. You know, it's not yeah yeah, that's not what it is from the live gatekeeping yeah yeah, good, I'm glad you got that.

Speaker 3: 1:22:57

That's exactly yeah so no, that's, that's cool, man.

Speaker 2: 1:23:00

I I appreciate it, awesome. Hey, listen, thank you, I really appreciate it. That's all I wanted was for you to have that reaction and go all right now I know what it is, and if folks want to watch, it's there for them for the first. You know, I think it was like last year Peacock got it, so it hasn't been available to watch live in America for very long, if at all uh, last couple of years or so, um, so, anyway, I I put that out there.

Speaker 3: 1:23:28

I mean they have more and more stuff on Peacock. They're making it, they they definitely putting the pressure on folks to, like you know, to to, to, to add Peacock to the normal, the regular, regular rotation for everybody. I feel like there have been a number of things recently that are available on Peacock.

Speaker 2: 1:23:47

There's been some really good shows on there.

Speaker 3: 1:23:51

They're going for it.

Speaker 2: 1:23:54

I can't fault them for it. Oh shit, you're going to give me great entertainment At a certain point, yeah right. You're doing it the right way, all good. Thank you, coach. I mean you do it the right way, so all good. Well, thank you, coach. I really appreciate you taking this little journey with me. Thank you to everyone who's listening. We love that you have joined us for this very special episode on Eurovision 2024. Coach, where do people find you?

Speaker 3: 1:24:18

if they want to find you. I'm telling you, I'm pushing unstuck as fuck, get over there, check out the show. It's about 70 minutes and it is part pep rally for you and storytelling for me, and it is a good time. I am proud of it. I'll say that.

Speaker 2: 1:24:39

As you should be. As you should be. Yeah, it's fantastic. I urge everybody to please check that out and thank you for joining us. Please support your local libraries. In the written word. And Coach is all. By his lonesome, he gets to say whatever his heart desires. But even though this was not about Ted Las lasso, we sign off the way we always sign off, which is we remain richmond till we gum dolla dean, sub dean dean, something like this was that supposed to be rim tim tingy name?

Speaker 2: 1:25:20

all right, yeah, no, hey that's. Is that supposed to be a rim-tim-tingy name? All right, yeah, no, hey, that's.

Speaker 3: 1:25:24

I'm fucking around. I knew I didn't really remember it.

Speaker 2: 1:25:26

I love it. I knew exactly what you were talking about. All right, thanks everybody. We'll see you next time.