United Kingdom UNITED KINGDOM 2022 - Sam Ryder - Space Man

[escYOUnited]

If I was an astronaut, I'd be floating in mid-air
And a broken heart would just belong to someone else down there
I would be the centre of my lonely universe
But I'm only human, and I'm crashing down to earth

If I was an astronaut, I'd have a bird's eye view
I'd circle 'round the world and keep on coming back to you
In my floating castle, I'd rub shoulders with the stars
But I'm only human, and I'm drifting in the dark

I'm up in space, man
Up in space, man
I've searched around the universe
Been down some black holes
There's nothing but space, man
And I want to go home

If I was an astronaut, I'd speak to satellites
My navigation systems would search for other life
But I'd be up here thinking 'bout what I'd left behind
'Cause I'm only human with the real world on my mind

I'm up in space, man
Up in space, man
I've searched around the universe
Been down some black holes
There's nothing but space, man
And I want to go home

Gravity keeps pulling me down
As long as you're on the ground, I'll stick around
Stick around
I'll stick around

I'm up in space, man
Up in space, man
I've searched around the universe
Been down some black holes
There's nothing but space, man, no
Oh, I'm in the wrong place, man
Nothing but, nothing but, nothing but space, man
Nothing but, nothing but, nothing but space, man

I've searched around the universe
Been down some black holes
Nothing but space, man
And I want to go home​

 

[Chrisiam]

Has anyone really "attacked" his vocals though over the past page or so? Because all I have seen is just a slight concern that he might struggle to hit the high notes on the night. Which is still a possibility. Especially baring in mind that he'll have rehearsed the song goodness knows how many times before then and if he isn't careful he might strain his voice.

We all hope that isn't the case. He might well be saving his voice. It might be bad sound mixing. But I'd hardly call very mild comments on how some performances feel a little safe and how we hope he really brings it to the live shows is hardly an "attack".

 

[crashworld]

Congrats UK, you are going to do great this year and London 2023 isn't out of the question. People are tremendously underrating his televote potential, Sam has a great personality and people love him. He has over 10 million TikTok followers, and guess what's Eurovision's official app? When people see the staging and he has won eurojury the fomo is going to be huge, they really appear to have nailed the space/solitude theme without going too much overboard. Guessing Sam will be 1-3 in both TV and juries, most likely he'll come just short but there's a clear path to victory for him.

He may have a large TikTok following, but the question is, do these TikTok users even follow Eurovision at all? And we don't know how many of these followers are even eligible to vote for him.

But all I know is all these promotional tours he has been doing across Europe will definitely help in some way. I will be surprised if these promotional tours didn't. I can't think of any artist in this competition that has done that much promotion as him.

When the more impartial and knowledgeable voices of Berme Rubio, Jan Bors and Alesia Michelle are calling him the best vocalist in the contest then you have to throw your hands up and admit that they're probably right. My biased British brain is being overly critical right now too so I'm just letting other people drive my opinion on how we're going to do this year.

LOL at naming these 2 people and taking their comments as though they are right. They are no more than just Eurovision fan "experts" like us. Sam is definitely a more-than-competent vocalist, but to say he is the best voalist in the contest when you have the likes of Ochman, Sheldon, Nadir just to name a few. I wouldn't go that far.

 

[voteme]

Good piece on BBC News today, he's also about to go back into the top 20 on iTunes which is pretty incredible...

 

[jeriswani]

LOL at naming these 2 people and taking their comments as though they are right. They are no more than just Eurovision fan "experts" like us. Sam is definitely a more-than-competent vocalist, but to say he is the best voalist in the contest when you have the likes of Ochman, Sheldon, Nadir just to name a few. I wouldn't go that far.

Surely this is all based on personal preference though. I know there is some who don’t like Sams voice. I personal find Sheldons voice a bit too much for my liking but understand why people like it. Nadir is my favourite male vocalist which i my preference. There are many who say that Stefan has the best male vocals this year. All of it is based on preference. I know another blog did a poll on the best male vocalist and it was very close at the top between Ochman and Sam. Ochman definitely has the most technical trained voice.

 

[jeriswani]

Non esc fans reacting to the UK song. Overall score was kind of in the middle ( they did rank Maneskin really low and Sweden is currently on an even lower score, Moldova currently has the highest), however a positive is how many people gave it a 9/10 which was a good amount compared to other song. People seem to either love or or hate it. Tbh the most hate came from the younger brits one them gave it a 1/10. Like I said above a lot of people like Sams voice . However there are a few that really don’t like it. Thankfully no one can vote against your country. If the staging is good I think this could do better in the televote than most people think.

🇬🇧 United Kingdom - Sam Ryder - Space Man (The Public Reacts: Eurovision 2022)

Head over to https://escbubble.com and cast your own vote from 1 to 10 for UNITED KINGDOM, and help us select your best song of 2022!-19 casual fans and view...

youtu.be

 

[Bmbriga]

Surely this is all based on personal preference though. I know there is some who don’t like Sams voice. I personal find Sheldons voice a bit too much for my liking but understand why people like it. Nadir is my favourite male vocalist which i my preference. There are many who say that Stefan has the best male vocals this year. All of it is based on preference. I know another blog did a poll on the best male vocalist and it was very close at the top between Ochman and Sam. Ochman definitely has the most technical trained voice.

Yeah, I totally understand that he has a great voice, but just don't enjoy the tone of it. Although, I'm getting used it and the song is growing on me.

 

[crashworld]

Surely this is all based on personal preference though. I know there is some who don’t like Sams voice. I personal find Sheldons voice a bit too much for my liking but understand why people like it. Nadir is my favourite male vocalist which i my preference. There are many who say that Stefan has the best male vocals this year. All of it is based on preference. I know another blog did a poll on the best male vocalist and it was very close at the top between Ochman and Sam. Ochman definitely has the most technical trained voice.

Of course, it all depends on what you define as "best" and subjectivity will always come into place.
Personally, for me, it's always about the technicality, how consistent a singer sounds for his/her/their live vocals plus if the singer is able to sound almost flawless while still able to do a dance routine (that will be the cherry on top).

 

[spinachpie]

I know us Brits are terrified that our entry might do well this year, but attacking Sam's vocals of all things is a bold strategy. We know he can hit those notes, and frankly when 80% of all the singers sounded bad at those pre-parties I don't think you can judge the high notes in his otherwise perfect vocals from those shows.

When the more impartial and knowledgeable voices of Berme Rubio, Jan Bors and Alesia Michelle are calling him the best vocalist in the contest then you have to throw your hands up and admit that they're probably right. My biased British brain is being overly critical right now too so I'm just letting other people drive my opinion on how we're going to do this year.

Anyway, listen to his performance in the Eurovision House Party or some of his past acoustic vocals recorded at the same location (York Hall) for what his high notes sound like when the sound mixing is good. He uses his high notes more like an instrument than a vocal. The sound mixing at pre-parties sucks, the sound mixing at Eurovision tends to be good - plus there are backing vocals this year. Sam isn't just fine, he's going to be good.

I was not attacking his vocals, I was just going by what I heard from his live performances, which have been off the mark for me. When he was announced, I think I couldn't have been more effusive about his vocal ability. He could be saving himself, but noone knows. We can only go by what we see and hear. Hope he goes all out on those notes during Eurovision, otherwise it won't do as well as it could.

 

[ChiversLookDivine]

Has anyone really "attacked" his vocals though over the past page or so? Because all I have seen is just a slight concern that he might struggle to hit the high notes on the night. Which is still a possibility. Especially baring in mind that he'll have rehearsed the song goodness knows how many times before then and if he isn't careful he might strain his voice.

Okay, "attack" sounds a little strong, I meant criticise (I mean, they're the same word, semantics and all that).

My point was about people criticising his voice, which was what happened. My point was about how we're (not just here but across other Eurofan sites) now choosing to criticise his voice - of all the things to criticise about the entry when arguably Sam himself is the strongest part. I also brought attention to how his high notes won't sound weak in Turin, as the only times it could have been accused of being weak was at the pre-parties where pretty much everybody sounded bad, flat or quiet.

If people have worries about his voice or don't like his voice then fair enough, but judge him where the sound-mixing was good. Of course what I actually said in my post about how sound-mixing is good at Eurovision and there's access to backing vocals, and the sources I provided from performances where sound-mixing was good and not the poor sound-mixing from the pre-parties, got completely ignored for a reply focusing on semantics.

LOL at naming these 2 people and taking their comments as though they are right. They are no more than just Eurovision fan "experts" like us. Sam is definitely a more-than-competent vocalist, but to say he is the best voalist in the contest when you have the likes of Ochman, Sheldon, Nadir just to name a few. I wouldn't go that far.

If you think Jan Bors is just a Eurovision fan I'd go and look him up. Him naming the UK as one of his favourites to win is a big deal.

 

[Chrisiam]

But of all the things about Sam and his act the vocals are the single most important part of it. Expressing concern that he might struggle to hit the high notes when it counts is barely a criticism against him. There have been plenty of strong vocalists that have gone into the finals and failed to live up to expectations despite having a good track record and having done well in rehearsals. And that will always be a possibility with any live performance. I hope that isn't what happens and that he does well at the contest. But given how difficult some of the notes in the song can be there is always a risk things won't go to plan.

As I have said countless times over the past few months and years, I want the UK to do well at the contest, and I hope that what we see this year is the turning point to more reliably good results in the future. But as is the case with any live performance things can go wrong. And hoping that Sam doesn't strain his voice too much into the finals and that he can deliver when it counts isn't a criticism or attack on him.

 

[MopManMoss]

I just hope Sam doesnt adlib

 

[theditz83]

I just hope Sam doesnt adlib

He absolutely must adlib, because he kicks major backside especially when he ends with an adlib flourish.

I think it's great to see such differing views on Sam and Space Man, because for far too long the act or entry has been something that people said "meh" too - we'd probably rank somewhere in the middle of a full final ranking if full rankings decided the final placings, but didn't have enough lovers of what we did to actually vote. Now it's much clearer that even if some people don't get the song/Sam's voice, there are just as many people that love the song and his voice so surely that stands a great chance of us getting a decent points haul!

 

[MopManMoss]

He absolutely must adlib, because he kicks major backside especially when he ends with an adlib flourish.

I think it's great to see such differing views on Sam and Space Man, because for far too long the act or entry has been something that people said "meh" too - we'd probably rank somewhere in the middle of a full final ranking if full rankings decided the final placings, but didn't have enough lovers of what we did to actually vote. Now it's much clearer that even if some people don't get the song/Sam's voice, there are just as many people that love the song and his voice so surely that stands a great chance of us getting a decent points haul!

Well as long as he doesnt adlib in the jury show

 

[crashworld]

I just hope Sam doesnt adlib

I kinda agree. Does the song even need ad-libs. It's not your R&B male pop song, you can leave that to Jeremie from Belgium or a male pop ballad where you can leave that to Sheldon from Australia to do the honours.

All UK needs to do is to have a good staging to complement the song & Sam's personality and Sam hitting his vocals on point.
Anything more will be unnecessary.

If you think Jan Bors is just a Eurovision fan I'd go and look him up. Him naming the UK as one of his favourites to win is a big deal.

I know who he is. He is the ex-HOD for Czech Republic and a TV producer in his home country and now he has his own youtube channel discussing Eurovision entries like what Alesia or the likes of other ESC youtubers are doing.

However, his "expertise" still does not qualify him to say Sam being the best vocalist and we have to agree to that comment (to para-phrase what you said) just because he said that. All I am merely saying, he is just like most Eurovision fans, that are not musically or vocally trained or musically-related background, and what he said is just based on his own measurements.

 

[Leydan]

I read article that was suggested to me on FB some weeks ago about Eurovision and they said in it that astronaut suits had been confirmed to them. I'd link it but I can't find it. It's been in my mind since I read it. Sam Jumping up on stage in a space suit feels like a sure fire way to self sabotage

 

[crashworld]

I read article that was suggested to me on FB some weeks ago about Eurovision and they said in it that astronaut suits had been confirmed to them. I'd link it but I can't find it. It's been in my mind since I read it. Sam Jumping up on stage in a space suit feels like a sure fire way to self sabotage

This better not be true. This could go Montenegro 2013/Moldova 2016 and we know what happened to these entries.

 

[Leydan]

This better not be true. This could go Montenegro 2013/Moldova 2016 and we know what happened to these entries.

I'm hoping its a false also. iirc the article wasn't particularly forward thinking anyway. It wasn't negative but it referred to a lot of typical Eurovision stereotypes that the average Brit would think of when it comes to Eurovision.

 

[crashworld]

I'm hoping its a false also. iirc the article wasn't particularly forward thinking anyway. It wasn't negative but it referred to a lot of typical Eurovision stereotypes that the average Brit would think of when it comes to Eurovision.

But what I read that Sam has also participated in planning his staging? I really cannot imagine him saying "yes" to this unless it's done very tastefully. Just imagine him doing an outfit change from an astronaut to being a normal average joe to signify he is finally back to where he wants to be after travelling across the space. LOL!

 

[cegs5]

At first listenimg I didn’t really like Sam’s voice, I am not really fan of key changes and high pitch.
However, as I left my ESC playlist on, I have been tolerating this song more and more, and I can even imagine that a good staging could elevate this entry to the point to reach a great reasult. Top 10 is realistic for the UK this year.

 

[spinachpie]

Space suits? Noooo

I mean, I kind of want to see it purely for the car crash element if true...