Has Eurovision turned from Europe's heart of music to EuroPride?

[cassidian]

I notice after watching very old clips that it was a very classy event, but the competition nowadays has camp acts. Has it become a gay festival?

Nothing against Homosexuals.

 

[Impressive]

Eurovision has a huge homosexual fan mass in Europe. And there is nothing to combinate from "very classy event" to "becoming a gay festival".
That's all.

 

[CC92]

Probably but it has started to become kitsch and cheesy already in the early seventies.

 

[Yamarus]

I notice after watching very old clips that it was a very classy event, but the competition nowadays has camp acts. Has it become a gay festival?

There were kitsch and camp acts as early as the Seventies as CC92 noted.

The most striking changes occured at the end of the 90s: end of language rule, end of live orchestra, and more focus on the performance because of the televote. That transition lasted until about 2003-2004 when it was about complete (IMO Ruslana epitomises the new ESC format) and the ESC acquired its new logo and identity.

The ESC post-2004 and the ESC pre-2000 are two very different shows if you put them side by side.

 

[LalehForWD]

ESC post-2004
kitsch and cheesy

I'm not gay though

 

[MyHeartIsYours]

Eurovision looked pretty boring in the old days to me. "EuroPride" is definitely better

 

[Yoni]

Well I loved both ESC pre-2004 and ESC post-2004, so I really don't mind the change, as long as they pick good songs

 

[DanielLuis]

To be honest, since the 50/50 in 2009 the contest has been changing. There are less pop and kitsch dancey songs in the ESC. In this year's final we only had Finland and Belarus.

 

[CC92]

I don't see how the contest has gotten 'cheesier' since 2004 onwards although stage shows indeed started to play a more important role at that time. The early noughties (00-02), I think, were much worse. Moreover, as Daniel pointed out, there's been a backwards trend towards simpler stage shows and slow ballads since the 'jury' re-introduction. Which also has opened the doors for another kind of cheese entries, unfortunately.
The most horrible decade to what kitsch concerns must be the 80s for me. Not only that many entries were over-the-top campy, they were also so out of touch and square or their time that it is difficult to even just laugh about them.

 

[soundofsilence]

Probably but it has started to become kitsch and cheesy already in the early seventies.

Like Waterloo

 

[HarryUK]

I think today more than ever it’s important for LGBT+ artists to be at the forefront of Eurovision. We live in a world where it’s increasingly difficult to be your true self due to hostilities, particularly aimed at our Trans community.

 

[soundofsilence]

I think today more than ever it’s important for LGBT+ artists to be at the forefront of Eurovision. We live in a world where it’s increasingly difficult to be your true self due to hostilities, particularly aimed at our Trans community.

If that happens I can finally sleep on Saturday nights