USA 2025

[soundofsilence]

really hopeful about this

 

[Marcos C]

It's not going to happen. There is simply not enough interest in the competition here.

 

[SpiritofKeiino]

Please, please no.

 

[Wynnter]

Apparently it was depending on the success of the American Song Contest and that one only lasted for one season, sooooo

 

[HarryUK]

HA

 

[randajad]

ew

 

[Chrisiam]

Honestly, I'm not against the idea, even just as a one-off. But as it stands there isn't enough support for the USA to take part.

 

[Paco Roca]

If Australia participates, the USA can participate. After all, it is the "Western bloc" and many Americans are European by origin. And let's not forget that we are accepting the vote of the rest of the world. I would also be ready to welcome 3 non-European nations with invitations or by doing a "Road To Eurovision" non-European qualifying contest. Mine are just dreams and will remain unachievable but I think it would help the EBU discard disappointing spin-offs and broaden interest.

 

[Gera11]

The US just does not get it.

 

[Marcos C]

If Australia participates, the USA can participate. After all, it is the "Western bloc" and many Americans are European by origin. And let's not forget that we are accepting the vote of the rest of the world. I would also be ready to welcome 3 non-European nations with invitations or by doing a "Road To Eurovision" non-European qualifying contest. Mine are just dreams and will remain unachievable but I think it would help the EBU discard disappointing spin-offs and broaden interest.

Here is what I wrote about Australia on Reddit two years ago.

"SBS, which broadcasts ESC in Australia, has been dedicated to ethnic and multicultural programming since its inception in 1978. When SBS began airing ESC in 1983, it was most likely to provide a service to the European ethnic groups who were part of their target audience. Then, over the years, the popularity of SBS' ESC coverage spread to the more general population of Australia, thereby making Eurovision into the huge phenomenon that it is in the country today."

The United States does not have a national network that is similar to Australia's SBS. And when ESC was on Logo TV (a national cable network) from 2016 to 2018, very few people tuned in. Only 74,000 people watched ESC on Logo TV in 2018. Now, ESC is on Peacock, and NBCUniversal is doing practically nothing to promote the event on its streaming platform.

In summary, comparing the United States and Australia is like comparing apples and oranges.

 

[VirginiaVision]

I think the Eurovision format's main obstacle for American success is the public's over-familiarity with singing contests, which were a HUGE part of American TV's development. We've had so many of them over the years that Americans coming across Eurovision for the first time often mistake it for a singing competition like American Idol or The X Factor. They look at the contest from an exclusively vocal perspective and aren't prepared to account for aspects like songwriting and stage production.

The Americans who manage to get over that hurdle are, in my experience, at least one of the following:

1. Involved or previously involved in stage production (either TV or stage)
2. Well-versed in gay culture/familiar with camp
3. Interested in learning about culture through music
4. A child of European parents who exposed them to the contest
5. Close friends with a superfan

While those points certainly cover thousands of people, they hardly cover enough for the US to reasonably participate, in my opinion. We'd need a lot more media and frankly societal shifts to get a large chunk of the public "ready" to consume and be represented in Eurovision.

TL;DR: Most Americans don't have the right exposure to truly "get" the contest and its complexity

 

[Marcos C]

The Americans who manage to get over that hurdle are, in my experience, at least one of the following:

1. Involved or previously involved in stage production (either TV or stage)
2. Well-versed in gay culture/familiar with camp
3. Interested in learning about culture through music
4. A child of European parents who exposed them to the contest
5. Close friends with a superfan

I guess I'm the closest to number 3 because I've been interested in cultures of other countries since childhood. When I first watched Eurovision in 2006, my eyes were opened to a whole new world of music. It was only during the last few years that I began to understand the importance of songwriting in the contest.

 

[VirginiaVision]

I guess I'm the closest to number 3 because I've been interested in cultures of other countries since childhood. When I first watched Eurovision in 2006, my eyes were opened to a whole new world of music. It was only during the last few years that I began to understand the importance of songwriting in the contest.

Cool! Your comment made me realize that I could've broadened that point or made a separate one for people who are [live] music buffs in general. Eh, oh well.

And to add on, I belong to category #1

 

[Youre2490]

After our absolute flop of the American Song Contest, this sounds awful and should probably NEVER happen. At this point I'm just content that the EBU was greedy enough for our money to be able to vote with the rest of the world.

 

[Fluke]

Bonavega's the obvious choice:

 

[Sabrewulf238]

I think the rest of the world vote works just fine as a way to include non participating countries and countries who aren't members of the EBU.

I've seen it mentioned that the rest of the world vote could have a jury vote alongside it though, which I'd be open to.

 

[GRE]

I think that if they want to empower televoting in the Grand Final, they could do the RoW x 3, or do it with votes by each of 5 continents.

 

[macmillanandwife]

I highly doubt the USA will be in the contest next year. Unless, there is a mass exodus of countries for next year.

 

[EscGeek]

found the perfect US entry

 

[MojVoda]

When pigs fly and World War III starts I will be a monkey's uncle