Gåte considered withdrawing from Eurovision up until the very last second. That’s according to the group’s guitarist Magnus Børmark.
Speaking to the Norwegian newspaper Aftenposten, Magnus suggested that Israel’s participation, with the war in Gaza as a backdrop, made it difficult for contestants to focus solely on the music.
“Withdrawing was on the block until the last second,” he said. “We eventually had constructive talks with the EBU. Things were just good enough to carry on.”
The “Ulveham” performer said that the tense atmosphere forced artists into a political role, placing an heavy burden on everyone’s shoulders.
Large protests around the city called for the EBU to ban the country from the event. The EBU has consistently said the song contest in a non-political event and a competition between broadcasters and not governments.
“It seemed as if there was one set of rules for Israel, another for the rest,” Magnus said. “There is something wrong when you experience it. The artists should not have to have a crisis meeting with the EBU,” he says.
Magnus also criticised the security arrangements for Israel, saying they didn’t always seem peaceful.
Yeah everyone was threatening to withdraw YET no one did it because everyone wanted to be on ESC stage. Gate could’ve said NO because they knew about Israel participating (unlike Olly who had signed a contract with BBC already and prepared the act and props)
Sorry but it is pointless to make such statements now.
It seems that a lot of the delegations threatening to pull out were all fart and no poo. Who is going to take any t.hreats seriously next time.
Ah yes, let’s try to justify those 4 points.
BREAKING: A journalist from the New York Times based in Tel Aviv just revealed that the Israeli government hired experts in multiple countries to manipulate the televote for Israel. Check his Twitter @Yonatal_Touval
I voted so many times for Israel as I love the song and I am from Ireland
You are doomed!
The Jews made a s@t@ic spell on you
Israelis don’t even like us Noel -_-
Palestinians neither and you simp for them -_-
That’s bullsh!t you racist moron
Massive solidarity between them both.
Maybe step out of your bubble and you’d see that.
Also, just to back up my point:
Palestinian women’s football team is in Dublin to play a charity match. Was treated to a hero’s arrival at Dublin Airport, met with the president and the charity match is a sell out.
Soooooo yeah, keep pretending you know Ireland.
Show them Bambie Thug’s performance and explain this whole non-binary thing to them. I guess they will be very delighted and supportive. Or… well… not.
And Jews control the world!
They are not even human being!!!!!!!!!1
I am sure all their wins in the eurovision were manipulated,
and their inventions belong to other nations but they stole it by s@t@nic minds!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
One thing they didnt manage to do good is Soccer, they are really suck at that. I guess because that runing their s@t@nic spirit cant deal with it!!!!!!!!!!!
Wiwibloggs a bit of moderation is needed here thanks
This person (@Karl) is obsessed with Israel.
Using same posts in diff articles.
Not only that his posts totally antisemic, full of hate and lies
Good luck with that.
Norway’s Eurovision act Gåte says they considered withdrawing “until the last place in the final”
Ban the gen.c.dal entity israel!!
Wake up Karl !! Competition is over 🙂
But Israel’s g3nocidal campaign is not unfortunately
And take Marina the Greek teen-woman she is still sleeping
Norway you were last whatever you say, public and jury didn’t like your number. Don’t try to look for unfunded excuses to justify you were not really good.
I liked it
Consistently top 11 – 17 in a lot of countries, however with the current voting system if you don’t break top 10 in a country you won’t get any points at all so,,, Yeah
Votes don’t automatically translate to points
Most people are not aware of that argument you’re making. Unfortunately, this year Gåte were probably the biggest victims of this quirck of the voting system.
The courage and privilege of making such statements *post-factum* is astonishing. To think of the tra gic w or kplace conditions of many people who do not benefit from the same generosity that Norway affords in education and work and healthc are and sa fety, oh well …
Not everything is nice in Norway, you can’t have a rough patch with your parents as a kid bc social services will surely take you away from them and make sure you never hear of your parents ever again
“‘The artists should not have to have a crisis meeting with the EBU’ he says.” Well, artists DON’T have to have a crisis meeting with the EBU. If you’re not fine with whatever, just withdraw. Why suffer like this? Why go through all this? ALL OF THIS. Talented people who play musical instruments like the violin and the piano were taken h ostage by H mas. And you are complaining you partake in the biggest musical – TV event in the world. Or no, you don’t have the option to withdraw? INTERESTING! What options do the h ostages have?
There is no ESC without the artists. Please respect them.
At the moment the EBU’s stance is not working. Probably the only solution is a carpet ban on anyone who is at war with each other as it’s a music competition not a political one. This would be contentious obviously as it would also mean Ukraine would be out.
Thank you we could participate those 3 years.
When Israel is not in war anymore, but Ukraine still is, could your suggested rule be cancelled then, and Ukraine could participate again?
Sorry…..sea, not see.
Youre clearly the victim of a failed Israeli education system.
And which educational system failed you? Asking for a friend?
By the way….shout out to Eden, What a fantastic effort for such a young woman up against a see of of toxic venom. She only represents her country in a singing contest. She doesn’t condone their actions.
That’s why she’s planning on joining the IDF bc she’s such an innocent sweet little girl.
All the former Israeli contestants join the IDF. It’s as if it’s a right of passage for them to put the P a1i’s under their thumb.
Innocent sweet little girls were taken hostage by H mas on October 7.
Many “innocent sweet little girls” were murdered on that day. I am thinking about Naamaa and Noa every single day.
Innocent people are dying on both sides. What’s your answer, keep going until there’s no one left? Perpetuate violence and radicalize new generations? Because that’s what they’ve been doing for the last 75 years and the result is not at all commendable. They can level G@z@ until no stone is left unturned, it will always be a pyrrhic victory. As the recent history of these two people shows, violence will erupt again and the cycle will perpetuate.
H@m@s can always surrender and release the hostages. Or at least release the hostages and agree on a ceaefire. I am pretty sure that the USA and other states can pressure Israel not to go on with the war , as well as the inner situation in Isr@el can do that. The problem is, who can pressure H@m@s.
I completely agree, but Israel also needs to change many of its policies. They must end the apartheid regime, stop treating Palestinians as sub-humans, free some of the people unfairly imprisoned in Israeli jails (many of them children), and return the West Bank territories occupied by settlements. Do you agree that it is a good principle to start negotiating a definitive solution to this conflict?
There will certainly have to be a lot of negotiations to the conflict which bring on a long-lasting solutions. And the policies and attitudes will have to change on both sides.
But as of NOW, it is imperative to end the suffering on both sides asap….the young women in the tunnels, whose souls and bodies have been violated, the men taken hostage and of course the civilians of G@z@…
No more r@pes, no more deaths, no more suffering…
Total agreement with that. But both sides must seriously commit to negotiating and not allow religious extremists on both sides to sabotage the process as happened previously.
And another important thing. War criminals and g3noc1da1res on both sides have to sit in The Hague. What has happened in recent times cannot go unpunished.
Am not really sure if it will be easy to get the H@m@ss war criminals and g3noc1da1res to court. But justice must prevail in all its aspects and concerning all deeds and plaintiffs.
H@m@s leadership, Bibi and his ilk. All of them, without exceptions.
We could still sanction one of H4m4s’s main enablers: Qatar
Possibly Iran and Muscovy, but neither entity is interested in cooling things off
Thera are enablers on both sides. Some western countries are not blameless.
The thing they’ve been looking to do for weeks now and keep getting denied on by Bibi? I frickin agree
The truth is toxic for those who try to hide it, because the truth is the antagonist of propaganda and disinformation.
The way this contest is going, I can see everyone sending in their official music videos instead of travelling. That way it will be cheaper for the less wealthy countries and maybe the big 5 will cease to exist and will need to qualify.
No one forced you into a political role, you were told not to take on a political role, the majority of delegations and contestants managed this just fine.
Because you were there backstage, right?
When it comes to g3noc1de, silence is connivance.
to make the contest better – Israel out, Bjorkman out
Martin out, Noel Curran out
After the finals, Martin likely needs to confirm with the delegations if they will perform again. If not, he can ask the non-qualifiers if they’d like to participate in a non-competitive exhibition during the finals.
“ The “Ulveham” performer said that the tense atmosphere forced artists into a political role, placing an heavy burden on everyone’s shoulders.”
And again, this can only be blamed on this toxic fandom hunting artists on social media and demanding statements from artists who have nothing to do with politics. You can also refuse to be forced into this political role, as others did.
Some people can’t whistle into the air. When it comes to g3noc1de, silence is connivance.
The performer also said “It seemed as if there was one set of rules for Israel, another for the rest”.
So perhaps it was the Israeli’s forcing the contestants into a political role.
This really is neither here nor there. Maybe someone else will spill the tea because if you come with statements like these, you might as well say nothing. And I’m not buying this shtick “we were always this close to withdrawing, really.” from anyone. This whole season’s soundtrack should have been “we don’t need no statements” by 2017 Loreen.
They considered withdrawing but didn’t, so these are empty words.
They stayed quiet during the press conferences, during interviews and they didn’t even sign that joint artist statement last month. I don’t want to hear about how they could’ve, should’ve or would’ve withdrew. Disappointed in them for even releasing this statement.
Agree. Perhaps the unexpected last place finish is also affecting their judgement.
They did sign the statement last month. They also applauded the protestors for using their freedom of speech and taking to the streets in Malmö during ESC week. They may not have been the most vocal ones, but they were never in support of Israel of the contest.
There’s so much coming out now about the tension backstage. I’m really not surprised. I guess it would be like that.
The EBU put the acts from Norway, Portugal, Greece, Switzerland, Lithuania and Ireland in a difficult and vulnerable position. Completely let down by a duty of care that they have to the contestants.
They need to ensure absolute change for next year.
Time to find that backbone EBU.
Num num num num… The Real Housewives of Malmo… My new favourite show 🙂
I’d watch that
Here’s ‘this guy’ again calling Bambie a Monster before the flag parade… There’s a plethora of clips from these a-holes rotating around the performers as they head to stage.
https://vm.tiktok.com/ZGeCmKdKt/
The abuse they received is absolutely vile.
* she
She’s an abuser, actually. People full of hate… “oh, i’m so special, i’m so differnt, like me, you are obliged to like me”. She’s not special, just another perosn with no education or empathy.
I didn’t see any abuse, they just made statements that were corroborated by other designations as being true.
Nobody said they’re special, but they did just say what others are saying too.
Portugal had a very good spot after Finland. It stood out.
Switzerland good spot, 1 singer between 2 dance acts.
Greece too. Fun between serious and darker act. Female between two male energy acts.
Ireland also a good spot. One them’s show after the crowdy Estonia act.
BT can not complain about that. Good spot.
Maybe Lithuania not such a good spot between Israel and Spain.
Between those two, Lith seemed less interesting.
Norway also had a good spot after UK. One main woman after group of men.
So what? What’s your point? No one is talking about running orders. The “difficult position” thing it’s another whole matter.
They considered withdrawing until the last second but then decided not to… This is so stupid but so so stupid.
An event like ESC should in the first place never take place in a city surrounded by gang violence.
The rest of Sweden has talked in the televote.
Daring criticize security. I wish her to never receive death threats in her life.
Malmo was chosen before the war in Israel. I guess SVT did regret that later on. They had to borrow security from neighbouring countries.
And Malmo has been struggling with gang violence since at least 2015
Yet I was there for a full ten days and felt completely safe at all times…
“Trust me, bro”
“It seemed as if there was one set of rules for Israel, another for the rest”
Here’s the problem.
Nothing we didn’t know already. But nice that more and more delegations are now speaking out.
It not unusual to speak only after the event is over because of NDAs that artists agree to once they take part.
This sums up the entire 2024 contest
That is true, but it has nothing to do with ESC. If you want to fly to Israel, the gate at the airport will always be isolated one, and as a passenger you will be double-checked. This is reality, especially after the massacre in 1972 olympic games in Munich.
This seems a case of blaming the victim. Yes, one set of rules for the person getting the death threats and being forced to remain in her hotel room like a prisoner.
*seemed*…
Everyone keeps saying that but without any concrete examples.
Y’all are annoying with Israel, you’re just bringing attention to what their government is doing. Last year you all were praising Israeli song, a couple of years ago y’all were amazed by “Toy” and guess what, the conflict was already there.
Next year will be better….I hope…
EBU needs radical changes in so many ways in order for the contest to survive! Hence we should salute the artists that speak up, not gag them with criticism!
ESC had awful times before and survived. People always said it wouldn’t survive, especially in the mid-90s. It changed a lot over the years and remained.
This IS so very stupid… If you dont agree with something you DO something. Withdrawal might have made an impact… But, of course this is too much to ask… First comes Eurovision and then real commitment… You are so full of speeches and crap but when you have the chance to actually DO something, then It is only “we thought about withdrawal, we did not but we thought a lot”…
Am I the only one disgusted with EBU? The contestants should sue them with a class-action lawsuit.
The contestants need to thank EBU for providing them with a stage.
What is Eurovision without the contestants? A empty stage.
Sue EBU?? Are really that deranged? Sue them for what? You think crap, you say crap…
Discrimination, hostile work environment, endangering their security….
It seems to me that Eden Golan might have more of a claim against some of the other contestants
There is no judge or courtroom that might take those charges seriously… Not even the US… Hostile work environment??
Sue EBU because security mesures had to be taken precisely because of hateful people and threats. Security measures was the job of the police, government not EBU. On what planet these people are living ? A law suit because security mesures had to be taken to prevent a teror attack. Well good luck if you have money to lose. This would be hilarious if the subject wasn’t that serious.
Sue EBU because security measures had to be taken? These are the charges? OMG, people you are crazy. I quit this web, you are totally deranged. You must be teenagers otherwise I cannot explain some much crap.
No one forced anyone to participate. They should’ve declined to participate the instant that the EBU said Israel could participate.
These performers complaining are acting like spoiled and entitled brats. They need to grow up!
Thankfully, they’ll be nobodies or mocked on TV in the US. (Yep, Ireland was mocked tonight on AFTER MIDNIGHT on the CBS network.)
Hope they mocked Croatia Finlands and Netherlands too the 3 joke acts of this year.
They mocked CHA CHA CHA in the same segment.
Well, the juries thought Finland and Estonia were the worst songs of the year. The televoters thought 30p would be enough for each of them.
Netherlands was not a joke, it was disturbing, actually… croatia tried a gimmick (and worked, second place and it looks like without the conflict, they would have won). The blond guy from finland has a good voice.. didn’t like the moment, but the guy can sing.
US have good music taste that’s a reason they are the biggest music exporter in the world, American artists are at a higher standard than most that are in Eurovision.
Remember Céline…
She is Canadian
Yeah, but celine is ameircan :))
Americans are incapable of producing something like the ESC. Remember the trainwreck that was the American Song Contest. Don’t make that type of comparisons nor make absolute statements, such as the United States has better taste. That’s absolute nonsense.
They don’t have better taste, but in europe, only uk can compare with the musical quality in us. Of course, there are amazing and high profile band in every country, but as an idustry, us definetly dominates.
(And yes, in us, also, there is a lot of crap, but even those are well produced, mostly)
Unless it’s a rapper mumbling about s h o o t i n g someone, the vast majority of your music comes from Britain!
And some from Sweden. Oh the irony!
Who cares what some American think about Bambie. They were one of the best things to happen to ESC in recent years. A breath of fresh air.
Another entitled brat! I’d bet 50 euros she’ll never be as successful as MANESKIN, ABBA, or Duncan Laurence have been in the US.
Cry more! And don’t misgender, it’s rude. It’s They!
My bad. Even those I can’t stand shouldn’t be misgendered. So,…I bet 50 euros they’ll never be as successful.
Probably not. But they have their niche and their audience. And that audience became bigger after last weekend. And the beauty of all this is that Bambie was not constrained in the way they presented their music, they were not limited by norms and conventions and will probably be an inspiration for other artists in the future. There are a lot of mainstream artists whose influences come from other, more obscure artists.
We don’t measure the talent of an artist based on their success… You have to ba a teenager to use that as an argument. There a a lot of excellent “unknown” artists out there while some terrible singer are known thanks to their networks, good communication and money.
Bambie Thug may not become global but she came to present her artistic approach with a very good performance.
To be fair, I don’t know how things went down in other countries, but in the Netherlands there was little protest against Israel’s participation in advance. There was even quite an angry reaction when some prominent Dutch people of Mus lim descent called on Joost in a letter to boycott Eurovision, referring to his deceased father, whom he sings about in Europapa. When Joost was confronted with this, he also said that it was not up to him to decide on Israel’s participation. Sentiment has changed after it became known that the Israeli delegation and press bullied other participants, including… Read more »
Why should European countries leave a European contest so that a country that’s not even in Europe can take over even more than they have already? Israel needs to be thrown out.
Australia?
There’s plenty we can mock the US about too.
They should have withdrawn and avoid being in the last place
Easy to say after the contest is over and you finished last!
I don’t understand you. You criticize the competitors who spoke out against the situation during the competition and accuse them of politicizing the ESC. And now you also criticize those who preferred to wait for the end, to speak calmly about what happened. Where is your coherence?
I just say it is easy to make a statement after the contest is over! Don’t talk so much! If you wanna withdraw than do that. Don’t cry afterwords about it!
So much inconsistency in your positions. You want to have your cake and eat it too.
My opinion is my opinion! I don’t need to justify myself in front of you and I don’t need to join the mobmentality to have one!
The point is that if you are against Ebu’s decision Israel participates, when you are mature you should witdraw Before the contest,
and not be opportunistic and participate so millions can see your song and act, and then make statements during or after the show.
I believe Patrick is always consistent
You do know they have to sign contracts forbiding them to speak?
He’s a shill for Israel who keeps attacking Western countries for being pro-gay. The only thing to understand is that he’s either a Russian troll or a very, very sad individual.
Good to know that. Patrick, here is my standard answer to bigots and homophobes. The wise words from Lily Allen:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yFE6qQ3ySXE
That hurt…
I feel for all the artists that performed on Saturday considering the tension that was there. They shouldn’t have experienced that when you have to give your best performance in front of millions of people. But I’m glad they are speaking about it (Gate, Bambie, Silvester etc) because EBU should be held accountable for ruining their special moment at Eurovision.
EBU should’ve more kicked out Israel pre contest, i mean they said no to their song twice, i mean once as a warning okay, but the second time they should’ve kicked them out rather than another warning they banned Belarus on the same thing immediately, in 2021 with that too controversial entry, not just a warning but a instant ban they should’ve acted same way to Israel since they were intent on sympathy votes with October Rain which was obviously related to that one incident that started that whole current mess over there israeli delegation filming other contestants without permission… Read more »
Oh, a savage, g€noc1dal mass murd€r an “incident”….Ok.
Okay, let’s put the words where they belong.
7 October: 1200 israeli deaths = terrible event, terrorist act. BAD.
After that: 40 000 p@lestinian deaths = start of a g€nocide. WORSE.
There is no good side in this war. There is just one side doing more damage than the other. I don’t stand with either of those sides.
Okay, you put the words where YOU think they belong. What you did not consider, is the duration. 683 civilian Israeli deaths in ONE day. = 683 per day 25000 civilian Palestinians in 221 days = 113 per day It is also worth noting, that on Oct 7th, they went from house to house and slaughtered indiscrminately, shot surrendered female soldiers, even shot dogs…and all was recorded. And i am not talking about the filthy, n@sty stuff done to women. So yes, the current carnage in G@z@ has to stop, No doubt. But that does not make my initial words… Read more »
Belarus after the second reject decided to withdraw. This also happened after the deadline so it was harder to go with a 3rd tryout.