Join us on an auditory journey through the melodic battleground of the Eurovision Song Contest, where the shimmer of sequins often belies the shadow of political dissent. As a lifelong devotee of the competition, I've witnessed firsthand the transformation of Eurovision from a purely artistic showcase to a stage where political activism plays out in song and spectacle. We reminisce about iconic acts like ABBA and Celine Dion, while grappling with the contentious reactions to performers from countries mired in conflict. It's a discussion that goes beyond the applause, diving into the heart of protests and the role of artists as inadvertent political emissaries.
The narrative takes a poignant turn as we recount Emily Hand's chilling abduction and her father's desperate plea for her safe return, a stark reminder of the human stories behind geopolitical strife. Through the evocative lyrics of "October Rain," we pay homage to the enduring spirit of those touched by terror and explore the complexities of boycotts as a response to international incidents. Does cutting cultural ties truly sanction the powerful, or does it simply silence the innocent? Together, we'll debate the impact of such actions on the very fabric of our interconnected lives.
As the final notes of our episode fade, we part with a message that celebrates our collective humanity. Gratitude fills the air as I thank you, the listener, for embarking on this intricate expedition with me. It's a testament to the belief that despite the tremors of global politics, the simple act of sharing stories and songs can still unite us. So, here's to the power of connection and the hope that it inspires in each of us to foster a world where understanding and compassion resonate louder than discord.
Join us on an auditory journey through the melodic battleground of the Eurovision Song Contest, where the shimmer of sequins often belies the shadow of political dissent. As a lifelong devotee of the competition, I've witnessed firsthand the transformation of Eurovision from a purely artistic showcase to a stage where political activism plays out in song and spectacle. We reminisce about iconic acts like ABBA and Celine Dion, while grappling with the contentious reactions to performers from countries mired in conflict. It's a discussion that goes beyond the applause, diving into the heart of protests and the role of artists as inadvertent political emissaries.
The narrative takes a poignant turn as we recount Emily Hand's chilling abduction and her father's desperate plea for her safe return, a stark reminder of the human stories behind geopolitical strife. Through the evocative lyrics of "October Rain," we pay homage to the enduring spirit of those touched by terror and explore the complexities of boycotts as a response to international incidents. Does cutting cultural ties truly sanction the powerful, or does it simply silence the innocent? Together, we'll debate the impact of such actions on the very fabric of our interconnected lives.
As the final notes of our episode fade, we part with a message that celebrates our collective humanity. Gratitude fills the air as I thank you, the listener, for embarking on this intricate expedition with me. It's a testament to the belief that despite the tremors of global politics, the simple act of sharing stories and songs can still unite us. So, here's to the power of connection and the hope that it inspires in each of us to foster a world where understanding and compassion resonate louder than discord.
In this episode, I will discuss your vision in the city of Malmö, sweden. After much consideration, I've decided to address a topic that has the potential to divide us as human beings. My intention is to create a podcast that navigates the middle ground, allowing people with different opinions to engage, while I've tried to avoid overly political subjects, these troubled times make it challenging. Here's the agenda for this episode. At first one, I want to talk about the history of Eurovision. I'll explore why we love this music competition so much in Europe. Eurovision has colored our childhood memories and it's fascinating to see how it has made artists famous. Expect humor, joy and fun facts in this part. Then, in the second part, we go into the more like serious part, and that is this year's Eurovision. The political situation worldwide has made the competition more political than ever. I'll delve into this aspect. And then part three booing protests and booing. I support street protests, but I don't endorse booing Israeli artists. I'll discuss the difference between protesting and booing, emphasizing that cancelling artists isn't necessarily the solution.
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Eden Golan's song. That is part four, eden Golan's song. I will analyze the important message in her song. My perspective doesn't mean I support Israel's politics or the war in Gaza. Rather, I see the song as addressing terror victims from last year. It's possible to be pro-Palestine while still empathizing with Hamas victims. And the fifth part of the episode is boycotting. I'm skeptical about boycotting in general and I will explain why. If you find this episode provocative, feel free to message me on the Norwegian Storyteller's Instagram or Facebook. I promise to read and consider your opinion. This topic is challenging and I know many people are grappling with similar issues. Even a song contest can be hard to digest in today's uncomfortable world. So let's dive in.
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Eurovision has always been a tradition I've looked forward to. A lot of my childhood memories is about that I've looked forward to. A lot of my childhood memories is about that. My first memory of the competition was in 1985. I was five years old then and got to stay up late for the first time. I call that lucky, because that year was the first time Norway won the competition and the artist's name was Hanne Krogh and Elisabeth Andresen. The song Lade Svinge has been played on the radio ever since, and we still listen to the song in Norway today. I also have many funny memories of the Swedish song from 1984, digilo Digilej. I remember how I delighted every time the song played on the radio and how it made both me, my mom and my dad dance in the living room.
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Eurovision holds great significance for European music and culture. The competition gave us the band ABBA, and Celine Dion became known to the European audience when she won Eurovision in 1988. Back then she represented Switzerland and she won with a beautiful French ballet. Try to search for Celine Dion Eurovision 1988 at YouTube after listening to this episode, and you will explore and listen to this wonderful song. Yeah, and also the band Kaino, which is singing Sami Pop from Norway, famous at the Eurovision Song Contest with the song the Spirit in the Sky. I also just love that band and if you haven't heard about Kaino, you should just, yeah, google them and find them on YouTube and Spotify and all the stream things and listen to them, because they are really, really good. So, yeah, in general, Eurovision is a good thing.
Speaker 1:
Now I'm going to talk more about the history behind the competition and because it plays. The first competition took place may 24 in 1956, actually, and only seven nations competed that year, and this live simultaneous transnational broadcast captivatedated Europe time, setting the stage for nearly 70 years of musical magic. It was actually based on an Italian competition called Sanremo Music Festival, and the European Broadcasting Union, EBU, commissioned this experiment in transnational TV. Commissioned this experiment in transnational TV, aiming to produce cost-effective programming for national broadcasters. Since that time, the Eurovision stage has witnessed 67 contests with 1,721 songs representing 52 countries. The rules have evolved, introducing relegation in the 1990s and semifinals in the 2000s, due to increased interest. The Guinness World Records recognizes Eurovision as the longest-running annual international televised music competition. Around 40 countries now participate each year, celebrating diversity, creativity and unity.
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Eurovision's impact extends beyond the main event. Inspired competitions have emerged and the EBU hosts complimentary contests focusing on various aspects of music and culture. Eurovision is a festival that brings Europe together and it has a lot of love in it. Yes, I am a Eurovision fan. I love it and I'm looking forward to this every year, and we watch this in my family my husband and my children. They watch it every year, and also my children have now a lot of good childhood memories because of this competition, so it's an important part of our life actually.
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So what happened this year? Unfortunately, eurovision has become political. The once celebrated music competition now grapples with geopolitical tensions and controversies. That overshadows its original purpose Celebrating music and cultural diversity. It was a part of the European peace building project after Worldwide 2. So it's kind of sad that we have come this way, because it should be the opposite. But when Israel still is a part of the competition, is it actually possible to stay out of politics? I really tried my best this year, but unfortunately that was not possible. A lot of feelings went through my body and mind during the competition and I was not sure what to feel and what to think.
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During the Eurovision Song Contest 2024, held in Malmö, sweden, protests erupted against Israel's participation due to the ongoing conflict with Hamas. Thousands of pro-Palestinian demonstrators gathered, waving Palestinian flags and chanting slogans like Israel is a terrorist state. The controversy added a somber note to the colorful music festival, where fans in sequented outfits mixed with supporters of the Palestinian cause. And when the bombs rain down on Gaza and we see images of starving, maimed and dead children, is it possible to think of anything other than death and war? It's challenging to shift focus when the world is in such dire straits. That's why people took to the streets when the European Broadcasting Union, ebu, decided not to exclude Israel from the competition. I can actually understand this. The haunting images of war are hard to forget.
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Clearly, it awakens people's sense of justice and many will loudly proclaim that this is not fair. I fully support that sentiment. However, what I don't endorse is the way the audience treated artist Idan Gulan. Did you see her kill Palestinian children? Well, the booing she faced during the competition was not a positive thing, and it also showed little empathy for the message she was trying to convey. After Eurovision this year, I have had a lot of thoughts. I still understand the sympathy for the Palestinian civilians. That is also why I support the protests, and a lot of my good friends actually protested and they boycotted the competition, and that is totally fine. You can boycott it, you can say I don't want to watch it, but I don't like the booing. And I still can't understand why we can't listen to the song Iren Golan made to honor the victims of the horrible terror attack in Israel.
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On October 7, 2023, the Palestinian Islamist militant group Hamas carried out a surprise attack on Israel during the Supernova Sukkot gathering, an open-air music festival near Kibbutz Re'im. They killed 364 civilians and wounded many more. At least 40 hostages were also taken during the attack. This mass killing marked the largest terror attack in Israel's history and remains a painful memory for those affected and why do we forget the pain of the victims of the massacre and the hostages that were taken? Why can't we protest against the war and be pro-Palestinian lives and, in the same time, have a lot of empathy for the victims of the terror attack in Israel? I know I'm asking a hard question, because sometimes the conflict is described that you have to pick one side. It's like a football match and you have to share on your football team. But I refuse to do that because I think killing civilians is wrong in both ways, because you know, and I do understand, that people only see Israel nowadays as the state that is killing a lot of innocent children, and there is no reason to accept. But maybe we should also be open and open our hearts to the innocent victims of the terror attack.
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That was pure evil. I come from a country that experienced the same kind of evil in 2011, when Anders Bering Breivik killed 77 people as a solo terrorist. Facing this pure evil is killing you inside. It makes you mourn and you try to find the right words to describe the pain you feel inside, but you don't find the words. But then, suddenly, you hear the words described in a song, a poem or a bible verse, someone else is finding the words for you, and when a country is facing a terror attack, you actually need something to comfort in this situation.
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Songs can have this function. If you have this in mind and you read the lines in the original song text, that was not made different. The original song was called October Rain and they had to edit it to Hurricane, but the original part was about the terror attack and the original text was like this. I will now read the original text. Those that write history, stand with me, look into my eyes and see People go away, but never say goodbye. Someone stole the moon tonight, took my light. Everything is black and white. Who's the fool? Who told you, boys, don't cry? Hours and hours and flowers. Life is no game for the cowards. Why does time go wild? Every day I'm losing my mind, holding on in this mysterious ride, dancing in the storm. We get nothing to hide. Take me home and leave the world behind, and I promise you that never again I'm still wet from this October rain.
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Just like the children of Gaza is innocent, and they do not deserve the horror and the bumps they are facing, the torture, the starvation, the mourning, the evil, the pure evil, just like they don't deserve this horror. This is actually the truth about the innocent hostages, too, and some of them were actually children. So why can't they have a song? Why do they have to be punished? In a way? Because they have leaders that don't necessarily do what's best. You know, did they tell Netanyahu to bomb Palestinian children? Yeah, a lot of Israelis mean that. I know that. But still, the hostages some of them were children. What do they know? There is a lot of cover versions of the original song at YouTube. A lot of people have evolved in this, a lot of people are involved in this, a lot of good artists made cover versions, and I can see that it's important to the resilience of the Israeli people right now. So why don't we listen to that side of the story?
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I want to make this clear by telling about three victims, three victims of the terror attack and who was actually taken away as hostages. One of them is Mia Shem. She was a 21-year-old French-Israeli artist from Shoham, and she was abducted by Hamas during the Re'im Music Festival massacre on October 7, 2023. Before her abduction, she worked at the Leite tattoo studio. Little did she know that this festival would forever change her life. As the festival turned into a chaos, a war zone, mia messaged a friend pleading for help. They are shooting at us, please come save us. She was shot in the arm by a Hamas terrorist and abducted, alongside her friend Elia, to Ledano. Both were taken hostage into Gaza.
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During her captivity, mia's experience shifted dramatically. Initially, she described being treated with care and hospitality. Initially, she described being treated with care and hospitality. However, her more recent account revealed a darker reality. Held by a Gazan family, she was often denied food, forced to watch her mother's pleas for her release, and feared sexual assault by the captor. On November 30, 2023, mia was released along with another hostage, amit Susana, and handed over to Israeli authorities. Her resilience and courage during those harrowing days made her a symbol of hope amidst the conflict. Yeah, so her story reminds us of the strength of the human spirit even in the darkest of time, and her journey from abduction to freedom serves as a testament to resilience, survival and the enduring power of hope. And there's another woman, vlada Patovovs, and how she escaped from Hamas, and she got to know that she became known as the Lady in Red, and I will tell her story, too.
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In October 7, 2023, the Nova Festival in Israel turned into the blob bath when Hamas militants launched a brutal attack. Among the survivors was a 25-year-old, vlada Patapov, who became known as the Lady in Red due to the crimson scarf she wore while desperately fleeing the hail of bullets. She is a Korean born. Single mother attended the festival with her partner Meitan and friend Mai attended the festival with her partner Meiten and friend Mai. Despite the festival's proximity to the Gaza border, where rockets occasionally crossed, blada assumed it was safe, but at 6.30 am, the sound of gunfire shattered her assumptions. She and her companions raced to their car, only to be met by a new Hamas fighters. Their desperate escape led them to a field where the car got. Vlada's sole focus was her three-year-old daughter, rumi, whom she envisioned throughout the chaos. Separated from Matan, vlada fled towards some trees. A passing card rescued her and Mei, while Matan found another ride. More than 360 festival goers were shot, beaten or burned to death during the, with 40 taken hostages by Hamas. Vlada survived, but the trauma haunts her. She feels guilt for being alive when others perished. Her story serves as a testament to resilience and the will to protect loved ones, even in the face of terror. And then, last but not least, the nine-year-old Emily Hand.
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Emily Hand Her life took a terrifying turn when she was abducted by Hamas militant during an unprecedented attack on Israel. After spending 50 harrowing days in captivity, emily was finally released, but the trauma is still there. In an exclusive interview with Can News, emily and her father, thomas, share their struggles and hopes for the future. On October 7, 2023, emily was snatched from Kibbutz Beiri. Her world turned upside down. She endured threats, fear and uncertainty, her young mind grappling with the unimaginable. One Hamas terrorist even brandished a knife promised to end her life. Emily developed code words to cope with the terror, a secret language to navigate her captivity, and she has seen killings and torture as a little child. In an emotional reunion, emily embraced her father, tom Hand, after 50 agonizing days apart. The joy of their reunion was tempered by the knowledge that other captives remained behind. Emily's resilience shines through as she adjusts to her new life, seeking healing and understanding. Emily's heart aches for those still-held captives. She knows their pain intimately and hopes for their safe release. Her father echoes this sentiment, advocating for reasonable exchange deals with Hamas to secure freedom for all hostages, and Emily's story reminds us of the strength and the human spirit and the enduring bonds of family. As she rebuilds her life, she carries the weight of her experience, but also the hope for a better tomorrow.
Speaker 1:
So now I have read all these stories and, yeah, and if you think about the text in the song October Rain, I do understand some of the lines, like, for instance, people go away but never say goodbye. Yeah, it's the hostages that's Just go away and they didn't have the chance to say goodbye. Someone stole the moon tonight, took my light. I totally get that. In that situation, nothing is light, everything is dark, you know, and hours and hours, yeah, it's hard to wait. It's hard for the loved ones, it's hard for the hostages. Life is no game for the cowards. No, definitely not. It's horrible. It's a horrible situation for all the families involved in this. Every day I'm losing my mind. I totally get that. I totally get that you can lose your mind in that situation.
Speaker 1:
So, yeah, I see this song text in a totally different way than the people that booed on Eden Golan at the Eurovision Song Contest. I see, actually, the song as important for the victims and their family and a song for comfort and resilience, and I think that song should never be cancelled and it should not be booed on. It's important to understand the suffering and the pain of the victims of the terror attack and the hostages and the horrible, pure evil abuse from the Hamas and, at the same time, understand the horrible and pure evil war that are killing Palestinian children, the bombs that are raining down on Gaza and, yeah, hitting hospitals and all that things. It's horrible, no matter what. I don't think that God actually made that plan for us. He might look down on us now and why are you hurting my children? I think that is what God thinks. So, yeah, okay.
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And now let's dive into the next subject boycotting. Okay, now I've come to the last part of this episode and that is to explain why I'm against boycotting, and in this part I actually haven't written a manuscript, so I'm trying to get out of my comfort zone because I don't like to make these episodes without a manuscript. But I'll try to talk freely in this part and I think I can manage it, because when I speak right from the heart and just share my opinion, the worst just have the way of just coming. They're just coming. So, okay, the reason why I'm against boycotting in any way is that, no matter what country you are facing, no matter what situation, no matter how awful their leaders are, I think there are good people in all countries and I think that if you boycott a country because of the politics, because of the leaders, you are placing the responsibility in someone that is not responsible, and you know. Boycotting a sports arrangement and boycotting of artists um, I don't think all the artists and athletes sports athletes are activists and they don't do their job to mean anything. They are not politicians and I think that by boycotting them, we are actually making them activists, we are making them something they are not.
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I actually reacted on the boycotting on Russian sports athletes when the war in Ukraine started. I can understand the reason, because if you will have a situation where Russia wins over Ukraine and then you hear the Russian national anthem in front of Ukrainian people, it can be traumatizing, but then you might just skip the national anthem or something. Just find some other solutions, because I don't think that people should be boycotted and I remember there was a news about a skiing athlete I don't remember his name, but he was from Russia and he was asked about his opinions about Putin and he actually answered a very Putin-friendly way, that he was just the good leader and the war in Ukraine was good, and so on and so on. But he actually comes from a country without the same democracy that we have in Norway, for instance, and when you come from a country without democracy, you don't have like, you are not trained to speak out your opinion. And he actually comes from a country where people are put to jail to say their opinion against Putin. So how easy is it to just say it when someone comes with a microphone to your face and ask for your opinion? I think that is not a good thing to treat a person and I think we should just stick to what he was doing. He was skiing, he was walking on skis and cut the politics, cut it out. Don't let it be a part of that. Let's just meet as human beings and watch skiing. You know we need those things today.
Speaker 1:
And another uh, I was thinking about this because I went to dubai one after I was in a job travel to nepal. I went to dubai and I actually um got like I will call a bonus trip, because Dubai was not on my plan to travel to, but because of the change of the airplane, the tickets and so on, and time for the flights, the flights, the flights. I'm talking without manuscript now, so I'm saying a lot of bad things, wrong things, but because of the change in the tickets, I needed to stay a couple of days in Dubai and I was thinking, oh no, I want to go to that country, I can't go there. They are doing awful things to the workers and so on. But then I thought, well, I am in Nepal, and what do they do in Nepal? Well, they still have even though the cost system is forbidden and they try to work against it still alive in some way. And human trafficking is still a big issue in Nepal Every year, a place between 15,000 and 20,000 Nepali girls are actually trafficked over the borders to India and they have to be sex slaves. And this is happening in the country that I just visited and I love, and I love the people and I love the atmosphere, and I actually also are in a country that actually don't do that. The politicians don't do the thing they have to do to stop that horrible thing. And then I just realized that, okay, if I can go to Nepal when this happens every year, I can actually go to Dubai as well, because both countries accept horrible things, and also my own country accepts horrible things in some ways. So what should we actually do in this boycott lottery? Should we just cherry pick the one we want to boycott and the one we don't want to boycott?
Speaker 1:
I don't know how to boycott, but anyway, when I was in Dubai, I just walked in the streets, experienced the life and yeah, and everything was okay because I was in a tourist area and it was safe and it was nice. Actually, I had a good feeling about being there. It was not like I thought it should be, and I ate at the restaurant. And then I met one of the waiters and he was from India actually, and we just had a good conversation and he told me the reason why he moved to Dubai and his family situation in India. And I learned a lot from that conversation. So if I hadn't gone to Dubai, I had never met this man and never got all the knowledge he gave me in that single conversation.
Speaker 1:
And then just okay, forget about the leaders in Dubai, I'm not meeting them anyway. I just want to meet the people there, you know. So that is why I'm skeptical to boycott, because I think that yeah, even though you are totally against politics and totally you think the country is awful, treating human beings as, yeah, animals or something, that it can still be nice people in that country. You know, and soon there will be Summer Olympics in Paris and you will have, like, athletes from all over the world, and a lot of athletes come from countries with awful politics who, on a daily basis, have horrible human rights, break the human rights every day. Sorry, now I'm talking bad English as well, but my point is that what should you boycott then? You know all the dictatorships and all the countries that torture people, and you know, and if you ask some of the athletes, they might also agree on the things that we disagree on. But then again, that is what is the reason why we are gathering it's sports, you know. So focus on the sports.
Speaker 1:
So yeah, that is my opinion about boycotting and, as I told you in the beginning of this episode, which I'm so glad is over now, because it was kind of uncomfortable to talk about this, but in the same time, uh, it also felt good. So, yeah, but as I told you in in the beginning of this episode, um, please feel free to share your opinion with me. You can send me a personal message at facebook and instagram. Follow me, the norwegian storyteller, facebook and instagram, or you can discuss it openly at my social media accounts. This is really, really important issues.
Speaker 1:
So yeah, but now I have to stop. I have to stop because this episode is getting longer than I thought. So thank you, listener, for having the patience to listen to me and what I had in my heart. Thank you so much and I love you all. No matter what country you come from and no matter how awful your leaders are, you can still be a wonderful person I will meet someday and have a wonderful conversation with. We are all human beings and we all have the. We all have love inside. Thank you and goodbye. Thank you.
