France 2 unveiled this Thursday the name of the artist chosen to defend France in Liverpool next May, designated internally.
The artist who will represent France at Eurovision 2023 is now known. It is Quebecer La Zarra who will fly to Liverpool to participate in the international tele-hook final on May 13, as revealed by France Télévisions this Thursday during a press conference. We do not know, for the moment, what title she will sing to defend the tricolor flag.
La Zarra made a name for itself in 2016 thanks to white spring, a collaboration with rapper Niro. His music is characterized by a cross between pop and French chanson, all influenced by his pronounced taste for rap. She has notably published covers of PNL which are also successful on the Web. But it’s the title you will go awaytaken from his first album Treachery released in 2021, which allowed him to find a place on the radio.
“It’s a lot of emotion,” the singer said at the press conference. “I am honored to wear the colors of France. Defending it in a contest as legendary as Eurovision is a little girl’s dream.”
Because La Zarra has a special link with this tele-hook: “When I was little, my mother often sang to me The bird and the child (the title of Marie Myriam with which France won the competition for the last time, in 1977, editor’s note).”
“We are motivated to win”
If the song she will defend is still unknown, she gives some clues: “We will find my signature which is to mix genres. It’s a song that talks about appropriating your destiny and relying on yourself. ” And she does not hide her ambitions: “When I accepted, I said ‘I agree to win’.”
A wish shared by Alexandra Redde-Amiel, director of entertainment and games at France Télévisions and head of the French delegation to Eurovision: “We are motivated to win the big Eurovision competition!”, She declared .
Change of operation
This time, no pre-selection. While, for several years, the designation of the French candidate was almost always the subject of a televised competition during which viewers were asked to vote, La Zarra was chosen internally.
“Life is made of encounters”, explains Alexandra Redde-Amiel. “A meeting changed the turn of things. This meeting put the usual selection on hold for this year. It was a favorite meeting, it was obvious.”
It must be said that this system did not succeed in delegation last year. Alvan & Ahez, the group chosen at the end of the tele-hook Eurovision France: you decidehad finished 24th in the final – the penultimate place – on May 14 in Turin.
English edition
Since 2019, the only candidate who has not been the subject of a public selection is Tom Leeb, in 2020 – this edition of the international competition was finally canceled due to the Covid pandemic.
This 2022 edition was marked by the victory of Ukraine with the song Stefania of the Kalush Orchestra group, in the midst of the Russian offensive. If the tradition is that the winning country hosts the competition the following year, the war got the better of the will of the organizers. The latter fell back on the United Kingdom, which came second in 2022 with Sam Ryder and his song space man.
