Eurovision kings
What the UK can learn from the Swedes
Sweden is now the dominant force of Eurovision. Where former powerhouses, such as France, Ireland and the UK, have all seen their dominance wane in recent years as the contest has grown to encompass 40-plus nations, Abba’s home country has gone from strength to strength.
Over the last 20 years, Swedes have won three times and come between second and fifth another eight times.
But the Swedish influence doesn’t end there. Swedish writers and producers have become hot property throughout Europe, with many savvy countries opting to rope in a Swede or two to help craft their tunes. In fact, out of the 257 songs that have made it through to the 10 most recent grand finals, 50 have been written by Swedes. But what gives them this Midas touch? Here’s what we could learn from their success:
Songwriters
Whether it is down to the sing-song sound of the Swedish language, the long, brutal winters (which encourage people to stay indoors and practise music) or the country’s solid national support for the musical arts, it is a fact that well-trained Swedish songwriters abound. In fact, some Swedish writers are so prolific they have multiple songs qualifying each year. Joacim Bo Persson, for example, contributed to three songs in 2017: for Serbia, Macedonia and Bulgaria. Songs normally have more than one writer, but a quick calculation shows that, of the 50 songs that Sweden has recently helped to reach the grand final, each featured an average of 2.2 writers who were Swedish. To be successful, the UK needs a Swede or two in its national songwriting team. Our entry this year – Storm, by Surie – has none.
Key
Although many think of Eurovision as a peppy pop contest, filled with glitter, smiles and songs about feeling your heart beat or walking on sunshine, the truth is the competition has undergone a bit of a dark, gritty reboot in the past decade. Eight of the last 10 winning songs have been written in minor keys – keys traditionally considered to be “sad” and “moody” sounding. Swedes – whether writing for their own country or for another – have embraced this change. Their songs are now predominantly in minor keys and hardly ever feature a key change. The UK’S entry is in a major key.
Tempo
Another trend in modern Eurovision is a change in tempo – we have seen a slowing in the average speeds of winning entries. Sweden has changed its songwriting approach accordingly. Between 2000 and 2009, Sweden’s average tempo for their own entries was 131bpm (beats per minute) – which is what you’d expect from quite an upbeat dance track. From 2010 onwards though, it has dropped down to a rather slinky 115bpm.
Lyrics
Swedes do not worry too much about their (English) lyrics making sense. They realise that a sizeable majority of the television audience does not speak English as a first language, so the words are written to service the melody, not the other way around. Take the song Skeletons as an example. Azerbaijan’s 2017 entry, co-written by Swede Sandra Bjurman, contains gibberish like, “Standing in a mirror lane wondering what to do“and “Now I’m into daydreams / Surrounded by thorn jeans”. It might look stupid written down. It might even sound stupid when you hear it sung, but the words do not get in the way of the music. In contrast, Surie’s Storm features more sensible sentences. The singer, however, struggles to fit them into the melody. It’s a difficult thing for a British writer to attempt: writing English lyrics as if English wasn’t their mother tongue.