WHY EUROVISION 2024 IS SHAPING UP TO BE THE MOST CONTROVERSIAL YET Organisers are attempting to quell a backlash against the Israeli entry as many artists face increasing calls to boycott this year’s contest

It was unprecedented in the long history of Eurovision. On Tuesday, organisers of the song contest felt compelled to issue a statement condemning “targeted social media campaigns” amid reports of threats against Israel’s 20-year-old contestant. The competition, which takes place in Malmö, Sweden, between May 7 and May 11, has been mired in controversy over Israel’s inclusion at a time when its attacks on Gaza have left more than 33,000 people dead.

The European Broadcasting Union (EBU), headed by ex-RTÉ director general Noel Curran, acknowledged “the depth of feeling and the strong opinions that this year’s Eurovision Song Contest — set against the backdrop of a terrible war in the Middle East — has provoked”.

It added: “While we strongly support freedom of speech and the right to express opinions in a democratic society, we firmly oppose any form of online abuse, hate speech, or harassment directed at our artists or any individuals associated with the contest.”

The statement did not name any performers, but it followed reports that Israel’s Eden Golan has received death threats via her Instagram account.

As Israel’s public broadcaster, Kan, is an EBU member, it is permitted to take part in Eurovision. But the EBU did force Israel to change the lyrics of Golan’s song, October Rain, deeming it too political.

The original version was thought to reference the victims of Hamas’s October 7 surprise attack on Israel, which sparked the war in Gaza. After intervention from Israeli president Isaac Herzog, a second entry, Hurricane was submitted to the EBU’s satisfaction. It features the same music but has different lyrics.

It was all so different a year ago when Sweden’s Loreen won Eurovision in Liverpool. It evoked memories of the last time the Scandinavian country was triumphant on British soil. Abba’s victory in Brighton in 1974 put them on the road to global domination and led to some fanciful talk that the quartet would perform at this year’s Eurovision for the first time in more than 40 years.

A huge exhibition, Abba World, has just opened in Sweden’s third most populous city, but all the attention is focused on Israel and why it has been allowed to compete at Eurovision. For six months, there have been persistent calls to for Israel to be excluded, but with the EBU standing firm, it’s shaping up to be the most controversial Eurovision in history.

Malmö police say they are prepared for multiple street protests during Eurovision week and from some of those in the live audience when Golan performs.

Calls urging performers to boycott Eurovision have swollen in number. Several artists from Scandinavia are leading the charge, and two of Sweden’s biggest pop exports, Robyn and First Aid Kit, have signed open letters urging Israel’s exclusion.

A newly formed organisation, Irish Artists for Palestine, has collected more than 16,000 signatures demanding that Eurovision go ahead without Israel. It’s had quite an impact here — more than €250,000 was raised for aid relief in Gaza thanks to a concert headlined by Choice Music Prize winners Lankum. And all 12 of Ireland’s participants at last month’s leading music industry festival, South by Southwest, in Austin, Texas, refused to travel when it emerged that the US Army is one of the event’s sponsors.

‘ENABLING A GENOCIDE’

Kneecap, Belfast’s controversial Irish language rap group, were among those to pull out. “It is done in solidarity with the people of Palestine and to highlight the unacceptable deep links the festival has to weapons companies and the US military who at this very moment are enabling a genocide and famine against a trapped population,” they said.

After aid workers in Gaza were killed by Israeli missiles last week, there have been renewed calls for Eurovision to exclude the country. Hundreds of queer artists and organisations in the UK called on Olly Alexander, Britain’s entrant, to pull out of the contest.

Alexander, along with several others, including Ireland’s non-binary contestant Bambie Thug, said that rather than withdraw from the competition, they would “use our platform to come together and call for peace”.

“We want to acknowledge the privilege of taking part in Eurovision,” read the artists’ statement. “In light of the current situation in the Occupied Palestinian Territories, and particularly in Gaza and in Israel, we do not feel comfortable being silent. It is important to us to stand in solidarity with the oppressed and communicate our heartfelt wish for peace, an immediate lasting ceasefire and the return of all hostages”.

The statement added that the musicians stand against “all forms of hate” including antisemitism and Islamophobia. “We firmly believe in the unifying power of music, enabling people to transcend differences and foster meaningful conversations and connections,” it said.

Mark Graham is a lecturer in South East Technological University specialising in music industry practice and ethics. He has sympathy for Bambie Thug and the other contestants but believes that if one of the artists were to pull out in protest, it would probably prompt several withdrawals which would force the EBU’s hand.

“Once one act responds, it puts pressure on the other artists. There’s a domino effect,” he says. “Some artists involved in Eurovision may be afraid to pull out because they see this as being a huge opportunity for their career. But I’d imagine that if somebody jumps, other people will jump. We saw that with the Irish artists who were picked to go to South by Southwest. Once one pulled out, they all did.”

He says it was very “meaningful” that while many aspiring acts spoke about Israel’s participation before being selected by their countries, they have been comparatively quiet since then.

“The EBU excluded Russia on the grounds that it was bringing the competition into disrepute,” Graham adds. “But they are not doing the same with Israel and have even weighed in behind Israel. And Bambie Thug made this point in an interview before being selected as Ireland’s contest. They said, ‘Why should there be one rule for Russia and another rule for Israel?”

It’s far from the only time that Eurovision has been embroiled in controversy. In 2009, the EBU requested that the Georgian entry change the title of their song, We Don’t Wanna Put In ,asit seemed to be a reference to Russian president Vladimir Putin. Georgia refused and withdrew.

Six years later, the Armenian entry provoked controversy as the EBU believed the lyrics called for recognition of the genocide committed against the Armenian people during World War I. In this instance, the artists altered the lyrics and were allowed compete.

Meanwhile, the OGAE Ireland, the official Irish Eurovision Fan Club, has formally banned any talk of Israel, its song or artists in its WhatsApp community having taken a vote.

In an email to members, its president Frank Dermody, noted that while “a small section of people may be upset by this, the club has now spoken on this matter”. A separate WhatsApp group has been formed so members can discuss the Israel entry, but “it is not managed or officially sanctioned by OGAE Ireland”.

‘Some artists may be afraid to pull out. But I’d imagine that if somebody jumps, other people will too’