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Bosnia and Herzegovina in the Eurovision Song Contest 2007

Bosnia and Herzegovina participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2007 with the song "Rijeka bez imena" written by Aleksandra Milutinović and Goran Kovačić. The song was performed by Marija Šestić. On 16 January 2007, the Bosnian broadcaster Radio and Television of Bosnia and Herzegovina (BHRT) revealed that they had internally selected Marija Šestić to compete at the 2007 contest in Helsinki, Finland. Her song, "Rijeka bez imena", was presented to the public during a show entitled BH Eurosong 2007 on 4 March 2007.[1]

Eurovision Song Contest 2007
Country Bosnia and Herzegovina
National selection
Selection processInternal selection
Selection date(s)Artist: 16 January 2007
Song: 4 March 2007
Selected artist(s)Marija Šestić
Selected song"Rijeka bez imena"
Selected songwriter(s)
  • Aleksandra Milutinović
  • Goran Kovačić
Finals performance
Final result11th, 106 points
Bosnia and Herzegovina in the Eurovision Song Contest
◄2006 • 2007 • 2008►

As one of the ten highest placed finishers in 2006, Bosnia and Herzegovina automatically qualified to compete in the final of the Eurovision Song Contest. Performing as the opening entry for the show in position 1, Bosnia and Herzegovina placed eleventh out of the 24 participating countries with 106 points.

Background

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Main article: Bosnia and Herzegovina in the Eurovision Song Contest

Prior to the 2007 contest, Bosnia and Herzegovina had participated in the Eurovision Song Contest twelve times since its first entry in 1993.[2] The nation's best placing in the contest was third, which it achieved in 2006 with the song "Lejla" performed by Hari Mata Hari. Following the introduction of semi-finals for the 2004 contest, Bosnia and Herzegovina has, up to this year, managed to qualify on each occasion the nation has participated and compete in the final. Bosnia and Herzegovina's least successful result has been 22nd place, which they have achieved in 1996.

The Bosnian national broadcaster, Radio and Television of Bosnia and Herzegovina (BHRT), broadcasts the event within Bosnia and Herzegovina and organises the selection process for the nation's entry. BHRT confirmed their intentions to participate at the 2007 Eurovision Song Contest on 2 November 2006.[3] In 2005, the broadcaster had set up a national final to choose both the artist and song to represent the nation, while the Bosnian entry was selected through an internal selection process in 2006. The internal selection procedure was continued for their 2007 entry.

Before Eurovision

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Internal selection

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The broadcaster directly invited composers to submit songs in one of the official languages of Bosnia and Herzegovina up until 29 December 2006.[4] Approximately 30 submissions were received at the closing of the deadline and on 16 January 2007, BHRT announced during a press conference that they had internally selected Marija Šestić to represent Bosnia and Herzegovina in Helsinki.[5] Šestić previously attempted to represent Bosnia and Herzegovina in the Eurovision Song Contest 2005, placing fourth in the national final with the song "In This World".[6] The seven-member selection committee that determined Šestić and the song to be performed at the contest, which was written by Aleksandra Milutinović and Goran Kovačić, consisted of members of the Bosnian Delegation for the Eurovision Song Contest: Dejan Kukrić, Ivan Stojanović, Ninoslav Verber, Maja Čengić, Nermin Durmo, Milkica Grubor and Slaviša Mašić.[7][8]

The song, "Rijeka bez imena", was presented during a television special entitled BH Eurosong Show 2007 on 4 March 2007, which was held at the Sarajevo National Theatre and hosted by Dejan Kukrić and Maja Čengić. The show was broadcast on BHT 1.[9] In addition to the presentation of the song, the show featured guest performances by Croatian singer Petar Grašo, 1998 Croatian Eurovision entrant Danijela Martinović, 2007 Belarusian Eurovision entrant Dmitry Koldun, 2002 and 2007 Macedonian Eurovision entrant Karolina Gočeva, and 2007 Slovenian Eurovision entrant Alenka Gotar.[10] An English language version, Russian language version and Serbian language version of the song were prepared, with the song being performed in Serbian at the Eurovision Song Contest.[11] "Rijeka bez imena" was the first song performed entirely in Serbian that was selected to represent Bosnia and Herzegovina at the Eurovision Song Contest.

Promotion

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Marija Šestić made several appearances across Europe to specifically promote "Rijeka bez imena" as the Bosnian Eurovision entry. Marija Šestić took part in promotional activities in Serbia where she performed "Rijeka bez imena" during the final of the Serbian Eurovision national final Beovizija 2007 on 8 March and appeared in the RTV Pink programme Da predjemo na ti on 26 March.[12][13] On 1 April, Šestić appeared in and performed during the TVS 1 programme Spet doma in Slovenia.[14] Between 13 and 15 April, Šestić performed during the Songfestivalparty event which was held in Belgium at the D-Club and Popi Café venue in Antwerp and at the Le You venue in Brussels, as well as appearing during the RTL 4 programme Life & Cooking in the Netherlands.[15][16] She also completed promotional activities in Croatia, Finland, Macedonia and Russia which included several television and radio appearances.[17]

At Eurovision

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According to Eurovision rules, all nations with the exceptions of the host country, the "Big Four" (France, Germany, Spain and the United Kingdom) and the ten highest placed finishers in the 2006 contest are required to qualify from the semi-final in order to compete for the final; the top ten countries from the semi-final progress to the final. As one of the ten highest placed finishers in the 2006 contest, Bosnia and Herzegovina automatically qualified to compete in the final on 12 May 2007. In addition to their participation in the final, Bosnia and Herzegovina is also required to broadcast and vote in the semi-final on 10 May 2007.[18]

The semi-final and the final were broadcast in Bosnia and Herzegovina on BHT 1 with commentary by Dejan Kukrić. The Bosnian spokesperson, who announced the Bosnian votes during the final, was Vesna Andree-Zaimović.

Final

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Marija Šestić performing during the final

Marija Šestić took part in technical rehearsals on 7 and 8 May, followed by dress rehearsals on 11 and 12 May. During the running order draw for the semi-final and final on 12 March 2007, Bosnia and Herzegovina was placed to perform in position 1 in the final, before the entry from Spain.

The Bosnian performance featured Marija Šestić joined on stage by a male tambura player and four female backing vocalists. As the performance progressed, the tambura player came forward from the back of the stage to kneel before Šestić, the latter who fell into his arms. The stage lighting displayed electric blue colours which transitioned to red, while the LED screens displayed stars which transitioned to faded aqua clouds and ultimately an orange lava river.[19][20] The mustard dress for Marija Šestić was designed by Verica Rakočević.[21] The tambura player that joined Marija Šestić was Aleksandar Sedlar Bogoev, while the four backing vocalists were: Danijela Večerinović, Dunja Galineo Kajević, Jelena Majić and Marina Đurović.[22] Bosnia and Herzegovina placed eleventh in the final, scoring 106 points.[23]

Voting

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Below is a breakdown of points awarded to Bosnia and Herzegovina and awarded by Bosnia and Herzegovina in the semi-final and grand final of the contest. Both in the semi-final and the final of the contest, Bosnia and Herzegovina awarded its 12 points to fellow Balkan nation and contest winner Serbia.

Points awarded to Bosnia and Herzegovina

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Points awarded to Bosnia and Herzegovina (Final)[24]
Score Country
12 points
10 points
8 points
7 points
6 points
5 points
4 points
3 points   Germany
2 points
1 point

Points awarded by Bosnia and Herzegovina

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Viewing figures

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The Eurovision Song Contest 2007 was the most watched television broadcast of 2007 in Bosnia and Herzegovina, with 46,4% share.[26]

References

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  1. ^ BHT1 • nedjelja, 4. mart 2007.
  2. ^ "Bosnia & Herzegovina Country Profile". EBU. Retrieved 27 November 2015.
  3. ^ Romkes, René (2 November 2007). "Bosnia & Herzegovina prepares for 2007". Esctoday. Retrieved 5 April 2022.
  4. ^ "Pravila o izboru izvođača i pjesme predstavnice BH za Pjesmu Evrovizije 2007". pbsbih.ba (in Bosnian). Archived from the original on 4 January 2007. Retrieved 5 April 2022.
  5. ^ "bh final 2007". Eurobosnia.
  6. ^ Kasapoglou, Yiorgos (16 January 2007). "Marija Sestic to represent Bosnia- Herzegovina". Esctoday. Retrieved 21 November 2020.
  7. ^ "BiH na "Eurosongu 2007" predstavlja Marija Šestić". Nezavisne Novine (in Bosnian). 17 January 2007. Retrieved 5 April 2022.
  8. ^ "Tim BH Eurosong 2007:". bhrt.ba (in Bosnian). 15 May 2007. Retrieved 2 December 2023.
  9. ^ "Predstavljena pjesma predstavnica BiH na Eurosongu 2007 (video)". klix.ba (in Bosnian). 4 March 2007. Retrieved 5 April 2022.
  10. ^ Bosnia and Herzegovina at the 2007 Eurovision Song Contest Archived May 18, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
  11. ^ Royston, Benny (25 January 2007). "Marija to record in Bosnian, English and Russian". Esctoday. Retrieved 5 April 2022.
  12. ^ Iker, Zlatko (9 March 2007). "Marija Serifovic with Molitva to Helsinki!". Esctoday. Retrieved 5 April 2022.
  13. ^ "Rijeka bez imena stiže u Rusiju". Nezavisne Novine (in Bosnian). 26 March 2007. Retrieved 5 April 2022.
  14. ^ Floras, Stella (31 March 2007). "Marija meets Marija". Esctoday. Retrieved 5 April 2022.
  15. ^ Floras, Stella (22 April 2007). "B & H : Marija's promo tour continues". Esctoday. Retrieved 5 April 2022.
  16. ^ "Promo-tours 2007".
  17. ^ Floras, Stella (28 March 2007). "Download Rijeka bez imena in Russian". Esctoday. Retrieved 5 April 2022.
  18. ^ Bakker, Sietse (20 May 2006). "Results of the 2006 Eurovision Song Contest". ESCToday. Retrieved 2 October 2008.
  19. ^ West-Soley, Richard (7 May 2007). "UPD – 2 01. Marija opens the show". Esctoday. Retrieved 5 April 2022.
  20. ^ West-Soley, Richard (8 May 2007). "01. Beautiful performance art: Bosnia rehearses". Esctoday. Retrieved 5 April 2022.
  21. ^ "Bosnia and Herzegovina 2007". Retrieved 21 November 2020.
  22. ^ "Bosnia and Herzegovina". Six on Stage. Retrieved 5 April 2022.
  23. ^ "Grand Final of Helsinki 2007". European Broadcasting Union. Archived from the original on 22 April 2021. Retrieved 22 April 2021.
  24. ^ a b "Results of the Grand Final of Helsinki 2007". European Broadcasting Union. Archived from the original on 23 April 2021. Retrieved 23 April 2021.
  25. ^ "Results of the Semi-Final of Helsinki 2007". European Broadcasting Union. Archived from the original on 23 April 2021. Retrieved 23 April 2021.
  26. ^ GLEDANOST 2007 – TOP PROGRAMI January 15, 2008
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