The song title may be “Under the Ladder” but this song has been going under the radar in the build up to the contest and in the betting odds. An oversight I think as this is one of the strongest songs in the contest (in my view) and Ukraine are the most successful of the “new” countries in Eurovision with two wins since 2004. Can last year’s hosts bring the contest back to Ukraine for a third time? 

I’ve been impressed by this song from the first time I saw this in the Vidbir semi-finals – the song, the hook and chorus, his performance, vocal and the staging were all impressive. The main criticism has been his diction – Mélovin doesn’t have much English so perhaps it’s not surprising (plus the speed the lyrics are sung at) but he’s been working on improving that and I don’t think it really detracts from the overall performance and my enjoyment of the song. Not sure what his staging will be like yet, but I think what he had at the Ukrainian national final could work well (minus LED of course!).

Ukraine are very strong performers at Eurovision – they are easily the most successful of the “new” countries, even surpassing Russia, as they have two contest to Russia’s one. They have always qualified for the grand final and generally finish in the top 10. Last year was a rare exception, finishing a lowly 24th, but I don’t think they would have fancied hosting two times in a row! I have no worries about Mélovin’s live performance as he has already shown how strong that is. Sure fire qualifier and one of my dark horses to do much better than perhaps has been suggested so far.

Official music video (live performance):

Ukraine at the Eurovision Song Contest:

 First entered: 2003

Appearances (excluding this year): 14

Best result: Winner 2004 and 2016

Last year’s result: 24th