Although the Belgian preselection consisted of only six songs (all performed by Marah), broadcaster BRT managed to spin out the selection process for five weeks by means of a one-off format which, rather unsurprisingly, was never used again. All the shows were held at the Amerikaans Theater in Brussels and hosted by Karl Buts.
Semi-finalsedit
Four semi-finals were held in February 1979 to select the three songs to progress to the final. In the first three semi-finals the lowest-placed song, after a public vote, was eliminated, leaving three songs in the fourth semi-final, where they were joined by Marah's own second-chance choice from the three previously eliminated songs. In the fourth semi-final, again the bottom song was eliminated and the three survivors went on to the final. Many found the whole process - whereby it had taken four weeks to narrow six songs down to three - somewhat absurd and pointless, particularly as the three songs which ended up qualifying for the final had been the top three songs in every round of voting.[1]
Semi-final 1 – 3 February 1979
Draw
Song
Points
Place
Result
1
"Mooi prater"
454
6
Eliminated
2
"Alleen"
504
5
Advanced
3
"Alles zal zich weer herhalen"
549
4
Advanced
4
"Mijn dagboek"
571
3
Advanced
3
"Hey Nana"
766
2
Advanced
4
"Comment ça va?"
849
1
Advanced
Semi-final 2 – 10 February 1979
Draw
Song
Points
Place
Result
1
"Alleen"
516
4
Advanced
2
"Alles zal zich weer herhalen"
424
5
Saved
3
"Mijn dagboek"
685
3
Advanced
4
"Hey Nana"
713
2
Advanced
5
"Comment ça va?"
746
1
Advanced
"Alles zal zich weer herhalen" was selected as Marah's second-chance choice.
Semi-final 3 – 17 February 1979
Draw
Song
Points
Place
Result
1
"Alleen"
509
4
Eliminated
4
"Mijn dagboek"
632
3
Advanced
3
"Hey Nana"
690
2
Advanced
4
"Comment ça va?"
832
1
Advanced
Semi-final 4 – 24 February 1979
Draw
Song
Points
Place
Result
1
"Alles zal zich weer herhalen"
233
4
Eliminated
4
"Mijn dagboek"
381
3
Advanced
3
"Hey Nana"
576
2
Advanced
4
"Comment ça va?"
758
1
Advanced
Finaledit
The final was held on 3 March 1979 with the three surviving songs, this time voted on by a 20-strong "expert" jury rather than the public. In the only real surprise in the entire event, the jury went for "Hey Nana" as their choice, although it had finished well behind "Comment ça va?" in every round of public voting. It was not a popular decision, as it was pointed out that the public had clearly and consistently indicated their preference for "Comment ça va?", only to have their choice overturned by 20 people.[2]
Final – 3 March 1979
Draw
Song
Points
Place
1
"Mijn dagboek"
58
3
2
"Hey Nana"
96
1
3
"Comment ça va?"
83
2
At Eurovisionedit
On the night of the final Marah performed 12th in the running order, following France and preceding Luxembourg. At the close of the voting "Hey Nana" had received just 5 points, placing Belgium joint last (with Austria) of the 19 entries, the fifth time Belgium had found itself at the bottom of the Eurovision scoreboard.[3] The Belgian jury awarded its 12 points to Spain.[4]
"Hey Nana" is noted for lyrics which those who understood Dutch cited as among the most facile and childish ever heard at Eurovision. Marah herself made no secret of her dislike for the song, refusing even to record it, making it one of very few Eurovision songs never to have been released commercially in its home territory.
Marah went on to song Hey Nana on a Belgian TV show in 2017.[5] She eventually made a studio recording in 2023.[6]
^ ab"Results of the Final of Jerusalem 1979". European Broadcasting Union. from the original on 11 April 2021. Retrieved 11 April 2021.
October 27, 2023
belgium, eurovision, song, contest, 1979, belgium, represented, song, nana, performed, micha, marah, 1979, eurovision, song, contest, which, took, place, jerusalem, march, eurovision, song, contest, 1979country, belgiumnational, selectionselection, processarti. Belgium was represented by the song Hey Nana performed by Micha Marah at the 1979 Eurovision Song Contest which took place in Jerusalem on 31 March Eurovision Song Contest 1979Country BelgiumNational selectionSelection processArtist Internal selectionSong EurosongSelection date s Semi finals3 February 197910 February 197917 February 197924 February 1979Final3 March 1979Selected entrantMicha MarahSelected song Hey Nana Selected songwriter s Charles DumolinGuy BeyersFinals performanceFinal result18th 5 pointsBelgium in the Eurovision Song Contest 1978 1979 1980 Contents 1 Before Eurovision 1 1 Eurosong 1 1 1 Semi finals 1 1 2 Final 2 At Eurovision 2 1 Voting 3 External links 4 ReferencesBefore Eurovision editEurosong edit Although the Belgian preselection consisted of only six songs all performed by Marah broadcaster BRT managed to spin out the selection process for five weeks by means of a one off format which rather unsurprisingly was never used again All the shows were held at the Amerikaans Theater in Brussels and hosted by Karl Buts Semi finals edit Four semi finals were held in February 1979 to select the three songs to progress to the final In the first three semi finals the lowest placed song after a public vote was eliminated leaving three songs in the fourth semi final where they were joined by Marah s own second chance choice from the three previously eliminated songs In the fourth semi final again the bottom song was eliminated and the three survivors went on to the final Many found the whole process whereby it had taken four weeks to narrow six songs down to three somewhat absurd and pointless particularly as the three songs which ended up qualifying for the final had been the top three songs in every round of voting 1 Semi final 1 3 February 1979 Draw Song Points Place Result1 Mooi prater 454 6 Eliminated2 Alleen 504 5 Advanced3 Alles zal zich weer herhalen 549 4 Advanced4 Mijn dagboek 571 3 Advanced3 Hey Nana 766 2 Advanced4 Comment ca va 849 1 AdvancedSemi final 2 10 February 1979 Draw Song Points Place Result1 Alleen 516 4 Advanced2 Alles zal zich weer herhalen 424 5 Saved3 Mijn dagboek 685 3 Advanced4 Hey Nana 713 2 Advanced5 Comment ca va 746 1 Advanced Alles zal zich weer herhalen was selected as Marah s second chance choice Semi final 3 17 February 1979 Draw Song Points Place Result1 Alleen 509 4 Eliminated4 Mijn dagboek 632 3 Advanced3 Hey Nana 690 2 Advanced4 Comment ca va 832 1 AdvancedSemi final 4 24 February 1979 Draw Song Points Place Result1 Alles zal zich weer herhalen 233 4 Eliminated4 Mijn dagboek 381 3 Advanced3 Hey Nana 576 2 Advanced4 Comment ca va 758 1 AdvancedFinal edit The final was held on 3 March 1979 with the three surviving songs this time voted on by a 20 strong expert jury rather than the public In the only real surprise in the entire event the jury went for Hey Nana as their choice although it had finished well behind Comment ca va in every round of public voting It was not a popular decision as it was pointed out that the public had clearly and consistently indicated their preference for Comment ca va only to have their choice overturned by 20 people 2 Final 3 March 1979 Draw Song Points Place1 Mijn dagboek 58 32 Hey Nana 96 13 Comment ca va 83 2At Eurovision editOn the night of the final Marah performed 12th in the running order following France and preceding Luxembourg At the close of the voting Hey Nana had received just 5 points placing Belgium joint last with Austria of the 19 entries the fifth time Belgium had found itself at the bottom of the Eurovision scoreboard 3 The Belgian jury awarded its 12 points to Spain 4 Hey Nana is noted for lyrics which those who understood Dutch cited as among the most facile and childish ever heard at Eurovision Marah herself made no secret of her dislike for the song refusing even to record it making it one of very few Eurovision songs never to have been released commercially in its home territory Marah went on to song Hey Nana on a Belgian TV show in 2017 5 She eventually made a studio recording in 2023 6 Voting edit Points awarded to Belgium 7 Score Country12 points10 points8 points7 points6 points5 points4 points3 points2 points nbsp Denmark nbsp United Kingdom1 point nbsp Germany Points awarded by Belgium 7 Score Country12 points nbsp Spain10 points nbsp Ireland8 points nbsp Norway7 points nbsp Denmark6 points nbsp France5 points nbsp Portugal4 points nbsp Germany3 points nbsp Netherlands2 points nbsp Israel1 point nbsp GreeceExternal links editHey Nana lyrics and translation1979 Eurovision performance2017 live performance2023 videoclipReferences edit ESC National Finals database Belgium semi finals 1979 Archived from the original on 5 April 2012 Retrieved 14 March 2010 ESC National Finals database Belgium final 1979 Final of Jerusalem 1979 European Broadcasting Union Archived from the original on 11 April 2021 Retrieved 11 April 2021 ESC History Belgium 1979 https www youtube com watch v 2itjwF7dCoc https www youtube com watch v z1c9hrJBdVg a b Results of the Final of Jerusalem 1979 European Broadcasting Union Archived from the original on 11 April 2021 Retrieved 11 April 2021 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Belgium in the Eurovision Song Contest 1979 amp oldid 1172605637, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
