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Category: North Macedonia

The North Macedonian entry is chosen by MRT. North Macedonia has taken part since 1998 but has yet to win.

  • 27 April – But if you wanna ninanaj with me

    27 April – But if you wanna ninanaj with me

    Are you a fan of ballads, or do you prefer something faster? It’s true that there’s no consensus in Europe, as we get songs of all varieties wining our favourite TV show.

    Today we go down a more mid-tempo route, which in theory should suit everyone. It came from today’s birthday girl Елена Ристеска/Elena Risteska. She sang for what is now North Macedonia, but was then The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia. She could have caused an international incident as in 2006 we were in Greece. They failed to give each other any points, but if you look closely, you’ll see that her country name wasn’t even shortened by an “FYR”. At least their little disagreements have eased now, but it’s fair to say that Elena made history.

    Elena is 39 today.

    Среќен роденден, Елена!

  • 14 February – Can we even fix this situation?

    14 February – Can we even fix this situation?

    It’s going to become a thing over the coming years that more and more performers in our favourite TV show were born after 1 January 2000. These 21st Century-ers were once a novelty but they might now start to make some fans out there feel very old.

    Today’s birthday girl Андреа Коевска/Andrea Koevska did her stuff in sunny Torino, so didn’t have to travel that far. Hers was a moody performance and was alone on stage – always daunting. Maybe it proved too daunting, as she finished in that unluckiest spots in a semi-final – eleventh. She did score highly here and there, but for reasons now really only known to the national broadcaster, North Macedonia is sitting on the sidelines in 2025.

    Andrea is 25 today.

    Среќен роденден Андреа!

  • 17 November – Let’s go, let’s go, let’s go

    17 November – Let’s go, let’s go, let’s go

    It’s one thing to be a soloist, another to be half of a duo, but another thing entirely to be part of a trio. Do you give yourselves a fancy name? Or do you insist that all of you get equal billing?

    In 2008, our friends in the then Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia decided that all three singers should have their names displayed for all to see, rather than hiding behind a catchy title. They consisted of Tamara Todevska (who you might know from Tel Aviv), Adrijan Gaxha, and today’s birthday boy Раде ‘Врчак’ Врчаковски/Rade ‘Vrčak’ Vrčakovski. Rumours were afoot that rules had been changed to stop songs from their country qualifying. If that was the case, it may have worked. They finished tenth in their semi-final, and as they weren’t the special jury pick, they lost out to pesky Sweden.

    Vrčak is 44 today.

    Среќен роденден, Врчак!

  • 2 November – Unchain my wings

    2 November – Unchain my wings

    Those performers selected for 2020 but ended up performing a year later. They were a patient bunch. And some must have thought they’d blown their chance when the 2020 contest was cancelled.

    Today’s birthday boy Васил Гарванлиев/Vasil Garvanliev had to wait to get his three minutes of fame. Unfortunately for him he only got three minutes, and not six or even nine. His 2021 performance was powerful interpretation of a big ballad, and he had a waistcoat to remember, which definitely must have caught your eye. In Vasil’s defence, his performance was liked in almost equal measures by the juries and televoters, which means it must have been pitched about right. Sadly, his score wasn’t enough to make it out of a cut-throat semi-final. Maybe the voters wanted something more edgy than a big musical ballad.

    Vasil is 40 today.

    Среќен роденден Васил!

  • 20 September – There are hidden places in this world, but you have to find them

    20 September – There are hidden places in this world, but you have to find them

    Two birthdays for the price of one? I can tell you’re getting excited already. There have been various sets of siblings taking part down the years. And even a number of sets of twins. Just imagine if you were the parents of these twins. Your favourite twin, and the other one, on stage together.

    We jest of course. Parents will love all their children the same, won’t they? Anyway, today’s birthday boys Мартин и Стефан Филиповски/Martin & Stefan Filipovski went to M*sc*w under the name Next Time. They performed in Macedonian – good for them – and finished 10th in their semi-final. A qualifier you would think. Well, in those confusing days, the top nine qualified automatically, with a special jury choice getting the tenth spot. So no Saturday night final for them. But with a free bar at the Euroclub, they probably weren’t that concerned. They’re still touring, so who says Eurovision kills careers.

    Stefan and Martin are 38 today.

    Среќен роденден, Мартин и Стефан!

  • 7 August – Lala ley lala ley la… lala ley lalala…

    7 August – Lala ley lala ley la… lala ley lalala…

    Who, among the list of countries that have never won, would you like to see win? And why? Is it because they have had good songs in the past? Is it because they have decent food and drink? Is it because it’s cheap?

    For all of their quality, Yugoslavia and its successor states have only won twice. Probably wrongly, but they do like to try. Like our friends in North Macedonia. They’ve put in some good stuff, and who wouldn’t love to go to Скопје/Skopje. Today’s birthday boy Мартин Вучић/Martin Vučić carried his country’s hopes in 2005 by singing AND drumming his way through the semi-final and achieved a 17th place in the Grand Final in Київ/Kyiv. Drumming is an often forgotten talent so it’s good to see it from time to time. Nine countries agreed.

    Martin is 42 today.

    Среќен роденден, Мартин!

  • 28 December – Please, come to me

    28 December – Please, come to me

    We often talk about those that take part in our favourite TV show over and over again. And also we talk about those trailblazers. Well, today we have someone who fulfils both criteria.

    Back in 1996, you’ll know that there was a preselection to pick the 23 participants for the contest in Oslo. Six songs fell away, and some of those should possibly have qualified. Just like any other preselection/semi-final. One of those came from today’s birthday girl Калиопи Букле/Kaliopi Bukle (also known as Kaliopi Grill). Not one to let a setback like non-qualification stand in her way, she came back in 2012 and 2016. One of those entries earned her a place in the Grand Final. The other gave her a near miss. Anyway, with such an œuvre of work to choose from, we’ve gone for that trailblazing first attempt at Eurovision glory.

    Kaliopi is 56 today.

    Среќен роденден, Калиопи!

  • 6 July – Take me to places that I’ve never been

    6 July – Take me to places that I’ve never been

    We all love success, and some countries are used to it. Then there are those that are either unsuccessful, or just plain unlucky. Unlucky because, perhaps, they’re just unfashionable.

    But even unfashionable countries can still do well. Just look at Portugal, Austria and the Netherlands. And not so long ago North Macedonia had a stormer of a contest. But six years ago our friends in the then Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia weren’t having a good time. Today’s birthday girl Јана Бурческа/Jana Burčeska sang a song about lost love. That might not have been the right vibe for the voters of Europe, so she finished a fair way down the leaderboard. However, if you look at her country’s results between 2013 and 2018, she wasn’t that bad. And Jana might not have cared about winning, she got engaged at the contest.

    Jana is 30 today.

    Среќен роденден, Јана!

  • 1 June – Go and break the rules

    1 June – Go and break the rules

    A new month and we would normally be in the post-Eurovision period, and maybe suffering from post-Eurovision depression. But no Eurovision and no depression, right?

    So how to get over PED? Well, we can look back at those heart-warming performances, such as the one from today’s birthday girl Тамара Тодевска/Tamara Todevska. After a dalliance with a couple of pals in 2008, Tamara came back as a soloist in Tel Aviv in a big dress and lots of mirrors. She had more success in 2019, finishing second in her semi-final and seventh in the big Grand Final. Her song wasn’t that big with the televoters, but the juries loved it. She even got a maximum from the sometimes sniffy UK jury. Now that must be enough to assuage any PED you might have.

    Tamara is 38 today.

    Среќен роденден, Тамара!

  • 2 March – I’m going to feel the warm wind on my face again

    2 March – I’m going to feel the warm wind on my face again

    One of the smaller members of our happy Eurovision family is a country near Greece. It’s known officially as North Macedonia, but was previously the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia. Or unofficially as the Republic of Macedonia. But let’s hope you never FYROM-ed it, oh dear me no.

    But such is this place’s notoriety, it caused a whole rule change. One of the performers that almost fell foul of this rule was Ѓоко Танески/Gjoko Taneski. At least, he would’ve fallen foul of the rule if he’d finished 10th and then been overlooked. Sadly he finished 15th. But Albania liked his song. And Bosnia. And Hercegovina. But it didn’t damage Gjoko’s career – he’s still turning out music.

    Gjoko is 46 today.

    Среќен роденден, Ѓоко!