An American Reviews, Rates, and Ranks the Entries of Eurovision 2022

Capsule reviews of all 40 songs.

Previously the niche obsession of those of us who were gay and/or tacky enough to tune into its distinctive wavelength, the Eurovision Song Contest has made a push onto American soil with NBC/Universal’s streaming rights purchase and their sister program, the American Song Contest, which premiered in March.

I like ASC enough, but I’ll always be partial to the original.

If you don’t know, the Eurovision Song Contest is an annual competition where several countries (most European, some not) send a musical act to present a song. While the participating countries generally send pop songs, genres as varied as r&b, rap, country, heavy metal, and even opera have earned high scores through the years. These initial entries are then narrowed down in a pair of semi-final shows. As many as 26 will be selected for the Grand Final show, a three-to-four-hour event which culminates in a voting ceremony where the winner is decided via jury and public vote.

Eurovision’s claim to fame is the gimmicks some countries employ to earn votes. To appeal to as broad an audience as possible, participants often rely on spectacle to give their songs an edge on the competition and we are grateful for it.