Heroes of Junior Eurovision: The latest news on Nice 2023
10 May 2023 at 19:40 CEST
Winner of Junior Eurovision 2022, Lissandro from France
Corinne Cumming / EBU
French broadcaster France Télévisions shared an update about the Junior Eurovision Song Contest 2023, revealing the slogan and key dates for the November event.
Junior Eurovision fans should clear their diaries for Sunday 26 November at 16:00 CET, because that’s when the Competition will take place in the host city, Nice.
Alexandra Redde at France Télévisions joined an EBU press conference on 10 May 2023, where she also revealed that this year’s slogan will be ‘Heroes.’ She explained the importance of the children involved, and how they will be heroes at both the beginning and the end of their Eurovision journey.
In a cinematic trailer released at the press conference, the Eurovision world was treated to a glimpse into the upcoming competition. As dramatic music played, the video announced: ‘The spirit of magic is coming back to France” and left the audience with the ‘Heroes’ tagline.
Alexandra explained that they wanted to keep a fairytale-like theme for this year’s Contest, in a similar vibe to the ‘Imagine’ theme in 2021, which was also hosted by France, in Paris. It will be all about good vibes, entertainment, and fun times, as well as exploring a powerful universe. She said:
“Some serious topics like the environmental theme were extremely present in many songs of the last contest, and the children are the real Heroes of tomorrow, and they are the ones who have the solutions. So we wanted to let them empower themselves!”
This year’s Competition will take place at the 6,000 seat venue, Palais Nikaïa. It’s played host to artists including Madonna, Beyoncé, and David Bowie. Alexandra described why the city is so magical:
“Nice is absolutely unique. It's a cosmopolitan city open to the world, which has been recognised by the international community and listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2021.”
Alexandra said that France are honoured to host the Junior Eurovision Song Contest once again, and that there’s plenty more still to be revealed:
“I'm keeping a few surprises in store for you, particularly in terms of the stage and artwork, but just like in 2021, we want to offer delegations an exceptional set design for expression, and allow the brand to continue to flourish as all these wonderful artists will do on our Nice stage.”
The competing countries are yet to be announced, but Alexandra is looking forward to having discussions with new countries, hoping to bring more people into the Junior Eurovision Song Contest fold. She said:
“It’s so important that the Junior Eurovision becomes powerful… If I could have 30 countries in the Junior Eurovision it would be amazing!”
The Junior Eurovision 2022 winner was 13-year-old Lissandro from France, whose song, Oh, Maman! won him 203 points at the Contest in Yerevan, Armenia.
As Nice continues preparations, this year’s Junior Eurovision heroes will soon be gearing up to bring their singing superpowers to the stage.
