Wonderful Song Contest 49

Wonderful Song Contest 49 will be the forty-ninth edition of the Wonderful Song Contest. The contest took place in Nice after the French victory in the 48th edition. A total of 35 countries competed in Wonderful Song Contest 48. The 48th edition was win by and their song "Jusqu'au bout" by Amel Bent x Imen Es, which got a total of 147 points. Prequalified countries for this edition are:, , , ,  and. They are directly qualified to the final, while the other competing countries are split into semi-final. , and  are returning for this edition and  is withdrawing from the contest. The Semi Final allocation draw took place on 11 November 2020 at the WBU headquarters in Prague.

Information


On 07 November 2020 it was announced that Nice will serve as the host city of the Wonderful Song Contest 49.

Host City
Nice (/niːs/, NEESS; French pronunciation: ​[nis]; Nissard Occitan: Niça, classical norm, or 'Nissa', nonstandard, pronounced [ˈnisa]; Italian: Nizza [ˈnittsa]; Greek: Νίκαια; Latin: Nicaea) is the seventh most populous urban area in France and the capital of the Alpes-Maritimes department. The metropolitan area of Nice extends beyond the administrative city limits, with a population of nearly 1 million on an area of 744 km2 (287 sq mi). Located in the French Riviera, on the south east coast of France on the Mediterranean Sea, at the foot of the Alps, Nice is the second-largest French city on the Mediterranean coast and the second-largest city in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region after Marseille. Nice is approximately 13 kilometres (8.1 mi) from the principality of Monaco and 30 kilometres (19 mi) from the French-Italian border. Nice's airport serves as a gateway to the region.

The city is nicknamed Nice la Belle (Nissa La Bella in Niçard), which means Nice the Beautiful, which is also the title of the unofficial anthem of Nice, written by Menica Rondelly in 1912. The area of today's Nice contains Terra Amata, an archaeological site which displays evidence of a very early use of fire 380,000 years ago. Around 350 BC, Greeks of Marseille founded a permanent settlement and called it Nikaia, after Nike, the goddess of victory. Through the ages, the town has changed hands many times. Its strategic location and port significantly contributed to its maritime strength. For centuries it was a dominion of Savoy, and was then part of France between 1792 and 1815, when it was returned to the Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia until its re-annexation by France in 1860.

The natural environment of the Nice area and its mild Mediterranean climate came to the attention of the English upper classes in the second half of the 18th century, when an increasing number of aristocratic families took to spending their winters there. In 1931 following its refurbishment the city's main seaside promenade, the Promenade des Anglais ("Walkway of the English") was inaugurated by Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught, and owes its name to visitors to the resort. These included Queen Victoria along with her son Edward VII who spent winters there, and Nice born Henry Cavendish, who discovered hydrogen.

The clear air and soft light have particularly appealed to notable painters, such as Marc Chagall, Henri Matisse, Niki de Saint Phalle and Arman. Their work is commemorated in many of the city's museums, including Musée Marc Chagall, Musée Matisse and Musée des Beaux-Arts. International writers have also been attracted and inspired by the city. Frank Harris wrote several books including his autobiography My Life and Loves in Nice. Friedrich Nietzsche spent six consecutive winters in Nice, and wrote Thus Spoke Zarathoustra here. While Anton Chekov completed writing his play Three Sisters when he was living in the city.

Nice's appeal extended to the Russian upper classes, Prince Nicholas Alexandrovich, heir apparent to Imperial Russia died in Nice and was a patron of the Russian Orthodox Cemetery, Nice where Princess Catherine Dolgorukova, morganatic wife of the Tsar Alexander II of Russia, is buried. As are General Dmitry Shcherbachev and General Nikolai Yudenich leaders of the anti-Communist White Movement.

Those interred in Nice at the Cimetière du Château, include celebrated jeweler Alfred Van Cleef, Emil Jellinek-Mercedes, founder of the Mercedes car company, film director Louis Feuillade, poet Agathe-Sophie Sasserno, dancer Carolina Otero, Asterix comics creator René Goscinny, The Phantom of the Opera author Gaston Leroux, French prime minister Léon Gambetta, and the first president of the International Court of Justice José Gustavo Guerrero.

Nice has the second largest hotel capacity in the country and it is one of its most visited cities, receiving 4 million tourists every year. It also has the third busiest airport in France, after the two main Parisian ones. It is the historical capital city of the County of Nice (Comté de Nice).

Bidding phase
Only one main venue was announced as possible venue for the competition to be held. It has a capacity of 20,000 and several big concerts and sport events take place here.
 * The host city had to be near a major airport.
 * The venue must be available for at least six weeks before the contest and one week after the conclusion of the contest
 * The venue must not be open-air, but an air-conditioned building with a capacity of at least 10,000 and a minimum ceiling height of 15 metres (49 ft), insulated for sound and light.
 * The green room must be located as close to the arena as possible (or within it), with a capacity of 300.

Presenter
On 7 November 2020 it was announced that Imen Es will be host Wonderful Song Contest 49.

Daughter of immigrant parents from Morocco, Imen Es was born in Sevran in 1998. The young girl spent her entire childhood there surrounded by her many brothers and sisters. Passionate about football and boxing, she began singing at the age of 8.

Imen Es was spotted by Abu DeBeing at the age of 19 after posting videos of her singing on social media. The rapper then offered to perform the title "My Faults" as a duo. Before this song, the singer had collaborated with Lartiste and DJ Kayz on "Fonce". Some time later Abou DeBeing becomes its producer.