The third annual esctoday.com awards are currently being held. While you can still cast your votes until 23rd December, we will take a closer look on the nominees and the categories in random order. Part six is dedicated to the Lyricist of the year category.

History

This award was introduced last year and and it went to the lyricist of the winning song from Serbia: Saša Milosevic Mare. The complete results were as follows:

1. Saša MiloševiÄ� Mare (Serbia)- 33%
2. Peter Fenner (Iceland) – 21%
3. Aleksandra Milutinovi� (Bosnia & Herzegovina)- 20%
4. Julija RitÄ�ik (Lithuania) – 14%
5. Kobi Oz (Israel) – 12%

2008 awards

The following lyricists are nominated this year:

1. Mira Craig for the Norwegian entry Hold on be strong
2. Dejan Ivanovi� for the Serbian entry Oro
3. Kerem Kabadayı, Harun Tekin, Burak Güven &Kerem ÖzyeÄ�en for the Turkish entry Deli
4. Dana International & Shay Kerem for the Israeli entry The fire in your eyes
5. Andreea Andrei & Adina �uteu for the Romanian entry Pe-o margine de lume

Follow the links above to read the lyrics (along with their translations) on diggiloo.net.

Norway's Mira Craig wrote the song Hold on be strong when she was a teenager. Like most Nordic entries in the Eurovision Song Contest, it was performed in English in Belgrade. From the perspective of a parent, a child is told to never give up in life and love depsite disppointments, because there is always someone waiting out there:

You might be saying: "Ooh, I don't wanna be lonely"
"Ooh, I don't wanna be by myself"
"Ooh, don't wanna be lonely"
"Why ain't anybody lovin' me?"

But there's always someone out there who'll be there for you
There is always someone out there who'll care for you
There's always someone out there who'll be true, true, true
Hold on, hold on, be strong

Dejan Dejan Ivanovi� wrote the lyrics of the second Serbian entry in the contest and Oro was performed in the national language just like the 2007 winner. In the lyrics, the protagonist asks to be put asleep to get over a sad valedcition and not to be waken up before Vidovdan (28th June), a religious holiday that is related to many historical events:

Ko li zaigra oro moje Neka ne igra za nas dvoje Klasje, mene uspavaj Nuna nej, nuna nuna nuna nuna nuna nej Nuna nej, nuna nuna nuna nuna nuna nej Na Vidovdan, probudi me, da ga opet pogledam

The one who dances my Oro Should not dance it for the two of us Cornstalks, make me fall asleep Nuna ney, nuna nuna nuna nuna nuna ney Nuna ney, nuna nuna nuna nuna nuna ney Wake me up on Vidovdan, to look at him again

Like rock bands usually do, Turkish group Mor ve Ötesi wrote the lyrics to their entry Deli (Crazy) themsleves. After a song in English in 2007, Turkey returned to the national language again for Belgrade. In the lyrics, the protagonists thinks about his contradictory personality and tells the owner of his soul to not waste his time and treat him right:

Bir yarım akıllı bir yarım deli Dört yanım akıllı bir yanım deli Herkes akıllı bir ben deli Bir ben deli… Beni büyütün AÄ�latmayın Sevginiz nerde ÖvündüÄ�ünüz Beni büyütün AÄ�latmayın Sahte düÅ�lerle Oyalamayın

I am half sane, half crazy I am partly sane, partly crazy Everybody else is sane, only I am crazy Only I am crazy… Raise me up Don't make me cry Where is the love You are so proud of Raise me Don't make me cry Don't waste my time With fake dreams

1998 Eurovision Song Contest winner Dana International teamed up with Shay Kerem to wrote the lyrics of the song The fire in your eyes, which mas mainly performed in Hebrew but with a few lines in English. In the lyrics, the protagonist tells how hard it is to keep being reminded of a former beloved one:

Lo or kochav Ata akhshav Iti iti, keilu amiti Kmo az mizman Come along, come along See the fire in your eyes And you come with me, with me Lifamim mevi haruakh re'akh tov mukar Melatef akhshav shome'a

No starlight Now you are With me, with me, like real Like back then Come along, come along See the fire in your eyes And you come with me, with me Sometimes the wind carries a sweet, familiar smell Caresses now, listening

Andreea Andreiand Adina �uteu wrote the lyrics of the Romanian entry Pe-o margine de lume together. In Belgrade, the song was performed both in Romanian and Italian, two languages that are strongly related. The entry is a romantic an optimistic love song with two lovers making promises and telling each other how much they are in love:

O noapte întreagÄ� Å�i-o zi Cu tine alÄ�turi de-aÅ� fi AÅ� crede cÄ� lumea-i a mea Å�i numai Å£ie lumea Å£i-o voi da Vieni e stringimi la mano Io vengo da lontano, da lontano per te Oh, guarda il mondo che ho sognato Presente e il passato con te

A whole night and a day With you next to me, if I stay I'd think the world belongs to me And only I'll give the world to you Come and give me your hand I come from far away, from far away to you Oh, watch world I have dreamt of Present and past with you

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