The Irish representatives for Kyiv, Donna & Joe, have entered this week's Irish single charts at number two with their Eurovision Song Contest entry Love?. Last week Donna & Joe debuted their performance of Love? on the Late Late Show. The reaction has been tepid at best, so things are being reworked for Kyiv.
When Donna & Joe (McCaul) won this year's You're A Star, their performance of Love? integrated a number of traditional Irish cultural elements. Step dancers, a fiddler, a flute and some drummers all figured prominently, and garnered a very mixed reaction.
Two months later, and the reworked number, featuring four very modern-looking female back-up singers, impressed even less. so it's back to reintegration of the traditional elements for Kyiv.
It's been nearly ten years since Ireland won the Eurovision Song Contest, and they've not made the top ten since 2000. Many Irish fans see that the Eurovision Song Contest has changed dramatically in the new millenium: it isn't enough to send a great song and singer, a “total package” performance is called for.
This year Ireland's sent a duo for the first time since the Mullans in 1999, and the first woman since then as well. Will these changes improve Ireland's fortunes in Kyiv?
