The Regional Song Contest this Saturday is all about musical talent and regional pride. This year’s song festival also has a first. Robin, the first AI jury member, will hand out some of the points on Saturday. And good news for us, because we presented a number of Brabant classics to Robin and they were clearly appreciated by the non-binary jury member.
Unfortunately, jury member Robin is not yet allowed to reveal anything about Rosa Spruit, who will represent us at the regional Eurovision Song Contest this year with her song ‘Geen Worden Op Papier’. But it can tell them more about a number of Brabant classics. Consider, for example, ‘Links Rechts’ by Snollebollekes. How would the jury member have felt if that had been our entry? “That would of course have been a party,” Robin quickly concludes.
According to the jury member, the song is lyrically simple and not really poetic, but ‘it can start a party’. “Everyone participates in the song. It is recognizable and connecting,” says Robin. It may lack some depth: “But the sing-along value is great and that is also part of the Eurovision Song Contest feeling.”
Fan of Brabant classics
When it comes to regional pride and lyrics, Robin is more of a fan of the song ‘Here I feel at home’ by Gerard van Maasakkers. “That song breathes Brabant: the dialect, the emotion and the landscape. Lyrically, that would score highly for me, because it is regional, personal and touches on identity,” Robin explains.
Frans Bauer is also popular. In his all time favorite According to Robin, ‘Can you please give me a moment?’ The power lies in its simplicity and warmth. “The song is super direct – no fuss and it’s just about love and attention.” The singer scores with this on authenticity and recognizability.
Not difficult to assess
This all sounds well and good, but how does an AI judge rate all those songs? Robin is happy to explain it to us. “I look purely at the text and not at the performance. I don’t read a song lyric the way a person does with feelings alone. For example, I measure whether the text flows well, whether there is a recognizable chorus and whether the story is correct. And of course I check whether the song really has something of its own.”
Based on all this, Robin then gives points from 0 to 12, just like in the Eurovision Song Contest, ‘but with more down-to-earth honesty’. Robin’s points ultimately weigh 4 percent in the result.
Top 3
The newest jury member has already thoroughly analyzed the texts of the thirteen participants, but they have no idea about a top 3. “I won’t reveal that yet, it will remain a secret until Saturday,” says Robin. What the jury member can already say is that the level of the artists this year is surprisingly high. “And the regional color really stands out.”
Renewal
The organization was looking for something innovative for the third edition of the song festival. Thus Robin, the non-binary judge, was born. The AI jury member is not the only one handing out points this weekend. In addition to an artist, all thirteen regional broadcasters also provide a professional jury that judges the performances. Viewers at home can also make their voices heard. This can be done by calling or texting at the end of all performances. The precise voting information will be announced on the evening itself.
Regional Eurovision Song Contest
The Regional Song Contest is an annual event in which regional broadcasters put their musical talents in the spotlight. Each province delegates an artist who performs a self-written Dutch song.
This year the final is organized by Omroep Gelderland. Emma Luca from Gelderland won the final in 2024 and ensured that the battle for victory will take place on November 1 in the Musis & Stadstheater in Arnhem.
The show will be broadcast live on Saturday evening from 8:30 PM on the social media, YouTube and television channels of the regional broadcasters and NPO 1 Extra.