Depi Evratesil | the Armenian TV for the Music Contest, "Eurovision Song Contest"

Depi Evratesil is a national selection show organized by Armenian Public TV. The show is aimed at selecting a winner, who will represent Armenia in the Eurovision Song Contest.

For those who had any doubts that Eurovision Song Contest is still a thing in Armenia, the show “Depi Evratesil” (To Eurovision) proved them wrong!

In general, Eurovision Song Contest is a controversial topic in Armenia.

Lots of people don’t like the show, don’t trust the voting and find it senseless for Armenia to participate in it every year. But that’s just one side of the medal.

There are so many people that still love the show, watch it every year, follow the national selection and discuss every single singer and song.

Of course, Depi Evratesil, as a show of national selection, was a very discussed and rated one.

Depi Evratesil Judges

Depi Evratesil judge panel (from left to right) Gohar Gasparyan (Armenian TV staff) Aram MP3 (2014), Inga and Anush Arshakyans (2009), Iveta Mukichyan (2016), Essaï Altounian (Geneology, 2015) and Hayko (2007) — Depi Evratesil judge panel (from left to right): Aram MP3, Gohar Gasparyan (Armenian National TV staff), Inga and Anush Arshakyans , Iveta Mukichyan, Essaï Altounian (Geneology) and Hayko

Before the start of the show Depi Evratesil, Armenian TV made a decision that all the judges should be former representatives of Armenia in ESC. They had a strong believe that former participants know what it takes and what should be presented to win the ESC.

With the initiative of the Armenian TV (Armenian Public TV), Armenia has been participating in Eurovision for already 10 years. 2017 will be the 11^th year. So, Armenian TV chose 6 of the former participants to be the jury of the national final.

The competition was going on for three months and consisted of four stages. During the first stage, TV judges chose contestants themselves. In the second stage judges formed their groups of participants and started the struggle for the victory.

But in the final stage, the winner was determined by televotes and the jury panel.

So, here is Wiwibloggs’ review on the jury choice. Wiwibloggs is the world’s most read independent web site devoted to the Eurovision Song Contest.

Depi Evratesil Judge#1: Iveta Mukuchyan

Iveta and her outstanding look during Depi Evratesil

Iveta Mukuchyan is the 10^th and the latest representative. She boomed Eurovision stage with her stunning performance and singing.

Iveta Mukuchyan was definitely one of the most talked about and favorite participants of the whole ESC 2016. She was in the center of attention with her song choice, performance, holographic show and flawless appearance. Iveta Mukuchyan was chosen Eurovision’s Next Top Model 2017 by international voting.

Vahe Aleksanyan was the last remaining contestant of Iveta Mukuchyan’s group and was eliminated from the 1^st Semi-final.

Depi Evratesil Judge#2: Aram MP3

Aram's famous selfie with other judges — Aram’s famous selfie with other judges

Aram MP3 was another very discussed artist in Eurovision. He represented Armenian in 2014 with the song “Not Alone”.

Aram was definitely the top favourite of 2014. All international polls, top raking songs featured Aram’s song as the best. But in the grand finale he ended up with the 4^th place.

In Devi Evratesil, Aram MP3’s last contestant, Lucy, was eliminated in the 1^st Semi-final.

Depi Evratesil Judge#3: Essaï Altounian

Essaï was a member of the group called “Genealogy” who represented Armenia in 2015. The group was formed for ESC. Since 2015 was the 100^th anniversary of the Armenian genocide, Armenian TV came up with an idea to form a group of Armenians, each of whom will be living in one continent.

This concept represented 1,5 million victims and another 10 million Armenians that are spread around the world.

Tamar Kaprelian came from USA (American continent), Vahe Tilbian came from Ethiopia (Africa), Stephanie Topalian came from Japan (Asia), Mary-Jean O’Doherty came from Australia (Australasia and Oceania), Inga Arshakyan was from Armenia. Essaï came from France, representing European continent.

Essaï is the happy member of the judges’ team, because the winner of Depi Evratesil, Artsvik, is Essaï’s contestant!

Depi Evratesil Judge#4: Hayko

Singer, songwriter, composer and producer Hayko was the 2^nd brave person to represent Armenia in Eurovision. He was the contestant of 2007 with the song “Anytime You Need”. This song is one of Eurovision’s all-time favorite ballads.

Many people thought that Hayko can be the best judge among the team, because he has been involved in Eurovision hustle during every Armenian entry each year. So, he should know what it takes for the contestant to win.

Even though Hayko’s contestant, Egine, took the 4^th place in Depi Evratesil, she literally stole the show. With Hayko’s mentorship, Egine slayed every show!

Depi Evratesil Judge#6&7: Inga & Anush

Sisters Inga and Anush are the inseparable duo of Armenian music industry. Sisters slayed Eurovision stage back in 2009 with a very periodic, ethnic, but yet swingy song “Nor Par”.

Their costumes, make up, song and the whole performance was pretty much intriguing. In 2015 one of the sisters, Inga joined the group of Genealogy and returned to ESC.

In the show Depi Evratesil sisters appeared as individual judges and each of them had their team of contestants. Sadly, none of their contestants made it till the end. Syuzanna Melqonyan from Inga’s team ended up third in the finals.

Depi Evratesil Rating and Contestants

Even though many people find it useless for Armenia to participate in ESC, claiming that it’s just a waste of time and lots of money, people still enjoyed Depi Evratesil. There is this logical question; why?

The answer to this question is simple; this show uncovered many talents. There were so many wonderful artists and performers that were hidden from the public eye, both from diaspora and Armenia.

Depi Evratesil was a wonderful platform to discover and develop those talents. Even though the winner was only one person, but many producers, record companies and veterans of the Armenian show business noticed some contestants and offered them a cooperation.

So, we thought it would be nice to list down some of the contestants that had very bright performances. Watch out, because you’re probably going to see many of them on international stages soon! They are the upcoming revolutionary generation in the Armenian music industry.

Contestant #1: Artsvik – The Ultimate Ballad Singer and the Winner

Artsvik is the winner of the show. So, accordingly, she will represent Armenia in ESC 2017. She is the ultimate ballad singer of the show Depi Evratesil. Her brightest performances are exactly in the style of ballad.

Armenian audience, as well as Russian audience, know Artsvik very well from the show “The Voice of Russia”. Even though Artsvik didn’t win the final, she was one of the brightest contestants. Later she returned to the show many times, this time not as a contestant, but as a guest.

Contestant #2: Egine – The Full Package Diva

Just like Artsvik, Egine also is from Armenian diaspora in Russia. She was the real boom of the show. Egine’s voice intrigued judges and the audience right after the first audition. Her song choices, costumes and performances were also not ordinary.

Some of the judges even confessed that her artistic appearance attracted them more than the signing, which Egine took into account. We say so, because after those comments her performances changed dramatically. She added a lot of dancing, effects and whatever the real show needs.

One can call Egine a real show diva. She has it all: body, choreography, artistic approach, voice, attitude, in other words, she owns the whole package!

Contestant #3: Opera Viva – The Classical Revolution

Opera Viva came to Depi Evratesil to prove that classical music is still heard, appreciated and can make it in international contests. The group consists of 4 opera singers.

Opera Viva appeared to be in Essaï’s team. Both, Essaï and the members of Opera Viva were very happy to work together. Later, Essaï chose Artsvik, the future winner, over Opera Viva in the stage “One of Two”.

Many people claimed that Opera music can become one of the favorites, or even the winner of ESC. The brightest example is Italy’s entry in 2015 with Opera group Il Volo and the song “Grande amore”.

Some Honorable Mentions

Even though we mentioned the three wonderful performers, there are still many gifted artists who deserve to be mentioned.

Hasmik Shiroyan – Hasmik was one of the bravest contestants of the show. We call her brave, because she dared to sing Michael Jackson’s song medley and even danced like him. Let’s be honest, that’s a big risk to take, especially for a contest.

Lilit Harutyunyan – Lilit is among Russian diaspora members. She flew all the way from Russia to Yerevan to take part in the contest. Everyone was amazed by her voice. Lilit sang with such a powerful voice that some of the judges compared her to Tina Turner and Chaka Khan.

Syuzanna Melqonyan – Armenian audience knows Syuzanna from the show “X factor Armenia”. During X factor, as well as in Depi Evratesil, Syuzanna stood out with her perfect ability to sing powerful ballads, that couldn’t leave anyone untouched, even the stoniest people.