Spain has competed in the Eurovision Song Contest most often since their debut in the 1961, and they’ve also won twice. The first country to do so consecutively no less! Can Blas Canto make it a third in Rotterdam in 2021 with ‘Universo’?
The song’s powerful lyrics demonstrate the personal nature and emotion that Blas portrays in the song:
“Forgive me universe
For turning off my voice
To avoid being guilty
Of what I am.”
He describes the lyrics as reflecting “a world similar to mine and, by listening to it, the audience can discover my evolution. I think it is a roller coaster of emotions,". The video, shot between Lanzarote and Tenerife, encapsulates the same emotion with clever use of lighting and silhouettes:
Blas is already a household name in Spain after gaining fame in boyband ‘Auryn’ creating 4 successful albums before going solo and releasing his debut album. He has also sang alongside some other famous faces, such as Kelly Clarkson. His talents don’t end there as he has also featured on the soundtrack of the Spanish release of ‘Wreck-it Ralph’ as well as voicing a character in the animated feature ‘Ugly Dolls’, who was voiced by Nick Jonas in the original.
Blas, like many other of this year’s competitors, has his own history with Eurovision having participated in ‘EuroJunior’ in 2004:
Although not successful on the Eurovision stage, Blas has featured in other shows in Spain and actually won the the celebrity talent show Tu cara me suena (Your Face Sounds Familiar) in 2016. See his impressive performance as Cher, ultimately leading him to beat Spain’s Eurovision 2002 singer Rosa López in the final.
Blas is clearly a determined performer though, with a dream to be on the Eurovision stage, finally getting his chance to perform in Rotterdam 2020 to represent Spain, to then only have the competition cancelled!
Lucky for him (and us) that Spain have announced that he will compete in 2021, with a different song. We can’t wait to hear what he comes back with!