These are the songs for the ESC preliminary round

Marie, Max or “Cat”?
These are the songs for the ESC preliminary round

A total of eight out of nine acts that are applying to take part in the Eurovision Song Contest in the German preliminary round have already been announced. Now you can also listen to their songs. Maybe it could be a hit song? Or is it more of a song for the cat?

No matter who will represent Germany at the final of the Eurovision Song Contest (ESC) on May 11th in Malmö – his or her mission is clear: everything, just please, please no more place in the ranking cellar.

Eight out of nine performers who apparently have the confidence to do this have been confirmed since last week. However, they first have to figure out in the German preliminary round on February 16th which of them will actually be allowed to travel to Sweden. Now we also know which songs they rely on.

Gallant – “cat”

There's the synth-pop duo Galant, for example, who let the cat out of the bag with a song of the same name. With its minimal electronic sound, the song brings back some memories of the Neue Deutsche Welle – even though the two band members Paul and Mona, aged 29 and 26 respectively, were definitely not even born at the time. When you first hear it, you might think that the song is for the cat, but there is a deeper message, as “Eurovision.de” states: “Katze” describes “how people move away from their original nature after traumatic experiences and always out of self-protection become more aloof and distant”. So so.

Max Mutzke – “Forever Strong”

The letters in Max Mutzke's name could also be used to spell “cat”, but musically the 42-year-old is more than just a stone's throw away from Galant. In addition, as is well known, he is not a house cat either. After all, he already represented Germany at the ESC in 2004 and achieved a respectable eighth place with “Can't Wait Until Tonight” and support from Stefan Raab. That was a whole 20 years ago. Now Mutzke wants to plunge into the ESC adventure again, having matured but with less bushy eyebrows. Unfortunately, his song “Forever Strong” doesn’t exactly have the tiger in the tank.

Bodine Monet – “Tears Like Rain”

It wouldn't be the first time that someone from the Netherlands showed the Germans what an entertainment rake is. We just say: Rudi Carrell, Linda de Mol, Harry Wijnvoord. And so with Bodine Monet from the Dutch coastal town of Zandvoort, a musical import could actually represent Germany at the ESC this year. Why not? This has already happened with the Norwegian Wencke Myhre, the Swede Siw Malmkvist and the Dane Gitte. Okay, that was a few years ago. The 23-year-old Monet has a catchy pop song in her bag with “Tears Like Rain”.

Ryk – “Oh Boy”

Ryk? The name would also make you think it came from somewhere in Northern Europe. But in fact the artist behind it, who is actually called Rick Jurthe, only comes from Northern Germany. He is no stranger to die-hard ESC nerds. The 34-year-old already took part in the German preliminary round in 2018 with the song “You and I”. However, it was only enough for him to take third place. Can he get his ticket to the big ESC final with “Oh Boy” this time? If you look at the comments on the Internet, he could be one of the favorites in the preliminary round.

Marie Reim – “Naive”

The name Reim, inherited from his father, is of course obligatory. Not to mention the mother. Marie Reim is none other than the daughter of Matthias “Damn, I love you” Reim and Michelle, who led Germany to eighth place at the ESC in 2001 with “Who Love Lives”. With her song “Naive,” daughter Marie, who has been at home in the Florian Silbereisen cosmos since she was twelve, wants to at least do the same. Did the 23-year-old get advice from her mother when writing her article? After all, it's about “the emotional rollercoaster when you want to reorganize your life after a broken love.”

NinetyNine – “Love On A Budget”

While Marie Reim is used to the glittering pop world, multi-instrumentalist NinetyNine comes across as very down-to-earth. His competition entry “Love On A Budget” takes a critical look at the affluent society. The 24-year-old from Hamburg is actually called Daniel Leon Schmidt, but his stage name hides two secrets: his year of birth in 1999 and his proud height of 1.99 meters. Will NinetyNine also make it big in the preliminary round or will the whole thing be a non-starter for him?

Leona – “Undream You”

Leona? Leona Lewis?! No of course not. So please don't mix them up. This artist actually only goes by the corresponding first name, which can be translated as the word “lioness”. She is also at home in Hamburg and may well have her claws out in the preliminary round against the competition from “Katze” and Co. However, her ballad “Undream You” is rather tame. Maybe it will help her that she has a prominent mentor on her side in Max Giesinger. He once recorded a song with her and even brought her on stage with him at one of his concerts.

Isaak – “Always On The Run”

Isaak Guderian, who restricts himself to his first name as an artist, has already overcome a number of hurdles on his musical path – from street music to Sarah Connor to Jens “Knossi” Knossalla. How is this to be understood? Well, in 2011, for example, he presented himself in front of juror Sarah Connor on the talent show “X Factor” – and made it into the top 50. “Knossi”, in whose format “Show Your Talent” he won in 2021, helped him even a powerful career boost. But of course there is no comparison to what would be achieved with a victory with the song “Always On The Run” in the ESC preliminary round.

Now ESC fans are spoiled for choice. And it will even get a little bigger. Finally, Austria's ESC winner of 2014, Conchita Wurst, and the Irish model rocker Rea Garvey go to the format “I want to go to the ESC!”, which can only be seen in the ARD media library. looking for another act for the preliminary round. However, who will win the race will not be decided until February 8th.