Lucía Pérez: Spain needs a better national selection

Lucía Pérez was one of the invited artists to perform at this year's Eurovision Live Concert. The Spanish singer represented her country back in 2011 with the festive song "Que me quiten lo bailao" and ranked outside of the top 20 which, unfortunately, has become a trend for Spain.

Nonetheless, Lucía has nothing but good memories from her times in Düsseldorf in 2011. Why? Because she was very aware of what was going to happen once she was there:

– I was very aware of what was going to happen. The producer, who was with me, had been to Eurovision before and he knew that our chances were very low... None actually. That was good for me to enjoy the experience at the maximum.

The producer, who was with me, had been to Eurovision before and he knew that our chances were very low... None actuallyLucía Pérez

In fact, when recalling her times in Germany, Lucía sounds so proud of what she experienced that her eyes shine when going through the memories:

– The more time passes, the more I realize how much I enjoyed the experience, she tells Eurovisionworld at the backstage of the event held in Setúbal, Portugal.

– It's an experience that so little people get to have and I felt so lucky to be able to do it. Since I was a kid, I've always wanted to perform in such a big stage and to thousands of people... I always say that dreams do come true.

Eurovision 2011 was a door opener for Lucía Pérez:

– It opened so many doors to me and I met so many different people. I got to work in Galician TV, host many TV shows, sing in so many different places in Europe and all thanks to Eurovision!

"Sometimes I don't even recall what position I came in"

At the end, "Que me quiten lo bailao" ended up ranking 23rd out of 25 songs:

– There are so many times I can't even recall what position I came in. My score didn't affect my experience at all, she says highligthing that (nonetheless) she received a lot of points from different countries.

When asked if there were any bad memories from Eurovision 2011, she quickly adds:

– We always try to erase the bad ones, so we can only keep the good ones.

Lucía is one of those artists that wouldn't hesitate on going back to the Eurovision stage. In her tiny white dress, the singer goes some time back to see what Eurovision did for her and explains:

– Yes, of course (I would do Eurovision again)! The environment is amazing and I wish I could come back with something more me...

On Spain's national selection and "Tu Canción"

Leaving her own experience back for a moment, Lucía is just one more Spanish person that agrees that Spain needs to step up their national selection being also aware that a country doesn't just win because of its neighbors:

– In Spain, we don't have a very nice national selection because there's no consistency. There's no focus in the song, she says ending up commenting on this year's Spanish song "Tu Canción".

In Spain, we don't have a very nice national selection because there's no consistency. There's no focus in the songLucía Pérez

– It's a pretty song but it was just a continuation of what had happened last year with Salvador Sobral. We need to search for what's new... But they did a great job, though.

Going back to Lucía, the singer has just released her seventh studio album "Quince Soles" and she couldn't be more proud of it as it celebrates her career's 15 years:

– It's a compilation of songs that marked my life. It's very different from "Que me quiten lo bailao" even though there's a song that could be similar. It's called "A Rumboia".

Did it catch your attention? "Quince Soles", in English "Fifteen Suns", is already available for streaming and on sale.

Spain in Eurovision Song Contest

Spain has participated in Eurovision Song Contest 58 times since its debut in 1961. They have won twice, in 1968 (La, La, La...) and the folowing year, 1969 (Vivo Cantando).

Spain is a member of "Big-5", and therefore don't have to qualify for the Grand Final. Spain is also a member of the "club zero", because they have managed to get zero points (3 times!). They have ended last 5 times in Eurovision history, latest in 2017.

Best known song for Spain is probably the song "Eres Tú" from Eurovision 1973 (2nd place, only four points from victory).