It may have happened in other editions, but this year’s edition of the Song for Europe has been plagued by claims and rebuttals of plagiarism.

It all started when a person identified only as mb198898 posted a video on YouTube claiming that Klinsmann Coleiro’s entry Go, is very similar to Air Hostess by Busted.

In just over a day, no less than 6,400 people accessed the YouTube video (also available on di-ve.com) to see for themselves.

The video first plays parts of Klinsmann’s song then the one by Busted.

As many who contributed comments to the story said, there is a more than a marked resemblance. However, the song’s author, Dominic Galea, in a comment to escmalta.com, said, “the music and lyrics are totally different and that’s what makes a song”.

The singer’s spokesman Manolito Galea said, “Although the style of both songs might be similar, it is unfair to say that Go is a copy of Busted’s Air Hostess”.

www.escmalta.com reported that technically speaking, according to PRS (Performance Related Specifications), the song is not copied but it may have some similarities in style.

However, a songwriter posted a comment saying that both songs have the same riffs, same bass-line, and same beat.

This was not, however, the only controversy.

Other comments that were posted were unenthusiastic about Claudia Faniello’s song Caravaggio and even posted a YouTube version of a similar song but the thread was removed from the website.

A further controversy involved Grace Borg who was claimed to have said that a Gozitan singer had boasted that two of her songs would make it to the final. There were two singers from Gozo: one, Pamela, did not make it, and the other, Morena, made it to the final with two songs.

Grace Borg could not be contacted for her comments.

According to esctoday.com, Mary Spiteri was very happy with her performance for both her songs and satisfied that she had made it to the Maltese national selection. Asked if she was disappointed not to be in the final despite being highly popular she replied, “I will comment in May after the Eurovision Song Contest in Belgrade”.

Pamela spoke about her performance in the semi-final. She stated that she was swayed by her emotions when she sang Whispers and enjoyed performing Loved by You with Glen. Pamela revealed that she later received many congratulatory messages.

“I do not participate only to win but also to display my talent to the audience,” said Pamela. The singer from Gozo continued by sending her regards to the finalists and ended the interview stating that this year’s Malta Song For Europe was one of the most enjoyable experiences she has ever had.