The Malta Eurovision Song Contest is set to kick-off this evening, with the first quarter-final in what is a new format for the competition taking place.
The winner of the competition, who will be chosen after the final on 11 February, will represent Malta in the 2023 Eurovision Song Contest, which this year takes place in Liverpool – who are hosting the competition on behalf of last year’s winners Ukraine.
The MESC 2023 will have its first quarter final on Friday, followed by a second quarter final on the 20th of January, and a third quarter final on the 27th of January. The MESC semi-final will take place on the 9th of February, and the MESC final will be on the 11th of February.
All shows will be broadcast on Television Malta (TVM), as well as on the broadcaster's website tvm.com.mt.
Artists and composers were able to submit their entries between 17 October 2022 and 31 October 2022. Songwriters from any nationality were able to submit songs as long as the artist were Maltese or possessed Maltese citizenship. Artists were able to submit as many songs as they pleased, however, they could only compete with one in the quarterfinals.
2022 Maltese Eurovision entrant Emma Muscat, who failed to make it out of her semi-final in the competition, was unable to compete due to a rule that prevented the previous winner from competing in the following competition.
The forty songs selected to compete in the quarterfinals were announced on 21 November 2022.
Among the selected competing artists are former Eurovision entrants Fabrizio Faniello who represented Malta in the 2001 and 2006 contests, Jessika who represented San Marino in the 2018 contest, Francesca Sciberras who represented Malta in the Junior Eurovision Song Contest 2009, and Eliana Gomez Blanco who represented Malta in the Junior Eurovision Song Contest 2019.
Malta’s history with the ESC
Back in 1971, Malta made its debut in the Eurovision Song Contest, starring Joe Grech’s Marija l-Maltija. Malta has yet to win the ESC, despite participating in 34 appearances so far. However, Malta is the only non-winning country to have achieved four top three results; Mary Spiteri in 1992 and Chiara in 1998 as third-place contestants, and Ira Losco in 2002 and Chiara in 2005 as second-place contestants.
On its first two attempts (in 1971 and 1972), Malta finished last. Between 1975 and 1991, Malta had a 16-year absence from the ESC, returning to the contest in 1991 with Paul Giordmaina and Georgina’s Could It Be. Malta has participated every year since. Malta's return to the ESC was more successful, reaching the top 10 in 12 out of 15 contests from 1991 to 2005.
At first, Malta participated with Maltese songs, yet failing to rank highly, finishing last in its first two attempts in the contest in 1971 and 1972. All of Malta's entries since 1991 have been sung in English. The only use of the Maltese language was three lines in the 2000 entry "Desire", performed by Claudette Pace. In the last 15 contests, Malta has only reached the top 10 twice, with Gianluca Bezzina finishing eighth in 2013, and Destiny Chukunyere finishing seventh in 2021. Fabrizio Faniello, who had previously finished ninth in 2001, finished last in the 2006 final, and since then the country has failed to qualify from the semi-final round eight times, in 2007, 2008, 2010, 2011, 2015, 2017, 2018 and 2022.
Together with France, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom, Malta is one of the few countries that has not missed a contest since 1991. Along with Croatia and Sweden, Malta was the only country never to be relegated under the previous rules of the contest, that was not a part of the "Big Four". Despite not winning the ESC, Malta won three ESC awards: the Marcel Bezençon award in 2005, the OGAE award in 2021, and the infamous Barbara DEX award in 1997.