Altervision Song Contest 8

Final date
 Venue
 Interval act
 Entries
 Debuting
**Participation map**
* Countries that have confirmed their participation but have not announced their entry     Countries that have confirmed their participation and their entry, and qualified for the final     Countries that have confirmed their participation and their entry, but did not qualify to the final     Countries that participated in the past, but not in this edition
 System
 Null points

The **Altervision Song Contest 8** was the eighth edition of the Altervision Song Contest. It took place in Tokyo, Japan following the nation's victory at the 7th edition with Rina Sawayama performing "Lucid". It was the first time Japan hosted the contest, and was the first contest taking place in Asia, the third in the Asia-Pacific region and the first time since the 3rd edition that the event was held in a non-English speaking country. It was also the first time since the 2nd edition that it took place in the host country's capital.

The show consisted of 3 shows: two semi-finals and a final. The change was necessary in order to incorporate the even larger amount of countries wanting to take part. This marked the first time when two semi-finals were set up. All shows were hosted by Reol, making her the third presenter to host the contest alone.

A record breaking 33 countries have confirmed their participation with 5 countries debuting, 4 returning and 7 countries withdrawing.

The **8th winner of the Altervision Song Contest** was **Croatia** with the song "Green Light" performed by Lorde gathering a total amount of **285** points overall in the final, passing the runner-up by **10** points. The top 5 was rounded out by Germany, Israel, Norway and Hungary with Israel and Norway receiving their first top 5 result in the contest.

## Location

### Host city

**Tokyo**, officially **Tokyo Metropolis**, is the de facto capital and most populous prefecture of Japan. Located at the head of Tokyo Bay, the prefecture forms part of the Kantō region on the central Pacific coast of Japan’s main island of Honshu. Tokyo is the political and economic center of the country, as well as the seat of the Emperor of Japan and the national government. As of 2021, the prefecture has an estimated population of 13,960,236. The Greater Tokyo Area is the most populous metropolitan area in the world, with more than 37.393 million residents as of 2020.

Originally a fishing village, named Edo, the city became a prominent political center in 1603, when it became the seat of the Tokugawa shogunate. By the mid-18th century, Edo was one of the most populous cities in the world at over one million. Following the end of the shogunate in 1868, the imperial capital in Kyoto was moved to the city, which was renamed Tokyo (literally "eastern capital"). Tokyo was devastated by the 1923 Great Kantō earthquake, and again by Allied bombing raids during World War II. Beginning in the 1950s, the city underwent rapid reconstruction and expansion, going on to lead Japan's post-war economic recovery. Since 1943, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government has administered the prefecture's 23 special wards (formerly Tokyo City), various bed towns in the western area, and two outlying island chains.

Tokyo is the largest urban economy in the world by gross domestic product, and is categorized as an Alpha+ city by the Globalization and World Cities Research Network. Part of an industrial region that includes the cities of Yokohama, Kawasaki, and Chiba, Tokyo is Japan's leading center of business and finance. In 2019, it hosted 36 of the *Fortune* Global 500 companies. In 2020, it ranked fourth on the Global Financial Centres Index, behind New York City, London, and Shanghai. Tokyo has the world's tallest tower Tokyo Skytree and the world's largest underground floodwater diversion facility MAOUDC. The Tokyo Metro Ginza Line is the oldest underground metro line in East Asia (1927).

The city has hosted multiple international events, including the 1964 Summer Olympics and three G7 Summits (1979, 1986, and 1993); it will also host the 2020 Summer Olympics, which were ultimately postponed to 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Tokyo is an international center of research and development and is represented by several major universities, notably the University of Tokyo. Tokyo Station is the central hub for Japan's Shinkansen bullet train system, and the city is served by an extensive network of rail and subways. Notable districts of Tokyo include Chiyoda (the site of the Imperial Palace), Shinjuku (the city's administrative center), and Shibuya (a commercial, cultural and business hub).

### Bidding phase

Following Japan's victory in the previous edition, NHK, the national broadcaster of Japan, have been given the right to host the contest. A few hours later it was confirmed that the edition would take place somewhere in Japan.

The bids were announced on 24th February; a total of 8 venues in 6 cities sent in their bid to host the contest. On the same day it was revealed that "Budokan" in Tokyo was selected as the host venue. The arena has a capacity of approximately 14,500 attendees

## Participating countries

### Returning artists

Below is a summary of all artists in this edition who have taken part in the competition previously.

 Philippine | #01 (for  France)
 R3HAB | #06 (for  Brazil with Now United)
 Roxen | #04 (for  Romania)
 Tones and I | #06 (for  Australia)

### Semi-Final 1

The Aland Islands, Ghana and Türkiye also voted in this semi-final.

### Semi-Final 2

Japan, Romania and the United Kingdom also voted in this semi-final.

## Other countries

* Afghanistan: The Afghan broadcaster announced that the country would not take part in the 8th edition due to financial issues the country has been facing due to the constant political crises. A return in the future has not been ruled out.
* Armenia: In an interview with a fan site, ARMTV revealed that the country would not be participating in the 8th edition due to the political crises caused by the 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh war.
* Algeria: ENTV announced their non-participation without giving any further explanation
* Austria: Austria did not appear on the final list of participants thus will not participate in the 7th edition.
* Belarus: BTRC stated that Belarus would not take part due to the sanctions imposed by ABU. The only way Belarus could participate would be if another broadcaster applied for full ABU membership, however this has not happened so far.
* Belgium: Neither VRT nor RTBF confirmed participation in the 8th edition. Belgium eventually did not appear on the final list of participants.
* Bosnia & Herzegovina: Bosnia & Herzegovina did not appear on the final list of participants without providing any reasons.
* Brazil: Brazil did not appear on the final list of participants without providing any reasons.
* Eritrea: Eri TV confirmed Eritrea's non-participation shortly after the Grand Final of the 7th edition took part. They stated that the broadcaster is under a financial strain and thus cannot provide an entry in time neither can they afford the high fee the participation requires. A return in the future has not been ruled out.
* Estonia: ERR issued a statement prior to the Grand Final of the 7th edition that, regardless of the result in their latest participation, Estonia would not take part due to financial issues and minor crises the broadcaster has to face due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In their statement, they confirmed that Estonia would eventually return in the future, however it wasn't confirmed wether it will happen in the 9th edition or after.
* Guam: Guam did not appear on the final list of participants without providing any reasons.
* Guernsey: Guernsey did not appear on the final list of participants. BBC stated that the reason for that is the poor result in the previous edition.
* Ireland: Following the 7th edition, RTÉ confirmed their non-participation stating their results as the reason for doing so.
* Italy: RAI initially confirmed it's intent to participate in the 8th edition, however following the suspension of the HoD, their participation remained unsure. It became clear on 27th February that the country would not be parttaking in the contest.
* Jamaica: JBC confirmed Jamaica's non-participation due to their poor result at their debut.
* Kyrgyzstan: KGBC announced that Kyrgyzstan would not participate in the 8th edition, pointing out their poor result at their first attempt as the main reason for doing so.
* Latvia: LTV did not confirm it's participation neither did they confirm any intent to return to the contest. Latvia eventually didn't appear on the final list of participants.
* Lithuania: LRT confirmed Lithuania's non-participation on 22nd February due to the current financial crisis the broadcaster faces as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
* Macau: Macau did not appear on the final list of participants without providing any reasons.
* Malaysia: RTM stated that they would not be returning to the contest, pointing out their current plans on programs. The broadcaster also confirmed that Malaysian law prohibits them from showcasing LGBTQ+ actions, something that the ABU is supportive of. A return in the future has not been ruled out.
* Monaco: TMC announced that Monaco would not participate due to the high participation fee.
* New Zealand: Following a succesful hosting, TVNZ confirmed that New Zealand would not be taking part in the 8th edition due to financial issues. They stated that the hosting has costed so much for them that the participation fee became unaffordable, thus making New Zealand being forced to withdraw.
* Portugal: TVP announced that Portugal would not take part in the 8th edition due to internal issues.
* Serbia: Serbia did not appear on the final list of participants without providing any reasons.
* Slovenia: RTVSLO issued an announcement regarding participation in the Altervision Song Contest. In the announcement they confirmed that they would not be taking part in the 8th edition, however stated that participation in the further editions has not been ruled out.
* Switzerland: SRG SSR stated that Switzerland would not be returning to the 8th edition due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic
* Vatican City: Vatican Media issued a statement on 21st February, stating that participation in a song contest contradicts with their original plans and therefore Vatican City would not take part in the Altervision Song Contest, at least not in the near future.
* Venezuela: Venevisión stated that Venezuela's participation depends on how the COVID-19 pandemic progresses in the future, and further added that they would not be taking part in the 8th edition due to undisclosed reasons.

## References and notes

1. ↑ The national final consists of 2 parts; the first one, where the artist is chosen called "Wer singt für Deutschland?", and the second part, where the song itself is chosen, called "Ünser song für Japan".
2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 There was no official name chosen for the selection.

 First decade
 Active
 Host cities