Hungary in the Eurovision Song Contest 2019
Hungary participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2019. The local Media Services and Support Trust Fund and the Hungarian broadcaster Duna Media Service Provider organised the national final A Dal 2019 in order to select the Hungarian entry for the 2019 contest in Tel Aviv, Israel.
Background
Prior to the 2019 Contest, Hungary had participated in the Eurovision Song Contest sixteen times since its first entry in. Hungary's best placing in the contest was fourth, which they achieved with their début entry in 1994 with the song "Kinek mondjam el vétkeimet?" performed by Friderika Bayer. Hungary had attempted participate in the contest in 1993, however, their entry was eliminated in the preselection show Kvalifikacija za Millstreet. Hungary withdrew from the contest for six years between 1999 and 2004 and also missed the 2006 and 2010 contests. In 2014, Hungary achieved their second best result in the contest since their début, placing fifth with the song "Running" performed by András Kállay-Saunders. In 2016, Hungary placed 19th in the Eurovision final with the song "Pioneer" performed by Freddie. Next year they managed to finish in the top 10 again, now in the 8th place with "Origo" sang by Joci Pápai. In 2018 hard rock-metal band AWS represented the country in Lisbon, and placed 21st in the grand final.The Hungarian national broadcaster, Media Services and Support Trust Fund, broadcasts the event within Hungary and organises the selection process for the nation's entry. MTVA confirmed their intentions to participate at the 2018 Eurovision Song Contest on 1 October 2018. Since 2012, MTVA has organised A Dal, a national selection show which has managed to, thus far, produce entries that have qualified the nation to the final of the Eurovision Song Contest each year and has resulted in three top 10 placings in 2013, 2014 and 2017.
Before Eurovision
''A Dal 2019''
A Dal 2019 was the eighth edition of the Hungarian national selection A Dal, which selected Hungary's entry for the Eurovision Song Contest 2019. The competition consisted of 30 entries competing in three heats, two semi-finals, and a final. The hosts are Bogi Dallos and Freddie. At the first press conference on 3 December 2018, MTVA announced the hosts, the jury, the 30 competing songs, and introduced the new logo of the show. The former symbol was in use since the inauguration of the contest, and every year they added the current year in the logo. The new one looks like a play button, or a plectrum, written in the inside A DAL 2019.Format
Judges
A jury panel consisted of four people:- Feró Nagy: the lead singer of the Hungarian band Beatrice
- Lilla Vincze: the lead singer of the Hungarian band Napoleon Boulevard, was part of the Hungarian jury in the Eurovision Song Contest 2018
- Misi Mező: the lead singer and guitarist of the Hungarian band Magna Cum Laude
- Miklós Both: two times Fonogram-award winner performer and composer.
Competing entries
| Artist | Song ' | Composer |
| Acoustic Planet | "Nyári zápor" ' | Szabolcs Kölcsey |
| Barni Hamar | "Wasted" | Barni Hamar |
| Bence Vavra | "Szótlanság" ' | László Csöndör 'Diaz', Kata Kozma, Bence Vavra / Máté Fodor, László Csöndör 'Diaz' |
| Bogi Nagy | "Holnap" ' | Ferenc Molnár 'Caramel' |
| Dávid Heatlie | "La Mama Hotel" | Péter Turóczi / Dávid Heatlie |
| DENIZ | "Ide várnak vissza" ' | András Vámos / Dénes Rizner Dénes |
| Diana | "Little Bird" | Viktor Rakonczai / Tamara Olorga |
| Fatal Error | "Kulcs" ' | Mihály Balázs, Miklós Balázs, Zsolt Rimóczi, Dávid Rónai, Botond Kornyik, Bence Joós / Zsolt Rimóczi |
| Gergő Oláh | "Hozzád bújnék" ' | Gábor Mészáros / Mária Osztás |
| Gergő Szekér | "Madár, repülj!" ' | Gergő Szekér |
| Gotthy | "Csak 1 perc" ' | Norbert Kovács / Ádám Gotthard |
| Joci Pápai | "Az én apám" ' | Joci Pápai, Ferenc Molnár 'Caramel' / Ferenc Molnár 'Caramel' |
| Klára Hajdu | "You're Gonna Rise" | Klára Hajdu, Milán Szakonyi / Klára Hajdu |
| Konyha | "Százszor visszajátszott" ' | Mátyás Szepesi, Miklós Toldi, Dániel Haller, Márk Badics / Mátyás Szepesi |
| Kyra | "Maradj még" ' | Kyra Fedor |
| László Váray | "Someone Who Lives Like This" | László Váray |
| Leander Kills | "Hazavágyom" ' | Leander Köteles |
| Mocsok 1 Kölykök | "Egyszer" ' | Tamás Pulius, Ádám Horváth, Kristóf Molnár, Ádám Csekő / Tamás Pulius |
| Monyo Project | "Run Baby Run" | Endre Molnár / Edit Molnár |
| Nomad | "A remény hídjai" ' | Szabolcs Jánosi, Marcell Juhász, Ábel Mihalik, Levente Nagy / Szabolcs Jánosi, Marcell Juhász |
| Olivér Berkes | "Világítótorony" ' | Olivér Berkes, Arnold Vígh / Olivér Berkes, Tamás Molnár |
| Petruska | "Help Me Out of Here" | András Petruska |
| Rozina Pátkai | "Frida" | Rozina Pátkai, Márton Fenyvesi / Zsófia Bán |
| Ruby Harlem | "Forró" ' | Tamás Heilig, Szandra Iván / Szandra Iván |
| Salvus | "Barát" ' | Zoltán Pötörke, Péter Erdélyi, Gergely Kiss, Dániel Szabó / Zoltán Pötörke |
| The Middletonz | "Roses" | Farshad Alebatool, Attila Fehér Holló, András Kállay-Saunders |
| The Sign | "Ő" ' | Máté Gábor Czinke |
| Timi Antal feat. Gergő Demko | "Kedves Világ!" ' | Tímea Antal / Johanna Szigyártó |
| USNK | "Posztolj" | Dániel Somogyvári / Alex Márta |
| yesyes | "Incomplete" | Ádám Szabó, Dávid Danka 'Walston' / Péter Halász |
Shows
Heat 1
The first heat took place on 19 January 2019 and ten entries competed. Six entries qualified to the semi-finals after two rounds of voting. In the first round of voting, five qualifiers were determined by the combination of scores from each judge and an aggregate score from a viewer vote based on scores submitted through SMS, mobile app and online voting. In the second round of voting, the remaining five entries that were not in the initial top five faced a public vote in order to determine one additional qualifier. The first five qualifiers were "Madár, repülj" performed by Gergő Szekér, "Százszor visszajátszott" performed by Konyha, "Kedves Világ!" performed by Timi Antal feat. Gergő Demko, "A remény hídjai" performed by Nomad, and "Hozzád bújnék" performed by Gergő Oláh. "Ide várnak vissza" performed by DENIZ was the final qualifier. In addition to the performances of the competing entries, Skorpió performed their song "Azt beszéli már az egész város" as the interval act for the show.| Draw | Artist | Song | Feró Nagy | Lilla Vincze | Misi Mező | Miklós Both | Viewers | Total | Result |
| 1 | Gergő Szekér | "Madár, repülj!" | 8 | 9 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 41 | Advanced |
| 2 | Konyha | "Százszor visszajátszott" | 6 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 38 | Advanced |
| 3 | László Váray | "Someone Who Lives Like This" | 5 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 29 | Eliminated |
| 4 | Rozina Pátkai | "Frida" | 5 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 5 | 31 | Eliminated |
| 5 | Barni Hamar | "Wasted" | 6 | 6 | 5 | 5 | 7 | 29 | Eliminated |
| 6 | Olivér Berkes | "Világítótorony" | 5 | 8 | 6 | 6 | 8 | 33 | Eliminated |
| 7 | Timi Antal feat. Gergő Demko | "Kedves Világ!" | 10 | 9 | 6 | 6 | 8 | 39 | Advanced |
| 8 | Nomad | "A remény hídjai" | 6 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 8 | 35 | Advanced |
| 9 | Gergő Oláh | "Hozzád bújnék" | 7 | 9 | 9 | 8 | 8 | 41 | Advanced |
| 10 | DENIZ | "Ide várnak vissza" | 6 | 7 | 6 | 6 | 9 | 34 | Advanced |
Gallery
Heat 2
The second heat took place on 26 January 2019 where ten entries competed. Six entries qualified to the semi-finals after two rounds of voting. In the first round of voting, five qualifiers were determined by the combination of scores from each judge and an aggregate score from a viewer vote based on scores submitted through SMS, mobile app and online voting. In the second round of voting, the remaining five entries that were not in the initial top five faced a public vote in order to determine one additional qualifier. The first five qualifiers were "Roses" performed by The Middletonz, "Nyári zápor" performed by Acoustic Planet, "Kulcs" performed by Fatal Error, "Szótlanság" performed by Bence Vavra, and "Ő" performed by The Sign. "Incomplete" performed by yesyes was the final qualifier. In addition to the performances of the competing entries, Bill Deák Blues Band performed as the interval act for the show.| Draw | Artist | Song | Feró Nagy | Lilla Vincze | Misi Mező | Miklós Both | Viewers | Total | Result |
| 1 | Dávid Heatlie | "La Mama Hotel" | 7 | 7 | 6 | 7 | 7 | 34 | Eliminated |
| 2 | The Middletonz | "Roses" | 8 | 8 | 9 | 8 | 8 | 41 | Advanced |
| 3 | Klára Hajdu | "You're Gonna Rise" | 5 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 6 | 32 | Eliminated |
| 4 | Gotthy | "Csak 1 perc" | 5 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 26 | Eliminated |
| 5 | Acoustic Planet | "Nyári zápor" | 8 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 8 | 43 | Advanced |
| 6 | Fatal Error | "Kulcs" | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 45 | Advanced |
| 7 | Bence Vavra | "Szótlanság" | 7 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 8 | 39 | Advanced |
| 8 | Diana | "Little Bird" | 6 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 8 | 34 | Eliminated |
| 9 | The Sign | "Ő" | 7 | 7 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 38 | Advanced |
| 10 | yesyes | "Incomplete" | 7 | 6 | 7 | 7 | 8 | 35 | Advanced |
Gallery
Heat 3
The third heat took place on 2 February 2019 where ten entries competed. Six entries qualified to the semi-finals after two rounds of voting. In the first round of voting, five qualifiers were determined by the combination of scores from each judge and an aggregate score from a viewer vote based on scores submitted through SMS, mobile app and online voting. In the second round of voting, the remaining five entries that were not in the initial top five faced a public vote in order to determine one additional qualifier. The first five qualifiers were "Help Me Out of Here" performed by Petruska, "Holnap" performed by Bogi Nagy, "Forró" performed by Ruby Harlem, "Az én apám" performed by Joci Pápai, and "Egyszer" performed by Mocsok 1 Kölykök. "Posztolj" performed by USNK was the final qualifier. In addition to the performances of the competing entries, Fecó Balázs performed as the interval act for the show.| Draw | Artist | Song | Feró Nagy | Lilla Vincze | Misi Mező | Miklós Both | Viewers | Total | Result |
| 1 | Leander Kills | "Hazavágyom" | 7 | 8 | 7 | 7 | 9 | 38 | Eliminated |
| 2 | Petruska | "Help Me Out of Here" | 8 | 8 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 40 | Advanced |
| 3 | Monyo Project | "Run Baby Run" | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 35 | Eliminated |
| 4 | Bogi Nagy | "Holnap" | 8 | 9 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 41 | Advanced |
| 5 | Salvus | "Barát" | 7 | 8 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 36 | Eliminated |
| 6 | Ruby Harlem | "Forró" | 7 | 8 | 9 | 9 | 7 | 40 | Advanced |
| 7 | Joci Pápai | "Az én apám" | 8 | 9 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 41 | Advanced |
| 8 | Kyra | "Maradj még" | 5 | 6 | 6 | 5 | 6 | 28 | Eliminated |
| 9 | USNK | "Posztolj" | 6 | 6 | 7 | 7 | 9 | 35 | Advanced |
| 10 | Mocsok 1 Kölykök | "Egyszer" | 8 | 8 | 8 | 7 | 8 | 39 | Advanced |
Gallery
Semi-final 1
The first semi-final took place on 9 February 2019 where nine entries competed. Four entries initially qualified to the final. In the first round of voting, three qualifiers were determined by the combination of scores from each judge and an aggregate score from a viewer vote based on scores submitted through SMS, mobile app and online voting. In the second round of voting, the remaining six entries that were not in the initial top three faced a public vote in order to determine one additional qualifier. The first three qualifiers were initially "Help Me Out of Here" performed by Petruska, "Nyári zápor" performed by Acoustic Planet, and "Szótlanság" performed by Bence Vavra. "Roses" performed by The Middletonz was the final qualifier. In addition to the performances of the competing entries, Miklós Varga and his children performed as the interval act for the show.| Draw | Artist | Song | Feró Nagy | Lilla Vincze | Misi Mező | Miklós Both | Viewers | Total | Result |
| 1 | USNK | "Posztolj" | 6 | 6 | 7 | 7 | 8 | 34 | Eliminated |
| 2 | yesyes | "Incomplete" | 7 | 6 | 7 | 7 | 8 | 35 | Eliminated |
| 3 | Konyha | "Százszor visszajátszott" | 6 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 38 | Eliminated |
| 4 | The Sign | "Ő" | 7 | 7 | 8 | 8 | 7 | 37 | Eliminated |
| 5 | Petruska | "Help Me Out of Here" | 8 | 8 | 9 | 9 | 8 | 42 | Disqualified |
| 6 | Acoustic Planet | "Nyári zápor" | 9 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 8 | 45 | Advanced |
| 7 | DENIZ | "Ide várnak vissza" | 6 | 7 | 6 | 7 | 9 | 35 | Eliminated |
| 8 | The Middletonz | "Roses" | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 9 | 41 | Advanced |
| 9 | Bence Vavra | "Szótlanság" | 8 | 9 | 9 | 8 | 8 | 42 | Advanced |
Semi-final 2
The second semi-final took place on 16 February 2019 where nine entries competed. Four entries initially qualified to the final. In the first round of voting, three qualifiers were determined by the combination of scores from each judge and an aggregate score from a viewer vote based on scores submitted through SMS, mobile app and online voting. In the second round of voting, the remaining six entries that were not in the initial top three faced a public vote in order to determine one additional qualifier. The first three qualifiers were "Madár, repülj!" performed by Gergő Szekér, "Holnap" performed by Bogi Nagy, and "Az én apám" performed by Joci Pápai. "Kulcs" performed by Fatal Error was the final qualifier. After Petruska was eliminated, "Hozzád bújnék" by Gergő Oláh replaced him in the final. In addition to the performances of the competing entries, Republic performed as the interval act for the show.| Draw | Artist | Song | Feró Nagy | Lilla Vincze | Misi Mező | Miklós Both | Viewers | Total | Result |
| 1 | Gergő Szekér | "Madár, repülj!" | 9 | 9 | 8 | 8 | 9 | 43 | Advanced |
| 2 | Nomad | "A remény hídjai" | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 8 | 36 | Eliminated |
| 3 | Mocsok 1 Kölykök | "Egyszer" | 8 | 8 | 8 | 7 | 8 | 39 | Eliminated |
| 4 | Bogi Nagy | "Holnap" | 8 | 9 | 9 | 8 | 8 | 42 | Advanced |
| 5 | Gergő Oláh | "Hozzád bújnék" | 7 | 9 | 9 | 8 | 8 | 41 | Advanced |
| 6 | Timi Antal feat. Gergő Demko | "Kedves Világ!" | 10 | 8 | 6 | 6 | 8 | 38 | Eliminated |
| 7 | Fatal Error | "Kulcs" | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 40 | Advanced |
| 8 | Ruby Harlem | "Forró" | 7 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 7 | 38 | Eliminated |
| 9 | Joci Pápai | "Az én apám" | 9 | 10 | 9 | 8 | 9 | 45 | Advanced |
Final
The final took place on 23 February 2019 where the eight entries that qualified from the semi-finals competed. The winner of the competition was selected over two rounds of voting. In the first round, the jury determined the top four entries that would advance to the second round. The voting system for the four jurors was different from the method used in the heats and semi-finals. Each juror announced their scores after all songs had been performed rather than assigning scores following each performance and the jurors ranked their preferred top four entries and assigned points in the following manner: 4, 6, 8 and 10. The four entries with the highest total scores proceeded to the second round. The four entries with the highest total scores that proceeded to the second round were "Holnap" performed by Bogi Nagy, "Az én apám" performed by Joci Pápai, "Nyári zápor" performed by Acoustic Planet, and "Szótlanság" performed by Bence Vavra. In the second round, "Az én apám" performed by performed by Joci Pápai was selected as the winner via a public vote consisting of votes submitted through SMS, mobile app and online voting. In addition to the performances of the competing entries, guest performers included AWS, the winner of A Dal 2018 and representative of Hungary in the Eurovision Song Contest 2018.| Draw | Artist | Song | Feró Nagy | Lilla Vincze | Misi Mező | Miklós Both | Total | Result |
| 1 | The Middletonz | "Roses" | 0 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 8 | — |
| 2 | Gergő Oláh | "Hozzád bújnék" | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 3 | Bogi Nagy | "Holnap" | 10 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 16 | |
| 4 | Fatal Error | "Kulcs" | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | — |
| 5 | Joci Pápai | "Az én apám" | 0 | 10 | 10 | 6 | 26 | 1 |
| 6 | Gergő Szekér | "Madár, repülj!" | 0 | 0 | 4 | 8 | 12 | — |
| 7 | Acoustic Planet | "Nyári zápor" | 6 | 0 | 6 | 10 | 22 | |
| 8 | Bence Vavra | "Szótlanság" | 4 | 8 | 8 | 0 | 20 |
At Eurovision
According to Eurovision rules, all nations with the exceptions of the host country and the "Big 5" are required to qualify from one of two semi-finals in order to compete for the final; the top ten countries from each semi-final progress to the final. The European Broadcasting Union split up the competing countries into six different pots based on voting patterns from previous contests, with countries with favourable voting histories put into the same pot. On 28 January 2019, a special allocation draw was held which placed each country into one of the two semi-finals, as well as which half of the show they would perform in. Hungary was placed into the first semi-final, to be held on 14 May 2019, and was scheduled to perform in the first half of the show.Once all the competing songs for the 2019 contest had been released, the running order for the semi-finals was decided by the shows' producers rather than through another draw, so that similar songs were not placed next to each other. Hungary was set to perform in position 7, following the entry from Czech Republic and preceding the entry from Belarus.
Semi-final
Hungary performed seventh in the first semi-final, following the entry from Czech Republic and preceding the entry from Belarus. At the end of the show, Hungary was not announced among the top 10 entries in the first semi-final and therefore failed to qualify to compete in the final. It was later revealed that Hungary placed twelfth in the semi-final, receiving a total of 97 points: 32 points from the televoting and 65 points from the juries, therefore missing out the final for the first time since 2010 when the country did not participate. With the old voting system, Hungary would have ranked 12th with 49 points.Voting
Voting during the three shows involved each country awarding two sets of points from 1-8, 10 and 12: one from their professional jury and the other from televoting. Each nation's jury consisted of five music industry professionals who are citizens of the country they represent, with their names published before the contest to ensure transparency. This jury judged each entry based on: vocal capacity; the stage performance; the song's composition and originality; and the overall impression by the act. In addition, no member of a national jury was permitted to be related in any way to any of the competing acts in such a way that they cannot vote impartially and independently. The individual rankings of each jury member as well as the nation's televoting results will be released shortly after the grand final.Points awarded to Hungary
Points awarded by Hungary
Split voting results
The following five members comprised the Hungarian jury:- Attila Borcsik – Chairperson – head of music, DJ, Music curator
- Béla Patkó – performer, singer
- Mátyás Szepesi – singer, songwriter, lyricist, lead singer of the band Konyha
- Judit Korsós – singer, presenter
- Alexandra Iván – singer, songwriter, lyricist, lead singer of Ruby Harlem