Benidorm Fest is so established at this point, the tracks’ release feels almost like the official beginning of Eurovision season. Since Spain started taking ESC seriously again three years ago, Benidorm almost managed to single-handedly bring the contest to Valencia back in 2022, and every Spanish entry since then has consistently been quality – no two entries have sounded alike, and real effort has gone into supporting the delegation and staging each act. Make no mistake – Spain wants to win ESC bad.
That is why I found this line-up especially disappointing. These are not bad songs, to be clear: it is an absolutely respectable selection with one particularly outstanding track. That said, this 2025 roster taken as a whole seems to lack an identity, a point of view, a certain je ne sais quoi – it all sounds like a mix of radio-friendly bops and sad boy ballads, and while I don’t have anything against the former (I do generally despise the latter), both have been done so often and so well at ESC already, the bar to clear is higher than the Wall in Game of Thrones. The way I see it, Spain has got two options this year to do anything at ESC, both listed below; for the rest, these are songs I’ll gladly add to my own personal playlist that should NOT be considered as viable entries.
This is option #1. I considered labeling this as a potential Eurovision winner – it’s a bold, unique, boisterous track that grabs you by the balls the second the first chorus drops – but there is a rather experimental, unconventional flamenco/trap slant to the production and the melody that might turn some people off. I do really love this, as does the fandom, and I do really think Spain should take a risk and send it – the vocal is outstanding, it could lend itself to be staged very dramatically, and nothing else is going to sound like it – but I will also understand if this ultimately does well but loses out to a safer choice. We all remember 2023, when Blanca Paloma narrowly beat Agoney and his phenomenal queer pop anthem Quiero Arder only to get blanked by the televote at ESC, and I wouldn’t blame anyone who’s actively trying to prevent that whole car crash from ever happening again.
This is option #2. Spain doesn’t have to qualify into the final, and this is a solid Top 15/10 finisher that will do decently well with both juries and televote. It goes without saying that I absolutely love it – Carla is radiating influencer/go girl, give us nothing! vibes and the track feels like an EDM fusion of pop and bachata – but I will readily admit that it sounds more like a summer radio hit than an ESC winner. I do have some concerns in terms of what the live will look like, however, especially since the vocal is quite layered and distorted, and depending on that I could also see this just die off in the semis and not even make it to the final. So there’s that.
OK, yes. This is openly plagiarizing Robert Miles‘ epoch-making eurodance smash hit Children (if you grew up in Europe in the late ’90s, that track is part of your DNA). It should not win. It sounds a bit lazy and over-produced. It will most likely completely collapse on itself live on stage. But it still slaps and it makes me feel young(er) again. That should count for something.
Do you know that deadly moment during a job interview where they ask you “why should we hire you?” and you inevitably end up pontificating about yourself instead of just saying “because I need money to survive?” That is what this song is. This song is literally Melody’s elevator pitch as to why she should win and go to Eurovision. The outro lyrics in particular are sending me:
“A diva is brave
Powerful
Her life is a garden full of thorns and roses
She is reborn dancing
Stronger than a hurricane
You’ll see
That divа iѕ me!“
I AM OBSESSED. The 10-second money note during the bridge? The dated production? This is, of course, a disaster bop, but how can you not stan this woman? Musically, it’s really generic and derivative, but it’s also camp and it is absolutely giving. If she does indeed win, she’s gonna pack her endangered albino alligator Dior suitcase, fly to Switzerland in her private jet, end up in, like…23rd place and feed the gays. And I am here for it.
ESC Etc. 
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