Zendari Song Contest 3

Zendari Song Contest 3 is the third edition of Zendari Song Contest. It was held in Qyzylsha, the winning country from the previous edition. The contest consisted of two semi-finals and a final. 43 countries participated in this edition, with 4 countries competing for the first time, 1 country returning to the contest and 6 countries withdrawing from Zendari Song Contest.

On the 8th of March 2018, it was revealed that Titonüi had won the contest, with the song "Feathers" by Alida. They received 153 points which was thirteen more points than second place Wo Xi with their song "Delilah" by Florence + The Machine.

Location
On 5th of February 2018, The broadcaster of the Republic of Qyzylsha announced that it would host the contest and called for various cities throughout the country to place bids to host the contest. After the bidding process had concluded it was revealed that the contest would take place in the city of Ul-Azaar, the capital and largest city, in the Azaar Amphitheatre which had been used as the venue for various concerts and events since being opening in 2009. The arena is one of the most modern in the country and boasts a capacity of 65,000, making it the largest in the country.

Bidding phase
A few venues have been announced to have shown interest in hosting the contest. The ZBA announced the conditions under which cities and venues could announce their interest in hosting the contest.


 * The host city has to be near a major airport.
 * The venue must have good connections to public transport.
 * The venue must be available for at least six weeks before the contest and one week after the conclusion of the contest.
 * The venue must not be open-air, but an air-conditioned building with a capacity of at least 10,000 and a minimum ceiling height of 15 metres (49 ft), insulated for sound and light.
 * The green room must be located as close to the arena as possible (or within it), with a capacity of 300.

Host venue

Participating countries
Everyone is able to vote in both semi-finals. Everyone who votes in the opposite semi that they're not in will have their points added together separately, with the top scorer being the 11th qualifier of each semi-final.

Countries who are not competing in this edition are also allowed to vote, but must vote in both semi-finals in order for their points to be counted.

Semi Final 1
Titonüi, Wallica and Yuvia were randomly drawn to vote in this semi-final.

A playlist can be found here, and a recap can be found here.

A video showcasing the qualifiers can be found here.

A full scoreboard of the voting can be found here, and the international jury scoreboard can be found here.

* - Gigabyte failed to vote in the first semi-final, and as a result, they were disqualified and automatically placed last. * - Moo received the highest amount of points amongst the international jurors and was picked as the 11th qualifier.

Semi Final 2
Aquazia and Qyzylsha were randomly drawn to vote in this semi-final.

A playlist can be found here, and a recap can be found here.

A video showcasing the qualifiers can be found here.

A full scoreboard of the voting can be found here, and the international jury scoreboard can be found here.

* - Ayolulek received the highest amount of points amongst the international jurors and was picked as the 11th qualifier.

Grand Final
A playlist can be found here, and a recap can be found here.

A video showcasing the results can be found here.

A temporary scoreboard showcasing each individual votes can be found here. The rest of the world voting scoreboard can be found here.

* - As the hosts of the contest, Qyzylsha were randomly drawn to perform 14th.

Shairian entrant
On the 7th of February 2018, it was announced that Dua Lipa was going to be the Shairian entrant in Zendari Song Contest 3, with the song "Genesis". However, on the 8th of February 2018, it was revealed that Dua Lipa had snapped her ribcage, and was forced to pull out of the contest. Later on in the week, The Shairian Life announced that Nicky Tučková would represent Shairia with the song "Rich Boy". On 17th February 2018, Tučková herself revealed that she had to go through a secret selection with 4 other artists like Hildur and Eleni Foureira, to see who would replace Lipa. SBC announced that the selection was meant to be kept secret, forcing Tučková to pay a fine of 10,000 Lurekp. Because of her fine, Tučková decided to have a change of plan in staging, selling the cupboard she was using for 50,000 Lurekp, just so she could get her money back.

Suczewean entry
The winners from O Melodie Din Inimă 2 cooled severely. They will sing in the 4th edition for their country, but for the 3rd edition song will be decided through an internal jury.

International broadcasts and voting
The contest was broadcasted in over 50 countries.

Spokespersons

 * Gordon Ramsay
 * Srbuk
 * FKA Twigs
 * Tea Tairović
 * Coeur de pirate
 * MC Lan
 * Kamil Show (Cascadian representative in the second edition & Titonian representative in the first edition of Zendarifestivalen)
 * Caitriona Balfe
 * Benjamin Ingrosso
 * Shauna Sand
 * Trevor Moran
 * Crime Sea
 * Katie Melua (Alien representative in the second edition)
 * Enca
 * Ulrika
 * Little Sis Nora
 * Cobie Smulders
 * Yves & ViVi
 * Now United
 * Girl's Generation
 * Nigella Lawson
 * MUNA
 * Au/Ra
 * Kamshat Zholdybaeva
 * Jessica Mauboy
 * Ehla
 * LANY (Sierran representative in the second edition)
 * Alva (Skandia representative in the first edition)
 * Fat Meg
 * Lou & Lenni-Kim
 * Olga Przybysz
 * BLOODBOUND
 * Emmy Cho
 * Laganja Estranja
 * Thorgy Thor
 * Angèle
 * SOPHIE (Wo Xi'i representative in the second edition)
 * Atiye
 * Tanya Tagaq (Xaliqtyvan representative in the first edition)
 * Natacha Venus
 * Miss Keisha
 * Kitty Powers
 * Christina Grimmie

Other countries
Eligibility for potential participation in Zendari Song Contest requires a national broadcaster with an active ZBA membership that is be able to broadcast the contest. All countries with an active ZBA membership have been given an invitation to join this edition.

Active ZBA countries

 * - Despite placing in the top 5 in the previous edition, National Television of Chattahoochee announced their withdrawal from the contest on the 28th of January 2018, citing time constraints as the main reason for their withdrawal. It is assumed that the country will return to Zendari Song Contest in the near future.
 * - On the 7th of February 2018, El Sputniko announced their withdrawal from the contest, due to lack of time.
 * - On the 7th of Feburary 2018, LandTV announced their withdrawal from the contest, citing bad results as the main reason for their withdrawal, but also that their music taste were not similar to the other countries who were competing in the contest. They did not rule out a return in the future.
 * - On the 5th of February 2018, JM4K announced their withdrawal from the contest, due to coming last in the previous edition. It is unknown if they will compete in any upcoming editions of the contest.
 * - On the 5th of February 2018, Víθs Radijos announced that they would be withdrawing from Zendari Song Contest, and that a return was unlikely to happen. A reason behind this decision has not been made public.
 * - On the 14th of February 2018, it was announced by the Head of Delegation, Brianna, that Sosij may make a last minute withdrawal from the contest, claiming they were not happy about the process of fat shaming within the competing nations, or the use of names negatively whilst people are not present. Despite this, Sosij decided to stay in the contest.
 * - On the 2nd of February 2018, the national broadcaster of The Zarélands announced that they would withdraw from the contest due to lack of time, but that they would return in the future.

Inactive ZBA countries

 * - Despite applying to be apart of the contest (but failing to join, due to the current edition being full), Elune submitted votes for the semi-finals, as an international juror. They also submitted votes for the grand final, as part of the Rest of the World jurors.
 * - Despite applying to be apart of the contest (but failing to join, due to the current edition being full), Franova submitted votes for the semi-finals, as an international juror. They also submitted votes for the grand final, as part of the Rest of the World jurors.
 * - Despite applying to be apart of the contest (but failing to join, due to the current edition being full), Purple Country submitted votes for the grand final, as part of the Rest of the World jurors.
 * - Despite applying to be apart of the contest (but failing to join, due to the current edition being full), Rosalina submitted votes for the grand final, as part of the Rest of the World jurors.
 * - Despite applying to be apart of the contest (but failing to join, due to the current edition being full), Vendujo submitted votes for the grand final, as part of the Rest of the World jurors.
 * - Despite applying to be apart of the contest (but failing to join, due to the current edition being full), Violía submitted votes for the grand final, as part of the Rest of the World jurors.
 * - Despite applying to be apart of the contest (but failing to join, due to the current edition being full), Wallovudia submitted votes for the semi-finals, as an international juror.