Mystical Song Contest 52

The Mystical Song Contest #52 (also known as MSC 52) was the fifty-second edition of the Mystical Song Contest. It took place in Rabat, 🇲🇦 Morocco after Krription ft. Martha Rush won in Moscow, 🇷🇺 Russia.

It was confirmed that 48 countries participated in the 52nd edition. No one debuted, 🇫🇴 Faroe Islands withdrew while 🇮🇩 Indonesia returned.

The top 6 of last edition 🇲🇦 Morocco, 🇫🇮 Finland, 🇪🇪 Estonia, 🇬🇧 United Kingdom, 🇧🇪 Belgium and 🇮🇱 Israel were automatically pre qualified for the Grand Final of this edition. The 42 other participating countries were split into 2 semi finals and a Pre-Qualification Round which consists of the countries which ended in the bottom 4 of each semi final of the previous edition.

The running orders were made by the supervisor of the contest ESC Thømås.

Rabat
Rabat (/rəˈbɑːt/, also UK: /rəˈbæt/, US: /rɑːˈbɑːt/; Arabic: الرباط‎, romanized: ar-ribāṭ; Berber languages: ⴰⵕⴱⴰⵟ, romanized: aṛṛbaṭ) is the capital city of Morocco and the country's seventh largest city with an urban population of approximately 580,000 (2014) and a metropolitan population of over 1.2 million. It is also the capital city of the Rabat-Salé-Kénitra administrative region. Rabat is located on the Atlantic Ocean at the mouth of the river Bou Regreg, opposite Salé, the city's main commuter town.

Rabat was founded in the 12th century by the Almohad ruler Abd al-Mu'min as a military town. The city steadily grew but went into an extended period of decline following the collapse of the Almohads. In the 17th century Rabat became a haven for Barbary pirates. The French established a protectorate over Morocco in 1912 and made Rabat its administrative center. Morocco achieved independence in 1955 and Rabat became its capital.

Rabat, Temara, and Salé form a conurbation of over 1.8 million people. Silt-related problems have diminished Rabat's role as a port; however, Rabat, and Salé still maintain important textile, food processing and construction industries. In addition, tourism and the presence of all foreign embassies in Morocco serve to make Rabat one of the most important cities in the country. The Moroccan capital was ranked at second place by CNN in its "Top Travel Destinations of 2013". It is one of four Imperial cities of Morocco, and the medina of Rabat is listed as a World Heritage Site. Rabat is accessible by train through the ONCF system and by plane through the nearby Rabat–Salé Airport.

The name Rabat comes from the Arabic word الرِّبَاط (ar-ribāṭ) meaning the ribat, an Islamic base or fortification. This name is short for رِبَاط الفَتْح (ribāṭu l-fatḥ) meaning the ribat of conquest or stronghold of victory—a title given by the Almohads when they established the city as a naval base in 1170.

Rabat has a relatively modern history compared to the nearby ancient city of Salé. In 1146, the Almohad ruler Abd al-Mu'min  turned Rabat's ribat into a full-scale fortress to use as a launching point for attacks on Iberia.

Yaqub al-Mansur (known as Moulay Yacoub in Morocco), another Almohad Caliph, moved the capital of his empire to Rabat. He built Rabat's city walls, the Kasbah of the Udayas and began construction on what would have been the world's largest mosque. However, Yaqub died and construction stopped. The ruins of the unfinished mosque, along with the Hassan Tower, still stand today.

Yaqub's death initiated a period of decline. The Almohad empire lost control of its possessions in Spain and much of its African territory, eventually leading to its total collapse. In the 13th century, much of Rabat's economic power shifted to Fez. In 1515 a Moorish explorer, El Wassan, reported that Rabat had declined so much that only 100 inhabited houses remained. An influx of Moriscos, who had been expelled from Spain, in the early 17th century helped boost Rabat's growth.

Host of the show
On May 3, 2021 it was announced that R3HAB will be the host of Mystical Song Contest 52.

Fadil El Ghoul (Arabic: فضيل الغول‎ ; born 2 April 1986 in Den Bosch), better known by his stage name R3hab (stylized in all caps as R3HAB; pronounced "rehab"), is a Moroccan  Dutch DJ and record producer from Breda, North Brabant.

Ranked at number 12 on the DJ Mag Top 100 DJs in 2018, R3hab has produced two full studio albums and has remixed songs for a wide variety of artists, including 5 Seconds of Summer, Katy Perry, Arashi, Lady Gaga, Taylor Swift, Rihanna, Rammstein, Steve Aoki, The Chainsmokers, For King & Country (band), and KSI.

R3hab began his career in late 2007 while producing the track "Mrkrstft" which was remixed by fellow Breda DJ Hardwell.

His connection with what was then a small scene of Dutch DJs helped him to grow. After releasing Prutataaa with Afrojack, he signed with Afrojack’s label, producing and remixing tracks.

Released independently, his debut album Trouble has gained over 500 million streams globally to date.

R3hab's second full-length studio album received over 350 million plays, with tracks "Ain't That Why", "Hold On Tight", "The Wave" and "Lullaby" reaching the Billboard Hot Dance/Electronic charts.

R3hab remixed ATC’s 2000 single "Around The World (La La La)", which became his most streamed song on Spotify with over 142 million streams and features "A Touch of Class."

The track topped the Spotify charts in eight countries and landed on the Global Viral Chart.

In 2019, R3hab joined an artist management company called Dancing Dragon Management under Live Nation Electronic Asia for an exclusive deal to spread in China.

In 2019, Liquid State, a joint venture between Tencent and Sony Music, said at the All That Matters conference that it had signed R3hab to an Asian distribution deal.

As part of the deal, he will be releasing new tracks through Liquid State that focus on the Asian market, while licensing his CYB3RPVNK label's music library of more than 190 tracks. On his current world tour, R3hab has performed in 116 concerts (as of 10.26.2019) and has featured Cash Cash and Alan Walker.

Debuting/Withdrawing
On May 2, 2021 it was announced that 1 country won't participate in the 52nd edition.
 * 🇫🇴 Faroe Islands : KVF, the Faroese broadcaster, stated that the country won't participate in the 52nd edition because the country was just invited as a guest last edition. The last participation of the country was in the 51st edition.

Returning Artists
Here is the list of the returning artists for the 52nd edition.

Pre-Qualification Round
On May 3, 2021 the supervisor of the contest ESC Thømås revealed the running order of the Pre-Qualification round.

Semi Finals
On May 3, 2021 the supervisor of the contest ESC Thømås revealed the running order of both semi finals.

The big 6 members were assigned to a semi final where they had to vote.

A total of 19 countries competed in each semi final and 10 countries qualified in both.

Semi Final 1
In this semi final 🇲🇦 Morocco, 🇧🇪 Belgium and 🇮🇱 Israel had to vote.

Semi Final 2
In this semi final 🇫🇮 Finland, 🇪🇪 Estonia and 🇬🇧 United Kingdom had to vote.

Grand Final
On May 21, 2021 the supervisor of the contest ESC Thømås revealed the running order of the Grand Final.