Mystical Song Contest 64

The Mystical Song Contest #64 (also known as MSC 64) was the sixty-fourth edition of the Mystical Song Contest. It took place in Brussels, 🇧🇪 Belgium after Oscar And The Wolf won in Espoo, 🇫🇮 Finland.

It was confirmed that 48 countries participated in the 64th edition. No one debuted, returned or withdrew.

The top 6 of last edition 🇧🇪 Belgium, 🇫🇮 Finland, 🇸🇪 Sweden, 🇩🇪 Germany, 🇨🇦 Canada and 🇮🇪 Ireland were automatically pre qualified for the Grand Final of this edition. The 42 others participating countries were split into 2 semi final.

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

Brussels
Brussels (French: Bruxelles [bʁysɛl] (listen) or [bʁyksɛl] (listen); Dutch: Brussel [ˈbrʏsəl] (listen)), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (French: Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; Dutch: Brussels Hoofdstedelijk Gewest), is a region of Belgium comprising 19 municipalities, including the City of Brussels, which is the capital of Belgium. The Brussels-Capital Region is located in the central portion of the country and is a part of both the French Community of Belgium and the Flemish Community, but is separate from the Flemish Region (within which it forms an enclave) and the Walloon Region.

Brussels is the most densely populated region in Belgium, and although it has the highest GDP per capita, it has the lowest available income per household. The Brussels Region covers 162 km2 (63 sq mi), a relatively small area compared to the two other regions, and has a population of over 1.2 million. The five times larger metropolitan area of Brussels comprises over 2.5 million people, which makes it the largest in Belgium. It is also part of a large conurbation extending towards the cities of Ghent, Antwerp, and Leuven and the province of Walloon Brabant, home to over 5 million people.

Brussels grew from a small rural settlement on the river Senne to become an important city-region in Europe. Since the end of the Second World War, it has been a major centre for international politics and home to numerous international organisations, politicians, diplomats and civil servants. Brussels is the de facto capital of the European Union, as it hosts a number of principal EU institutions, including its administrative-legislative, executive-political, and legislative branches (though the judicial branch is located in Luxembourg, and the European Parliament meets for a minority of the year in Strasbourg). Because of this, its name is sometimes used metonymically to describe the EU and its institutions. The secretariat of the Benelux and the headquarters of NATO are also located in Brussels.

As the economic capital of Belgium and a top financial centre of Western Europe with Euronext Brussels, Brussels is classified as an Alpha global city. It is also a national and international hub for rail, road and air traffic, and are sometimes considered, together with Belgium, as the geographic, economic and cultural crossroads of Europe. The Brussels Metro is the only rapid transit system in Belgium. In addition, both its airport and railway stations are the largest and busiest in the country.

Historically Dutch-speaking, Brussels saw a language shift to French from the late 19th century. Nowadays, the Brussels-Capital Region is officially bilingual in French and Dutch. French is the lingua franca with over 90% of the inhabitants being able to speak it. Brussels is also increasingly becoming multilingual. English is spoken as a second language by nearly a third of the population and many migrants and expatriates speak other languages as well.

Brussels is known for its cuisine and gastronomic offer (including its local waffle, its chocolate, its French fries and its numerous types of beers), as well as its historical and architectural landmarks; some of them are registered as UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Principal attractions include its historic Grand-Place/Grote Markt (main square), Manneken Pis, the Atomium, and cultural institutions such as La Monnaie/De Munt and the Museums of Art and History. Due to its long tradition of Belgian comics, Brussels is also hailed as a capital of the comic strip.

Host of the show
On March 10, 2023 it was announced that Tatiana Silva will be the host of Mystical Song Contest 63.

Tatiana Silva Braga Tavares (born 5 February 1985) is a Belgian model who was crowned Miss Belgium in 2005. She entered the pageant as Miss Brussels and represented Belgium at the Miss World contest in December 2005.

Tatiana Silva was born in the Brussels suburb of Uccle (Ukkel) to Cape Verdean parents. She was studying to become a PA or personal assistant and working as a shop assistant at the time of the contest. Fluent in French, Dutch, English, Portuguese and Cape Verdean Creole, she enjoys reading, dancing and traveling. She succeeded Miss Belgium 2004 Ellen Petri.

In 2005, Tatiana Silva won Miss Belgium. She succeeded 2004 winner Ellen Petri. Her win made headlines around the world as being the first black Miss Belgium. She continued on to represent her country Belgium in the Miss World contest that year. A second Miss Belgium of African descent later won in 2012 Laura Beyne.

In 2014, Tatiana Silva join forces with UNICEF in combating poverty and hunger in the region of Africa. Her efforts in promoting the importance of education, nutrition and medicine can be seen through the UNICEF campaigns reflecting her visits to regions in West Africa and the factories dedicated to supporting those in need. Earlier in her joining the UNICEF team, she visited the country of Côte d'Ivoire, bringing attention to the country's difficulties. She continues to be an advocate for organizations like UNICEF and Handicap International. She has traveled to Angola as an Ambassador for Handicap International to rally support for Angolans with disabilities. Her objective is to help in any way possible and educate others on issues other countries endure. She is also an outspoken person for Cancer.

In 2006, Tatiana Silva worked for the channel AB3 commenting on the reality TV show Miss Swan. In 2010, Tatiana Silva participated in the reality show Expeditie Robinson 2010 (en), a survival game in the tropics. In Belgium, this game is broadcast on Dutch channel 2BE. Her career continued in a number of joint efforts with M6, TV5 and the RTBF as a weather presenter and personality ((host)) on shows, such as, "C'est du belge", "Drôle d'été", "Cap 48" and "Printemps, grandeur nature". In April 2015, she co-hosts during one week "Les 2 font la paire" and Weekly radio on the 8/9 (2014) on Vivacité radio channel. Her career in Television and radio spans more than nine years.

In 2008, she released a single covering Nu Shooz's 1986 hit "I Can't Wait". She has been presenting the weather on Belgian channel RTBF since December 2009 and on French channel M6 since April 2013. She now presents the weather on French Channel TF1

Tatiana Silva is also related to another famous Cape Verdean, singer: Mayra Andrade. The two are first cousins.

In June 2011, Belgian singer-songwriter Stromae confirmed he was dating Silva. Of her relationship with him, she said: "it is for life". They broke up in September 2012.

Debuting/Withdrawing
No countries withdrew or debuted.

Returning Artists
Here is the list of the returning artists for the 64th edition.

Semi Finals
On March 10, 2023 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 21 countries competed in each semi final and 10 countries qualified in both.

Semi Final 1
In this semi final 🇧🇪 Belgium, 🇸🇪 Sweden and 🇨🇦 Canada had to vote.

Semi Final 2
In this semi final 🇫🇮 Finland, 🇩🇪 Germany and 🇮🇪 Ireland had to vote.

Grand Final
On February 17, 2023 the supervisor of the contest ESC Thømås revealed the running order of the Grand Final.