World Song Contest

The third edition of the World Song Contest started on May 15th 2005. With 28 participants and countries from Europe, North & South America and Oceania, it is the biggest edition so far... The third edition of the contest began with a new website where the participants can meet each other. And that's what they do. Just like some artists of the Eurovision Song Contest travel around Europe to promote their song, the participants promoted their entry in the guestbook. 

Once again, new countries made their first appareance in the contest, some with success... Bulgaria was the big favourite to win and indeed it did well. Lithuania had a different destiny but could be proud of sending the most original song of this edition. With those new countries, we may expect to hear some new kind of music. But this time, the novelty came from the United Kingdom with a hip hop song. After metal, which is popular amongst several participants, it was time to know if hip hop could do well in the WSC. A fact is that the participants who chose a "metal" song gave their points to other "metal" songs. But this time any of them was powerful enough to collect points from other voters. 

The results were closer than ever with only one point between the first and second position. Bulgaria took the lead and seemed to be ready to win... But Belgium finally came back to take the victory. A surprise as no voter gave Belgium the maximum note of 12 points while Bulgaria was the favourite of five voters, including Belgium. For it's first position in the top 10, Belgium finished 1st with Lara Fabian's song No Big Deal.

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THE WINNER

Country: Belgium
Artist(s): Lara Fabian
Song: No Big Deal

Belgian-born pop singer/songwriter Lara Fabian (born Lara Crokaert January 9, 1970) began singing, dancing, and taking piano lessons at a very young age and began formal music lessons at the Royal Conservatory of Brussels at age eight. During her ten years of study there, Fabian started writing and performing her own songs, which were inspired as much by her classical vocal and music theory training as they were by Barbra Streisand and Queen. After finishing her studies, Fabian moved to Montreal and began her own label and publishing company, Productions Clandestines. Collaborator/producer Rick Allison, an old friend from Brussels, joined her in Montreal and the pair worked steadily on writing and recording songs. In 1991, Fabian's French-language debut album was released in Canada and sold over 100,000 copies in three years. Her consistent touring in Quebec helped bolster her 1994 album Carpe Diem to similar success, which paved the way for 1997's Pure, a two million-selling album in France that spawned the anti-homophobia anthem "La Difference." The live album Fabian released a year later solidified the international buzz around her and she was signed by Sony Music, which released her self-titled, English-language album in mid-2000. Driven in part by the #1 Billboard Hot Dance Music/Club Play hit, "I Will Love Again," her first American album debuted at #1 on the Billboard Heatseekers new album chart. No Big Deal is taken from her second English album released in 2005. Nue (Naked) was Fabian's fourth French album and was released in the Fall of 2001 in both Québec and France, making her return to her French singing roots. Her first single released in the summer of 2001 was the anthem "J'y crois encore" which was a top 20 French hit and was followed by the release of the album later that month. The album reached #1 in Belgium and #2 in France but had little impact in Québec. Other singles followed, such as Fabian's personal favourite, "Immortelle", a strong song that remains constantly present in Fabian's live concerts. "Aimer Déjà" was also released as a single and in 2002 "Tu es mon autre" (a duet with fellow Belgian friend and singer Maurane), was nominated for song of the year and reached the top 5 in France. In 2004, Fabian released her second English album, A Wonderful Life. The project was commercially unsuccessful but critically-praised. In March 2005, Fabian re-appeared on the music scene in France (and also in Canada) with her fifth French album, 9. 9 yielded the hit single "La Lettre", a song co-written by Fabian and composed by her new partner, Jean-Félix Lalanne. In June 2007, Fabian worked in Rome and Los Angeles to record sessions for her first Italian album. In the meantime, the single "Un Cuore Malato" (with Gigi D'Alessio) reached the top of the Italian charts and #16 in France. During 2008, Fabian was in Belgium preparing to record a brand new French album with famous pianist Mark Herskowitz. "Toutes les femmes en moi" is a "self-portrait" where Lara reveals her strong admiration for some of the most impressive female singers in France and Québec that have inspired her as both a woman and as an artists.