We profile the 2025 entry from Azerbaijan including details on the artist, song, how it was chosen, odds, fan reaction, and how the nation has fared at Eurovision.
Azerbaijan made their Eurovision debut in 2008 and have every competed every year since. Azerbaijan has experienced substantial success at the Eurovision Song Contest, reaching the top 10 on eight occasions, including five top five results in a row (2009 -2013). Azerbaijan won the Contest in 2011 with Ell and Nikki's duet Running Scared and have also scored a second place with Farid Mammadov's Hold Me in 2013.
Out of their 16 appearances at the Contest they have now missed the Grand Final three times. Last year the caucus nation was represented by Fahree and Ilkin Dovlatov with Özünlə apar which failed to reach the Grand-Final.
Representing Azerbaijan at Eurovision 2025 in Basel is Mamagama with their song Run With U.
You can find out more about Mamagama and their entry below.
2025 entry: Mamagama - Run With U
Mamagama will perform in semi-final 1.
My Eurovision Scoreboard ranking: 32nd
Odds to win ranking: 28th
(Rankings as of 23 March 2025).
About the Artist
Mamagama first formed in 2021 in the Azerbaijan capital of Baku. The current line-up of the group consists of vocalist Asaf Mishiyev, guitarist Hasan Heydar and drummer Arif Imanov. The group is known for blending traditional Azerbaijani musical elements with modern sounds including indie pop and alternative rock. To date, they have released six singles.
Mamagama drew international attention back in 2022 when they entered the Albanian music festival Kënga Magjike, where they won first place in the international artists category with a performance of their song Dreamer.
About the Song
Run With U was written by the two members of the band, Asef Mishiyev and Hasan Heydar, as well as songwriter Roman Lee.
Asef recently revealed during an interview that he wrote an earlier version of Run With U about 16 years ago. Mamagama has also hinted that at an alternative version of the song that has been recorded that could be used in Basel.
As part of the composition, the traditional stringed instrument the saz has been used. The saz is often associated with folk music, as well as classical and religious music in Azerbaijan.
There are several notable figures in the music clip for Run With U including the two previous Azerbaijani Eurovision representatives Fahree and Ilkin Dovlatov (2024) and twins TuralTuranX (2023). The video depicts singer Asaf Mishiyev coming to life in a Frankenstein-ish experiment in a futuristic setting.
How was Mamagama chosen for Eurovision?
It was announced on 4 February 2025 that Mamagama would represent Azerbaijan in Basel. On 19 February, the song was released.
Mamagama were selected to represent their country through a closed process ran by the Azeri broadcaster İTV. After submitting several songs, Mamagama were shortlisted as one of the 12 acts, and were chosen as the 2025 representative by a local and international jury including previous Azerbaijan Eurovision entrants Aysel (2009) and Diana Hajiyeva (2017).
2025 is not the first time that this trio has been mentioned in the same sentence as Eurovision. Back in 2023, Mamagama were one of the names rumoured to be representing the Land of Fire when they participated in the 2023 internal selection proses with the song River.
Azerbaijan will compete in semi-final 1 of the 2025 Eurovision Song Contest on 13 May 2025 in Basel.
For continued updates on all Eurovision Song Contest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, TikTok, YouTube, Threads, Bluesky and Instagram. All the links can be found at: https://linktr.ee/aussievisionnet
コメント