Eurovision Fan of the Week - Dhany from Indonesia

It's time for our first Aussievision Fan of the Week for 2022.

We're excited to introduce you to Dhany (@bucineurovision) all the way from Jakarta, Indonesia.

He shares with us his first memories of the contest, the long line of Eurovision artists with connections to Indonesia and his firm belief that Montaigne was robbed (who are we to argue?)

Welcome, Dhany - and thank you for being our Aussievision fan of the week! Tell us a little about yourself.

I'm Dhany (in twitter I’m known more as Dhans). I am working as a medical doctor. My Twitter fandom twitter account is @bucineurovision (bucin is acronym of “budak cinta” or “love slave”) but currently I’m on indefinite twitter hiatus as I am preparing myself to continue my study.

When did you love affair with Eurovision begin?

I accidentally knew about Eurovision in 2008. At that time I was looking for some songs to get included in my personal playlist. Then I listened to the Top 5 and I loved them. Since then I decided to follow Eurovision.

Who is your favourite Eurovision performance and why?

My favourite Eurovision song (and also performance) is Mia Martini – 'Rapsodia' (Italy, 1992). It sets the high standard of how Eurovision songs should be: sophisticated composition, flawless vocals, poetic lyrics, and pure emotions.

~All class - and a voice to die for. You know 90s fashion is back because that exact outfit could easily make a reappearance in 2022. (Mark)

Who was your winner for Eurovision 2021? What made them special to you?

Måneskin – Zitti e buoni. When I heard them playing for the first time in Sanremo, I knew this would go big.

~ You're going to be very popular with the Aussievision team, Dhany. Måneskin were runaway favourites for many of us too. (Mark)

Which national final do you look forward to the most? What makes it special?

Obviously Sanremo. It has been my favourite National Final for a long time thanks to the quality of the songs.

If you could pick only three performances to encourage new people to watch Eurovision what would they be:

Especially for Indonesians, I'd pick:

ABBA - 'Waterloo', Celine Dion - 'Ne partez pas sans moi', and Anggun - 'Echo (You and I)'.

Which Indonesian artist/s could you imagine being on the Eurovision stage? What songs best showcases that artist?

I have some names in mind: Gamaliel Audrey Cantika ('Cinta'), Isyana Sarasvati ('Unlock the Key', 'Untuk Hati yang Terluka'), and Diskoria ('C.H.R.I.S.Y.E', 'Serenata Jiwa Lara').

How well known is Eurovision in Indonesia? Do you hear Eurovision songs in Indonesia?

We have an Indonesian fanbase community based on Line (a popular instant messaging platform in Indonesia). We are growing bigger every time as more people join the community.

But in general, people are more exposed to Eurovision songs/artists without any idea that they come from Eurovision. For example, many people know 'Arcade' or 'Euphoria' but not many people know that it is Eurovision winner. I remembered one Indonesian radio station had Lena's 'Satellite' in their playlist back then. Once when I lived on the very remote Island of East Nusa Tenggara I heard my neighbour played Axel Hirsoux – 'Mother' on loop (to me that's an uncommon Eurovision song to be played repeatedly). I also heard The Mamas – 'Move' being played several times in a coffeeshop I often visited last year.

You mentioned Anggun. Are there any other Eurovision acts who have connections to Indonesia? (Of course, our very own Jessica Mauboy is half-Indonesian!)

I can say there are a lot of them. I had researched about it and I find 13 Eurovision entries sung by Indonesian descendants so far. They include Netherlands 1964, 1970, 1974, 1976, 1978, 1979, 1989, 2000; Belgium 1978, 1982; Austria 2007; France 2012; and of course Australia 2018. Most of these acts (especially from Netherlands and Belgium) are actually Indonesians who migrated to Netherlands (Indonesia was once Dutch colony). Also, the choreographer of Hatari (Sigurður Andrean Sigurgeirsson) was born to an Indonesian mother.

Some entrants also have connections to Indonesia despite not having Indonesian blood themselves. For example Jonatan Cerrada resides in Bali and released a single in Indonesian, Fabrizio Faniello released an English version of Indonesian song 'Cari Jodoh' with the title 'No I Can Do' (and even got an invitation to perform in Indonesian TV. Hadise once performed “Dum Tek Tek” on an Indonesian TV music show, and finally Mike Tramp (part of Denmark 1977 and last year's DMGP entrant) married to an Indonesian actress.

Time for some rapid-fire questions. Tell me which Eurovision song:

Is the best winner?

It’s between Jamala - '1944' or Anne-Marie David – 'Tu te reconnaîtras'. I can’t choose!

Is your favourite Australian entry so far?

Definitely Montaigne – 'Technicolour'. Technicolour is the closest to my favorite music style in Eurovision; something contemporary and quirky. This is exactly what I expect from Montaigne as I knew her long before being chosen.

~ Thank you on behalf of all our us at Aussievision who are still a little disappointed at our first non-qualification. (Mark)

Was robbed?

Also Montaigne – 'Technicolour' (I felt like half of my soul was gone knowing it NQed)

Is your guilty pleasure?

Natalia Gordienko – 'Sugar' (I could get diabetes just by looping it.)

~ Maybe I am diabetic, because I just couldn't get into this one. *books doctor's appointment* (Mark)

Is your favourite National Final song (that didn't make it to Eurovision)?

I have some favourites. One of them is Annalisa – 'Il Diluvio Universale' (Italy 2016). Many people consider it as her weakest Sanremo entry, but I find it very poetic and personal as well). Also my favourite is Nurlaila - 'Alsof je bij me bent' (Netherlands 1998, it won OGAE second chance 1998 and surprisingly she is of Indonesian descent!)

Tell us about the Eurovision jury you organise!

I hosted Vintage Jury during 2020-2021. That was the jury in which Twitter Eurofans made rankings of pre-2000 entries (1956-1999). I made the jury because I noticed that there was quite a “recent bias” in the Twitter fandom and I had not seen much recognition of older Eurovision entries on Twitter timeline. Therefore I would like to promote older entries to younger Eurofans. And actually it became pretty big; 40ish Eurofans contributed at least once and we covered all 43 older editions.

~ It's so important to know our history! I've only been following the contest for about 12 years and I know I've got a lot of homework to do to catch up. Great job showing newcomers the way! (Mark)

Tell us about how you connect with other Eurovision fans on Twitter?

I often make trivial or joke tweets which enable other Eurofans to interact with me. I also make and join various juries to keep in touch with them. The Vintage Jury especially is a huge platform for me to know that I feel accepted in Eurofans community even though I’m not from a Eurovision participating country.

Is there anything about Eurovision you don’t like, or you would change?

Honestly the pre-recorded backing vocals rule doesn’t sit well with me. It kind of ruins the live and artistic experience of Eurovision as a live-event.

As a non-European Eurovision fan, would you one day like to see the Asiavision Song Contest become a reality?

Of course I would like to see the competitive version of AsiaVision Song Contest (we have ABU Song Festival but I think the festival is more like a showcase rather than competition). But realistically speaking, geographical and political gap among Asia countries may make ASC more unlikely to happen and I can totally understand that.

~ Sadly, SBS said last year that plans for a Eurovision Asia have been dropped. But it would be so good, wouldn't it? Let's keep our fingers crossed for more cooperation across the region. (Mark)

Thank you so much for your time and insights, Doctor Dhany! We love your commitment to spreading the word of Eurovision (especially older contests) through Indonesia and beyond. Best of luck with your studies - and we hope to see you back online come Turin time!