Griffiniskaja Laul 10

Griffiniskaja Laul 10 was the tenth edition of the Griffiniskaja Laul musical event and Waiting List Song Contest national final which took place in the principality of Meremaa following their second consecutive victory at the previous edition. The show has been hosted in the newly built Tevsarrenaa. The winner was Zoi from Färzas - Lætingmaa who went on to represent the country at the 232nd Waiting List Song Contest and also was Griffin 50th representative at the contest. This was the first victory for this principality. Foreõsvdetrre won the second place and Pzyerüyölkeä finished in third place. At the 232nd Waiting List Song Contest which was held in Planigslæting, Griffin Empire Zoi emerged victorious with 137 points which was second Griffin victory in a row, third in 4 editions and sixth overall.

Bidding phase
Following their victory at the edition before, Meremaa confirmed to host the next edition of the contest. Unlike at the previous edition, preparations began immediately. Once again, the collaboration between the main channel GTV 1 and a regional broadcaster (in this case GTV MER again) was confirmed. The bidding phase for the host city and venue was opened by the director of GTV MER just a day later after their victory.

Cities all over Meremaa were once again excited to host the event, but under the new rules many of them failed to submit a suitable bid. Despite that Umutstad bidding the whole town as a venue again, but the bid was rejected and according to rules disqualified. On the other hand, major cities had all of their bids accepted by GTV for the official hosting rights competition. These cities are: Mare Incatato(the capital and the biggest city of the principality, also the second biggest city in the Griffin Empire, hosted both the WLSC and the previous edition of GL), Tevs (7th biggest city in the Empire), Salta (13th biggest city in the Empire), and Zonpolah (17th biggest city in the Empire). Total of five cities and towns had been officialy in the race with Hjemtilëiyl being there because of the importance of the venue even though it was not suitable according to the rules.

Soon after the closing the applications, it was announced that the contest would be hosted by Tevs and their newly built Tevsarrenaa.

Venue
Tevsarrenaa is a multi-purpose indoor arena located in Saitama District, Tevs, Meremaa, Griffin Empire. Its spectator capacity is 36,500 at maximum settings, and the main arena capacity is between 19,000 and 22,500. It was inspired by Kralarrenaa in Kralingslæting The design was selected as a result of an international design competition. The arena features a gigantic movable section of seating which can reduce capacity for smaller events and create a more intimate setting. It formerly housed the John Lennon Museum, which displayed John Lennon memorabilia which was recently closed.

Tevs
Tevs is the seventh most populous city in Griffin Empire and the second biggest city in Meremaa. The metropolitan area of Nice extends beyond the administrative city limits, with a population of nearly 2,8 Million on an area of 744 km2 (287 sq mi). Located in the Griffin Riviera, on the south west coast of the country on the Griffin Sea, at the foot of the Massif Centralerneiska, it is the second-largest city on the Griffin coast after Mare Incatato. Nice is approximately 30 kilometres (19 mi) from the Griffin-Ugalian border.

The city is nicknamed Tevs Bonitaiska, which means Tevs the Beautiful, which is also the title of the unofficial anthem of Tevs. The area of today's Tevs contains an archaeological site which displays evidence of a very early use of fire 380,000 years ago. Around 350 BCE, Incatatese founded a permanent settlement and called it Tėwůš, after the Proto-Old-Griffin word for shore. Through the ages, the town has changed hands many times. The natural environment of the area and its mild climate came to the attention of the Tybaltevan and Bigician upper classes in the second half of the 18th century, when an increasing number of aristocratic families took to spending their winters there. In 1931 following its refurbishment the city's main seaside promenade, the Kaldetingsinoriskaja kosht ("Bigician (Walk)way") was inaugurated by Tania Belazshjem, 38th prime minister of Griffin Empire and owes its name to visitors to the resort. These included Bigician King Dorin IV along with his son Torrhen III who spent winters there.

The clear air and soft light have particularly appealed to notable painters whose work is commemorated in many of the city's museums. International writers have also been attracted and inspired by the city. Tevs' appeal extended to the Svobodnian upper classes. Proclaimed a World Heritage Site as "Tevs, Winter Resort Town of the Riviera", the city has the second largest hotel capacity in the country, and it is one of its most visited cities, receiving 4 million tourists every year. It also has the third busiest airport in the country. It is the historical capital city of the Duchy of Tevs.

Format
Seven principalities of Griffin Empire submit their entry of choice to compete in a one night final. Each principality gives 1,5,8 10 and 12 points to their favorite songs via televoting. It is forbidden to vote to ones own principality. A number of Natian countries traditionally were invited to join the show as international juries. These nations gave points in the same way as Griffin televoting.

International juries' votes determine Griffin representative at the Waiting List Song Contest. Both juries and televoting combined determine the overall winner of the festival.

Show
Just like at the fifth edition, Griffin national broadcaster decided to celebrate the 10th jubilee by having a theme. It was announced that the public will choose the official theme through a poll. Later the three potential themes were revealed: Socialist Federal Laul which would be a tribute to the current music scene from the countries of former Yugoslavia, Skamløs - a tribute to the well-known Griffin TV show, and All-laul-stars which included the best placing artists re-representing their principalities. From the very start, the first theme was in the lead in the poll, and on November 1st it was announced as the official theme of the show.

During the same press conference on November 1st it was announced that the show will be hosted by a famous Serbian journalist Dragana Kosjerina honouring the Yugoslavia theme. Traditional official photoshoot was revealed later on the specially crafted billboards along both Avenue Mereiskaja and Kaldetingsinoriskaja kosht in Tevs during the traditional 100 days till Laul ceremony.

Dragana Kosjerina is a Serbian journalist and TV presenter. She is currently working for the Serbian national radio and television broadcaster (RTS). Kosjerina was born in Sarajevo, from where she moved to Belgrade at the age of five. She first worked as a model, starting her career at the age of 17. Later, she became part of the RTS Entertainment Program. Some of her best known work includes shows like Sunday Afternoon, Countdown to Vienna, Naša petroka, Olympic Afternoon, Context 21, Morning Program, Crazy Night, Beovizija, and I love Serbia. She was Serbian spokesperson during the Eurovision voting procedure in 2016, as well as every year since 2018.

Traditionally, the show was opened with special opening act and a flag parade. Opening and interval act were made into mini concerts that included many well known Griffin artists including the previous winners taking part. Notably, three anthems were performed - Yugoslav, Griffin, and Griffiniskaja Laul one. Interval act included notable moments from the past, and a few Yugoslav evergreens.

Songs selection and other planned entries
Traditionally, all regional branches of GTV had sole discretion on the process they employed to select their entry for the contest, although the GTV strongly encouraged that broadcasters engage the public with the selection of their act. Despite encouragements from GTV, all principalities have chosen their acts internally. This was the third edition in a row that there were no regional finals. This was expected considering that the televisions had to prepare as many as three songs based on the given topics. The number of submissions increased significantly, probably because it was a jubilee edition. At 4 000 submissions, the first theme was the most popular, around 102 submissions were confirmed for the second theme. The third topic was specific because it referred exclusively to artists who had already participated in the competition. All record breaking artists accepted the offer, however, the theme wasn't supported by the public. This is the full list of planned entries for the themes that have not been selected.

Reception and result at the Waiting List Song Contest
Even before the competition itself, the theme of the festival attracted the attention of the public, and the songs debuted on the Griffin charts immediately after they were released. Early favorites were Nirvana, Liria and Ostani još, which ended up in the top 3. The song from the principality of Eestimadnait - San is the only song that did not receive a single set of 12 points from the international jury and had the worst performance at both domestic and international charts. The winning song picked up a number of compliments from both critics and the general public with the most common comment being that the song was “fresh,” while the Utopolis Times called it “typical EDM track, but very good nevertheless”. Zoi also went to win the Waiting List Song Contest with 137 points, which is statistically the seventh biggest victory of all times.