So is Live It Up a Yuksek Sadakat song?
Yes. Since it`s in English, it has to be judged on entirely different grounds, but Live It Up is also a song with Turkish lyrics. In fact, the original is Turkish and it lasts 4 minutes and 20 seconds. That`s how it will be on our third album, which is coming out in the fall. Although listening to a song in another language changes the whole perception and emotion, one thing is sure: we`ve adapted this song to the Eurovision criteria. For one thing, we reduced it to three minutes. However, the point isn`t whether it`s a Yuksek Sadakat song. The recording, the production and the mix are all down to foreigners. It is their touch that has made this song what it is.
Live It Up has elements of 70`s rock, 80`s sound and 90`s infrastructure. You added the bit about being positive, staying in the moment and living life in the 2000`s. Was that a conscious choice?
Yes, there`s something from all time in it. We`re very cunning, aren`t we? We`ve cracked the Eurovision code! This is going to be the most successful song of the last 40 years. Ha ha ha. All kidding aside, the guy who wrote the lyrics (Ergun Arsal) let us in on a little secret. What he said was that it should be a song with strong energy that`s over quickly, that`s based on rock`n`roll and that`s got lyrics that meet Eurovision standards. No big philosophical ideas but a song that will get into the listener`s head, is easy to learn, has lots of repeats, uses ordinary English words and that everybody can understand easily…
Eurovision criteria
And what are those Eurovision criteria?
English words, fast tempo, easy to learn, catchy… The show is very important too. The costumes, how you appear on stage… We`re getting professional help in those areas. I`m reeling them off here, but it shouldn`t really be thought of as a formula.
So did you look at the previous years` Eurovision winners one by one to arrive at this formula?
Yes, we did. We sat down and went over them to see who made what kind of songs, because there are a few givens and it would be silly not to make use of them. When we looked at it like that, we saw that the winning songs have a lot in common.
In other words, you`re playing the game by the rules?
Yes. But the template that emerges is very general, so you can fill it with hundreds of different details. That is important too. What`s more, there are also Eurovision songs with a slower tempo that were sung to a single guitar. There`s no hard fast rule. A good song will always win.
Was there anything in the history of Eurovision that surprised you in that sense?
The 2006 Eurovision winner. Lordi (Finland), both surprised us and pleased us. A song with a rock sound won. It was a big deal for rock fans. Lordi won by making fun of Eurovision. It was an unusual show. Unheard of up to now. Truly amazing…
What did you think of last year`s winner, Lena Meyer Landrut (Germany)? She`s competing again this year too, so she will be your rival.
We couldn`t understand how she won. She was very soft, very simple…
Could it be that that`s why she won?
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