A rising Scottish pop talent is in the running to become San Marino's voice for the 2024 Eurovision Song Contest.
Venn Smyth has made it through to the semi-finals of the microstate’s Una Voce per San Marino (a voice for San Marino), where he will contend for a spot in the finals in late February and with it a chance to represent the country at this year's event.
Smyth, who describes his music as ‘unashamedly pop’, was whittled down from hundreds of auditions online and in-person to gain his spot in the semi-finals in San Marino on February 15 and 16, making him the only UK contender now in the running.
The London-based LGBTQ+ musician, who is originally from Stirlingshire, said he is thrilled to now find himself “in touching distance of Eurovision”.
READ MORE: When did Eurovision start, who was the first winner and where was it held?
He said: “It’s amazing – it’s just so wild. I’m really touched and excited to be in this contest. I’m very much now within touching distance of Eurovision, but besides that to be in another country and meet lots of artists from across the world, and those in the music industry in Europe – it’s just such a fantastic platform.
“I can’t believe I’m the only UK representative in this competition - it feels amazing and very surreal. Beyond San Marino, the nation I would ultimately represent if I got through, I would obviously be representing the UK, and of course Scotland, my home country. The kilt will be making an appearance for sure which has been with me throughout my touring last year. But I also represent the people I’ve come across and myself – queer/LGBTQ+ culture too.
“The song I’m putting forward is actually inspired after performing at Greenman Festival in Wales last summer, then watching the series Heartstopper. It’s an ode to love and specifically queer love that might not have happened but still could! There are so many elements that I’m taking on this journey with me… who knows where it will lead?”
Smyth, who released his first album Master of Disguise in 2023, studied Classical Music at Edinburgh Napier University, living in the city for a number of years working in the third sector for LGBT Youth Scotland, as well as other charities in mental health.
He has recently recorded an unreleased, original track that he will perform in a San Marino auditorium on February 15 to a panel of industry experts.
Singers from across the world are hoping to make it through to the finals on February 24.
Una Voce per San Marino is now into its third edition and is broadcast by local public service broadcaster, San Marino RTV – the semi-final will be hosted by television and radio presenter, Ilenia De Sena.
The Eurovision Song Contest 2024 is set to be the 68th edition of the Eurovision Song Contest. It is scheduled to take place in May at the Malmö Arena in Malmö, Sweden, following the country's victory at the 2023 contest with the song "Tattoo" by Loreen.
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules here