Samantha Mumba calls for Late Late Show Eurosong to be axed
Singer Samantha Mumba has stood by her comments surrounding the Eurosong – saying she believes the Late Late Show special should be axed.
The Gotta Tell You hitmaker was one of several artists hoping to represent Ireland in this year's Eurovision Song Contest, but ultimately lost out to Norwegian singer Emmy, with her song, Laika Party.
Emmy since went on to fly the flag for Ireland in Basel but failed to qualify for the final.
But the Eurosong became shrouded in controversy when days after the competition ended, Mumba hit out of the panel of judges – who included Donal Skehan and Arthur Gourounlian – claiming they didn't have enough credentials to be on the judging panel, with the exception of previous Eurovision entry Bambie Thug.
Reflecting on the row, Mumba said she stands by her comments.
Speaking to RTÉ Radio One's Brendan O'Connor Show, the singer said it was 'a very, very personal thing' for her to enter the competition and she wanted to step out of her comfort zone.
'So even doing that, and doing a song competition, isn't something that I had on my bingo list at 42 at all."
She said it would have been 'ego' to believe she should not have been competing in a contest, adding: 'And it's a song competition, and I wouldn't want to represent Ireland with a song that Ireland didn't want either or do something.'
She said: 'I think fair is fair, and I think if that's the process, then that's what it was.
"And honestly, I was just proud of myself for doing it because it definitely wouldn't have been something that I would've been necessarily even thinking I would have the balls to do it, if I'm being totally honest, like, a few years ago. No, I loved the process of all of it."
On whether she was surprised about the reaction her post on the process received, she said that 'everybody's entitled to an opinion'.
"And I was a bit surprised - that wasn't even the focus. Like, I think I just... What I wrote was just at the end of the post. The focus of the post was actually just thanking everybody on the team who'd worked so hard on it.
"I didn't see what the big deal was."
She added that she is not on social media very often so was not aware that the post would generate the reaction it did.
"But I mean, I certainly stand by what I said. I don't take it back.
"I think, you know, fair is fair, if people can give their opinion on national television, surely I'm allowed to give my opinion on my own Instagram page. I think that's fair."
The singer also said she believes the Eurosong should be separated from the Late Late Show into a separate programme.
"I love the variety of it. I love kind of the process that it's open to everybody," she said.
"I think if I had one immediate one, I would think that it should be its own show, and it definitely should be televised in a music venue that is set up for singers."
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