Chris Grech is taking part in Malta Eurovision Song Contest for the third year in a row. His entry “Closed Doors” penned by himself, Edward Mifsud, Peter Borg, and David Cassar Torreggiani has made it to the top 20 in the Maltese selection, and will thus be fighting to win the Maltese ticket for the Eurovision stage in Vienna.

We had the opportunity to chat with Chris regarding his entry in the Maltese national selection, his views on Eurovision and Junior Eurovision, as well as his personal favourites. Check out everything Chris told us in the following interview:

• Hi Chris! First of all congratulations for making it to the top 20! How do you feel?

I feel honoured and really happy to have made it!  It is such a great feeling to know that you and your song have been selected out of so many other entries.  I’m truly grateful for that.  This is already something to celebrate for 🙂

• How did you decide to enter the Contest this year?

I haven’t yet completed my dream of representing Malta in this prestigious event, so here I am back for more! 🙂  Besides it’s the perfect channel to get my music heard out there so it’s always a win win situation in my opinion.

• How did you get in contact with the composer(s) of your song?

I’ve been working with the composers for quite a few years now.  They are all my friends and there’s great chemistry between us. We are always ecstatic to work together as good things usually come out of these sessions. I believe that “Closed Doors” is our best composition so far. I really look forward to performing it on that amazing stage that PBS are preparing for us 🙂

• Can you tell us a little bit about “Closed Doors”?

The song, penned by myself, speaks about those times when you ought to do good and work really hard to achieve things in one’s life, to improve, to be a better man.  Unfortunately sometimes, not everything’s within one’s powers to make it all happen. That’s when the closed doors come in. No matter how hard you try, sometimes, it’s still very difficult to get through. However, adding to this, one must never give up on their challenges… they will surely make you a better man once you succeed!

• How are you preparing yourself for the national final?

I go to my rehearsing room and practice the song to make sure it will sound great on the night.

• Have you already had some thought about how your performance will be on stage?

The composers and I have gone through some discussions on how to present the song to the public and I must say that the creative ideas are flowing. But there are a number of great ideas which we still have to fit together to make it work in the best way possible.

• Who do you think is your biggest competition to win this national final?

I only heard the first part of each song so far, and I must admit that there’s some tough competition out there.  I do like some songs more than others, but at a glance, all songs are of very high standards, which of course only adds up to a great show!

• Malta is hosting Junior Eurovision only a week before the national final. Are you planning to attend this event?

I probably will, It helps me get those good vibes a week in advance 🙂

• What does Eurovision mean to you?

As an artist I see Eurovision as a very big opportunity to kick off one’s musical career. It is a great way to meet other artists and potentially collaborate with some of them. You get the chance to expose what you love doing to millions of people and above that, represent your own country, which is truly honourable.

• Are you a Eurovision fan, and have you got an all time favourite Eurovision song?

Coming from a very different musical background (of rock and metal) I’m not really a Eurovision fan, even though I probably shouldn’t say this 🙂 I’m a very big fan of good music though, so whenever that is present, I’m a fan of it. Nevertheless I still follow it every year with my friends and family. 

With regards to my favourite Eurovision song, even though it’s not my cup of tea, I think “Euphoria” is a brilliant composition which was performed excellently on the night. It surely deserved to win on all fronts that year.

• Do you have a message for all the readers of ESCBubble?

If they’re reading this, then first and foremost, I’d like to thank them for taking the interest and time to read my interview. I look forward to hearing their opinions on my entry and hope that it brings them a good vibes 🙂

• Thank you so much for taking your time out for this interview, and we wish you the best of luck in the Maltese national selection!

I thank you for giving us the necessary exposure to get us heard 🙂

Give a listen to “Closed Doors”, Chris’ entry in Malta Eurovision Song Contest: