International Music Festival 26

International Music Festival 26
Dates
Semi-final 1 date	13 May 2015
Semi-final 2 date	13 May 2015
Final date	24 May 2015
Host
Venue	New York
Presenter(s)	Taylor Swift
Broadcaster	ABC
Opening act	SF1: Ivy Levan - "Biscuit" SF2: Katy Perry - "Unconditionally" Final: Welcome to New York!
Interval act	SF1: Kelly Clarkson - "Invincible" SF2: Ivy Levan - "Biscuit" (Acoustic) Final: Taylor Swift - "Welcome To New York" & Kelly Clarkson - "Invincible"
Participants
Entries	49
Debuting	Uzbekistan
Withdrawing	FYR Macedonia
Voting
System	Each country awarded 12, 10, 8-1 points to their 10 favorite songs
Winner	"Traffic Lights"
International Music Festival
◄ 25 27 ►

International Music Festival 26, often referred to as IMF #26, is the up-coming 26th edition of International Music Festival. It will be held in the United States after the victory of Ivy Levan with her song "Biscuit".

Venue

New York – often called New York City or the City of New York to distinguish it from the State of New York, of which it is a part – is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York metropolitan area, the premier gateway for legal immigration to the United States and one of the most populous urban agglomerations in the world. A global power city, New York exerts a significant impact upon commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and entertainment. Home to the headquarters of the United Nations,New York is an important center for international diplomacy and has been described as the cultural and financial capital of the world.

Situated on one of the world's largest natural harbors, New York City consists of five boroughs, each of which is a county of New York State. The five boroughs – Brooklyn, Queens, Manhattan, the Bronx, and Staten Island – were consolidated into a single city in 1898. With a census-estimated 2014 population of 8,491,079 distributed over a land area of just 305 square miles (790 km2), New York is the most densely populated major city in the United States.As many as 800 languages are spoken in New York, making it the most linguistically diverse city in the world. By 2014 census estimates, the New York City metropolitan region remains by a significant margin the most populous in the United States, as defined by both the Metropolitan Statistical Area (20.1 million residents) and the Combined Statistical Area (23.6 million residents).In 2013, the MSA produced a gross metropolitan product (GMP) of nearly US$1.39 trillion, while in 2012, the CSA generated a GMP of over US$1.55 trillion, both ranking first nationally by a wide margin and behind the GDP of only twelve nations and eleven nations, respectively.

New York City traces its roots to its 1624 founding as a trading post by colonists of the Dutch Republic and was named New Amsterdam in 1626. The city and its surroundings came under English control in 1664. New York served as the capital of the United States from 1785 until 1790. It has been the country's largest city since 1790. The Statue of Liberty greeted millions of immigrants as they came to America by ship in the late 19th and early 20th centuries and is a globally recognized symbol of the United States and its democracy.

Many districts and landmarks in New York City have become well known, and the city received a record 56 million tourists in 2014. Several sources have ranked New York the most photographed city in the world. Times Square, iconified as "The Crossroads of the World", is the brightly illuminated hub of the Broadway Theater District, one of the world's busiest pedestrian intersections, and a major center of the world's entertainment industry. The names of many of the city's bridges, skyscrapers, and parks are known around the world. Anchored by Wall Street in the Financial District of Lower Manhattan, New York City has been called both the most economically powerful city and the leading financial center of the world, and the city is home to the world's two largest stock exchanges by total market capitalization, the New York Stock Exchange and NASDAQ. Manhattan's real estate market is among the most expensive in the world. Manhattan's Chinatown incorporates the highest concentration of Chinese people in the Western Hemisphere, with multiple signature Chinatowns developing across the city.Providing continuous 24/7 service, the New York City Subway is one of the most extensive metro systems worldwide, with 468 stations in operation. New York City's higher education network comprises over 120 colleges and universities, including Columbia University, New York University, and Rockefeller University, which have been ranked among the top 35 in the world.

Location

The Madison Square Garden, venue of the International Music Festival 26.

Madison Square Garden, sometimes called MSG or The Garden, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in the New York City borough of Manhattan in the U.S. state of New York. Located in Midtown Manhattan between Seventh and Eighth Avenues from 31st to 33rd Streets, it is situated atop Pennsylvania Station. It is the fourth venue to bear the "MSG" name, the first two (1879 and 1890) of which were located on Madison Square, on East 26th Street and Madison Avenue, with the third Madison Square Garden further uptown at Eighth Avenue and 50th Street. The Garden is used for professional basketball and ice hockey, as well as boxing, concerts, ice shows, circuses, and other forms of sports and entertainment. It is close to other midtown Manhattan landmarks, including the Empire State Building, Koreatown, and Macy's at Herald Square. It is home to the New York Rangers of the National Hockey League, the New York Knicks of the National Basketball Association, and residency to singer-songwriter, Billy Joel.

Opening on February 11, 1968, it is the oldest and most active major sporting facility in the New York metropolitan area. It is the oldest arena in the National Hockey League and the second-oldest arena in the National Basketball Association. MSG is the third-busiest music arena in the world in terms of ticket sales, behind the Manchester Arena and The O2 Arena, both in England.At a total construction cost of approximately $1.1 billion, MSG has been ranked as one of the ten most expensive stadium venues ever built.It is part of the Pennsylvania Plaza office and retail complex. Several other operating entities related to the Garden share its name.

Semi-final and Grand Final allocation draw

Semi-final Allocation Draw

The draw that determined the semi-final allocation was held on April 17,2015 at the Madison Square Garden. The participating countries, excluding the Big 6 countries, were split into seven pots, based on voting history and geographical location. From these pots, 22 countries each were allocated to compete in first semifinal, and 22 in second semifinal. The pots are as follows:

Pot 1	Pot 2	Pot 3
Albania Bosnia and Herzegovina Croatia Hungary FYR Macedonia Slovenia	Denmark Iceland Finland Norway Russia Ukraine	Armenia Azerbaijan Georgia Kazakhstan Romania Turkey
Pot 4	Pot 5	Pot 6	Pot 7
Austria Belgium Germany Netherlands Switzerland United Kingdom	Estonia Latvia Lithuania Poland Slovakia	Algeria Cyprus Italy San Marino Spain	Australia Canada Mexico New Zealand South Korea Taiwan United States

The big six countries will vote as follow:   France , Greece and Moldova in the first and Czech Republic , Ireland and Sweden in the second semi-final.

Participants

Returning artists

Twenty-six former participants returned in the contest. Former winner of the International Music Festival edition, Artist x returned again for country y.

Returns	Contestant	Currenty country	Past country
4	Ani Lorak	Ukraine	Ukraine 05, Ukraine 06, Ukraine 18, Ukraine 25
	Conchita Wurst	Austria	Austria 13, Austria 15, Austria 20, Austria 24
2	Lena	Germany	Germany 05, Liechtenstein 08
	Eldar Gasimov	Azerbaijan	Azerbaijan 11,  Azerbaijan 15
	Jolin Tsai	Taiwan	Taiwan 22,  Taiwan 23,
	Carina Dahl	Norway	Norway 13, Norway 17
1	A-Studio	Kazakhstan	Kazakhstan 25
	Genta Ismajli	Albania	Kosovo 16
	Sharon Doorson	Netherlands	Netherlands 24
	Antonia	Romania	Romania 17
	Kristina	Croatia	Croatia 06
	Robin	Finland	Finland 03
	Angelika Dusk	Greece	Greece 18
	Tereza Kerndlová	Czech Republic	Czech Republic 10
	Paulina Rubio	Mexico	Mexico 22
	Neda Ukraden	Bosnia and Herzegovina	Bosnia 13
	Uciteljice	Bosnia and Herzegovina	Croatia 20
	Clean Bandit	United Kingdom	UK 11

Results

Semifinal 1

France, Greece and Moldova will vote in this semi-final.

Draw	Country	Language	Artist	Song	Place	Points
01	Mexico		Paulina Rubio	"Baila casanova"	20	19
02	Iceland		Steed Lord	"Bed of Needles"	14	55
03	Italy		Dolcenera	"Accendi Lo Spirito"	2	104
04	Kazakhstan		A-Studio	"Так же как все"	22	15
05	Albania		Genta Ismajli ft. Ardian Bujupi & Dalool	"Feel"	6	86
06	Australia		Karise Eden	"Black Heart"	5	90
07	Poland		neena	"ROSES"	18	43
08	Netherlands		Sharon Doorson	"Electrify"	9	68
09	China		Genie Chuo	"Black Horse"	13	56
10	Belgium		Noa Neel	"Graffiti"	16	54
11	Lithuania		Magnit	"Vandenynai"	15	54
12	Germany		Lena	"Traffic Lights"	1	208
13	Azerbaijan		Eldar Gasimov	"The One"	12	63
14	Romania		Antonia	"Chica loca"	3	103
15	Denmark		Bryan Rice	"Beat Of My Own Drum"	19	42
16	Croatia		Kristina	"Brzo I Bezobrazno"	4	91
17	New Zealand		Ginny Blackmore & Stan Walker	"Holding You"	7	85
18	Algeria		Milk & Honey	"Didi"	10	64
19	United States		Krewella	"Human"	17	51
20	Hungary		Tóth Gabi	"Jöjj még"	11	63
21	Cyprus		Kate	"Don't Let Go"	8	76
22	Portugal		Ariely Bonatti	"O Tribunal"	21	18

Semifinal 2

Czech Republic, Ireland and Sweden will vote in this semi-final.

Draw	Country	Language	Artist	Song	Place	Points
01	Russia	English	Irene Nelson	"Sunrise"	20	28
02	San Marino		Simonetta Spiri ft. Madback	"Altrove"	16	51
03	Uzbekistan		Rayhon	"Unutaman"	1	132
04	Finland		Robin ft. Nikke Ankara	"Parasta"	17	46
05	Taiwan		Jolin Tsai	"Fantasy"	11	74
06	Latvia	English	Samanta Tina	"Stay"	8	78
07	Slovenia		Neisha	"Gloria"	19	30
08	South Korea		NU'EST	"Face"	14	58
09	Slovakia	English	Nela Pociskova	"Mysterious Boy"	13	59
10	Ukraine		Ani Lorak	"Ships"	6	86
11	Norway	English	Carina Dahl	"(Come A Little) Closer"	2	101
12	Switzerland	English	Vava Voom	"Turn Up the Night"	7	84
13	Bosnia and Herzegovina		Neda Ukraden ft. Uciteljice	"Noci U Brazilu"	4	90
14	Turkey		Sila	"Reverans"	21	20
15	Spain	English	Brittany Mullen ft. Leroy Sanchez	"War Island"	9	76
16	Austria	English	Conchita Wurst	"Somebody To Love"	10	75
17	Georgia	English	Sofia Nizharadze	"Sing My Song"	18	45
18	United Kingdom	English	Clean Bandit	"Stronger"	3	95
19	Armenia		Sofi Mkheyan	"Hayastani Erge"	5	89
20	Canada	English	Carly Rae Jepsen	"I Really Like You"	12	66
21	Estonia	English	Rasmus Rändvee & Facelift Deer	"Dance"	15	52

Grand Final

Draw	Country	Language	Artist	Song	Place	Points
01	Armenia		Sofi Mkheyan	"Hayastani Erge"	16	93
02	New Zealand		Ginny Blackmore & Stan Walker	"Holding You"	4	156
03	Croatia		Kristina	"Brzo I Bezobrazno"	17	88
04	Albania		Genta Ismajli ft. Ardian & Dalool	"Feel"	22	63
05	Austria		Conchita Wurst	"Somebody To Love"	19	82
06	Romania		Antonia	"Chica loca"	7	141
07	Ireland		Janet Devlin	"Creatures of the Night"	21	64
08	Latvia		Samanta Tina	"Stay"	10	116
09	Italy		Dolcenara	"Accendi Lo Spirito"	5	154
10	Greece		Angelika Dusk ft. Playmen	"Beautiful Love"	26	37
11	Netherlands		Sharon Doorson	"Electrify"	25	50
12	Cyprus		Kate	"Don't Let Go"	18	85
13	Moldova		Dima Trofim	"Cerșesc iubire”	13	97
14	United Kingdom		Clean Bandit	"Stronger"	3	159
15	Czech Republic		Mafia Corner ft. Tereza Kerndlová	"Být či Nebýt"	6	148
16	Ukraine		Ani Lorak	"Ships"	9	134
17	Germany		Lena	"Traffic Lights"	1	290
18	Australia		Karise Eden	"Black Heart"	14	96
19	Norway		Carina Dahl	"(Come A Little) Closer"	2	160
20	Sweden		Dolly Style	"Cherry Gum"	11	113
21	Bosnia and Herzegovina		Neda Ukraden ft. Uciteljice	"Noci U Brazilu"	15	94
22	Algeria		Milk & Honey	"Didi"	20	67
23	Spain		Brittany Mullen ft. Leroy Sanchez	"War Island"	24	53
24	France		Nolween Leroy	"Tri Martolod"	12	108
25	Uzbekistan		Rayhon	"Unutaman"	8	138
26	Switzerland		Vava Voom	"Turn Up the Night"	23	54

International broadcasts and voting

Voting and spokepersons

Olivia Furtună Ann Sophie Aminata Zhanar Dugalova Andri Xhahu David Carreira Ryan Reynolds Dino Merlin Celeste Buckingham Alexandra Joner Amel Bent Filippa Bark Rui Andrade Melanie René Louis Marta Jandová Ilse DeLange

Katy Perry  Gianluca Ginoble  Paula Seling  Greta Salomé Selena Gomez Despina Vandi  Elina Born Megan Lee Jorge Gonzales Dami Im Tamar Kaprelian Zlata Ognevich  Jeannie Hsieh Alan Ellie Goulding  Nicky Byrne

Lorde  Krista Siegfrids  Michele Perniola  Severina  Kate Ryan  Andreas Gabalier  Sogdiana Hadise  Kati Wolf  Vaidas & Monika  Farid Mammadov  Anne Gadegard  Maraaya  Sergey Lazarev  Cleo  Nina Sublatti