Since 2007, the Belarusian entries for the Eurovision Song Contest have been selected in the national project EuroFest, which is considered a big success in terms of viewing rates and a major stepping stone for young artists willing to showcase their musical skills. That's why the festival has been launched again this year.
Singers, who must be citizens or permanent residents of Belarus, and songwriters of any national background can send in their applications to take part in the EuroFest until 20 November. After that, a jury will choose 15 entries to be presented in a national Semi-Final in mid-December, which will be broadcast live. During that show, two or three entries will be selected by a combination of televoting and an expert jury - they will go forward to the Final, which is set to take place in the second half of January 2009. In the Final, a jury will decide the winner.
In the 2008 Eurovision Song Contest, Belarus was represented by Ruslan Alehno, who came 17th in the Second Semi-Final with his song Hasta La Vista. Thus, he did not qualify for the Final.Â
