Czech Republic: Marta Jandová & Václav Noid Bárta for Vienna!

The announcement that the Czech Republic will be back in the 2015 Eurovision Song Contest after five years of absence has created a lot of enthusiasm and joy among fans and professionals alike. And now we can say that these feelings are well-deserved, as the country will be represented by two truly outstanding artists.

Expert jury choice

The expert jury in charge of the selection consisted of music journalist Honza Dědek, talent scout Martin Červinka, Czech Radio desk-woman Jitka Benešová and musicians Michal Hrůza and Michael Kocáb. Producer Ondřej Soukup explains the choice to Eurovision.tv:

 We have been going through Czech musicians basically one by one and finally figured that on an European contest like this one, nobody is going to judge based on popularity, but rather how charming and how good of a singer the contender is. There are not many people that are really worth betting your own shoes on. In this contest, each contender only has one chance that lasts three minutes.
 

Martin Červinka adds:

 Marta Jandová and Václav Noid Bárta are a great choice in my opinion. Marta has international experience that can certainly come in handy in the contest. And Noid is a charming singer, which is why I think they make a really good combination. Whole Europe will participate in this contest – I can’t see a reason why it shouldn't include Czech Republic too. After all, it's about entertainment and viewers all across the Europe are really excited about it.
 

Hope Never Dies

Not only did the experts have to choose the performers, but also the song they are going to perform in Vienna. Both Czech and Slovak songwriters were addressed to write a song for the contest. Michael Kocáb describes the decision process:

 The songs we were choosing from were quite on par with each other in my opinion. However, the winning song Hope Never Dies was a candidate of mine too. It sports a peculiar and nice chorus, along with some nice and surprising modulation. And when I heard it, I figured that this song can really impress if done well.
 

The jury had to choose between songs without knowing the songwriter. Only after the final decision, it turned out that Hope Never Dies was written by its future performer, Václav Noid Bárta!

Super-excited about Eurovision

Marta Jandová tells us about her feelings to join the Eurovision Song Contest stage:

 For ten years, I have been living in Germany where everybody watches Eurovision, including the toughest rockers who always have a six-pack to go with their TV. It is a major evening for them, one of the reasons probably being they've already won twice. To know that a lot of my German friends will be watching makes the whole thing twice as interesting for me!
 

Václav Noid Bárta shares her point of view:

 It's an honor for me and I'm really happy about it. Together with Marta, we're going to try not to embarrass the Czech Republic. Eurovision is a good contest, not quite as well established around here, but I know from my friends abroad that they are super-excited about it, consider it a real spectacle and festivity.
 

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Marta Jandová

Marta Jandova was born on April 13, 1974. She is the daughter of Petr Janda, one of the most popular Czech rock musicians. In 1993 she came to Germany and joined the band Die Happy as their lead singer.

In addition to that, she's also pursued a solo career, and she participated in the German Bundesvision Song Contest in 2005 and 2007, where she teamed up with the bands Apocalyptica and Oomph, respectively.

In 2008 she moved to Prague and her career diversified: She worked both as a TV presenter and continued to perform as a vocalist with several popular bands in Germany and the Czech Republic.

Václav Noid Bárta about Marta Jandová:

 I've already had the opportunity to perform with Marta before and we both felt there was quite good chemistry going on. Marta is sensuous, a real woman, with an amazing voice and great technique. Her personality oozes charisma which means anyone could sing a duet with her and it would turn out well.
 

Václav Noid Bárta

Václav Noid Bárta was born on October 17, 1980. His father was a lyricist and producer, while his mother was a singer.

At the age of 17, he became the lead vocalist of the rock band Dolores Clan, and at the same time starred in several musicals including Aida and Jesus Christ Superstar.

Today he is famous as a singer, composer, lyricist, and actor - so, a very versatile artist altogether.

Marta Jandová about Václav Noid Bárta:

 Václav is a very talented singer. I used to think he is just kind of a self-made rocker, but he turned out to be a full-fledged musician. There is also a big topic we share that makes us closer – our two little daughters about whom we talk quite a lot.