Glen Vella: One Life, One Year On

As most of the nation will be stuck to the telly tonight to see who will win the right to represent Malta at this year’s Eurovision, I caught up with last year’s winner Glen Vella.

It’s been a year since a smiling, bouncing off the walls Glen was announced winner of the Malta Eurovision song contest. Those who follow the Malta Eurovision regularly – and I know there are many of you – are unlikely to have forgotten the scene showing the different emotions running across the young singer’s face. Television viewers fell in love with Glen the second the cameras turned to show first a dumbfounded and unbelieving expression, then a hundred mega-watt smile, then finally the jumping for joy part (and we are being literal here) which saw Glen go up on stage to give the judges and the presenters a heartfelt hug. Glen is undoubtedly one of the most well-loved and eagerly cheered singers to have earnt the right to represent Malta in the Eurovision song contest.

Fast-forward twelve months later and people still smile indulgently and with affection when you mention his name. His song One Life is not one of those that did spectacularly well – indeed, Malta was not present at last year’s finals in Dusseldorf. But this has not affected Glen’s standing with Eurovision fans one bit and it’s easy to see why. Throughout it all, Glen never succumbed to “diva-itis” once and, regardless of the end result he not only gave the fans a great performance but also kept a dignified stance throughout.  I think to myself that if Glen were to become an internet meme, his tagline would read something on the lines of: Charisma: He has it.

As soon as I meet up with him for this “post-mortem” interview, I realise that one year on he hasn’t changed much and that the bubbly and uber-friendly persona he is so well-known for is still very much there. Even though we’ve never met in person, he greets me with genuine enthusiasm, full of excitement for this year’s edition of the Malta Eurovision contest despite the fact that he will be taking part from a totally different perspective.

“I’m actually busier and more involved than I was before! After all at this time last year I only had one song to prepare for. Without giving too much away, let’s just say that this time round I will be giving one hell of a show. It’s great to be part of it all once again, the excitement will be at fever pitch these coming days!”

Of course, when I say that nothing much has changed for Glen I am exaggerating. In some ways, he tells me, the Eurovision experience does change your personality.

“It helped me mature, both professionally and as a person. During those months I met so many people who turned out to be invaluable contacts. And it’s not just about the networking, mind you. The event gives you a different perspective to being a singer, it helps you adopt more adult approach to everything.”

Come to think of it, it’s probably a massive coming-of-age experience. Glen agrees and before I know it he’s off on what looks to be like a pretty good trip down memory lane. He tells me how, soon after the Eurovision was over, he was contacted by the producers of Dana International who so enjoyed his performance that they wanted to work with him. Glen’s new release Lie, is in fact released under their label. As a result of taking part in the event, Glen was also invited to tour in several countries that boast a massive Eurovision fanbase.

“I’ve done a lot of shows in Germany, for instance. People just love the whole event there and there are regular Eurovision parties organised for the fans. Taking part in these parties is great fun, I always have a blast. At the moment I’m finalising some dates to play in the Netherlands and in Portugal. I’ve been lucky because I’ve had a continuous string of invites and offers to perform since last May.”

Of course it’s not just a question of luck, but more of leaving the right impression on the right people. Glen might not have made it to the Eurovision finals last year (for one measly point, please note!) but his rendition of  One Life evidently struck the right chord with many.

“I got great reactions from the audience and from the delegations of the countries last year. So, yes, from that respect I was satisfied with the outcome.”

Despite not making it to the finals?

“Of course I was extremely disappointed, especially when you bear in mind that we almost made it. But ultimately I know I gave a great performance. Put it this way, whenever I look at the video of the night on Youtube, I always get a thrill. And I feel happy, because I know that it was not my performance that was at fault. This makes the happiness outweigh the disappointment by far.”

When I ask whether he would consider taking part again, Glen doesn’t even hesitate to reply in the affirmative. He points out that you should never underestimate the power of experience and, knowing certain things from beforehand would definitely make things a million times easier.

“The performance was great yes, and that is all that counts. But other elements are important too and I went there ‘blind’. No-one really told me what to expect. And to a certain extent we were all new at it. Now I know what to watch out for.”

The singer certainly has no regrets about the whole thing. He tells me that he never went there with the intention of making it the apex of his career. Contrary to what those who aren’t involved in the scene might think, Glen does not view his participation in the Eurovision as the high point of his career but as a mere stepping stone.

“It’s a bridge. Think of people like Celine Dion, who won the contest in 1988, she didn’t stop there did she? The Eurovision is viewed by newbies as the chance to get a foot in the door to launch a career in music. As for those who already have achieved a certain degree of success, they usually use it to stage a come-back. Take Blue, who represented the UK last year. They’d already hit it big before that and were trying to climb back into the charts. They used the Eurovision as a springboard. It didn’t really work out in the long-term for them, but it might have...”

This year, Glen adds, it’s French singer Anggun who is going down this road. Best known for her 1997 hit Snow in the Sahara, Anggun’s career hit a lull in the past years. Come May she will be representing France in Azerbaijan.

“Anggun has not had a hit in years and that’s the only reason she’s doing this, it’s obvious. The Eurovision isn’t prestigious per se, it’s sought for the doors it might open. If she were at the cusp of her career she certainly wouldn’t have accepted. Can you picture Gaga or Beyonce doing this?” he asks with a cheeky grin.

And if the come-back doesn’t really work, chances are that the participant will still come out a winner, Glen adds. After all, even  just the short span of time that the winning song stays in the charts in the singer’s country usually yields enough of a financial return to justify the participation.

“Think about it this way. Abroad, as soon as a song hits national radio and the charts, the income starts rolling in. Things don’t work exactly the same in Malta, but for foreign singers the benefits of participation – providing all goes well on stage – are considerable.”

This is also why Glen believes that anyone who truly wants to make it big in showbiz needs to leave Malta. In his own words, you have to be based where there is the money. When I ask him if he has considered doing exactly this, he hesitates for a minute before explaining that it’s not a path he is actively pursuing.  

“I’m actually happy to live in Malta. I’m close to my family and my friends. Add to this the fact that currently I’m happy with the way that my career is developing, so I do not have that immediate motivation to pack up my bags and try my luck. Thankfully I have enough work that I enjoy. If opportunity happens to knock, I’m not going to close the door on it. That would be stupid. But let’s be realistic here, opportunity never comes knocking. You need to get out and find it and grab it yourself,” he says with a smile.

I bring the subject back to the Eurovision, pointing out that despite all the advantages to taking part that he has mentioned, fact remains that the event receives constant criticism on three fronts; the financial outlay that necessarily comes with taking part, the voting system that is deemed to be too biased towards certain countries and the fact that the quality of the music itself can leave a lot to be desired. What does Glen make of all this?

“You really have to look at the source of the criticism before. Some people criticise very harshly, but then you take a good look at their career and you realise that the criticism is motivated by subjective issues: namely the fact that this person might not have made it, would have like to be involved in the organisation or whatever. Biased criticism should not worry us.”

What about the genuine sort?

“In that case, to each his own I say. Of course everyone has the right to choose not to follow it, but this doesn’t mean they have the right to stop me from enjoying it. After all there are a number of events that I myself don’t enjoy but I don’t attempt to stop them and ruin the fun for others, do I? Live and let live...”

Our chat turns back to this weekend and the sparkle in Glen’s eyes increases. He confesses that performing One Life this weekend on the Malta Eurovision song contest stage is going to be a bit of a bittersweet experience.

“Somehow there is the feeling that this is the last time I’ll be performing it on stage. It’s not really the case, of course,” he adds with a rueful laugh. “On the contrary, I’ll probably be performing this song for my whole life! But it’s like I’m handing over to someone else now so yes, there is a sense of an ending.”

But the bittersweet moment soon passes and Glen is already back in glee-mode as he tells me that he has something “awesome” prepared for his performance today (Saturday). Before I leave, I can’t help adding one slightly nasty question. What about all the reputed bitchiness that takes place backstage? The singer bursts out laughing.

“We’re a competitive bunch. Everyone wants to win, what do you think? But calling it bitchiness is taking it too far. It’s more like, some people start acting weird when the contest is on the horizon. This is a small community where we all know each other and we usually all end up working together at one time or another. But sometimes things start getting a bit funny on the actual night of the competition. I find it really odd when suddenly someone stops talking to me because we are both competing in the Malta Eurovision. I just don’t get it. As competitive as I am, away from the stage it’s always back to normal with my friendships.”

Seriously, people do that?

“Yep. It’s a bit funny, really. However, I should add that when I won last year everyone was genuinely happy for me. There was a lot of jumping around and yelling and clapping. Sometimes the reactions aren’t as generous. There have been times when someone won the contest and it’s like only me and someone else applauding and being happy for them. For me, it wasn’t like that.”

And has Glen himself every committed the odd bout of bitching?

“Like I said we all want to win. Last year many of those taking part were my good friends. I still wanted to beat them, it’s only natural. But that’s as far as it goes.”

And off he goes to do his thing on TV.