NeonoeN, Montenegro’s Eurovision 2025 representatives, address allegations of rule violations. The band defends their victory and expresses readiness to support alternative decisions.
NeonoeN, the band chosen to represent Montenegro at Eurovision 2025 after winning the national selection “Montesong 2024” last week, has responded to accusations of violating competition rules. Just three days after their selection, the Montenegrin national broadcaster, RTCG, confirmed that the band had performed a different version of their song “Clickbait” well before September 1, 2024, which contravenes contest regulations. The band has now addressed this issue in a post on their Instagram account.
“Thank you to our colleagues and everyone who called and wrote to us. We are glad they know we won under fair conditions and that we had no competitive advantage because we performed one of the working versions to a small audience, at a time when Montesong wasn’t even being considered.”
הצגת פוסט זה באינסטגרם
Addressing Potential Disqualification
Nina Žižić, who placed second in the national selection with her song “Dobrodošli” (“Welcome”), could potentially replace NeonoeN if they are disqualified. The band addressed this possibility in their post: “We will respect any decision and are ready to represent Montenegro properly in Basel, but also to support Nina if the decision is not in our favor. There have been such cases in the past, and the European Broadcasting Union has dealt with them in the same way.”
The band’s post included a link to a Facebook post by the European Broadcasting Union discussing the rule about song release/public performance from September 1 and how past cases have been handled.
Previous Eurovision Winners’ Similar Situations
Even some past Eurovision winners have faced similar controversies. After the 2016 Eurovision Song Contest, a public performance of an earlier version of Jamala‘s winning song “1944” from May 2015 was discovered. The video of the performance had only been viewed by a few hundred people before it was published. The European Broadcasting Union, based on previous decisions, determined that the published video did not give Jamala’s song an unfair advantage in Eurovision 2016, and therefore the song was eligible to compete.
A similar case occurred with the winning song of Eurovision 2019, “Arcade” by Duncan Laurence, and the decision was identical to that of Jamala’s case.
Montenegro in Eurovision 2025
“Clickbait” is the name of the song that NeonoeN will perform in the semi-final of Eurovision 2025. The song was written by the band’s guitarist Ilija Pejović. It was selected in the Montenegrin national selection “Montesong 2024” and performed in the Montenegrin language. Montenegro returns to the competition after a two-year absence.
The song “Clickbait” delves into the impact of social media and internet culture on daily life. Its central message critiques addiction to social networks, the influence of sensationalist headlines, and their detrimental effects on behavior. It highlights the blurring of lines between reality and virtuality, showcasing how individuals are drawn into a digital world of sensational content, rapid reactions, and shares, often at the expense of genuine connections and face-to-face interactions. The overarching theme is a critique of modern digital culture and its influence on human behavior and interpersonal relationships.
Currently, Montenegro ranks 37th in the betting odds for Eurovision 2025.
NeonoeN – Who Are You?
The band NeonoeN was formed in 2012 under the name Neon. The members are Marko Vukčević, the lead vocalist; Ilija Pejović, the songwriter and guitarist; Filip Vulanović, the bassist; and Milan Vujović, the drummer.
Despite years of activity, their first original single, “Ti i ja solo,” was only released in 2018. In 2023, a decade after their formation, the band decided to change their name to NeonoeN to avoid confusion with other bands sharing the same name.
Currently, the band is working on a new album, having already released two tracks from it: “Dok Ne Udahnem Te u” and “Dječak Sa Vjetrom U Kosi.”
Source: rtcg.me
Eurovision 2025: This will be Montenegro’s 13th participation in the Eurovision Song Contest. Montenegro joined the competition in 2007 and achieved its best result in Eurovision Song Contest 2015 when singer Knez reached 13th place with the song “Adio”.
