mrv86: "Mind That the Lyrics Support the Tune"
Mrv86 has hosted the TISC Finals twice (or thrice, if we count the Special Event), and has lead his nation to numerous notable placings, including a podium finish at the 2016 Open.
Mexico, however, also holds an extraordinary voting record. They are the only jury who have, in 14 previous editions, awarded the maximum 12 points to 14 different nations! Can we therefore already exclude MAR, BRA, FRA, CHI, ARG, ESP, ITA, CRO, CAN, IRL, RUS, NED, ALG, AUS from the pool of potential gold medal winners...?
Q: How do you go about evaluating TISC entries? Do you use a specific system when picking out your Top 12?
A: I usually hear the songs individually a couple of times; from there I put them in a "mostly in" and a "mostly out", and listen to another couple of times; for each list, I select those songs which "grew" or "stayed" for another round and pick 16 entries, which then will be ranked and selected as Top 12 or reserves, which usually leaves me with a bittersweet feeling because I'd wish to award points to those sixteen.
Q: And what about the maximum 12 points? Can you recognize it immediately? Or do you take a certain amount of time before deciding on it?
A: I can say that rarely I know the winning song from the start, but most usually my eventual pick is in the top 4 from the beginning. The only exception, if I recall was "Onaj Dan" by Antonela Doko which managed to keep number one since I first listened to it.
Q: Do you have a favorite music genre? Is there any genre you would like to hear more of on the TISC stage?
A: Well, I do enjoy most musical genres, even if I'm a fool for pop and rock. I'd say they're a lot of genres that have never been performed at TISC, including most of Mexico's traditional music.
Q: How important are lyrics to you?
A: I have to admit that each edition that passes, I've put less focus on lyrics. However, I do actually try to pay as much attention to the content of a song, as I always mind that the lyrics support the tune, but most importantly that the vocal performance interprets and conveys the message of those lyrics.
Q: And finally... How can we get 12 points from mrv86?
A: There's no rule for that. All I can say to the other jurors when picking a song is avoid a terrible vocalist and anything that shows complete disrespect for anyone. Other than that, I just say I'm privileged to enjoy the entries of each edition, as they have let me know more about TISC participants and their countries.
If mrv86's musical preferences still feel like a jigsaw puzzle - maybe this will help. Our resident Mexican juror has outlined the following entries as favorites during the most recent editions...
Stay tuned for more user interviews to come, as we count down to TOISC 2020...