Critic Jonni: Jana Burčeska

Dance Alone - Jana Burčheska |

Well, how this didn't make the Eurovision Song Contest 2017's grand final, I do not know; she may have been overshadowed, to be fair, but she gave a brilliant performance on the night; and just look at how high of a quality this music video is, just wow! Representing Macedonia, also known as the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (F.Y.R. Macedonia), was Jana Burčeska with her song "Dance Alone" gaining 65 points in the second semi-final, 29 from the juries and 40 from the televote. The music video is out-of-this-world, literally, good, like you need to watch it! Taking virtual reality headsets to the next level, watch Jana Burčeska as an old woman, fantasising about dancing with her man through a VR set in this Eurovision 2017 song "Dance Alone".

Jana Burčeska first came to prominence in the first series of Macedonian Idol, where she came fifth, back in 2011. Zoom forward five years and she was announced, through internal selection, as the Macedonian entrant to the Eurovision Song Contest 2017, with this song. She may have only come 15th in the second semi-final, but she'll always treasure this day, because, broadcast live for the world to see, her then-boyfriend pulled out a ring and proposed to her. This news made headlines all over the world, and I guess it's a small consolation prize for not winning the contest or even making the grand final. This song was written by Joacim Persson, Alex Omar, Florence A. and Borislav Milanov.

Now, this is what you call a music video, a narrative and performance piece combined together through a virtual reality headset. The narrative slightly reminds me of Chad Kroeger in the Avril Lavigne music video "Let Me Go" which features him as an old man before looking in a mirror and seeing his former self. In this one, an old woman puts on a headset and turns into her younger self, the person we now see as Jana Burčeska.

During the virtual reality scene, Jana Burčeska is dancing with a guy, flirting and teasing with a guy, who, unfortunately, isn't her new fiancé - although they do look similar.

Outside of the VR headset, the old woman can be seen doing household chores, such as washing up. She's clearly alone, and it's quite saddening to see. There's a clear connection between the song and the music video, and these scenes are edited well. It really does tell a brilliant story.

The best part of the video is the ending scene as it switches from young Jana Burčeska to the old woman; it's the exact same room, the exact same picture of the man, but there's a coloured distortion and just proves that they are the same person. This music video is amazing, and so much better than the stage production of the song; although, the song itself is brilliant as well.