Eurovision Voting Goes Global, Giving U.S. Fans a Say on European Musical Contest

Americans will soon get a chance to vote in the Eurovision Song Contest, the musical competition that celebrates kitschy pop and helped launch the careers of ABBA and Celine Dion.

Eurovision’s pomp and spectacle draw comparisons to the Olympics. It’s watched by about 160 million people on TV in Europe and Australia. It remains niche entertainment in the U.S., an oddity from across the globe with unknown performers in weird costumes belting ballads, electropop and the occasional rock or country song. Not everything’s sung in English.