Next on the Eurovision Top 100 countdown is a Russian entry, “You Are the Only One,” performed by Sergey Lazarev.
The Euro Yard will maintain our position that Sergey Lazarev was the best performer Russia ever sent to the Eurovision Song Contest. You may disagree if you so choose – after all, they won the contest and not with him – but here’s a guy who finished in the top three twice. As we will get into, his performances, especially this one in 2016, have been visually stunning.
Editor’s Note: Our goal in watching all Eurovision Song Contests is to find the best songs of all-time, among other things. Despite the current geopolitical situation, we wanted to make sure we scored each song fairly and on its own merits (or lack thereof).
Vital Information: “You Are the Only One”
| Song | You Are the Only One |
| Performed By | Sergey Lazarev |
| Written By | John Ballard, Ralph Charlie, Dimitris Kontopoulos, & Philipp Kirkorov |
| Country | Russia |
| Year | 2016 |
| Language(s) Performed In | English |
| How It Fared | 3rd Place (491 points) |
| Was It Fair? | Yes |
What I Liked
Lazarev is a very visual performer. As such, the staging elements that he used in this song (as well as his second entry in 2019) were quite advanced. This was the song where he had a background panel behind him, and the steps up the wall he took seemed to appear out of thin air. Of course, they did not, but that was the effect. It was one of the more visually appealing Eurovision songs we have ever rated.
Let’s be fair, though: Lazarev can sing as well. He did not get the highest marks for vocals in 2016 – but the song that did is further down this list. However, as a singer, he is certainly above-average.
Other Facts
- As mentioned before, Lazarev appeared at Eurovision twice as Russia’s representative. This was his first appearance. He came in third place both times.
- One of the songwriters was Philipp Kirkorov, who appeared at Eurovision in 1995 with his song “Kolybelnaya dlya vulkana.”
- This song went 18th in the grand final.
- Lazarev won the first semifinal, and as noted came in third in the grand final. Russia received douze points from four countries: Azerbaijan, Belarus, Cyprus, and Greece.
Time to Watch “You Are the Only One”
Here is the music video on YouTube. You may be able to find the 2016 grand final online as well so that you can see the visuals for yourself.
