Fuss in the Valencian Community for the presentation of a festival "as God intended" to fight against the Benidorm Fest: "We wanted heterosexual lyrics"

Esther Mucientes Madrid

Madrid

Updated Friday, February 9, 2024-11:39

Thursday afternoon. In the media there is news of the presentation of a new festival, with characteristics, logo and objectives very similar to

Benidorm Fest

, to promote music festivals in the

Valencian Community

. Its name:

International Song Festival

. Its leitmotiv: "Highlight the musical diversity of Spain and promote it globally. It offers a platform to recognized and emerging artists, who will contribute to the enrichment of the Spanish musical panorama. In addition, it will encourage international collaboration and consolidate Spain's position on the musical scene global, while creating a unique musical experience for the public.

In the first hours, many media published that said festival, whose intention was

to rival the

Benidorm Fest

, was supported and sponsored by the

Generalitat Valenciana

. Promoted by the

SGAE

and several representatives of the music industry such as

Magnitude Creativa

or

Uniacords

, it also had the support of the

Department of Culture and Sports

of the Generalitat, chaired by

Vicente Barrera

(Vox). The controversy breaks out: was the Generalitat going to support a festival whose intention is to fight against the

Benidorm Fest,

which it has been supporting and promoting in its three editions?

The government of the Valencian Community is made up of

PP

and

Vox

, the latter party being the one that heads the

Department of Culture

. Its councilor, the former bullfighter

Vicente Barrera

, who is also first vice president of the regional executive, was going to participate in the presentation of the festival announced for February 14 at the SGAE

headquarters

.

In addition to Magnitude Creativa as promoter and organizer, the SGAE and the SGAE Foundation, the new Festival has as associated media

À Punt

, the Valencian public regional television,

Uniacords

, which is an audiovisual production company and

Odisey Ibiza

, a music production company that organizes the called Music-Camps "in which artists and producers live and produce for a few days in a unique environment."

Furthermore, on the festival's website it is stated that it has the support of major record labels such as

Sony Music

,

Warner

or

Niwala Music

; as well as representation and production agencies, or the cultural patronage portal Fun and Money, subsidized by the Ministry of Culture and Sports.

However, the tsunami was such that a few hours after the information was published, the

Generalitat Valenciana was forced to release a statement informing that it will not support this festival either institutionally or financially

, considering that there may be "some duplicity with another that is celebrated with these characteristics in the Valencian Community". The

Benidorm Fest

or RTVE are not named in this statement

, but the "duplicity" it speaks of could only refer to the festival held in Benidorm.

In the same letter, the Generalitat recalled that "the Consell collaborates with music festival associations to promote projects within its commitment to music tourism, in addition to supporting different proposals that are already being consolidated." However, given the information published, the Valencian Government wanted to make clear "

the total support and support of the Generalitat for the Benidorm Fest",

whose festival represents one of the largest musical and tourist projections in the Autonomous Community.

Following the statement from the Generalitat expressing its lack of support for the

International Song Festival

, the Spanish-speaking platform against discrimination against Spanish in the Valencian Community has made public through X a note in which they assure that "we wanted to launch a festival "without stridency, with heterosexual lyrics, absent of nationalist interference and non-subversive musical styles. A contest as God intended, but censorship is going to take it away."

Despite the message, the festival's website is still in operation and it informs that those who want to participate must do so

starting February 15

, sending identification documents of all the performers and composers, the song in MP3, authorization of the publisher and the discography (if any), as well as the 30 euro subscription.

The contest will put two prizes at stake: one of

50,000 euros for the artist

and another of

30,000 for the composer.