"La Coco-Dance" was the
MonegasqueMonaco , officially the Principality of Monaco , is a sovereign city state on the French Riviera. It is bordered on three sides by its neighbour, France, and its centre is about from Italy. Its area is with a population of 35,986 as of 2011 and is the most densely populated country in the...
entry in the
Eurovision Song Contest 2006The Eurovision Song Contest 2006 was the 51st Eurovision Song Contest, held at the Olympic Indoor Hall in Athens, Greece on 18 May and 20 May 2006 . The hosting national broadcaster of the contest was Ellinikí Radiofonía Tileórasi . The Finnish band Lordi won the contest with the song "Hard Rock...
, performed in
FrenchFrench is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
and
TahitianTahitian is an indigenous language spoken mainly in the Society Islands in French Polynesia. It is an Eastern Polynesian language closely related to the other indigenous languages spoken in French Polynesia: Marquesan, Tuamotuan, Mangarevan, and Austral Islands languages...
by
Séverine FerrerSéverine Ferrer is a French singer.-Biography:Ferrer was born in Montpellier and grew up on the island of Réunion. In 1991, Ferrer and her family moved to Paris. She began her career by appearing in television series. In 2004, Ferrer released a new album and a clothing line for pregnant women...
. This was the first - and to date, the only - occasion on which the Tahitian language was used at the Contest.
The song is inspired by island music - particularly that of the South PacificOceania is a region centered on the islands of the tropical Pacific Ocean. Conceptions of what constitutes Oceania range from the coral atolls and volcanic islands of the South Pacific to the entire insular region between Asia and the Americas, including Australasia and the Malay Archipelago...
. Ferrer, herself raised on RéunionRéunion is a French island with a population of about 800,000 located in the Indian Ocean, east of Madagascar, about south west of Mauritius, the nearest island.Administratively, Réunion is one of the overseas departments of France...
island in the Indian OceanThe Indian Ocean is the third largest of the world's oceanic divisions, covering approximately 20% of the water on the Earth's surface. It is bounded on the north by the Indian Subcontinent and Arabian Peninsula ; on the west by eastern Africa; on the east by Indochina, the Sunda Islands, and...
, sings about the need to relax and let the world pass one by, as well as to "Let yourself go and come dancing". She then tells her listeners that when they feel "your luck below zero", they should join with her in the titular "coco dance", which is apparently related to the tamureThe tāmūrē, or Tamouré as popularized in many 1960s recordings, is a dance from Tahiti and the Cook Islands and although denied by the local purists, for the rest of the world it is the most popular dance and the mark of Tahiti...
of French PolynesiaFrench Polynesia is an overseas country of the French Republic . It is made up of several groups of Polynesian islands, the most famous island being Tahiti in the Society Islands group, which is also the most populous island and the seat of the capital of the territory...
. The chorus itself is delivered in Tahitian, while the dance instructions are in French.
In keeping with the theme of the song, Ferrer (wearing a tight multicoloured dress) was joined onstage by five dancers (some of whom also doubled as backing singers) wearing grass skirts and performing a more energetic version of the dance she was instructing her listeners in. The Tahitian-language shouts of "Join us in our dance" were performed by the male members of this group.
At the close of the song, Ferrer was lifted onto the shoulders of her male dancers, delivering the spoken line "Coco-Dance" acapella.
The uncharacteristic style and performance (Monaco and France both being known for entering gentle ballads) was remarked upon by the BBCThe British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
commentator immediately following the performance, who said " - Who knew Monaco was so versatile?"
As Monaco had not competed in the final at the 2005 contestThe Eurovision Song Contest 2005 was the 50th Eurovision Song Contest, which was held at the Palace of Sports, Kiev, Ukraine. The winner was Greece's My Number One, written by Christos Dantis and Natalia Germanou and performed by Swedish-born Greek singer Elena Paparizou, who scored 230 points,...
, the song was performed in the semi-final. Here, it was performed tenth (following CyprusCyprus , officially the Republic of Cyprus , is a Eurasian island country, member of the European Union, in the Eastern Mediterranean, east of Greece, south of Turkey, west of Syria and north of Egypt. It is the third largest island in the Mediterranean Sea.The earliest known human activity on the...
' Annette ArtaniAnnet Artani is an American singer and songwriter. She is best known for representing Cyprus in the Eurovision Song Contest 2006 with the song "Why Angels Cry", as well as co-writing worldwide hit "Everytime" with Britney Spears.Artani is currently signed to Ultra Records and is pursuing a career...
with "Why Angels Cry"Why Angels Cry" was the Cypriot entry in the Eurovision Song Contest 2006, performed in English by Annet Artani.-Style and lyrical content:The song is a ballad, with Artani asking why difficulties occur in the world. In an interview, Artani explained that angels cry for many reasons and that her...
" and preceding FYR MacedoniaMacedonia , officially the Republic of Macedonia , is a country located in the central Balkan peninsula in Southeast Europe. It is one of the successor states of the former Yugoslavia, from which it declared independence in 1991...
's Elena RisteskaElena Risteska is a Macedonian singer and song-writer. She represented Macedonia in the Eurovision Song Contest 2006, held in Athens with the song "Ninanajna" and finished on the 12th place. That is the best result made by Macedonia in the Eurovision Song Contest ever...
with "Ninanajna"Ninanajna" was the Macedonian entry in the 2006 Eurovision Song Contest, performed in Macedonian and English by Elena Risteska, composed and produced by Darko Dimitrov and with lyrics by Rade Vrčakovski. Versions were also recorded entirely in each of the two languages...
"). At the close of voting, it had received 14 points, placing 21st in a field of 23.
This is Monaco's last Eurovision entry to date, the principalityA principality is a monarchical feudatory or sovereign state, ruled or reigned over by a monarch with the title of prince or princess, or by a monarch with another title within the generic use of the term prince....
did not participate in the 2007 ContestThe Eurovision Song Contest 2007 was the 52nd edition of the Eurovision Song Contest. It was won by first-time appearance as an independent country Serbia and was held at the Hartwall Areena in Helsinki, Finland from 10 May to 12 May. The host broadcaster was YLE.Finland earned the right to host...
and has yet to return.
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