Agoney: “I had another song for Benidorm Fest but I didn’t see it. I wanted something really authentic”

“Quiero arder” is a “high-temperature” song that towers above a violin set, united on a foundation of unpredictable and multi-sensory electronics, which the singer will defend at the TVE competition with a performance designed by set designer David Pizarro. He designed the music video for Aitana’s song ‘En el coche’. YOTELE talks to Agoney about his candidacy for Benidorm Fest 2023 with ‘Quiero arder’, among other things.

How do you feel after ‘I want to burn’ is released?

I am happy to come to this festival with a song that truly and uniquely represents me. It’s a song that I created, that I want and, above all, that I have to do. Imagine I went to Eurovision 2018 with a song called ‘Magia’, which was so happy and performing a magic trick which honestly sounded like a nuisance to me. I didn’t see him. I was criticized a lot for not voting for me. I remember it like it was yesterday but it wasn’t.

You should also feel comfortable with what you represent as an artist.

For me and for everyone. Imagine if I went with something to make a fool of myself and that shows. I’m happy now.

What did you take inspiration from? For example in Monica Naranjo?

I get asked a lot of questions about Monica because I understand that she is one of the most privileged voices in this country, with an extensive track record. Maybe there aren’t many people with that record, and that’s why I’m being compared to him and Adam Lambert. I invite journalists to ask the same thing about 40 artists in this country: heterosexual men whose songs are exactly the same and I can’t distinguish them when I listen to them on the radio.

To some people, ‘I want to burn’ at a certain moment reminds me of Maruk’s song ‘Siren Song’, which will represent Ukraine in 2019 and has been withdrawn.

They’ve said it before but I don’t know who it is.

You are also changing records with ‘I want to burn’.

Look, I’ll tell you an anecdote. I taught the subject to my grandmother. There was the speaking part, and when the front chorus came in, I was like, ‘Who is that girl?’ (Laughter). And I told him it was me.

When we spoke to you at the ‘The Incredible Duo’ press conference, you didn’t know if you would be performing at Benidorm Fest. Moreover, there were only a few days left until the closing of the application deadline. What finally convinced you?

Subject. There was an offer with another subject on the table, but I did not see it. They told me it would be great for my career and resonate everywhere. And yes, it was going to be a topic that was talked about in all radio stations in the country and abroad, but I did not want that. I really wanted something authentic. The person who said ‘this is me’ and would be proud to see again 40 years later. I finally made 13-14 and they didn’t find out. They wanted to kill me for doing what I wanted behind their backs, but that’s what I wanted to do.

Will there be too much sex and sensuality on stage?

There will be no sex because it’s not in the lyrics. This was on ‘Fallen Angel’, a topic for stress relief and live sex. The lyrics go elsewhere here, but it’s true that it has an erotic side.

Have you already thought about staging then?

Yes.

You also share the bill with Alfred García at Benidorm Fest 2023. I think it’s special to share this experience after ‘OT’.

I was shocked to see him here at our first press conference. I would look at it and say ‘OT vibrations’. It was very strange because I also see very little of it, but it’s nice to see it again, to see that it’s still the same, and to experience what we would experience there in Benidorm.

What do you think of your classmates’ topics?

There are songs that I would join him as it is. I was going to rise from now on with Alice Wonder.

Is it a real dream to take the stage at Benidorm Fest 2023 with your love-hate relationship with Eurovision?

Yes, because it really excites me. I never spoke about it. I don’t know if you remember what happened when I left ‘OT’. I didn’t watch the Eurovision 2018 semi-finals because I watched the movie ‘Coco’. My mother was dead. Do you think I would have cared about Eurovision back then? If anyone who does this cares, they have very little heart. All I wanted and needed was to shut myself up with my friends and family and watch a goddamn animated movie and cry. I didn’t feel like seeing a festival where they beat me for certain things. I didn’t feel that way. I didn’t want. Now, 5 years have passed and I am here with what I want, what I love, and a song that is a declaration that I will set Liverpool on fire.

How do you deal with all this ‘hate’ that might be against you?

I always say that I am like a raincoat and that nothing affects me, but it is not. It’s a lie. When you read hundreds of messages… First of all, it hurts for others. You are writing to me because of my sexual situation and it may not affect me, but there may be a child who can read at home and if he insults me he will say what will they say to him. This hurts me more than thinking about anything else. This bothers me more.

Besides Benidorm Fest, you come to be second in the first edition of ‘The Incredible Duo’ with Ana Belén after giving us outstanding performances. How do you balance the experience? Many praised your ‘Eloisse’ performance.

This is great. The strongest part is that Ana Belén offered it to me. “Honey, there is a subject that suits me very well. Her name is ‘Eloise’”. That woman is a gift. How she sings, how she looks at her instrument and her head, how she hugs and welcomes me… She keeps saying that I am the one who calls me and teaches her. What do you think, ma’am? She taught, on the contrary.

It’s predestined for you to be a binary in the program.

It’s like we look alike. I’m heavy with thyme. I’m infused all day. Suddenly, I see Ana Belén with her thermos of thyme and I go crazy because we were the same in training and caring for our voice. We are very similar to ourselves, we like the same things… Something happened… There was mutual admiration. I want to hug him again.