Armenia has gone internal for 2026, sending SIMÓN with ‘Paloma Rumba’, a late-revealed entry that arrived with a slick official video and a fairly clear sense of what it wants to be. And what it wants to be is anything but subtle. Or original.
The song itself is an unapologetically stage-built piece of uptempo pop, performed in English and engineered for movement and chant-along stomping. SIMÓN throws himself into things with gusto, and I rather suspect the eventual live package will lean heavily into bared chests, and sweaty-baggy trousers. Musically, ‘Paloma Rumba’ is insistently repetitive, which will either read as direct and effective or generic in the extreme. The final acceleration gives it one last push, though not entirely a graceful one.
AMPTV internally selected SIMÓN after he finished runner-up in Depi Evratesil 2025 with ‘Ay paparey bye’, so this is not a complete left-field punt, but a broadcaster returning to a performer already road-tested with the public. The songwriting team includes Rosa Linn, which inevitably adds a little extra fan interest, even if this song is operating in a very different lane from ‘Snap’. Armenia is on after Big Four France in the first half of the second semifinal, which means it will need to make its point quickly and clearly.
Armenia’s recent record has been fairly healthy. Ladaniva’s ‘Jako’ finished 8th in 2024, and Parg followed that by qualifying in 2025 – although placed 20th in the final.
For me: file this under forgettable.
2 Points
