My heart has no colour: Lusotropicalism and Black Lusophone representation in the Eurovision Song Contest 1994 – 1996.

The Eurovision Song Contest states that ‘a rich history of promoting diversity [and] inclusivity’ is amongst its core values. Furthermore, the contest claims to able to ‘bridge differences and ignite a sense of shared community.’ Despite this, Catherine Baker notes in 2021 that Eurovision’s ‘shared community’ still celebrates a ‘Europe commonly, though wrongly, thought of as a historically white place.’ Throughout the 1990s Portugal sent several entries by Black performers (1994 and 1995) or celebrating a racially diverse Lusophone culture (Lucia Moniz’s O meu coração não tem cor, 1996). This paper will examine Portugal’s use of Black performers and/or Black Lusophone culture in Eurovision and analyse the extent to which these entries were able to subvert the default ‘white’ European-ness on the Eurovision stage. Through these performances, this paper will scrutinise Gilberto Freyre’s ideas of Lusotropicalism, which purports a Portuguese ‘adaptability to the tropics and inherent lack of prejudice’ exploring the extent to which these representations of Black Lusophone culture constituted a real engagement with Portugal’s colonial history and a sense of ‘belonging’ for Black Portuguese.