Musical style and presentation. Criticism has been levied against the musical quality of past competing entries, with a perception that certain music styles seen as being presented more often than others in an attempt to appeal to as many potential voters as possible among the international audience. Power ballads, folk rhythms and bubblegum pop have been considered staples of the contest in recent years, leading to allegations that the event has become formulaic. Other traits in past competing entries which have regularly been mocked by media and viewers include an abundance of key changes and lyrics about love and/or peace, as well as the pronunciation of English by non-native users of the language. Given Eurovision is principally a television show, over the years competing performances have attempted to attract the viewers’ attention through means other than music, and elaborate lighting displays, pyrotechnics, and extravagant on-stage theatrics and costumes having become a common sight at recent contests; criticism of these tactics have been levied as being a method of distracting the viewer from the weak musical quality of some of the competing entries.

While many of these traits are ridiculed in the media and elsewhere, for others these traits are celebrated and considered an integral part of what makes the contest appealing.Although many of the competing acts each year will fall into some of the categories above, the contest has seen a diverse range of musical styles in its history, including rock, heavy metal, jazz, country, electronic, R&B, hip hop and avant-garde.