OMSC 5

Online Music Song Contest 5, often referred to as OMSC 5, was the fifth edition of Online Music Song Contest, held in Busan (부산), South Korea.

The Semi-Finals of OMSC 5 occured on the 21ˢᵗ November 2020 while the Final occured on the 28ᵗʰ November 2020. Twenty-two* countries participated in the fifth contest, under the slogan “될 당신의 삶의 변화 (Become The Change In Your Life)”.

Location
The broadcaster RTP chose to host the contest in South Korea's second-most populous city after Seoul (서울), Busan (부산), which has a population of over approximately 3.5 million inhabitants.

It is the economic, cultural and educational center of southeastern South Korea, with its port — Korea's busiest and the fifth-busiest in the world — only about 193 kilometers from the Japanese islands of Kyushu and Honshu. The surrounding "Southeast Economic Zone" is South Korea's largest industrial area.

Busan (부산) is divided into fifteen major administrative districts and a single county, together housing a population of approximately 3.5 million inhabitants. The full metropolitan area, the Southeastern Maritime Industrial Region, has a population of approximately 8 million inhabitants. The most densely built-up areas of the city are situated in a number of narrow valleys between the Nakdong River (낙동강) and the Suyeong Rivers (수영 강), with mountains separating most of the districts. The Nakdong (낙동) is Korea's longest river and Busan's Haeundae Beach (부산 해운대 해수욕장) is also the country's largest.

From the beginning of the 15ᵗʰ century, the Korean government designated Busan (부산) as a trading port with the Japanese and allowed their settlement. Other Japanese settlements in Ulsan (울산) and Jinhae (진해) diminished later, but the Busan (부산) settlement continued until Japan invaded Korea in 1592. After the war, diplomatic relations with the new shogunate in Japan were established in 1607, and Busan (부산) was permitted to be reconstructed. The Japanese settlement, though relocated into Choryang (초량) later, continued to exist until Korea was exposed to modern diplomacy in 1876. In 1876, Busan (부산) became the first international port in Korea under the terms of the Treaty of Ganghwa (강화).

During the Japanese rule, Busan (부산) developed into a hub trading port with Japan. Busan (부산) was the only city in Korea to adopt the steam tramway before electrification was introduced in 1924. During the Korean War, Busan (부산) was one of only two cities in South Korea not captured by the North Korean army within the first three months of the war, the other being Daegu (대구). As a result, the cities became refugee camp sites for Koreans during the war.

As Busan (부산) was one of the few areas in Korea that remained under the control of South Korea throughout the Korean War, for some time it served as a temporary capital of the Republic of Korea. United Nations' troops established a defensive perimeter around the city known as the Busan Perimeter in the summer and autumn of 1950. Since then, the city has been a self-governing metropolis and has built a strong urban character. In 1963, Busan (부산) separated from Gyeongsangnam-do (경상남도) to become a Directly Governed City. In 1983, the provincial capital of Gyeongsangnam-do (경상남도) was moved from Busan (부산) to Changwon (창원). In 1995, Busan (부산) became a Metropolitan City.

Nowadays Busan (부산) is the second largest city in Korea, a maritime logistics hub in Northeast Asia with its world-class mega ports, and a gateway to the Eurasian continent. In addition it is the city of festivals and film as variety of festivals are held in the city throughout the year and a center of finance.

Participants
Twenty-two countries participated in the fifth edition of the contest: ten European countries (Faroe Islands, France, Germany, Italy, Liechtenstein, Moldova, Poland, Portugal, Romania, United Kingdom), three Asian countries (Japan, Kazakhstan, South Korea), three American countries (Brazil, Canada, United States of America), four Oceanian countries (Australia, Guam, Micronesia, Samoa) and two African countries (Algeria, Zimbabwe).

It's the biggest number of participants since the start of the contest, with Colombia, Curaçao, Fiji, Finland, French Guiana, Iran, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Malaysia, the Marshall Islands, Micronesia, North Korea, Pakistan, Palau, Papua New Guinea, San Marino, South Africa and the Turks and Caicos Islands making their debut.

Returning Artists
This edition featured two representative who had performed previously as lead vocalists for a country in the contest.

Tiësto represented Sint Maarten in the third edition of the contest, together with Rita Ora and Jonas Blue, with his song "Ritual" sung in English, which placed 3ʳᵈ out of 27 participating countries with 71 points. In this occasion, he represented, together with Mabel, the Turks and Caicos Islands with his song "God Is A Dancer", again in English, trying to score an even better result!

Iza represented Brazil in the second edition of the contest, together with Ciara and Major Lazer, with her song "Evapora" sung in Portuguese, which placed 10ᵗʰ out of 14 participating countries with 54 points. In this occasion, Iza performed, together with Rincon Sapiência, her song "Ginga", again in Portuguese, trying to achieve a better result for her country, Brazil!