Soft diplomacy

WHILE the Eurovision song contest is not typically an arena in which America can compete, an unlikely hit song parodying “Empire State of Mind", the famous Jay-Z and Alicia Keys tune, is presenting a chance for the country to participate in the contest. It is also an opportunity to witness American “soft diplomacy” at work.

The song, called “Baku State of Mind", features retooled lyrics about the Azeri capital such as “where oil flows like honey, nothing sweeter than my money”. More surprisingly, it was written by two American Peace Corps volunteers, Brad Kessler and Tim McNaught, known to Azeri audiences as The Caspian Dreamers.

They now have a hit on their hands. On YouTube, the video-sharing site, a clip of the two performing the song boasts nearly 100,000 views—which is a lot for an Azeri act. Even most YouTube videos starring Emin Agalarov, a self-styled popstar, who has the advantage of being the husband of the Azeri president’s daughter, Leyla Aliyeva, and the son of a Russian oligarch, don't reach that many views. But not just Azeris are in a state of mind to enjoy the song. Recently a taco dinner at the home of a senior American diplomat was interrupted so guests could enjoy the song.

A few weeks ago, the National Eurovision Committee officially invited the Caspian Dreamers to represent Azerbaijan in next year’s Eurovision song contest, which will be held in Baku (Eldar Gasimov and Nigar Jamal, better known as Ell and Nikki, won last year’s contest in Düsseldorf, Germany, with their song “Running Scared”). Should the Americans win the try-outs, and perhaps even the contest itself, it would be a welcome "bottom-up" counterpoint to the top-down orchestration prevailing in Azerbaijan (which has staged an elaborate, continent-wide public relations blitz around the contest).

Alas, it is not clear whether the duo will actually compete. With try-outs set to begin sometime in the next few weeks, only one of the Caspian Dreamers has agreed to do so and submitted the necessary paperwork.