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Tag: Eurovision Song Contest

  • Dutch artist disqualified from Eurovision song contest

    Dutch artist disqualified from Eurovision song contest

    The Dutch performer Joost Klein has been removed from the Eurovision Song Contest following an incident backstage.

    A female member of the production crew reported an allegation of intimidation to Swedish authorities.

    Organizers of the contest stated that it would be inappropriate for Klein to continue participating while the legal process unfolds.

    Meanwhile, Ireland’s contestant Bambie Thug missed their dress rehearsal but assured fans of their presence for the main show.

    Explaining the absence on Instagram, Bambie Thug referenced a prior “situation” requiring urgent attention from the European Broadcasting Union (EBU).

    There’s no indication of a connection between Klein’s disqualification and Bambie Thug’s absence.

    Additionally, reports from Norway indicate that their jury representative, Allesandra Mele, has withdrawn due to the tense atmosphere in Malmo.

    Avrtotros, the Dutch broadcaster, criticized Klein’s disqualification as disproportionate, pledging to address the matter further.


    Klein, a top contender for this year’s Eurovision win with his song “Europapa,” dedicated the pro-Europe techno anthem to his father, who he lost to cancer at the age of 12. At 26, he had vowed to fulfill his father’s dream of seeing him perform at Eurovision.

    His suspension was announced on Friday afternoon during the first dress rehearsal for the televised final. As Klein’s props were being set up at the Malmö Arena, a production manager signaled for their removal.

    Subsequently, his performance was skipped without explanation, and Israel’s Eden Golan took his place in the running order.

    The European Broadcasting Union (EBU), which organises the event, later issued a statement saying they were “investigating an incident that was reported to us involving the Dutch artist”.

    ‘Zero tolerance’

    On Saturday, Swedish police confirmed that a man had been reported for making “unlawful threats” at Malmö Arena, after Thursday’s semi-final.

    “The police have taken all essential investigative measures and questioned the suspect, plaintiff and witnesses,” a spokesperson said.

    “The investigation has been completed by the police… and the case will now go to the prosecutor within a few weeks.”

    The EBU subsequently confirmed Klein would not be taking part in Saturday’s grand final.

    “We maintain a zero-tolerance policy towards inappropriate behaviour at our event and are committed to providing a safe and secure working environment for all staff at the Contest,” they said.

    “In light of this, Joost Klein’s behaviour towards a team member is deemed in breach of Contest rules.”

    Although contestants have been disqualified from Eurovision in the past, none has ever lost their place this close to the final.

    More commonly, songs are rejected at the selection stage. In 2021, the Belarusian entry was banned after refusing to change lyrics that the contest deemed to be political in nature; while in 2016, Romania was barred from participating due to outstanding debts owed to the EBU.

    Swedish and Dutch news outlets have said that the incident involved Klein and a member of the television production team.

    Organisers stressed that “contrary to some media reports and social media speculation, this incident did not involve any other performer or delegation member”.

    Early reports suggested there had been antagonism between Klein and Israel’s contestant, as feelings run high over the Israel-Gaza war.

    At a Eurovision press conference on Thursday, Golan was asked whether she had “ever thought that by being here you bring risk and danger for other participants and public?”

    When the Israeli singer was told by the moderator that she did not have to answer the question, Klein chimed in: “Why not?”

    Golan replied: “I think we’re all here for one reason, and one reason only, and the EBU is taking all safety precautions to make this a safe and united place for everyone, and so I think it’s safe for everyone and we wouldn’t be here [if not].”

    Earlier, when Klein was asked if his song could live up to the Eurovision slogan and unite people by music, he replied: “I think that’s a good question for the EBU.”

    EPA Eurovision press conference with Joost Klein and Eden Golan

    Saturday’s grand final will now progress with 25 acts, instead of the planned 26.

    Dutch viewers are still allowed to vote, and the Dutch jury result (which was decided during Friday’s second dress rehearsal) is still valid.

    It would not be possible for another act to replace Klein, partly because of the difficulty in adding new elements to the production at the last minute.

    Organisers would also be unwilling to promote the eliminated, 11th-place contestant from Thursday’s semi-final, as it would contravene rules on revealing the results of the public vote.

  • Sweden’s Loreen wins Eurovision

    Sweden’s Loreen wins Eurovision

    Loreen of Sweden has won the Eurovision Song Contest for the second time with her soaring pop classic Tattoo.

    The star, who last won the competition in 2012, saw off competition from Finland’s Käärijä in a nail-biting vote.

    The UK’s Mae Muller failed to replicate Sam Ryder’s success last year, coming in 25th place – one above bottom.

    And the Princess of Wales made a surprise cameo, playing the piano with last year’s winners Kalush Orchestra.

    Loreen is the only the second person – and the first woman – to win Eurovision twice, following Ireland’s Johnny Logan.

    “This is so overwhelming,” she said as she collected the trophy. “I’m so grateful. I’m so thankful.”

    “In my wildest dreams, I didn’t think this would happen.”

    Sweden’s victory means it will host next year’s competition – on what will be the 50th anniversary of Abba’s historic victory with Waterloo in 1974.

    But Ireland crashed out of this year’s contest at the semi-final stage for the fifth year in a row – a result their head of delegation described as “devastating”.

    This year’s top three acts were:

    1. Sweden: Loreen – Tattoo (583 points)
    2. Finland: Käärijä – Cha Cha Cha (526 points)
    3. Israel: Noa Kirel – Unicorn (362 points)
    Finland entrant Kaarija performing in the grand final
    Image caption, Kaarija’s song won the public vote, but faltered with juries

    Mae Muller only picked up 24 points, leaving the UK near the bottom of the leaderboard. It was “not the result we hoped for,” she tweeted after the show.

    “I know I joke a lot but we really put our all into the last few months,” she said. “Congrats to all the countries, I’ll never forget this journey and I love you all.”

    Liverpool hosted this year’s contest on behalf of war-torn Ukraine, which won in 2022.

    Appropriately, the show began with last year’s winners, Kalush Orchestra, playing an extended version of their song Stefania in a pre-taped segment from Kyiv.

    Stars including Joss Stone, Sam Ryder and Andrew Lloyd Webber added a British flavour to the song, as the band boarded a train from Kyiv’s iconic Maidan Nezalezhnosti metro station and arrived on the stage of the Liverpool Arena.

    The Princess of Wales accompanied on piano, in a brief segment recorded in the crimson drawing room of Windsor Castle earlier this month.

    Princess CatherineImage source, Alex Bramall
    Image caption,

    Catherine briefly joined Kalush Orchestra on piano

    Back in the arena, Kalush performed their new single Changes, delivering a message of defiance to Russia: “Give my all down to the wire / Set me free.”

    It was the first of many references to the war, in a show that took a more political tone than most editions of Eurovision.

    Croatia’s Let 3! performed a song that referred to Russia’s Vladimir Putin as a “crocodile psychopath”, while the Czech band Vesna sang in Ukrainian, “We’re with you in our hearts”.

    Ukraine’s own entry, Tvorchi, played a powerful song inspired by the siege of Mariupol.

    The duo’s hometown of Ternopil was hit by Russian missiles moments before the band took to the stage in Liverpool, officials said.

    They eventually took sixth place, with a total of 243 points.

    Russia has been suspended from the contest due to the invasion, but organisers refused to allow a speech from Ukraine’s President Volodomyr Zelensky during the show.

    Noa KirelImage source, Sarah Louise Bennett / EBU
    Image caption,

    Israel’s Noa Kirel gave one of the night’s most athletic performances

    Elsewhere, Eurovision was Eurovision. There were 80s-inspired tributes to Miami Vice, a ghost story about Edgar Allen Poe and, naturally, a tear-away dress.

    But the musical component of the contest continues to improve.

    Spain’s Blanca Paloma combined traditional flamenco rhythms with a throbbing electro pulse on the vibrant, urgent EAEA; and France’s La Zarra tied together decades of Gallic music history in the Piaf-meets-Daft-Punk Évidemment.

    Acts from Armenia, Poland and Israel – especially Israel – threw slick dance breaks into their performances; while Italy’s Marco Mengoni was accompanied by two gymnasts on trampolines.

    There was also the usual surfeit of tortured ballads, both good (Lithuania) and drab (Albania); and a never-ending parade of lyrics about coming together and being nice to your neighbours (Belgium, Switzerland, Australia).

    Finnish rapper Käärijä was the runaway public favourite, receiving more than Loreen’s tally in the phone vote. But his chaotic mix of thrash metal, hardcore techno and K-pop melodies failed to impress the juries, who are comprised of music experts.

    KaarijaImage source, Getty Images
    Image caption,

    Finland’s Kaarija gave one of the night’s most memorable performances

    In a post-modern twist, the competition was bookended by two songs about the process of songwriting.

    Austrian duo Teya & Salena kicked off the show with the quirky pop anthem Who The Hell Is Edgar, in which they are possessed by the spirit of US poet Edgar Allen Poe, who compels them to write a song.

    An hour-and-a-half later, Mae Muller closed the competition with I Wrote A Song – in which she gets revenge on her ex-boyfriend by writing a song that catalogues his misdemeanours.

    It meant the contest opened with the lyric, “Oh my God, you’re such a good writer”, and ended with Muller singing, “Instead, I wrote a song”.

    And if that’s not synchronicity, I don’t know what is.

    The UK’s Mae Muller failed to replicate Sam Ryder’s success last year

    The contest was presented by Alesha Dixon, Hannah Waddingham and Ukrainian singer Julia Sanina, with Graham Norton joining them during the voting stage.

    The interval showcased the “Liverpool songbook” with tracks by John Lennon, Melanie C and Gerry and the Pacemakers performed by former Eurovision contestants.

    And Sam Ryder, who came second for the UK last year, performed an emotional version of his new single, Mountains, with Queen’s Roger Taylor on drums.

    Ryder, whose song is about overcoming adversity, was accompanied on stage by dancers who had lost limbs.

    How the votes came in

    A chart showing the final result

    Loreen easily won the jury vote, picking up the maximum 12 points from Ireland, Estonia, Spain, Albania, Cyprus and Ukraine, among others.

    She ended the jury sequence with a score of 340, giving her a comfortable 163-point lead over Italy’s Marco Mengoni.

    The public preferred Finnish rapper Käärijä, with his total of 526 points temporarily putting him in the lead.

    After a tense pause, Loreen reclaimed the crown at the last minute, receiving a public score of 243 that put her back on top.

    The UK languished at the bottom of the table, picking up just nine points from the public and 15 from the juries.

    Only Germany fared worse. Their glam-rock song Blood And Glitter gained a mere 18 points.

    Commiserations came from the BBC, who organised the contest in partnership with the European Broadcasting Union.

    The broadcaster’s official Twitter account posted: “Mae, we’re so proud of you and everything you’ve achieved at this year’s Eurovision Song Contest.”