Swedish singer Lorraine won the Eurovision Song Contest on Saturday night with her power ballad “Tattoo,” a colorful and eclectic musical competition clouded for the second year in a row by the war in Ukraine.
The Stockholm diva beat artists from 25 other countries to claim the continental European pop crown in the final of the Liverpool competition. Finnish singer Käärijä took second place in a battle with its Nordic neighbors.
Rowling, 39, won the Eurovision Song Contest in 2012 and is only the second performer to win the award twice, after Ireland’s Johnny Logan in the 1980s. This is the seventh time Sweden has won the Eurovision Song Contest, tying Ireland’s record.
“I was really overwhelmed,” Rowling said. “It’s really beautiful.”
Returning to the game that helped her become a star, she said, “is like coming back to a family. We’ve been in a relationship for 11 years. We know each other now.”
Britain hosts Eurovision on behalf of Ukraine, which won the competition last year but was denied the rights to host it because of the war. As the race progressed, air raid sirens sounded throughout Ukraine, with Ukrainian media reporting an air strike in Ternopil, the hometown of Ukrainian Eurovision contestant Tvorchi.
Under the motto “United by music”, the Eurovision Song Contest finale melded the soul of the British port city where the Beatles were born with the spirit of war-torn Ukraine.
The sights and sounds of Ukraine are featured throughout the show, starting with the opening film, which shows the 2022 Eurovision Song Contest winners Kalush Orchestra singing and dancing in the Kiev subway, with British musicians (including Kate, Princess of Wales) choosing the piece. play piano.
The folk-rap group themselves then appeared on stage at the Liverpool Arena, with huge hands outstretched, accompanied by a slew of drummers.
Contestants from the 26 finalist countries marched into the arena in an Olympic-style flag parade, accompanied by live performances by Ukrainian entertainers including Go A, Jamala, Tina Karol and Verka Serduchka – all past Eurovision contestants.
This year marks the 67th year of the Eurovision Song Contest, which bills itself as the world’s biggest music competition – the party-friendly Olympiad of pop music. Contestants each have three minutes to fuse catchy tunes and eye-popping spectacle into a show that will win the hearts of millions.
Loreen’s loving anthem has been a favorite of the bookies and won the most votes from the professional jury to date in Eurovision’s complex voting system. She faces a strong challenge from Käärijä, a dynamic performer whose rap-pop party song “Cha Cha Cha” won the public vote.
Israel’s Noa Kirel was No. 3 with the pop song “Unicorn,” while Italy’s Marco Mengoni was No. 4 with his ballad “Due Vite” (Two Lives).
A competition of cabaret-style vocals from Portuguese singer Mimicat, Britney-like power-pop from Polish singer Blanka, echoes of Edith Piaf from France’s La Zarra and smoldering ballads from Cyprus show how continental Europe is different taste. , Andrew Lambrue.
Hailing from Australia – a Eurovision contender despite its remoteness – guitar band Voyager evokes the gritty stadium rock of the 80s. Croatia’s Let 3 delivered a surreal anti-war rock opera, and Austrian duo Teya and Salena wowed the music world with Poe’s song “Who the Hell is Edgar?”
Electronic duo Tvorchi paid tribute to Ukraine’s resilience in “Heart of Steel,” finishing sixth.
Britain’s Mae Muller earned an enviable final performance of the night with her breezy breakup anthem “I Wrote a Song”. She came in second to last – but at least avoided the humiliation of getting a “nil” or zero.
While the votes were being cast and counted, Sam Ryder, last year’s UK runner-up, performed his new single “Mountain”, accompanied by Queen’s drummer Roger Taylor. A ‘Liverpool Songbook’ clip shows past Eurovision stars performing songs from the city, including John Lennon’s ‘Imagine’, Dead or Alive’s ‘You Make Me Spin (Like a Record)’ and the unofficial Citizen anthem “You’ll Never Walk Alone” – a tribute to Liverpool and Ukraine as the audience joins.
Around 6,000 fans watched the show inside the stadium, with tens of thousands more watching in the Liverpool Supporters’ Zone and at big-screen events across the UK. The global television audience is estimated at 160 million.
In the spring sunshine, thousands of fans flock to the Eurovision party zone in the city’s Docklands ahead of the game. Many are draped in the flags of their favorite countries, or dressed as their favorite performers.
“Just coming down and seeing people from different nationalities, different cultures – it’s interesting,” said Australian Martin Troedel, who wore a kangaroo in his hat. Strange behavior, that’s what I love about it. You never know what’s going to happen.”
Liverpool has embraced Eurovision and Ukraine, with Ukrainian flags flying from businesses across the city and a host of cultural events introducing locals to the Eastern European nation’s art, music and food.
But organizers said they rejected a request by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to speak via video. The European Broadcasting Union said this would violate the “apolitical nature of the event”.
Founded in 1956, Eurovision is a European cultural institution that has produced breakout stars – ABBA and Celine Dion are past winners – as well as performers whose careers have plummeted.
In recent years, it has once again become a platform from which stars can be launched. The Italian rock group Måneskin, who won in 2021, have performed at major music festivals in the United States and opened their tour for the Rolling Stones. Ryder had a number one album and performed at Glastonbury Festival.
“Now, the music industry around the world knows that if you show up at the Eurovision Song Contest, you can be a good thing,” said Steve Holden, host of the official Eurovision Song Contest podcast.