With Eurovision coming to Liverpool soon, there has been much speculation over who will take the winning spot and get to host the next contest. Being an international affair, there’s a lot to consider when trying to figure out who will get the most votes.
Here’s a short round up of the three acts that the media loves the most, along with the countries they are representing.
Loreen – Sweden
So far, there has been a clear favourite in Swedish singer Loreen. It’s easy to see why – she won the Eurovision Song Contest in 2012 with her song “Euphoria.”
Now she is back with “Tattoo” which helped her win Melodifestivalen, Sweden’s own musical competition. That’s the second time this has happened. The first was, you guessed it, when she performed “Euphoria” in 2012 and took it to Eurovision.
Because of her cult status and advantage of already winning the ESC once, many who bet on Eurovision 2023 will probably consider her as a viable option. With this in mind, it makes sense that bookies known for mainly dealing in sports tips would look back at this old favourite. If Loreen won once, she could do it again, but a decade is a long time and there’s no telling what will happen. Returning contestants haven’t had much luck in the past, so it may work against Sweden’s chances.
Käärijä – Finland
Just a hair behind Sweden is Finland’s Käärijä, though some have him ahead of Loreen in their favourites list. Having worked independently since 2014, he only debuted his first album in 2020. When he did, Jere Pöyhönen chose the name Käärijä – Wrapper – for his rapping and singing career.
He doesn’t have the same pedigree as Loreen but, as standard, he was selected for Eurovision after storming the Finnish national competition Uuden Musiikin Kilpailu 2023. He took first place with “Cha Cha Cha” which was co-written with platinum-selling songwriter Johannes Naukkarinen.
A new challenger enters the ring! 🥊 Finland has chosen Käärijä and Cha Cha Cha for #Eurovision2023 🇫🇮
➡️ Read all about him here: https://t.co/65ldrHbufU pic.twitter.com/fi31xdICji
— Eurovision Song Contest (@Eurovision) February 25, 2023
It makes sense that he’s a favourite, given his stage presence and the help he had writing the song. Käärijä brings a bowl cut and a bare chest bolero shirt as part of his brand, which fits perfectly into the zany aesthetics that Eurovision acts do best.
Tvorchi – Ukraine
Then there’s Tvorchi, an electronic music duo that formed in Ukraine when Andrii Hutsuliak found his vocalist in Jimoh Kehinde, who also goes by Jeffrey Kenny. Having met at the Ternopil National Medical University, they started releasing music in 2017. They played festivals while finding YouTube success, then their third album 13 Waves catapulted them into further success.
This took them to Vidbir 2023, Ukraine’s regional Eurovision entry competition. Their song “Heart of Steel” came first after public voting and, since Ukraine won Eurovision 2022, they are automatically qualified for the final.
Their song is inspired by the Battle of Azovstal, which brings us to the geopolitical situation regarding Ukraine. Eurovision 2023 is hosted in Britain because it cannot be hosted in Ukraine, which may net Ukraine more points as a show of solidarity. Conversely, given they won last year, a different act could take the top spot.
It’s an exciting time to be around Liverpool this month. Between Eurovision 2023 and Liverpool F.C. advancing through the Premier League, we have a lot to keep us occupied. Time will tell if Sweden, Finland, or Ukraine take the top spot for Eurovision 2023. Given the surrounding buzz around all three acts, it’s fair to say they should place well in the competition, but the privilege of hosting Eurovision 2024 can only go to one country.