Ep3: Käärijä & Friends

It’s a very special episode of the podcast recorded in front of a LIVE audience at the London Eurovision Party.  Steve welcomes Conchita on stage to celebrate the 10 year anniversary of their iconic win in Copenhagen. They discuss the impact of Rise Like A Phoenix, working on the Eurovision movie and the perils of skiing.  Gustaph (Belgium, 2023) and Keiino (Norway, 2019) also share their Eurovision memories and stories.  From the Class of 2024, Malta’s Sarah Bonnici, Ireland’s Bambie Thug, Austria’s Kaleen and Belgium’s Mustii drop in too.  Thank you to the London Eurovision Party for hosting us. The Official Eurovision Song Contest podcast is produced and presented for the EBU by Steve Holden. The theme music is composed by Machine Sound. Visual design by Chris Fox and Ángela Espejo. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For this week’s episode, Marcus & Martinus sit down with Steve to talk about representing this year’s host country… Sweden! The twins are taking their song Unforgettable to Malmö, where they’ll be first to perform in the Grand Final on May 11.  The soccer-crazy brothers discuss which one of them is the better footballer, their embarrassing historic haircuts and how Loreen is their ‘Eurovision Mother’.  The Official Eurovision Song Contest podcast is produced and presented for the EBU by Steve Holden. The theme music is composed by Machine Sound. Visual design by Chris Fox and Ángela Espejo. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Joining Steve on this week’s episode are Georgia’s Nutsa Buzaladze and Serbia’s Teya Dora.  Nutsa is taking her song Firefighter to Malmö. She speaks about her experience on the finals of American Idol, singing with Kylie Minogue and tells us about the joys of one of Georgia’s delicious national dishes - khachapuri! Teya Dora will sing the ethereal ballad Ramonda in Sweden. She speaks about winning the Serbian national final and getting the support of Konstrakta and Luke Black. She also discusses her gigantic viral hit Džanum, which has had billions of views and streams around the world.  The Official Eurovision Song Contest podcast is produced and presented for the EBU by Steve Holden. The theme music is composed by Machine Sound. Visual design by Chris Fox and Ángela Espejo. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

El podcast oficial del Festival de Eurovisión os llega desde la PrePartyES 2024 en Madrid. Víctor Escudero presenta este episodio en español y habla con algunas de las fantásticas candidaturas de este año.  Charla con Nebulossa de España para conocer el vínculo especial que existe entre este dúo de marido y mujer.  Después de competir en el Benidorm Fest, Megara se dirigió a San Marino y ahora representan al microestado con su canción 11:11.  Desde Portugal nos acompaña Iolanda, que cantará Grito en Malmö. Y la copresentadora de Víctor en la PrePartyES, Melani, nos habla de cómo fue representar a España en Eurovisión Junior en 2019 y de sus futuras metas. El podcast oficial del Festival de Eurovisión está producido para la UER por Steve Holden. El tema musical está compuesto por Machine Sound. Diseño visual de Chris Fox y Ángela Espejo. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This episode comes from the first pre-party of the season… in Madrid!   First up is Nemo, who’s representing Switzerland with The Code. They talk about the song, weird breakfasts and losing their luggage. There’s also a special guest appearance from one of their best friends… who happens to be Teya (of Teya and Salena fame)!  Then Steve catches up with LADANIVA who are representing Armenia. The duo are singer Jaklin and instrumentalist Louis who are taking their song Jako to Malmö. All we’ll say is that you should keep listening for the best impression of a chicken you will ever hear. Big thanks to Eurovision Spain for hosting us at the PrePartyES 2024.  The Official Eurovision Song Contest podcast is produced and presented for the EBU by Steve Holden. The theme music is composed by Machine Sound. Visual design by Chris Fox and Ángela Espejo. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Steve catches up with Ireland's Bambie Thug as they prepare to bring their witchy brand of goth pop to Malmö. They chat about their pride at representing their country, their hatred of tap dance and how they brought some Mean Girls inspiration to the video for Doomsday Blue. The Official Eurovision Song Contest podcast is produced and presented for the EBU by Steve Holden. The theme music is composed by Machine Sound. Visual design by Chris Fox and Ángela Espejo. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

SABA will be taking the bridge from Copenhagen to Malmö to represent Denmark with her song Sand.  The singer tells host Steve Holden about her unlikely journey to the Eurovision Song Contest via musical theatre and her talents as a footballer. She also discusses the special bond with her identical twin sister. The Official Eurovision Song Contest podcast is produced and presented for the EBU by Steve Holden. The theme music is composed by Machine Sound. Visual design by Chris Fox and Ángela Espejo. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, Steve heads to a dance studio at a secret location to meet Kaleen, who's representing Austria with We Will Rave. As we find out, the singer is no stranger to the Eurovision Song Contest as she's previously stood in for artists including Eleni Fouriera. She talks about the plans for the staging of her song, the making of the music video and her dancing prowess. The Official Eurovision Song Contest podcast is produced and presented for the EBU by Steve Holden. The theme music is composed by Machine Sound. Visual design by Chris Fox and Ángela Espejo. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Joining Steve this week is Silvester Belt, who’s representing Lithuania with Luktelk.  He talks about his life since winning the Lithuanian national final and the advice he’s received from both Monika Linkytė and Monika Liu. He speaks about the beauty of the Lithuanian language and why he’s looking forward to meeting the UK’s Olly Alexander in Malmö.  The Official Eurovision Song Contest podcast is produced and presented for the EBU by Steve Holden. The theme music is composed by Machine Sound. Visual design by Chris Fox and Ángela Espejo. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We’re saying hello to Mustii, the singer and Drag Race judge who’s representing Belgium with his epic track Before The Party’s Over.  Steve chats to Mustii about his Eurovision plans, his love of Madonna and David Bowie, and how he’s getting loads of support from all his friends on Drag Race Belgium. Last year’s Belgian entrant Gustaph drops in to offer his support… and find out Mustii’s weird choice of song when he’s out at karaoke.  The Official Eurovision Song Contest podcast is produced and presented for the EBU by Steve Holden. The theme music is composed by Machine Sound. Visual design by Chris Fox and Ángela Espejo. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices