Latest news with #Cicciolina
Yahoo
18-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Who is Erika Vikman? Meet Finland's 2025 Eurovision star as she addresses controversy surrounding her song ‘ICH KOMME'
Erika Vikman is representing Finland at this year's Eurovision Song Contest, and her song 'ICH KOMME' has proven to be one of the show's most controversial. The singer has plenty of experience in the entertainment world, having performed at summer theatres and on TV before shooting to fame in her native Finland when she won the popular Tangomarkkinat festival. In 2020, she then achieved a hit song with 'Cicciolina', which finished in second place in Finland's national selection process for Eurovision. The following year, she released her self-titled debut album, which topped the Finnish album song 'ICH KOMME', the title of which is German for 'I'm Coming', has raised eyebrows for its explicit lyrics about female sexuality, including lyrics that translate to: 'Moon rises, Earth arches, my gates are open,' and 'Hit me once again, grab my ass, and when you want more love, just shout 'Encore'.' It's proved a hit with Eurovision voters, however, as Vikman made it through the second semi-final and will now compete against the other 25 finalists tonight in Basel, Switzerland. In our Q&A with Vikman, she addresses the controversy surrounding her song and explains how she plans on celebrating should she win the 2025 Eurovision Song Contest. Can you tell me a bit about yourself and how you first got into music? Absolutely! Music has always been a part of my life and there was always music playing in my childhood home. Even though I was a shy child, I somehow always knew that I'd one day be performing for big audiences. That spark never left me, and now here I am, turning my childhood dreams into wild, crazy reality. In 2016, I was crowned the Tango Queen in Finland, which was a significant milestone in my early career. Over time, my musical style evolved, blending pop, disco, and schlager elements. In 2020, I released 'Cicciolina' which celebrated female empowerment and self-expression. Although it didn't end up qualifying to the Eurovision, it marked the beginning of my new era as an artist. And now five years later, here I am! How did you end up representing Finland in the Eurovision Song Contest? After my 2020 attempt with 'Cicciolina,' which finished second in Finland's national selection, I felt there was unfinished business. This year, I returned to Uuden Musiikin Kilpailu (UMK) with 'ICH KOMME,' a song born from a collaboration with producers Chisu and Jori Roosberg. The track resonated deeply with me, and I knew it was the right moment to take the Eurovision stage. The Finnish public seemed to agree, awarding me a landslide victory in the UMK 2025 final. I love Eurovision and its community. They are my people and it's where I belong. I'm home here. What's the meaning and inspiration behind your brilliant song 'ICH KOMME'? 'ICH KOMME,' which translates to 'I'm coming' in German, is a celebration of female pleasure, empowerment, and liberation. The song blends Finnish disco vibes with bold, provocative lyrics, aiming to challenge societal taboos surrounding female sexuality. Interestingly, my choice to incorporate German stems from my school days when I opted to study German over English, influenced by a teacher who introduced us to artists like Rammstein and Nina Hagen. This early exposure left a lasting impression, and I wanted to pay homage to that in this song. There's something really fascinating about the German language and its culture. Maybe I was German in my previous life! How are you feeling about this year's competition? I'm incredibly excited and honored to represent Finland on such a grand stage. While there have been discussions with the EBU regarding aspects of my performance, including attire and staging, I remain committed to delivering a show that's authentically and unapologetically me. I believe in pushing boundaries and sparking conversations, and I hope to connect with audiences across Europe through this performance. This year's competition is tough with so many incredibly talented artists with great songs, but I'm ready to show Europe what I've got! How will you celebrate if you win? With a fabulous party of course! But first I'd Facetime my dog Peppi, who's my baby. And, of course, I will sing and dance Celine Dion on the dance floor til dawn!
The Guardian
13-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
Sauna fiends, space dogs and Jesus Christ Superstar: it's the 10 best Eurovision songs of 2025!
What would Eurovision be without sexually explicit songs? Australia's Milkshake Man by Go-Jo is quite self-explanatory; the standout is Finland's Erika Vikman with Ich Komme ('I am coming' in German). Set to a four-on-the-floor beat and Eurodance instrumental, the track bursts with unrestrained hands-in-the-air energy. Vikman sings of pleasure, ecstasy and a state of trance with a vigour reminiscent of Norway's 2023 entry Queen of the Kings, by Alessandra. Vikman hails from a family of Finnish tango musicians – her mother and sister are both active in the genre – and she herself embraced it early in her career. Still, back in 2020, her breakout hit was another sex-positive, disco-inspired anthem: Cicciolina, which celebrates the boldness and self-determination of the Hungarian-born porn star Ilona Staller. Italy's entries have always portrayed masculinity in a way that's more layered than meets the eye, with performers and songwriters such as Cristiano Malgioglio, Renato Zero, and Ivan Cattaneo challenging machismo. In 2025, Lucio Corsi takes the baton with Volevo Essere un Duro (I wanted to be a tough guy), which challenges gendered preconceptions. Melodically, it has hints of 1970s glam rock and Elton John's ballads, and it conjures a fairytale-like atmosphere that's amplified by Corsi's elven-like self-presentation. There's a bit of a fairytale to his place here, too: he placed second at the Sanremo music festival – to determine Italy's contender – but got to compete after the winner Olly declined to participate. Upon learning about the bleak fate of the space dog Laika, Norwegian pop star Emmy tried to envision an alternate story: what if she had not been left to die in space but instead enjoyed dancing among the stars and comets? A delightful synthesis of Aqua, Grimes and a hint of Mario Kart's Rainbow Road allows us to imagine her partying like it's 1999. But why is a Norwegian singing about the Soviet space dog Laika representing Ireland, you may ask? Technically, Laika Party counts one Irish and three Norwegian songwriters. It had originally been submitted as a candidate to Norway's national contest Melodi Grand Prix, only to be rejected by the broadcaster. Ireland's Eurosong accepted it and it won both the national jury and the televote. Technicalities exist, and should be taken advantage of! 'Dear, you paid the price of me loving you,' goes the refrain of Mila, a heart-rending Balkan power ballad about the end of a toxic relationship. The artist is polymath Princ – frontman of the rock band Sisyphus, former karate champion, philologist and language instructor with a degree in Scandinavian languages, literature and culture, and Jesus in the 2020 Serbian production of Jesus Christ Superstar. While the lyrics portray a slighted man grovelling in the aftermath of the relationship – at one point calling his beloved's new partner a 'liar' – Princ's delivery renders him tortured and sympathetic rather than pathetic. Dolls and their agency – or lack thereof – are a great musical and artistic trope: look at the ballet Coppélia, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang's Doll on a Music Box and Aqua's Barbie Girl. The Luxembourgian Eurovision entry La Poupée Monte le Son (the doll turns up the volume) by Laura Thorn is a tribute to France Gall's song Poupée de Cire, Poupée de Son, composed by Serge Gainsbourg, which won Eurovision 60 years ago. However, over a melody that combines strings, a four-to-the-floor beat and a vaguely eerie music-box melody, Thorn's doll asserts 'je ne suis pas ta marionnette' and lifts from Bizet to warn the man she addresses: 'Prends garde à toi' – watch yourself. Amore, spaghetti, mafia and espresso are the basis of Tommy Cash's rap-dance ode to Italian cliches: 'Mi like to fly privati / With 24 carati / Also mi casa very grandioso / Mi money numeroso.' It shares no thematic similarities with Sabrina Carpenter's Espresso but rather DJ Ötzi's après-ski anthem Pronto Giuseppe!, and in a year where a host of vaguely Italian-themed, AI-generated surrealist memes known as 'Italian brainrot' are going viral, the nonsense of Espresso Macchiato fully embodies the zeitgeist. Cash co-wrote it with Johannes Naukkarinen, who gave us the metal-dance-pop fusion track and 2023 Finnish Eurovision entry Cha Cha Cha by Käärijä, in which the drink of choice is piña colada. As the land of Max Martin and Abba, Sweden has historically sent legit – albeit perhaps too clean-cut – pop acts to Eurovision. This year they abruptly changed artistic direction, and along came KAJ, a Fenno-Swedish music/comedy group that credits the unapologetic weirdness of past Finnish acts for the inspiration behind their song, Bara Bada Bastu (let's take a sauna), performed in the Vörå dialect and featuring that other traditional Eurovision sound, the folksy, pan-European accordion. (A line about dropping the soap was expunged from the final cut.) At this year's Melodifestivalen – Sweden's contest to name their Eurovision entrant – KAJ started as the underdog but ended up winning as well as topping Spotify's global viral chart. In 2001, age 10, Spanish singer Melody released the Euro-rumba tune El Baile del Gorila, complete with ape-channelling choreography: the start of a successful career in the Spanish and Latin-American market. In 2025, she's representing Eurovision with the anthemic Esa Diva (that diva). It starts as an introspective ballad, similar to 2014 winner Conchita Wurst's Rise Like a Phoenix, with Melody herself reminiscing on her career. Then the chorus hits and the beat drops, and she offers her own expansive definition of what makes a diva: not just someone who does not step on others in order to shine, or someone who can rise again 'with more strength than a hurricane', but a mother who wakes up early and a struggling artist. The thumping bass lines and lyrics celebrating a person's own uniqueness irrespective of their life circumstances makes this 2025's equivalent to Emma Muscat's 2022 entry for Malta, I Am What I Am. What would Bohemian Rhapsody sound like if it were composed for Eurovision by a Ukrainian alt-rock band in 2025? Ziferblat's Bird of Pray feels straight out of a 70s rock opera; it balances various elements, including an all-female choir conjuring a sacred atmosphere, rock anthemics and the theatrics of singer Danylo Leshchynskyi, whose presentation echoes Bowie. The lyrics provide a sombre contrast to the high-octane production, telling the story of Ukrainians who have been separated by the war, with the titular bird conveying a message of hope – it's a bird of pray, not prey. With an electronic base reminiscent of Sia and David Guetta's collaborations, and with powerhouse, Adele-lite vocals that stave off predictability, Sissal's Hallucination is a neatly packaged EDM-scandi-pop record that feels like a welcome 2010s throwback (akin to Carola's Invincible and Loreen's Euphoria). This is not a coincidence: Sissal's inspirations are Norwegian singer Dagny and Swedish singer Robyn. Is it a bit safe? Sure, but high camp, sexual innuendo and joyous nonsense need a counterpoint to avoid the contest descending into caricature. Plus, the obsessive posters on Eurovision forums and subreddits swear she is best on stage. The grand final of the Eurovision song contest 2025 will take place in Basel, Switzerland, on 17 May. The semi-finals take place on 13 and 15 May.
The Age
28-04-2025
- Entertainment
- The Age
Festivals have ‘privileged literary works' over popular, commercial fiction: Veronica Sullivan
Much has been written recently about St Kilda's downturn; fewer crowds post-COVID, the empty shopfronts, the once-thriving Acland Street becoming a pedestrianised ghost street. But on the Thursday after Easter when I meet Veronica Sullivan at Acland St's legendary Cicciolina restaurant, it's far from deserted. Sullivan, the new director of the Melbourne Writers Festival, has been a local since childhood, and Cicciolina a firm favourite for years. She grew up around Elwood and Caulfield, and while she moved closer to the city in her share-house days, she came back to St Kilda just before the pandemic. 'I've always loved it, and I was so glad I moved back then – I was living in the George apartments and it was such a good thing because I was opposite the park, I had the beach down the street, and it made me feel that now I can't live away from the water,' she says. 'Not that I go swimming that much.' It's been hard, she says, to read the stories about the area. 'Yes, there are rough sleepers and people with mental health issues, but those are the same issues that have been in the area for decades. It got really politicised and that kind of upsets me.' As we peruse Cicciolina's menu, the requisite parade of 'colourful' characters passes us by on Acland Street, as if on cue. We order Coffin Bay oysters to share, and both opt for entree dishes; we've already looked at the dessert menu. Two weeks out from her first festival as its director, Sullivan concedes to some nervousness. 'I don't feel … churning anxiety, but I feel a bit nervous – but it's an excited nervousness.' Each stage of organising Melbourne's largest literary event, which attracts authors from around the world and around 50,000 book lovers, has come with its own jitters. 'I'm like, 'oh, this is what it feels like after the program comes out', and then you're waiting to hear what people say about it,' she says. 'Now I'm at the point where, I've done most of the things I can do, and I've got to wait and hand it over to the production people.' Sullivan has always been an avid reader, and had always wanted to work in something to do with writing and books. 'I was an only child until I was 12 – I have half-siblings who are much younger – through those important, formative years, and I was always reading in a corner. That passion that was always there from childhood really remained so throughout my life.'
Sydney Morning Herald
28-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Sydney Morning Herald
Festivals have ‘privileged literary works' over popular, commercial fiction: Veronica Sullivan
Much has been written recently about St Kilda's downturn; fewer crowds post-COVID, the empty shopfronts, the once-thriving Acland Street becoming a pedestrianised ghost street. But on the Thursday after Easter when I meet Veronica Sullivan at Acland St's legendary Cicciolina restaurant, it's far from deserted. Sullivan, the new director of the Melbourne Writers Festival, has been a local since childhood, and Cicciolina a firm favourite for years. She grew up around Elwood and Caulfield, and while she moved closer to the city in her share-house days, she came back to St Kilda just before the pandemic. 'I've always loved it, and I was so glad I moved back then – I was living in the George apartments and it was such a good thing because I was opposite the park, I had the beach down the street, and it made me feel that now I can't live away from the water,' she says. 'Not that I go swimming that much.' It's been hard, she says, to read the stories about the area. 'Yes, there are rough sleepers and people with mental health issues, but those are the same issues that have been in the area for decades. It got really politicised and that kind of upsets me.' As we peruse Cicciolina's menu, the requisite parade of 'colourful' characters passes us by on Acland Street, as if on cue. We order Coffin Bay oysters to share, and both opt for entree dishes; we've already looked at the dessert menu. Two weeks out from her first festival as its director, Sullivan concedes to some nervousness. 'I don't feel … churning anxiety, but I feel a bit nervous – but it's an excited nervousness.' Each stage of organising Melbourne's largest literary event, which attracts authors from around the world and around 50,000 book lovers, has come with its own jitters. 'I'm like, 'oh, this is what it feels like after the program comes out', and then you're waiting to hear what people say about it,' she says. 'Now I'm at the point where, I've done most of the things I can do, and I've got to wait and hand it over to the production people.' Sullivan has always been an avid reader, and had always wanted to work in something to do with writing and books. 'I was an only child until I was 12 – I have half-siblings who are much younger – through those important, formative years, and I was always reading in a corner. That passion that was always there from childhood really remained so throughout my life.'
The Guardian
27-03-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
Jadon Sancho and the art of paying up
Something that goes viral now and again is the particulars of the house sale of someone rich, famous and very possibly lacking in taste. Sure, that saloon bar created in the style of the East End pub off Goodnight Sweetheart felt like a good idea at the time, as did that mirrored master bedroom ceiling adorned in the style of Jeff Koons' Cicciolina period. How will it sell on the open market? Quartz and pine are very much out, and as for that kitchen island … how much are they going to have to lower the price to get shot? It's a doer-upper, surely. Trends move on, and so, at great pace, does the football transfer market. One minute, a player's a hot prospect, and almost the next the dumper is beckoning. And as transfer fees climb ever upwards – £60m only buys you a 'maybe' these days – and wages multiply, there's an increased chance of expensive, unwanted duds. Jadon Sancho didn't ask for Manchester United to pay £73m for him in 2021, though he probably benefited financially. That it didn't go well at United is now accepted, though failure can have as many fathers as success. He's hardly the only player to have been chewed up and spat out by the United bone machine. Morgan Schneiderlin, Memphis Depay, Alexis Sánchez, Bastian Schweinsteiger, Antony … the list of the lost is almost endless. Sancho was seen back then as English football's brightest talent, top of the class at the elite Borussia Dortmund kindergarten, even allowing for Erling Haaland banging them in. In fact, wasn't it because of Sancho that Haaland looked so bloody good? Transfers, and the giddy expectation they allow, that mind's-eye fantasy of what a player will be like before the thudding reality of him actually playing, have made fools of just about every manager and sporting director in the game. In 2009, Real Madrid bought Cristiano Ronaldo, Xabi Alonso and Kaka, a full-on Oxford-Cambridge-Hull/Cleese-Milligan-Sessions trio. It's the thudding reality part that Sancho has struggled with, his contribution to United negligible, his loan return to Dortmund better but not as good as previously, and now Chelsea, where his impact has slowed to nothing-burger status. Playing the margins of last summer's transfer market, Chelsea set up a loan deal leading to a permanent £20m-25m deal, handily paying only half-wages, but such is Sancho's lack of use they are reported to want to kibosh any deal. Problem being, United get £5m back as a penalty fee. Paying up to not play a player breaks fresh territory in transfer market silliness, even for Chelsea. As despite Sir Big Jim getting a bonus £5m into dwindling coffers, Manchester United still needs a buyer, preferably someone who fancies renovating a player still aged just 25. As for Sancho, he's reported to hope Dortmund's ever welcoming bosom stops him becoming yesterday's man. '[The fourth official] said I was aggressive – people who know me, I've got a Scottish accent. It comes across very aggressive, but I didn't swear, I didn't run, in my opinion I wasn't aggressive. My accent and my Scottishness is aggressive, but yeah, I got sent off for that' – the Exeter City manager, Gary Caldwell, reckons his Caledonian brogue was the reason he was sent from the dugout in Saturday's draw at Lincoln, earning his second red card this year. 'Brazil in 1982 definitely did have Zico, Falcao, and Socrates [Wednesday's Football Daily], but that team had the worst goalkeeper in the tournament in Waldir Peres, and the worst center forward in Serginho. Take It from somebody who saw all five of those games in person' – Paul Landaw. 'Further to Michael Madders email in yesterday's Football Daily about the final minutes of MK Dons v Walsall. It reminds of the time me and an ex girlfriend walked into my local. She knew nothing about football but was endearingly enthusiastic about it, so as I was waiting to get served she excitedly proclaimed that Real Madrid v Parma was being shown on the TV. After a quick glance at the screen, I informed her that it was the much more mundane Reading v Palace that was to provide that night's viewing' – Adrian Foster. 'You were oversimplifying things by saying that in South America it takes 45 games to eliminate three teams out of 10. We play home and away matches, so it's really 90 games to eliminate those three teams. Now wait until the World Cup pool is expanded to 64 and it will take the same number of games to eliminate just one team' – Roberto Fusaro (and 1,056 others). May I be the first of 1,057 to congratulate you on your use of Yiddish in Wednesday's Football Daily, while correcting your grammar? 'Davka' is the adjective, the '-nik' suffix creating a noun meaning somebody who is davka, or as they say in Portuguese, 'Mourinho'. Incidentally, 'davka' conveys a meaning of 'annoyingly precise' so a davkanik would be somebody who … oh...' – Jacob Zelten. Send letters to Today's letter o' the day winner is … Jacob Zelten, who gets a copy of Engulfed: how Saudi Arabia Bought Sport, and the World. It's available in the Guardian Bookshop. Terms and conditions for our competitions, when we have them, can be viewed here. Kylian Mbappé has finally got his move to England in the form of a waxwork at Madame Tussauds London. Throwing the the same trademark pose that so many visitors wear as they trudge up and down the Euston Road queue outside the famed tourist trap, the Real Madrid forward was pictured alongside his fancy figure after a lengthy process. This included sitting for hundreds of measurements and reference information so the artists 'could capture Mbappé's infectious energy in pain-staking precision'. 'The artists are so talented – the hair, the pose, it looks just like me, it's surreal!' parped Mbappé. 'I keep thanking the team for their incredible work, and I can't wait to hear what fans think when they can see it in real life.' Madame Tussauds is also offering free entry to children aged under 16 that visit wearing an official Mbappé shirt from Friday 4th to Monday 21st April. Any adults thinking of visiting Madame Tussauds without any accompanying children are urged (by Football Daily) to 'get a grip'. Max Rushden is joined by Philippe Auclair, Robyn Cowen and Will Unwin to wrap up the international break (and talk to Elis James in a hotel bed in North Macedonia) in the latest Football Weekly podcast. David Squires on … a tribute to Socceroo Jackson Irvine as told by his arm tattoos. Renée Slegers was pretty chuffed with her Arsenal side's comeback win against Real Madrid to advance to the Women's Big Cup semis. 'The result is a credit to everyone, staff and players,' roared the Arsenal manager Slegers. The rumours are true: the Premier League will have, not one, but two (!) transfer windows this summer owing to the Club World Cup. In a blow to fantasy teams around the world (and Nottingham Forest), Chris Wood has been ruled out of this weekend's FA Cup tie at Brighton after suffering hip-ouch during New Zealand's win over New Caledonia. The FA has, for now, decided not to push ahead with its plans to expand the English women's pyramid. The move would have led to the introduction of WSL B teams in the lower tiers from 2026. And Chelsea fans have urged the Premier League to look into the club co-owner Todd Boehly's links with the ticket resale website Vivid Seats. Zohib Islam Amiri, the former captain of Afghanistan, despairs at the state of the game in his country. Ed Aarons reports. Max Rushden on his love affair with Puma Kings (and brief fling elsewhere). This season's FA Cup has thrown up plenty of upsets, but there are more cup fairytales being written on the continent, notes Niall McVeigh. Trent Alexander-Arnold's expected departure signals the start of Liverpool's rebuild, writes Barney Ronay. Neil Duncanson digs into the mystery and maths of Pelé's 1000th goal, and the shirt that'll fetch a few bob. And Mika Biereth, once of Arsenal and mentored by Ian Wright, is banging them in for Monaco. Luke Entwistle has the Londoner's story. FA Cup quarter-final fever grips Highbury in 1973 as fans on the Clock End clamber for a view of the action from any vantage point. A crowd of 62,642 showed up for this sixth-round replay and saw Arsenal recover from Peter Houseman's 18th-minute goal for Chelsea to win 2-1. An Alan Ball penalty just before half-time and a Ray Kennedy strike on 58 minutes proved decisive for the Gunners. Victory boosted Arsenal's hopes of a third consecutive Cup final appearance under Bertie Mee's stewardship but the second-tier giantkillers Sunderland stunned them 2-1 at Hillsborough in the semi-finals before going on to win the trophy with another upset, against Leeds. Arsenal, meanwhile, suffered further Cup disappointment in the short-lived third-placed playoff in August, losing 1-3 to Wolves.
