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Euronews
14-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Euronews
Ukraine and Sweden qualify in first round of Eurovision semi finals
The 69th Eurovision Song Contest kicked off on Tuesday night in Switzerland (the country that hosted the first ever contest back in 1956!), with the hot favourites and sauna-obsessed Swedish entry KAJ among the opening acts. In the first of two semi-finals, 15 countries vied for a spot in Saturday's grand final. Ten advanced. Five went home. Joining the Swedish trio in the final is another standout act: 21-year-old Dutch singer Claude, who earned a spot with 'C'est La Vie', a moody, French café-style ballad which erupts into a thumping Caribbean zouk dance track. Alongside KAJ, it's one of our favourites to win here at Euronews Culture. The artist hopes to deliver a strong result for his country after the Netherlands' 2024 contestant, Joost Klein, was kicked out of Eurovision last year over a backstage altercation. Other acts moving on include Icelandic brother-rap duo VAEB with their rowing anthem 'Róa'; Norway's Kyle Alessandro with the emotional 'Lighter'; and not one but two hyper-Italian tracks from countries that aren't Italy - San Marino's DJ Gabry Ponte with 'Tutta L'Italia' and Estonia's Tommy Cash with the caffeine-fueled 'Espresso Macchiato'. Ukraine, Portugal, Poland, and Albania also clinched spots in the final. Meanwhile, Azerbaijan, Belgium, Croatia, Cyprus, and Slovenia failed to make the cut. Tuesday's showdown and a second semi-final on Thursday will narrow the field of 37 nations down to 26 who will compete in Saturday's grand final. Twenty finalists will be decided by viewers' votes, while six countries automatically qualify for the final: the host, Switzerland, and the 'Big Five' who pay the most to the contest - France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the UK.
Leader Live
14-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Leader Live
Sweden, Ukraine and the Netherlands among qualifiers for Eurovision final
Dutch act Claude Kiambe, 21, performed C'est La Vie, a blend of English and French that promotes a message of dealing with life as it is, while current favourites KAJ performed Swedish song Bara Bada Bastu, about Nordic sauna culture. The first semi-final of the contest, taking place in Basel, Switzerland, this year, also saw Estonia's Tommy Cash and Poland's Justyna Steczkowska qualify for Saturday's final, alongside Icelandic electronic musician brothers Matthias Davio Matthiasson and Halfdan Helgi Matthiasson, who perform under the name VAEB. Also making it through were San Marino's Gabry Ponte, Albania's Shkodra Elektronike, Portugal's Napa, Norway's Kyle Alessandro and Ukrainian group Ziferblat. The five acts that did not qualify were representing Slovenia, Belgium, Azerbaijan, Croatia and Cyprus. While votes were being counted, Canadian singer Dion, a former winner for Switzerland, delivered a pre-recorded video saying the country has 'always held a special place in my heart' as she spoke in French and English. She said she would want 'nothing more but to be with you' in Basel as discussions continue with the organisers for her to make a stage comeback during Saturday's final amid her health issues. A post shared by Eurovision Song Contest (@eurovision) British fans will have to wait for the second semi-final on Thursday, when the UK's Remember Monday will perform What The Hell Just Happened?, to cast their votes for their favourite Eurovision act. The UK is one of the 'big five' countries alongside Spain, Germany, France and Italy so automatically has a place in the final, with Switzerland also guaranteed a slot due to its host status this year. The Grand Final on Saturday will see the 10 qualifiers from each semi-final perform alongside the big five and reigning champion Switzerland, whose act Nemo was victorious last year.
South Wales Guardian
14-05-2025
- Entertainment
- South Wales Guardian
Sweden, Ukraine and the Netherlands among qualifiers for Eurovision final
Dutch act Claude Kiambe, 21, performed C'est La Vie, a blend of English and French that promotes a message of dealing with life as it is, while current favourites KAJ performed Swedish song Bara Bada Bastu, about Nordic sauna culture. The first semi-final of the contest, taking place in Basel, Switzerland, this year, also saw Estonia's Tommy Cash and Poland's Justyna Steczkowska qualify for Saturday's final, alongside Icelandic electronic musician brothers Matthias Davio Matthiasson and Halfdan Helgi Matthiasson, who perform under the name VAEB. Also making it through were San Marino's Gabry Ponte, Albania's Shkodra Elektronike, Portugal's Napa, Norway's Kyle Alessandro and Ukrainian group Ziferblat. The five acts that did not qualify were representing Slovenia, Belgium, Azerbaijan, Croatia and Cyprus. While votes were being counted, Canadian singer Dion, a former winner for Switzerland, delivered a pre-recorded video saying the country has 'always held a special place in my heart' as she spoke in French and English. She said she would want 'nothing more but to be with you' in Basel as discussions continue with the organisers for her to make a stage comeback during Saturday's final amid her health issues. British fans will have to wait for the second semi-final on Thursday, when the UK's Remember Monday will perform What The Hell Just Happened?, to cast their votes for their favourite Eurovision act. The UK is one of the 'big five' countries alongside Spain, Germany, France and Italy so automatically has a place in the final, with Switzerland also guaranteed a slot due to its host status this year. The Grand Final on Saturday will see the 10 qualifiers from each semi-final perform alongside the big five and reigning champion Switzerland, whose act Nemo was victorious last year.
14-05-2025
- Entertainment
10 acts win a place in the Eurovision final as the music contest heats up
BASEL, Switzerland -- Competition in the 69th Eurovision Song Contest kicked off Tuesday, with sauna-loving Swedish entry KAJ gaining a place in the final and five countries going home after the first of two semifinals of the pan-continental music extravaganza. Performers from 15 countries battled it out in front of thousands of fans in Basel, Switzerland for 10 spots in Saturday's final, with the result decided by viewers' votes. Betting market favorites KAJ, a trio of Swedish-speaking Finns, performed 'Bara Bada Bastu' – a catchy ode to steam and heat whose title translates roughly as 'just take a sauna' – accompanied by dancers dressed as lumberjacks and clad in towels. Joining KAJ in the final is another favorite with oddsmakers, 21-year-old Dutch singer Claude with soulful, Parisian-style ballad 'C'est La Vie.' Claude hopes to win for his country after the Netherlands' 2024 contestant, Joost Kein, was kicked out of Eurovision last year over a backstage altercation. Others voted into the final included Icelandic brother duo VAEB with a rap song about rowing, 'Róa,' Norwegian singer Kyle Alessandro's 'Lighter' and two uber-Italian songs that aren't from Italy: DJ Gabry Ponte, representing San Marino with the upbeat 'Tutta L'Italia' and the highly caffeinated 'Espresso Macchiato' by Estonia's Tommy Cash. Ukraine, Portugal, Poland and Albania also made the final. Azerbaijan, Belgium, Croatia, Cyprus and Slovenia were eliminated. Music fans across Europe and beyond have traveled to the northern Swiss city of Basel, which is hosting Eurovision because Swiss singer Nemo won last year's contest in Sweden. Canadian chanteuse Celine Dion, who won Eurovision for Switzerland before she became a mega-star, sent a video message that was played before some of last year's competitors performed her 1988 contest-winning song, 'Ne partez pas sans moi.' Viewers were also entertained with a comic song performed by hosts Hazel Brugger and Sandra Studer celebrating Swiss inventions, including the Swiss Army knife, muesli, processed cheese – and Eurovision, first staged in Lugano in 1956. Tuesday's showdown and a second semifinal on Thursday will narrow the field of 37 nations down to 26 who will compete in Saturday's grand final. Twenty finalists will be decided by viewers' votes, while six countries automatically qualify for the final: the host, Switzerland, and the 'Big Five' who pay the most to the contest — France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the U.K. Eurovision was founded partly to foster unity on a continent scarred by World War II, and its motto is 'United by Music.' But political divisions often cloud the contest, despite organizers' efforts to keep politics out. Officials say more than 1,000 police officers are on duty in Basel this week, and organizers are expecting protests against Israel's participation because of the country's conduct of its war against Hamas in Gaza. A demonstration against antisemitism is also planned on Thursday, the day Israeli singer Yuval Raphael performs in the second semifinal. Raphael is a survivor of Hamas militants' Oct. 7, 2023, attack on southern Israel that killed 1,200 people. More than 52,800 people in Gaza have been killed in Israel's retaliatory offensive, according to the territory's health ministry. Following tensions over Israel's participation and Klein's expulsion last year, the European Broadcasting Union that organizes Eurovision has tightened the contest's code of conduct, calling on participants to respect Eurovision's values of 'universality, diversity, equality and inclusivity' and its political neutrality. Audience members will be allowed to wave Palestinian flags inside Basel's St. Jakobshalle arena, after a contentious ban last year. Participants, however, can only wave their own national flag onstage or in other on-camera areas. Some delegations have protested that effectively bans LGBTQ+ pride flags from an event with a huge gay following.
The Advertiser
14-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Advertiser
Sauna-loving Swedes gather steam for Eurovision final
Competition has kicked off in the 69th Eurovision Song Contest with sauna-loving Swedish entry KAJ gaining a place in the final and five countries going home after the first of two semi-finals in the pan-continental music extravaganza. Performers from 15 countries battled it out in front of thousands of fans in Basel, Switzerland for 10 spots in Saturday's final, with the result decided by viewers' votes. Betting market favourites KAJ, a trio of Swedish-speaking Finns, performed Bara Bada Bastu, a catchy ode to steam and heat whose title translates roughly as "just take a sauna", accompanied by dancers dressed as lumberjacks and clad in towels. Joining KAJ in the final is another favourite with oddsmakers, 21-year-old Dutch singer Claude with soulful, Parisian-style ballad C'est La Vie. Claude hopes to win for his country after the Netherlands' 2024 contestant, Joost Klein, was kicked out of Eurovision over a backstage altercation. Others voted into the final include Icelandic brother duo VAEB with a rap song about rowing, Róa, Norwegian singer Kyle Alessandro's Lighter and two uber-Italian songs that aren't from Italy: DJ Gabry Ponte, representing San Marino with the upbeat Tutta L'Italia and the highly caffeinated Espresso Macchiato by Estonia's Tommy Cash. Ukraine, Portugal, Poland and Albania also made the final. Azerbaijan, Belgium, Croatia, Cyprus and Slovenia were eliminated. Music fans across Europe and beyond have travelled to the northern Swiss city of Basel, which is hosting Eurovision because Swiss singer Nemo won last year's contest in Sweden. Canadian chanteuse Celine Dion, who won Eurovision for Switzerland before she became a mega-star, sent a video message that was played before some of last year's competitors performed her 1988 contest-winning song, Ne partez pas sans moi. Viewers were also entertained with a comic song performed by hosts Hazel Brugger and Sandra Studer celebrating Swiss inventions including the Swiss Army knife, muesli, processed cheese - and Eurovision, first staged in Lausanne in 1956. Tuesday's showdown and a second semi-final on Thursday will narrow the field of 37 nations down to 26 who will compete in Saturday's grand final. Twenty finalists will be decided by viewers' votes, while six countries automatically qualify for the final: the host, Switzerland, and the "Big Five" who pay the most to the contest - France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the UK. Flying the flag for Australia is singer-songwriter Marty Zambotto, better known by his stage name Go-Jo, who will perform Milkshake Man in Thursday's semi-final (on Friday, Australian time). Eurovision was founded partly to foster unity on a continent scarred by World War II, and its motto is United by Music. But political divisions often cloud the contest, despite organisers' efforts to keep politics out. Officials say more than 1000 police officers are on duty in Basel this week, and organisers are expecting protests against Israel's participation because of the country's conduct of its war against Hamas in Gaza. A demonstration against anti-Semitism is also planned on Thursday, the day Israeli singer Yuval Raphael performs in the second semi-final. Raphael is a survivor of Hamas militants' October 7, 2023, attack on southern Israel that killed 1200 people. More than 52,800 people in Gaza have been killed in Israel's retaliatory offensive, according to the territory's health ministry. Following tensions over Israel's participation and Klein's expulsion in 2024, the European Broadcasting Union that organises Eurovision has tightened the contest's code of conduct, calling on participants to respect Eurovision's values of "universality, diversity, equality and inclusivity" and its political neutrality. Audience members will be allowed to wave Palestinian flags inside Basel's St Jakobshalle arena, after a contentious ban last year. Participants, however, can only wave their own national flag onstage or in other on-camera areas. Some delegations have protested that effectively bans LGBTQI pride flags from an event with a huge gay following. Competition has kicked off in the 69th Eurovision Song Contest with sauna-loving Swedish entry KAJ gaining a place in the final and five countries going home after the first of two semi-finals in the pan-continental music extravaganza. Performers from 15 countries battled it out in front of thousands of fans in Basel, Switzerland for 10 spots in Saturday's final, with the result decided by viewers' votes. Betting market favourites KAJ, a trio of Swedish-speaking Finns, performed Bara Bada Bastu, a catchy ode to steam and heat whose title translates roughly as "just take a sauna", accompanied by dancers dressed as lumberjacks and clad in towels. Joining KAJ in the final is another favourite with oddsmakers, 21-year-old Dutch singer Claude with soulful, Parisian-style ballad C'est La Vie. Claude hopes to win for his country after the Netherlands' 2024 contestant, Joost Klein, was kicked out of Eurovision over a backstage altercation. Others voted into the final include Icelandic brother duo VAEB with a rap song about rowing, Róa, Norwegian singer Kyle Alessandro's Lighter and two uber-Italian songs that aren't from Italy: DJ Gabry Ponte, representing San Marino with the upbeat Tutta L'Italia and the highly caffeinated Espresso Macchiato by Estonia's Tommy Cash. Ukraine, Portugal, Poland and Albania also made the final. Azerbaijan, Belgium, Croatia, Cyprus and Slovenia were eliminated. Music fans across Europe and beyond have travelled to the northern Swiss city of Basel, which is hosting Eurovision because Swiss singer Nemo won last year's contest in Sweden. Canadian chanteuse Celine Dion, who won Eurovision for Switzerland before she became a mega-star, sent a video message that was played before some of last year's competitors performed her 1988 contest-winning song, Ne partez pas sans moi. Viewers were also entertained with a comic song performed by hosts Hazel Brugger and Sandra Studer celebrating Swiss inventions including the Swiss Army knife, muesli, processed cheese - and Eurovision, first staged in Lausanne in 1956. Tuesday's showdown and a second semi-final on Thursday will narrow the field of 37 nations down to 26 who will compete in Saturday's grand final. Twenty finalists will be decided by viewers' votes, while six countries automatically qualify for the final: the host, Switzerland, and the "Big Five" who pay the most to the contest - France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the UK. Flying the flag for Australia is singer-songwriter Marty Zambotto, better known by his stage name Go-Jo, who will perform Milkshake Man in Thursday's semi-final (on Friday, Australian time). Eurovision was founded partly to foster unity on a continent scarred by World War II, and its motto is United by Music. But political divisions often cloud the contest, despite organisers' efforts to keep politics out. Officials say more than 1000 police officers are on duty in Basel this week, and organisers are expecting protests against Israel's participation because of the country's conduct of its war against Hamas in Gaza. A demonstration against anti-Semitism is also planned on Thursday, the day Israeli singer Yuval Raphael performs in the second semi-final. Raphael is a survivor of Hamas militants' October 7, 2023, attack on southern Israel that killed 1200 people. More than 52,800 people in Gaza have been killed in Israel's retaliatory offensive, according to the territory's health ministry. Following tensions over Israel's participation and Klein's expulsion in 2024, the European Broadcasting Union that organises Eurovision has tightened the contest's code of conduct, calling on participants to respect Eurovision's values of "universality, diversity, equality and inclusivity" and its political neutrality. Audience members will be allowed to wave Palestinian flags inside Basel's St Jakobshalle arena, after a contentious ban last year. Participants, however, can only wave their own national flag onstage or in other on-camera areas. Some delegations have protested that effectively bans LGBTQI pride flags from an event with a huge gay following. Competition has kicked off in the 69th Eurovision Song Contest with sauna-loving Swedish entry KAJ gaining a place in the final and five countries going home after the first of two semi-finals in the pan-continental music extravaganza. Performers from 15 countries battled it out in front of thousands of fans in Basel, Switzerland for 10 spots in Saturday's final, with the result decided by viewers' votes. Betting market favourites KAJ, a trio of Swedish-speaking Finns, performed Bara Bada Bastu, a catchy ode to steam and heat whose title translates roughly as "just take a sauna", accompanied by dancers dressed as lumberjacks and clad in towels. Joining KAJ in the final is another favourite with oddsmakers, 21-year-old Dutch singer Claude with soulful, Parisian-style ballad C'est La Vie. Claude hopes to win for his country after the Netherlands' 2024 contestant, Joost Klein, was kicked out of Eurovision over a backstage altercation. Others voted into the final include Icelandic brother duo VAEB with a rap song about rowing, Róa, Norwegian singer Kyle Alessandro's Lighter and two uber-Italian songs that aren't from Italy: DJ Gabry Ponte, representing San Marino with the upbeat Tutta L'Italia and the highly caffeinated Espresso Macchiato by Estonia's Tommy Cash. Ukraine, Portugal, Poland and Albania also made the final. Azerbaijan, Belgium, Croatia, Cyprus and Slovenia were eliminated. Music fans across Europe and beyond have travelled to the northern Swiss city of Basel, which is hosting Eurovision because Swiss singer Nemo won last year's contest in Sweden. Canadian chanteuse Celine Dion, who won Eurovision for Switzerland before she became a mega-star, sent a video message that was played before some of last year's competitors performed her 1988 contest-winning song, Ne partez pas sans moi. Viewers were also entertained with a comic song performed by hosts Hazel Brugger and Sandra Studer celebrating Swiss inventions including the Swiss Army knife, muesli, processed cheese - and Eurovision, first staged in Lausanne in 1956. Tuesday's showdown and a second semi-final on Thursday will narrow the field of 37 nations down to 26 who will compete in Saturday's grand final. Twenty finalists will be decided by viewers' votes, while six countries automatically qualify for the final: the host, Switzerland, and the "Big Five" who pay the most to the contest - France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the UK. Flying the flag for Australia is singer-songwriter Marty Zambotto, better known by his stage name Go-Jo, who will perform Milkshake Man in Thursday's semi-final (on Friday, Australian time). Eurovision was founded partly to foster unity on a continent scarred by World War II, and its motto is United by Music. But political divisions often cloud the contest, despite organisers' efforts to keep politics out. Officials say more than 1000 police officers are on duty in Basel this week, and organisers are expecting protests against Israel's participation because of the country's conduct of its war against Hamas in Gaza. A demonstration against anti-Semitism is also planned on Thursday, the day Israeli singer Yuval Raphael performs in the second semi-final. Raphael is a survivor of Hamas militants' October 7, 2023, attack on southern Israel that killed 1200 people. More than 52,800 people in Gaza have been killed in Israel's retaliatory offensive, according to the territory's health ministry. Following tensions over Israel's participation and Klein's expulsion in 2024, the European Broadcasting Union that organises Eurovision has tightened the contest's code of conduct, calling on participants to respect Eurovision's values of "universality, diversity, equality and inclusivity" and its political neutrality. Audience members will be allowed to wave Palestinian flags inside Basel's St Jakobshalle arena, after a contentious ban last year. Participants, however, can only wave their own national flag onstage or in other on-camera areas. Some delegations have protested that effectively bans LGBTQI pride flags from an event with a huge gay following. Competition has kicked off in the 69th Eurovision Song Contest with sauna-loving Swedish entry KAJ gaining a place in the final and five countries going home after the first of two semi-finals in the pan-continental music extravaganza. Performers from 15 countries battled it out in front of thousands of fans in Basel, Switzerland for 10 spots in Saturday's final, with the result decided by viewers' votes. Betting market favourites KAJ, a trio of Swedish-speaking Finns, performed Bara Bada Bastu, a catchy ode to steam and heat whose title translates roughly as "just take a sauna", accompanied by dancers dressed as lumberjacks and clad in towels. Joining KAJ in the final is another favourite with oddsmakers, 21-year-old Dutch singer Claude with soulful, Parisian-style ballad C'est La Vie. Claude hopes to win for his country after the Netherlands' 2024 contestant, Joost Klein, was kicked out of Eurovision over a backstage altercation. Others voted into the final include Icelandic brother duo VAEB with a rap song about rowing, Róa, Norwegian singer Kyle Alessandro's Lighter and two uber-Italian songs that aren't from Italy: DJ Gabry Ponte, representing San Marino with the upbeat Tutta L'Italia and the highly caffeinated Espresso Macchiato by Estonia's Tommy Cash. Ukraine, Portugal, Poland and Albania also made the final. Azerbaijan, Belgium, Croatia, Cyprus and Slovenia were eliminated. Music fans across Europe and beyond have travelled to the northern Swiss city of Basel, which is hosting Eurovision because Swiss singer Nemo won last year's contest in Sweden. Canadian chanteuse Celine Dion, who won Eurovision for Switzerland before she became a mega-star, sent a video message that was played before some of last year's competitors performed her 1988 contest-winning song, Ne partez pas sans moi. Viewers were also entertained with a comic song performed by hosts Hazel Brugger and Sandra Studer celebrating Swiss inventions including the Swiss Army knife, muesli, processed cheese - and Eurovision, first staged in Lausanne in 1956. Tuesday's showdown and a second semi-final on Thursday will narrow the field of 37 nations down to 26 who will compete in Saturday's grand final. Twenty finalists will be decided by viewers' votes, while six countries automatically qualify for the final: the host, Switzerland, and the "Big Five" who pay the most to the contest - France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the UK. Flying the flag for Australia is singer-songwriter Marty Zambotto, better known by his stage name Go-Jo, who will perform Milkshake Man in Thursday's semi-final (on Friday, Australian time). Eurovision was founded partly to foster unity on a continent scarred by World War II, and its motto is United by Music. But political divisions often cloud the contest, despite organisers' efforts to keep politics out. Officials say more than 1000 police officers are on duty in Basel this week, and organisers are expecting protests against Israel's participation because of the country's conduct of its war against Hamas in Gaza. A demonstration against anti-Semitism is also planned on Thursday, the day Israeli singer Yuval Raphael performs in the second semi-final. Raphael is a survivor of Hamas militants' October 7, 2023, attack on southern Israel that killed 1200 people. More than 52,800 people in Gaza have been killed in Israel's retaliatory offensive, according to the territory's health ministry. Following tensions over Israel's participation and Klein's expulsion in 2024, the European Broadcasting Union that organises Eurovision has tightened the contest's code of conduct, calling on participants to respect Eurovision's values of "universality, diversity, equality and inclusivity" and its political neutrality. Audience members will be allowed to wave Palestinian flags inside Basel's St Jakobshalle arena, after a contentious ban last year. Participants, however, can only wave their own national flag onstage or in other on-camera areas. Some delegations have protested that effectively bans LGBTQI pride flags from an event with a huge gay following.
