Life after Helsinki 2007 Eurovision

It's happening: Eurovision 2023 winner Loreen of Sweden and runner up Käärijä of Finland will perform together for the Eurovision song contest 2024 final's interval act announced by SVT tonight in Bngolotto show. In their joint medley Loreen will Cha cha cha with Käärijä's original staging and choreography while Käärijä will recreate Loreen's Tattoo as well and with the magic of live television the performances will melt together at some point.  Other interval or opening acts haven't yet been confirmed but Eurovision 2003 winner Turkish Sertab Erener confessed she's one of them in a medley that is rumored to inlude also Cypriot runner up Eleni Foureira among others.  Käärijä will be also present in Malmö performing in Eurovillage and Euroclub. There is still no news whether Loreen will appear somewhere as well during Eurovision week. 

I am usually not so into opening or interval acts as even if they usually are spectacular or even fun they seldom leave any lasting memory. Last night's Close encounters of a special kind by Ahmad Joudeh and Dez Maarsen is an exception. I loved every minute of it even if I'm not into ballet or modern dance. Maybe it's because of Ahmad's backstory that I knew well thanks to great documentary film Dance Or Die, that everyone should search and watch (For the Finns out there it's here ). This Emmy 2019 award-winning touching documentary tells Syrian born Ahmad's journey into world consciousness. At home in war-torn Damascus, he was threatened with death until the Dutch National Ballet offered him who defied death the opportunity to dance and live, albeit still under many mental and physical pressures. Directed by Dutch Roozbeth Kaboly this short film was released in 2018. Dance or Die depicts him dancing in the ruins of the camp where he had grown up, visiting his f...

It seems Israelis have dusted off the Turkish opening of the Eurovision final as Dana International will arrive "by plane" to the stage flown by Netta singing Tel Aviv ya habibi/Diva during the flag parade with all the finalists. Remember Istanbul when Sertab Erener arrived by helicopter to the stage singing amazing Leave ( Aşk ) after with her winning entry Everyway that I can? It seems it has also been confirmed Madonna will perform Like A Prayer  ( read more ) and a new yet unnamed song, but most likely I rise , not Medellin as speculated at first.  However it seems she has watched Eurovision lately and got some hologram ideas, as apparently for the American audience they are something new and exciting while for us Eurovision viewers nothing new anymore :-) Medellin gets its spotlight in Billboard Music awards on May 1, 2019 with a huge show featuring holograms and virtual reality so Eurovision is a good chance to premiere a new song with equally spectacula...

The rumours have been confirmed today apparently and Madonna will indeed be the interval act during the Eurovision song contest final in Tel Aviv. She will perform two songs - one new maybe called Indian summer and one classic - and arrive in town four days before the final with a team of 60 persons. Apparently her act will include also two other surprise artists. Possible names ar Brazilian Anitta and Colombian Maluma, both have been spotted in studio with Madonna while she's been working on her new album. Israeli-Canadian billionaire Sylvan Adams is behind the whole affair funding the costs that are 1,3 million dollars to Madonna alone.... She's releasing a new album shortly and was rumored to be involved already last year when the contest took place in her present home town Lisbon. Only she didn't have anything to promote back then.

Yle is going internal again in 2019 and it will be very curious to see who they choose (or get) after Saara Aalto - will they go for big international name or something big in Finland.  Or someone new and emerging? Would this list be complete without some hard rock? No. Finns and hard rock go together like Lordi and Eurovision. Besides, Apocalyptica already did Helsinki 2007 Eurovision interval act and wouldn't be the first one stepping out from there to the competition. Ask Miss Mauboy for example. Another Eurovision links are Marta Jandová who sings in various songs of theirs and Hanna Pakarinen the frontman wrote a song for. They have been quiet awhile but apparently finishing their new album so what would be more appropriate than a huge #UMK2019 show and worldwide exposure from Israel? Also in German

Portugal is really in at the moment. Not only they won Eurovision, but previous winner Jamala filmed her latest video there and now Madonna has bought a six million euro 18th century Unesco protected Quinta do Relogio Palace to move in in September to support her adopted son's football dreams in Bemfica juniors and become a soccer mom. She stayed in Lisbon two weeks recently house hunting and seems to love it.  Hello RTP, she's already in town, have her for interval act next year, ok? I guess she'd love to do something Lady Gaga failed.... Couldn't she just go and host the Welcome Party here, too?

While the first semifinalists were inside the arena rehearsing for the second time the Ukrainian Eurovision legend was out and about the streets of Kyiv filming her inserts for the coming shows. Now that's a home coming to the arena...... (even if she didn't win....) And Mama's there, too.  

One more piece in the Eurovision song contest 2017 puzzle has been revealed: Ukrainian band ONUKA will be the interval act in the final. Previously it has been announced both Ukrainian winners Ruslana and Jamala will also be performing in the shows as interval or opening acts. Check out some ONUKA videos below.

So it seems Justin performs Rock your body and Can't stop the feeling. Have a look at the video for a fel of the party mood inside Globen!

First reaction: WTF? Didn't they find anyone from Sweden or even Europe for the job? Anything for the ratings, isn't it? This blogger wasn't even very happy for the Cirque de Soleil in Moscow 2009 and thought it was just a Russian thing to do: Money can buy. I have always wanted the Eurovision shows to be a mirror of the hosting country, but it seems the tiny bit of nationality showing is hidden away in the semifinals already for years, so...... Well, there is a Swedish connection: his song he's world premiering has Swedish songwriters. Adele for example is European and not needing Swedish songriters, does she? I can't stop the feeling the Swedish selfpomotion for their music is getting a bit too loud for my liking. We all knwo it, there's no need to slap that in our faces all the time. Music goes in periods. There was Motown, there was PWL, now it's been awhile the Swepop. Something else will come around and dominate the charts sometime soon so enjoy t...

Surreal , said Sarah Dawn Finer in the after party around 4am when asked how she feels. She wasn't only Lynda Woodruff, but also did ABBA's The winner takes it al l live in Arena before the voting started. So nice of SVT to let her shine there, too. Hopefully she participates in Melodifestivalen again and actually goes to do it for Sweden next year! #MILF. That's all we remember from Eric Saade's useless appearance in the Green room. Petra Mede might be a milf indeed, but ... tasteless! YIkes! Disappointed . That's what Sweden's own Robin Stjernberg was visibly for the 14th place even if his mouth said something else. Top-10 was what he wanted. Swedish smörgåsbord . Petra Mede offered us a lot of goodies from meatballs to the wind machine finally blowing Carola way. Enjoy !

We all know about Krista Siegfrids "lesbian kiss" and reactions to it in worldwide media, and especially in some more conservative countries like Turkey, Georgia and Greece (this blogger is still waiting for reactions from Azerbaijan and Russia). But that's not all, SVT is also featuring a gay kiss in their interval act. Martin Österdahl, the executive producer says they are expecting hard critic for it but think it's important finally to show some attention to the gay community in the show. It hsn't been easy for the gay fans and journalists in some present Eurovision contests in Belgrade and Moscow, not to even mention Baku!  But... one question pops into my mind: when did they come up with this idea? Hmm... As we know, the interval and script's jokes and lines are worked until the last minute and for example Björn Gustafsson's part/lines have been cut after dress rehearsasl them being too provocative and causing protests from the commentators. ...

Loreen's winning entry Euphoria of 2012 Eurovision song contest won't be heard in the final it seems but in the first semifinal on May 14, 2013. She will reprise her Melodifestivalen 2013 interval act performance using kid's choir and sign language - only that it all gets bigger and better. A total of 69 kids will be on stage with her and it all makes sense as May 14 is the international sigh language day.  However, this isn't the first time SVT snobs the previous year's local winner. In 2000 Charlotte Perrelli didn't get to re-perform her Take me to your heaven (actually she refused to appear at all as she was reduced as a mere flower girl, as the rumors say), nor Carola her Fångad av en stormvind , but she got to open the final with another song, All the reasons to live .

In case you are interested and can't wait, here's the interval act for tomorrow night.... The traditional one.