At Eurovision 2017 Nathan Trent was “Running on Air” as he sang and shimmied his way to the grand final.

And on Saturday the Austrian pop star continued to delight audiences at the Eurovision Live Concert 2017 in Setubal, Portugal…but he did so with more than just his ESC ’17 song.

Nathan — real name Nathanaele Koll — arrived in the coastal city with a repertoire of four songs: “Running on Air” and covers of three winning Eurovision songs from Måns Zelmerlöw, Lena and Salvador Sobral.

Nathan Trent: “Heroes” cover

Nathan opened his set with the Eurovision 2015 winning song from Sweden’s Måns Zelmerlöw. He performed an acoustic version in a lower register than we’re used to hearing, showing off his fantastic range.

A proper showman, the adorable Austrian demonstrated some fantastic interaction with the audience, chatting with them, encouraging them to sing along and reacting to them when they did.

Nathan Trent: “Satellite” cover

He’s all man, but Nathan isn’t afraid to cover a song written for the ladies. His version of “Satellite” has a big band feel, with blaring trumpets and a jazzy snare.

Just like Lena he works the stage with cheeky expressions and a bit of coquettish charm.

“I need to hear this 24/7 on Spotify,” APH Clintoon writes on our YouTube channel. Rosalie was feeling it too, writing, “I love his positivity so much.”

Nathan Trent: “Amar pelos dois” cover

It takes a brave performer to cover a Eurovision-winning song in its country of origin. But Nathan did just that with Salvador Sobral’s jazz tune “Amar pelos dois” — which Salvador performed to great acclaim just the night before at his farewell concert.

Ahead of the performance, Nathan playfully called on the audience “not to be too judgmental” as he was trying his best with the number.

No need to worry. Within seconds the largely Portuguese audience burst into spontaneous applause, no doubt charmed by Nathan’s linguistic ability and skill with Portuguese.

He definitely put his own swerve on the performance, at times taking the song into an upper register with a hint of R&B and gospel to it.

“I love how the whole audience is standing up at the end,” ESC Celebrate wrote in our YouTube comments section. “And also his talent for languages is amazing.”

What do you think of Nathan’s covers? Which is your favourite? And which do you want him to release as a single immediately? Let us know in the comments box below.

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Alex M.
Alex M.
6 years ago

He is already working on new songs of his own!

xup
xup
6 years ago

He should stick to singing his own stuff. Not cool on his part to be approprating the songs of other, more succesful Eurovision entries — not to mention, very recent songs too! I’m sure he has the creativity to write his own songs, like he did with ‘Hey Now”. He should come up with new material instead of singing covers, which make him seem like he’s trying to ride on the success of past Eurovision winners. He risks being pigeonholed as a covers singers. Come on, Nathan. You’re a talented lad. Keep working hard on your own material. Best of… Read more »

Tiago S
Tiago S
6 years ago
Reply to  xup

He was in Portugal for a show. I thought it was a nice gesture of his to sing in Portuguese.