Wiwi Jury: Sweden’s Måns Zelmerlöw with “Heroes”

Today the Wiwi Jury — our in-house panel of music unprofessionals — headed to Sweden and indulged in some super tasty meatballs with lingonberry jam in Gamla Stan. While there, we cranked up the volume on the boombox to listen to Måns Zelmerlöw and his track “Heroes”. Were we calling Måns cara mia after listening or did we leave him fighting for hope and glory? Read on to find out! 

Sweden’s Eurovision 2015 song

Reviews: Måns Zelmerlöw with “Heroes”

Angus: Charlotte Perrelli said, “taking the fight is the life of the hero,” and Måns Zelmerlöw has been in more fights pre-Contest than anyone else in Eurovision this year. He’s been attacked for being a runaway favourite with the bookies, accused of musical plagiarism and slammed for his screens but kept on walking. That makes Måns and “Heroes” all the more heroic in my eyes. Vocally superb, beyond catchy and a standout from the field, I sincerely hope this will be lucky number six for Sweden. #TeamMZHeroes all the way!

Score: 10/10

Bogdan: What else can I say that I haven’t said when I first reviewed “Heroes”? Despite finding Måns exceptionally charismatic and an accomplished singer and performer (the promo tour has confirmed this), the song remains as banal and dated as I found it two months ago. I would be so disappointed if Sweden won because there are way more original and worthy songs in competition. And no, I don’t hate Sweden: I love Melodifestivalen and I am one of Loreen’s biggest fans. But let’s face it, “Heroes” is no “Euphoria”…

Score: 3/10

Chris: Let’s be clear: nearly every criticism that has been levelled against “Heroes” since the song came out has pretty much been discredited by now. “He can’t sing live”, “it’s nothing without the video screens” – Måns has certainly shown that he can bring it on any stage. I do think that, in terms of recent winners, it isn’t as inspired a song as “Euphoria” and there’s a slight lack of originality compared with some of the other songs from this year. But in the end I can’t help but love this song. Of all the “obvious” winners, this is my favourite.

Score: 9.5/10

Deban: The opening bars of this track sounds like an homage to music from rural Alabama — until it bursts into a killer hook. Douze points for excellent staging. Måns Zelmerlöw is fabulously telegenic, and his pumped arms work a visual treat. “Heroes” is a weak entry without the visuals, but as an overall package, it deserves a spot in the Top 5.

Score: 7.5/10

Kristin: Yes….yes…yes…yes. Sweden is doing it for me and “Heroes” is doing it for me. It’s the whole package, and this wiwi jury member is a very happy camper who will be dancing around the Maypole whilst eating köttbullar och surströmming (easy on the surströmming). With or without the gnome, Måns is going to slay. And it’s not terribly difficult to look at him for 3 minutes…just saying.

Score: 10/10

Luis: Am I the only one who hates an entry when everything about it smells like a victory? I feel that Måns and “Heroes” have stolen the limelight this year. That’s not good! Don’t get me wrong, I really like this act, but I don’t think it’s as great as many people say. So I automatically become a hater until Eurovision week, when, after seeing it on stage, I accept with resignation that it’s one of the best entries of the year. The story of my life…

Score 8.5/10

Padraig: When it comes to staging, Måns is set to be the undisputed king of Eurovision 2015. It’s no mean feat to move perfectly in sync with visuals that he can’t even see. The song itself is *almost* perfect. Insanely catchy, those earworms turn to butterflies in my mind. But I can’t shake away the niggling feeling that I’ve heard it all before. Still, we can’t expect “Euphoria” levels of originality all the time, that would just be silly.

Score: 9/10

Robyn: I love “Heroes” so much. This is Sweden at the top of their game. It’s a massive floor-filler of a song and the lyrical message is uplifting but never twee. I know some have said the song is nothing without the staging, but two months on I’m still happily listening to the track on its own. It’s a great pop song! Måns is a confident singer and an even better performer. It remains to be seen how the staging in Vienna will differ from Melfest, but Sweden being Sweden, it’s sure to be just as captivating. Also: Måns <3

Score: 10/10

Our First Reaction

Sopon: As one of the few fans whose love for ESC doesn’t carry over to Melfest, I heard this only after it won. It immediately shot to the top of my list. The song is high quality compared to some others this year, but when you see the staging, hearing the song isn’t enough anymore. It’s been slipping further and further down my list since. It’s Sweden, so I’m sure they will do something spectacular (and if not, we can just enjoy Måns in those leather pants and a size-too-small shirt).

Score: 8.5/10

William: Mans is a proper star and he’s come to Vienna with perfectly produced pop. For me that’s the main problem: It’s just a bit too sleek and fancy, so seems to lack the soul of an Estonia. Mans’ voice does not suit the country-chat opener and the chorus isn’t particularly memorable. I’m pretty sure y’all are voting on a) the background and b) the fact that Mans is easy on the eyes (especially in leather pants). That said, he’s a brilliant live performer and had me under his spell at the London Eurovision Party. I give him a 10, but his song slightly less…

Score: 8/10

Our jury consists of 29 people, but we only have room for 10 written reviews. Here are the remaining 19 scores. 

Anthony: 8.5/10

Denise: 9.5/10

Francheska: 8.5/10

Josh: 8/10

Judit: 8.5/10

Liam: 5/10

Marek: 8/10

Mario: 10/10

Max: 7.5/10

Mike: 8/10

Mikhail: 8/10

Patrick: 9/10

Ramadan: 5.5/10

Renske: 9.5/10

Rezo: 9.5/10

Sami: 9/10

Sinan: 10/10

William C: 7/10

Zach: 8/10

To reduce potential bias, we drop the highest and lowest scores prior to calculating the average. We removed a low of 3 and a high of 10.

WIWI JURY AVERAGE: 8.44/10

SEE OUR CURRENT EUROVISION 2015 REVIEWS AND RANKINGS