“See all your walls come down and just hit play”. And that’s exactly what we did when we caught up with Estonia’s Jüri Pootsmann at last week’s Eurovision PreParty Riga 2016. Don’t be fooled by his dark and serious staging. He may force himself not to smile in photos, but really he’s a whole load of fun. We talked about his voice, Elina & Stig, his plans for Stockholm and the Baltic Boys.
INTERVIEW: Jüri Pootsmann at the Eurovision PreParty Riga 2016
The 21 year old Idol and Eesti Laul winner didn’t always possess such deep vocals. In fact, he was a soprano in the choir and had to sit with the girls. “I just wanted to sit with the guys and sing low, but I just wasn’t able to sing low”, he says. Puberty sure hit hard!
Jüri Pootsmann “Play” at Eurovision PreParty Riga 2016
Speaking of his plans for Eurovision, the rising star spoke of the contrast between “Play” and his own personality. “In real life I’m not that serious. I think the song is kind of retro and mysterious — you can’t have another vibe in [the performance]. On Eurovision we’ll keep the same kind of style. Some surprises will be there as well”. However, he promises us that he can’t be mad or sad, and that it’s actually fun.
The Baltic Boys
Social media is awash with memes and gifs of the Baltic Boys — Jüri, Latvia’s Justs and Lithuania’s Donny Montell. Of course, we had to ask Jüri what he thought of the phenomenon, “I have to Google that. It’s exciting! I’m a Powerpuff Girl now… a deep voiced Powerpuff Boy”. Appropriately, the moment has already been made into a series of gifs (via It’s Just Eurovision Tumblr).
Are you impressed with Jüri’s performance and personality? Can he repeat Elina & Stig’s Eurovision success in Stockholm? Let us know below!
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I really like how this song fits perfectly in his voice. He’s one of the best singers of this year and he’s a nice guy. I hope Estonia gets at least a top 5 this year.
This song could pass as a “JAMES BOND THEME”
I don’t think it’s necessary to be exactly as mature as the song would suggest him to be. His child-like humour and attitude contradicts and balances the mystery and darkness of Play. It works well. He’s the kind of dude I want to get a beer and play FIFA with.
really, he is very nice, sometimes he reminds me of, y´know, if Chaplins´ Tramp would talk, instead of a silent movie, he is a little like that… Yeah, he is very young, 21, and his confidence and interview skills need work, but that´s the charm, the genuine, open personality.
SolidSnake: He reminds me of Evan Peters taking a role of a matured man in American Horror Story’s Hotel. Both are good and talented. Jüri’s stage presence is classy and his voice sets a fine mood towards his own song even if he looks young for it. I’d say he did a good job with Play.
This is a nice song and if it was defended by a matured man, it would be quite higher in the odds.
Singer is still a boy. He doesn’t merge with his song. I’m afraid he’s going to have a hard time being trustworthy on stage.
I would say, though, that the style of this song reminds me a A LOT of Aram MP3’s 4th place ‘Not Alone’ from ESC 2014.
Two other favourites from this inteview:
-Barei singing away in the background! She seems to be spreading fun everywhere.
-The interviewer going very red after saying “Baltic boys”.
I agree with Digital Style, Juri seems very nice, approachable and down to earth in his interviews. A good level head for so much attention, he obviously has a good team around him (which you would hope after his other competition wins).
I hope he gets to show off more of his fun personality in his postcard, and the seconds before and after performing the song live.
And even more euronews:
Kosovo got invited for Eurovision 2017.
more euronews: Lola Novakovi? (yugoslavia 1962) has died. ALICE TUMLER: IT’S ANOTHER GIRL, DUE IN JULY!
Juri seems like the kind of dude who you want to get a beer with. I love how serious the song is, and how it is contradicted with Juri’s goofy personality. And yes, puberty struck HARD.