Summer is always the quiet period for Eurovision fans as we wait for national finals to start once again. Thankfully, the music will always continue and a number of past Eurovision artists are still producing new songs for us to enjoy.
Contrary to the commonly perpetuated myth about the song contest killing careers, we’re always thrilled to report that singers and performers associated with both Eurovision itself and the various national selections are thriving.
Here is our latest weekly roundup with a selection of just some of the songs and music videos released recently by Eurovision stars.
New music from Eurovision artists: 2021 | Week 25
Stefania – “Mucho Calor”
Now that Europe is well into summer, it’s getting “Mucho Calor” (“Very Hot”). And Stefania is burning up further thanks to a special someone who has reignited the flames of her heart: “Tonight it’s getting hot, hot tara ta yeah / You’re lighting up my heart, ta tara ta yeah / As we’re burning, we’re burning the floor / Yo siento mucho calor”. Greece’s Eurovision 2021 star delivers a well-produced pop track with nice dynamism in the transition from verse to chorus. And, yes, that is Stefania’s own mouth in the lyric video (we’re going to need the details of her dentist).
Emma – Best Of ME
Since releasing her debut solo single in 2010, Emma has gone on to become one of Italy’s biggest stars. Now the singer has brought together some of her most beloved songs for the compilation album Best Of ME. There are 21 songs on the LP in total, 15 of which Emma has re-recorded for 2021 – this includes her Eurovision 2014 entry “La Mia Città”. The other songs are more of her recent hits, such as duets with Loredana Bertè and Alessandra Amoroso.
Alfred García – “Praia Dos Moinhos”
Spain’s Alfred García has released “Praia Dos Moinhos”, the next single from his upcoming second album. Like his previous release “Los Espabilados”, “Praia Dos Moinhos” avoids a contemporary pop sound and instead favours a bold cinematic flavour. The song is an analysis of a broken relationship, with Alfred dramatically declaring “There are only vultures left among those remains / There is nothing left of what was ours”. The music video picks up on the cinematic feeling of the song and delivers a narrative of love lost that could easily be taken from a Netflix drama series. (Robyn)
Ben Cristovao – JENTAK
Alongside preparing for Eurovision 2021, Ben Cristovao (otherwise known as Benny Cristo) has also spent the last six months working on his new album JENTAK (Just). The short LP features seven songs, which includes the recent single “Sbohem”. The Czech star brought afrobeat and pop to Eurovision, but this album showcases even more variety. There’s elements of rock, synth, indie, hip-hop and R&B that come together to create an eclectic record that still oozes Benny’s charm.
TIX – “BeautiFull”
Norway’s TIX is drunk on love in his latest single (and if you were following the backstage antics of Eurovision 2021, then you don’t need a song to tell you that). The star has released “BeautiFull”, a pop ballad with a light and happy demeanour. TIX sings to the person of his dreams and wonders if they want to spend some time with him: “‘Cause you are the most beautiful I know / I could see you smile for an eternity / Always so beautiFull / So baby, do you wanna go home with me?”.
Mumiy Troll and Filatov & Karas – “Amore Море, Goodbye”
Eurovision 2001 alum Mumiy Troll are known for an indie rock style and sound. But the Russian band have decided to explore new musical paths by teaming up with DJ duo Filatov & Karas. The collaboration has resulted in “Amore Море, Goodbye”. Things start off with a rock touch as Mumiy Troll’s vocalist Ilya Lagutenko, and an uncredited female artist, sings over a guitar melody. However, the production begins to build and the chorus subsequently adds in the dance beat that brings the party spirit.
Stella Mwangi & VALORANT – “Watch”
Only a week after her last single, Stella Mwangi is back with another song. This time around, the Norwegian rapper has entered the world of video games. VALORANT is a computer game that was released in June 2020. For it’s first anniversary, the team behind the game put together the new song “Watch” and asked Stella to provide the vocals. The Eurovision 2011 star adds her swagger to the lyrics, in which she tells people to watch her soar: “Ya’ll know all I do is me / All I, all I do is me / Ya’ll sit back and watch me speak / Ya’ll sit back and uh”.
Jill Johnson – “Rose Garden”
“Lynn Anderson’s 70’s hit ‘Rose Garden’ is a song that I have been talking about releasing since I was in my late teens and it fits incredibly well as a soundtrack to this summer”, comments Jill Johnson. Sweden’s Eurovision 1998 singer has indeed put her own spin on the classic country-pop song. Jill’s voice sounds great with the updated production and adds depth to the lyrics: “I beg your pardon / I never promised you a rose garden / Along with the sunshine / There’s gotta be a little rain sometime”.
Edsilia Rombley & Numidia – “Soulmate”
Edsilia Rombley is here to continue the summer vibes. The two-time Eurovision star has collaborated with fellow Dutch singer Numidia for the single “Soulmate”. It’s a wonderful pop song that still has plenty of soul to it. The two artists sing about the connection between true friends who will always have each other’s backs: “You could be my sista / Can I lose my feelings with you / There’s so much I recognize in you / You always give your good vibes to me / And you see my insecurity”. Edsilia and Numidia are 20 years apart in age, but the pair show that these strong friendships can still be inter-generational things.
Maraaya – “1000 LET”
“Tell me I’ll be yours for at least another 1000 years”, sings Maraaya’s Marjetka Vovk. Alongside her musical and real-life partner Raay, the pair are dedicating their latest single to all the romantic lovers. “1000 LET” (“1000 Years”) is a happy jazz-pop song with a mixture of guitar, violin and drum backing. The music video features a couple who spend a lot of time looking deeply into each other’s eyes, while Maraaya and their fellow instrumentalists perform in the same locations. Slovenia’s Eurovision 2015 duo discuss the song more in the music video’s description:
“A meadow, a boy, a blue sky and two hearts making love is all we need for a perfect date! We wrote about this in the song ‘1000 let’. This is our first love and most romantic song so far. The song describes the perfect date through our eyes. Despite the fact that we have been together for 18 years, relaxed, spontaneous moments and little things still mean a lot to us, with which we show that we love each other.”
Katerine Duska – “Athenian Skies”
Katerine Duska was born in Montreal, Canada, but now resides in Athens, Greece. The Eurovision 2019 star is honouring her current home town with the new song “Athenian Skies”. In a post on Instagram, Katerine commented: “This is my love letter to my city Athens and its night that incessantly inspires”. The music video features Katerine ditching her date to spend a night on the town with her friends, while the lyrics further explore this carefree feeling: “At night we do what we like, ay / Living a million lives under Athenian skies / I can’t afford you for too long”. The star’s indie-pop style is still present, but there’s also more of a diva attitude in the music and visuals.
Olga Seryabkina – “это LOVE”
“I wanted to convey through my music what I feel at this moment: happiness, love, lightness”, notes Olga Seryabkina in the description of the audio video for her latest single. The Russian singer has dropped “это LOVE” (“This is LOVE”), an electro-pop song with a more prominent dance beat in the chorus. Lyrically, the Eurovision 2007 alum sings about how the love between her partner and herself is never ending: “This is love, love, love, love, love / All year round, oh-oh-oh-oh / And always yes, yes, yes, yes / I only want to be with you”.
Tanel Padar – “Varjudes”
It’s been 20 years since Tanel Padar lifted the Eurovision trophy for Estonia. His sound has naturally evolved over those years, and the singer is now experimenting further for his latest single “Varjudes” (“In the shadows”). A rock track, it’s of course got plenty of guitar and drum action, but there’s also some interesting bell chime sounds in the post-chorus. Tanel spoke about this new musical direction on social media:
“I’ve taken a more rocky sound. I even dug out my legendary Gibson for that. It seemed like we were becoming good friends. They have lived a long period of silence in their suitcases and they need to be attracted a bit. Take it or leave it, but I like it.”
Kállay Saunders & Gabriel – “lowkey”
Eurovision 2014 alum Kállay Saunders has collaborated with Gabriel for the song “lowkey”. The Hungarian star delivers the chorus of the single, in which he asks his new partner whether they can keep their relationship secret: “Can we keep it on the lowkey / ‘Cause everybody kinda knows me / You know these people kinda nosy / So can we keep it on the lowkey”. Sonically, it’s mid-tempo R&B track underlined by a piano melody that comes to the forefront in the outro.
Ryan O’Shaughnessy – “Coffee”
Ireland’s Ryan O’Shaughnessy brings us the simple but effective song “Coffee”. The Eurovision 2018 singer is primarily accompanied by an electric guitar, but there’s some extra saxophones added to the chorus for a funkier feel. In the lyrics, Ryan says that, rather than drinking caffeine, he gets his morning energy boost courtesy of his lover: “A quick coffee in the morning / I don’t need it, ’cause I get it from you / Girl your energy is pouring / I kinda love it being hooked on you”.
Alma – “Don’t Let Me Go Back”
Alma’s latest single is “Don’t Let Me Go Back”. France’s Eurovision 2017 singer uses the pop song as a way to remind herself that she shouldn’t go crawling back to her ex, even is she’s feeling lonely after the break-up: “Tell me again whey you left him / Tell me again, tell me again, I am begging / Don’t let me go back, back, back / I can never forget all of the tears that I cried, cried, cried”. Alma spoke more about the meaning behind the single on social media:
“This is the first song I wrote right after a very painful break up. After all these years of sharing life with someone, nothing seemed to matter anymore. Food lost its taste, life got empty, nothing seemed worth it. Everything became a daily reminder of the relationship. […] This song is my own reminder of not giving up, keep moving forward to finally be at peace with myself, even if it’s a hard and difficult process. This journey was life changing, I learnt more about myself than I did in my lifetime. And I especially learnt that loving yourself is the key to a happy life. I got to meet myself, to find out my worth, and I now feel ready to take on anything life will throw my way.”
PAENDA, Pule & Third Snow – “Animal”
PAENDA is continuing her foray into dance music with the new single “Animal”. The Austrian singer has teamed up with music producers Pule and Third Snow. An EDM track, the trio aim to bring a sense of wildness to proceedings with the lyrics and visuals. PAENDA sings about trying to move on from an ex, but that she feels caught in a game of cat and mouse: “I buried the ashes / Still there’s no way out of your games / I lose it all / You hunt me down / It feels like I run like an animal”. The music video features the Eurovision 2019 star in a ring of lights and werking some poses in the midst of smoke and fire.
Vanilla Ninja – “Gotta get it right”
Estonian rock band Vanilla Ninja represented Switzerland at Eurovision 2005. The all-female group later disbanded in 2008. But now, after 13 years, the band are back with a brand new single. “Gotta get it right” is a pop rock offering that harkens back to the 2000s in terms of production, but also brings in an interesting synth line in between all the guitars and drums. Vanilla Ninja sing about making sure they’re strong enough to overcome the obstacles life throws at them: “Cos I felt I simply must / Let all my tears turn to dust / Gotta get it right / Gonna make me fight”.
Lidia Kopania – “Scars Are Beautiful”
Poland’s Lidia Kopania is celebrating Pride month with the single “Scars Are Beautiful”. It’s a spirited track with a slightly anthemic chorus. Lyrically, the Eurovision 2009 star sings about being yourself and how our imperfections are not something to be ashamed of: “True to who you are / Glowing like the stars / Scars Are Beautiful”. Lidia talks more about the song in the music video’s description:
“This song […] is about personal growth and victory. It’s a strong and happy song about overcoming and surviving life and all it’s experiences. It is about inclusion. It is about love and acceptance. Accept who you are, be proud of yourself and shine with all you have. Scars Are beautiful.”
Aram MP3 et al. – “Мир спешит к добру”
Aram MP3 has collaborated with a plethora of artists for the love, love, peace, peace song “Мир спешит к добру” (“The world is hungry for good”). This does mean that we only get to hear Armenia’s Eurovision 2014 star for a brief moment – you can catch him during the second verse. The group of singers are also joined by a children’s choir part way through.
Carla – “Alors Chut”
Get your dancing shoes on! The lyrics of Carla Lazzari’s newest single “Alors Chut” (“So hush”) are packed with teen attitude towards the world and wrapped in a recognisable French disco sound. Just as in her Junior Eurovision 2019 song, Carla is feeling herself and wants no one to steal her spotlight. The French star sings “I feel myself growing day by day / I look to the future, I no longer want detours”, and we feel you, honey – word by word. “Alors Chut” is the first single from Carla’s upcoming new project. The artsy music video was shot in the commune of Peilles near the Monaco border, whose community was more than happy to welcome the star. (Mario)
Click on the links below to read our individual articles on other new songs released by Eurovision stars in the last week:
Barbara Pravi – “Le jour se lève”
Vincent Bueno – DEMOS.
Which of these new songs is your favourite? Have we missed out on any? Do you have any artists you want to shout out to? Let us know in the comments.
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Thank you for these articles, I really enjoy them.
Athenian Skies is a BOP. Katerine Duska and Blanche are the two artists that I am glad Eurovision exists to introduce them.
Katrine Duska is a brilliant artist!
Seriously, what on earth were they thinking back in 2019 to stage “Better Love” the way that they did? They should have just kept it simple, and it would have made top 10.
And change the backing vocalists
That too.
And the sound quality. Katrine sang very well, but at times you could not hear her. Whoever was controlling the sound, had the background vocalists turned-up too high, and Katrine too low.
Omg athenian skies is so good!!! I recommend you to listen to the whole album
Mucho Calor was one of the candidate songs to represent Greece
Wasn’t it also one of Sandro’s songs for 2020?
Yes! it was made from the dream team, given to Stefania, got rejected, given to Sandro, got rejected, re-given to Stefania with a revamp and a new title in 2021 (Inferno), got rejected, and finally it went back to its first version and got released as Stefania’s new single. A modern Odyssey.