Ukraine: LAUD, Kalush Orchestra and SHY among 27 names on Vidbir 2022 longlist

A total of 284 acts tried their luck in Suspilne’s new selection show. But only a tenth of them have made it to Vidbir 2022’s longlist. In a press release, the Ukrainian public broadcaster revealed the 27 names still in the race.

It includes some big names who managed to keep their candidacy under wraps, including Alina Pash and Wellboy, and LAUD, Kalush Orchestra and SHY.

Among the 27 acts still standing in the Eastern European country are many that were included in Muzvar’s early roundup of submission bids. These include Cloudless, Michael Soul, SOWA and ROXOLANA. 

With this, the broadcaster has also confirmed that the final number of acts to take part in the Ukrainian selection on 12 February is set to be eight. 

Yaroslav Lodygin, member of the Managing Board of UA:PBC in charge of television, said in the press release: 

“Because of the pandemic the National Selection has not been held since 2020. Over this time, Ukrainian musicians have obviously accumulated energy and materials, so the number of good applications was very big! Still, there have not been many arguments among the organizing committee members up to this point, and the longlist was formed quite quickly. The fight is for the 8 positions in the final, so the hottest arguments are ahead!”

Vidbir 2022 acts longlist 

Vidbir 2022 longlist notable acts

Kalush Orchestra

Hailing from the Carpathian town of the same name, Kalush Orchestra combines ancient Ukrainian traditions with modern sounds of rap and hip hop. The group uses the the vernacular of its hometown. One of its members, Ihor Didenchuk, already has some experience under his belt. In 2021, he stood on the Eurovision stage as part of Go_A. One of the latest singles the band released, “Shtomber Womber”, is three minutes long. In the comment section, famous rapper alyona alyona replied that she would love to see the song at the contest.

ROXOLANA

Former Holos krainy star ROXOLANA is signed to the Mamamusic label. Although she has yet to break through to the mainstream, ROXOLANA has collaborated with the likes of KAZKA and Nina Matvienko. 

LAUD

Having participated in multiple editions of Vidbir, LAUD – whose real name is Vladyslav Karashchuk – was always a jury favourite. He participated in the 2016 edition of Holos krainy, but his Vidbir participations were his big breakthrough. Since those, he has duetted with Tayanna, performed at Atlas Weekend and most recently, released his album Dual. 

SOWA

Young singer SOWA, whose name means “owl”, is an up-and-coming artist from Ukraine who is set to release her first album this Spring. In 2021, she collaborated with Eurovision 2018 star Mélovin on the single “Таємний знак”. 

Cloudless

Cloudless participated in Vidbir 2020 with “Drown Me Down”, narrowly missing out on a place in the final.

Alina Pash

Alina Pash will definitely bring some flair to the contest. The Carpathian-born “Bitanga” hitmaker has been high on fan wishlists for several years. Alongside Wellboy, Alina Pash was one of the young Ukrainian artists to appear on the Tina Karol collaboration album Молода кров (Young blood). Alina recently released the single “Івана Купала”. 

Michael Soul

Vidbir 2022 will potentially get a guest from Belarus as Michael Soul has entered the selection. The Belarusian singer has worked from Kyiv since 2021. Eurovision fans might remember him from his attempts to represent his country of birth. In 2019, he was a local fan favourite with the Vlad Freimann-produced (that’s Vlad from VAL) song “Humanize”, but eventually came fourth. He previously sang as a backing vocalist for NAVIBAND at the contest in 2017.

SHY

SHY – that’s Oleksandra Kariagina – has composed several songs for MARUV. Next to that, her first releases were produced by Boosin. Her biggest hit, so far, was in 2019, when she released the duet “Цiлуй мене” (“Kiss me”) with popular singer-songwriter Pianoboy. 

Yuliia Timochko

The runner-up of the latest series of Holos krainy, Yuliia Timochko also made the top 27 of the Ukrainian selection. During the television show, she was part of Tina Karol’s team, and her most successful contestant. 

Wellboy

Wellboy scored one of the biggest local hits of 2021 with “Husy” (“Geese”). It is likely that the former X Factor participant will bring another original piece to contest. His current music style combines countryside kitsch with rap and alternative pop. 

Who would you like to see among the eight finalists of Vidbir 2022? Are your favourite artists on the list? Let us know in the comments down below!