The Official Eurovision Song Contest Podcast

Steve is joined by Greece's Marina Satti, who has already had a huge hit in her home country with her Eurovision entry Zari.  She talks about her musical style, the song, her unique music video and the love for the 2005 Greek Eurovision champion Helena Paparizou. Azerbaijani singer FAHREE has teamed up with Ilkin Dovaltov to sing the powerful anthem Özünlə Apar. The pair speak about their partnership, FAHREE’s special spoon (honestly!) and how Ilkin might just have the best moustache in Malmö.  The Official Eurovision Song Contest podcast is produced and presented for the EBU by Steve Holden. The theme music is composed by Machine Sound. Visual design by Chris Fox and Ángela Espejo. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Steve is joined in the delegation bubble for a gossip by Swedish radio and TV presenter Tina Mehrafzoon, who’s commentating for her home country at this year’s contest.  Dons is singing Hollow for Latvia. As one of his country’s biggest singers, he talks about his idol Freddie Mercury, voicing a Disney icon… and the best way to cook an egg.  Norway’s Gåte are bringing ethereal drama with their anthem Ulveham. Singer Gunnhild Sundli and guitarist Magnus Børmark discuss their staging, Gunnhild’s incredible voice and why the midnight sun isn’t all it’s cracked up to be.  The Official Eurovision Song Contest podcast is produced and presented for the EBU by Steve Holden. The theme music is composed by Machine Sound. Visual design by Chris Fox and Ángela Espejo. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Three Eurovision queens join Steve on the latest episode from Malmö. Portugal’s Iolanda speaks about Grito, tracking down the best Portuguese tart in Sweden and reveals her favourite pop bangers of all time.  After representing Iceland in 2010, Hera Björk is back for a second time with Scared Of Heights. She talks about the love in the Eurovision community, her powerlifting preparation and whether she is actually scared of heights!  Albania’s BESA is performing Titans in Sweden. She chats about her passion for rescuing dogs (she has six of them!) and reveals the singer who messages the most in the Eurovision What’sApp chat. The Official Eurovision Song Contest podcast is produced and presented for the EBU by Steve Holden. The theme music is composed by Machine Sound. Visual design by Chris Fox and Ángela Espejo. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Steve catches up with two more acts who have arrived at the podcast fresh off stage from their first rehearsals in Malmö. First up is Malta’s Sarah Bonnici, who talks about the complicated choreo for Loop as well as putting her original career on hold to chase the Eurovision dream.  We also catch up with Switzerland’s Nemo. They have revealed their elaborate staging for The Code. They also discuss hitch-hiking to Malmö from Zurich, and making friends with the Class of ‘24. If you heard them on the podcast previously, you can also find out if they were ever reunited with their missing luggage. The Official Eurovision Song Contest podcast is produced and presented for the EBU by Steve Holden. The theme music is composed by Machine Sound. Visual design by Chris Fox and Ángela Espejo. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Croatia’s Baby Lasagna has had crowds going wild for his anthem Rim Tim Dagi Dim. The singer, whose real name is Marko, talks to Steve about his love of cats and the reception he receives in his home town. He also answers the big question… how much does he actually love lasagna? The Official Eurovision Song Contest podcast is produced and presented for the EBU by Steve Holden. The theme music is composed by Machine Sound. Visual design by Chris Fox and Ángela Espejo. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Hej from Malmö! Joining us straight from their first rehearsals are Ukraine's alyona alyona and Jerry Heil, who are singing Teresa & Maria. The pair discuss their long journey to Sweden, their performance and alyona alyonna demonstrates her incredible rap skills. Poland's LUNA is bringing The Tower to the contest. She talks about her musical influences and her ambitious staging. Before that, Steve finally meets Silia Kapsis face-to-face, who's performing Liar for Cyprus and chats about a potential Eurovision supergroup. The Official Eurovision Song Contest podcast is produced and presented for the EBU by Steve Holden. The theme music is composed by Machine Sound. Visual design by Chris Fox and Ángela Espejo. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It’s a very special episode of the podcast recorded in front of a LIVE audience at the London Eurovision Party.  Steve welcomes Conchita on stage to celebrate the 10 year anniversary of their iconic win in Copenhagen. They discuss the impact of Rise Like A Phoenix, working on the Eurovision movie and the perils of skiing.  Gustaph (Belgium, 2023) and Keiino (Norway, 2019) also share their Eurovision memories and stories.  From the Class of 2024, Malta’s Sarah Bonnici, Ireland’s Bambie Thug, Austria’s Kaleen and Belgium’s Mustii drop in too.  Thank you to the London Eurovision Party for hosting us. The Official Eurovision Song Contest podcast is produced and presented for the EBU by Steve Holden. The theme music is composed by Machine Sound. Visual design by Chris Fox and Ángela Espejo. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For this week’s episode, Marcus & Martinus sit down with Steve to talk about representing this year’s host country… Sweden! The twins are taking their song Unforgettable to Malmö, where they’ll be first to perform in the Grand Final on May 11.  The soccer-crazy brothers discuss which one of them is the better footballer, their embarrassing historic haircuts and how Loreen is their ‘Eurovision Mother’.  The Official Eurovision Song Contest podcast is produced and presented for the EBU by Steve Holden. The theme music is composed by Machine Sound. Visual design by Chris Fox and Ángela Espejo. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Joining Steve on this week’s episode are Georgia’s Nutsa Buzaladze and Serbia’s Teya Dora.  Nutsa is taking her song Firefighter to Malmö. She speaks about her experience on the finals of American Idol, singing with Kylie Minogue and tells us about the joys of one of Georgia’s delicious national dishes - khachapuri! Teya Dora will sing the ethereal ballad Ramonda in Sweden. She speaks about winning the Serbian national final and getting the support of Konstrakta and Luke Black. She also discusses her gigantic viral hit Džanum, which has had billions of views and streams around the world.  The Official Eurovision Song Contest podcast is produced and presented for the EBU by Steve Holden. The theme music is composed by Machine Sound. Visual design by Chris Fox and Ángela Espejo. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

El podcast oficial del Festival de Eurovisión os llega desde la PrePartyES 2024 en Madrid. Víctor Escudero presenta este episodio en español y habla con algunas de las fantásticas candidaturas de este año.  Charla con Nebulossa de España para conocer el vínculo especial que existe entre este dúo de marido y mujer.  Después de competir en el Benidorm Fest, Megara se dirigió a San Marino y ahora representan al microestado con su canción 11:11.  Desde Portugal nos acompaña Iolanda, que cantará Grito en Malmö. Y la copresentadora de Víctor en la PrePartyES, Melani, nos habla de cómo fue representar a España en Eurovisión Junior en 2019 y de sus futuras metas. El podcast oficial del Festival de Eurovisión está producido para la UER por Steve Holden. El tema musical está compuesto por Machine Sound. Diseño visual de Chris Fox y Ángela Espejo. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This episode comes from the first pre-party of the season… in Madrid!   First up is Nemo, who’s representing Switzerland with The Code. They talk about the song, weird breakfasts and losing their luggage. There’s also a special guest appearance from one of their best friends… who happens to be Teya (of Teya and Salena fame)!  Then Steve catches up with LADANIVA who are representing Armenia. The duo are singer Jaklin and instrumentalist Louis who are taking their song Jako to Malmö. All we’ll say is that you should keep listening for the best impression of a chicken you will ever hear. Big thanks to Eurovision Spain for hosting us at the PrePartyES 2024.  The Official Eurovision Song Contest podcast is produced and presented for the EBU by Steve Holden. The theme music is composed by Machine Sound. Visual design by Chris Fox and Ángela Espejo. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Steve catches up with Ireland's Bambie Thug as they prepare to bring their witchy brand of goth pop to Malmö. They chat about their pride at representing their country, their hatred of tap dance and how they brought some Mean Girls inspiration to the video for Doomsday Blue. The Official Eurovision Song Contest podcast is produced and presented for the EBU by Steve Holden. The theme music is composed by Machine Sound. Visual design by Chris Fox and Ángela Espejo. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

SABA will be taking the bridge from Copenhagen to Malmö to represent Denmark with her song Sand.  The singer tells host Steve Holden about her unlikely journey to the Eurovision Song Contest via musical theatre and her talents as a footballer. She also discusses the special bond with her identical twin sister. The Official Eurovision Song Contest podcast is produced and presented for the EBU by Steve Holden. The theme music is composed by Machine Sound. Visual design by Chris Fox and Ángela Espejo. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, Steve heads to a dance studio at a secret location to meet Kaleen, who's representing Austria with We Will Rave. As we find out, the singer is no stranger to the Eurovision Song Contest as she's previously stood in for artists including Eleni Fouriera. She talks about the plans for the staging of her song, the making of the music video and her dancing prowess. The Official Eurovision Song Contest podcast is produced and presented for the EBU by Steve Holden. The theme music is composed by Machine Sound. Visual design by Chris Fox and Ángela Espejo. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Joining Steve this week is Silvester Belt, who’s representing Lithuania with Luktelk.  He talks about his life since winning the Lithuanian national final and the advice he’s received from both Monika Linkytė and Monika Liu. He speaks about the beauty of the Lithuanian language and why he’s looking forward to meeting the UK’s Olly Alexander in Malmö.  The Official Eurovision Song Contest podcast is produced and presented for the EBU by Steve Holden. The theme music is composed by Machine Sound. Visual design by Chris Fox and Ángela Espejo. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We’re saying hello to Mustii, the singer and Drag Race judge who’s representing Belgium with his epic track Before The Party’s Over.  Steve chats to Mustii about his Eurovision plans, his love of Madonna and David Bowie, and how he’s getting loads of support from all his friends on Drag Race Belgium. Last year’s Belgian entrant Gustaph drops in to offer his support… and find out Mustii’s weird choice of song when he’s out at karaoke.  The Official Eurovision Song Contest podcast is produced and presented for the EBU by Steve Holden. The theme music is composed by Machine Sound. Visual design by Chris Fox and Ángela Espejo. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Steve welcomes Finland's Windows95Man and vocalist Henri Piispanen to the podcast. The pair stormed to victory in the Finnish national final, UMK, with their 90s-inspired club hit No Rules. They chat about the epic performance which featured a denim egg, pyrotechnics... and a special pair of denim shorts. They also discuss the impact of Käärijä's success in Finland, and the advice he's given them. The Official Eurovision Song Contest podcast is produced and presented for the EBU by Steve Holden. The theme music is composed by Machine Sound. Visual design by Chris Fox and Ángela Espejo. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this episode, Steve is joined by two of this year’s Eurovision stars: Aiko and Silia Kapsis. Aiko is singing Pedestal for Czechia and she talks about the making of the song, her friendship with Teya (from Teya & Salena) and the unusual form of exercise that keeps her strong. We then hear from Silia Kapsis, who’s representing Cyprus. The teenager is busy finalising the choreography for her song Liar. She tells us about her Cypriot roots, her love of Whitney Houston, and the famous neighbour who lives near her back home in Sydney.  The Official Eurovision Song Contest podcast is produced and presented for the EBU by Steve Holden. The theme music is composed by Machine Sound. Visual design by Chris Fox and Ángela Espejo. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this episode, Steve chats to Raiven, who's representing Slovenia with her dramatic ballad Veronika. They discuss her opera background, meet her pet macaw Georgie and talk about how the song is going to transfer to the Malmö stage. Also dropping in to surprise Raiven is Joker Out's lead singer Bojan Cvjetićanin, who represented Slovenia in Liverpool last year. The Official Eurovision Song Contest podcast is produced and presented for the EBU by Steve Holden. The theme music is composed by Machine Sound. Visual design by Chris Fox and Ángela Espejo. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Our guest is the one of the hosts of the Eurovision Song Contest in Rotterdam 2021... the one and only Nikkie de Jager (AKA NikkieTutorials). Nikkie shares her secrets of hosting the show, make-up with Måneskin, her favourite Eurovision songs... and much more. The Official Eurovision Song Contest podcast is produced and presented for the EBU by Steve Holden. The theme music is composed by Machine Sound. Visual design by Chris Fox and Ángela Espejo. Picture credit for Nikkie de Jager: Meis Belle Wahr & Jip Merkies. Hair by Mandy Nijland. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices