Spotify: Discover This Podcast On The Eurovision Song Contest & The Winner

 The Eurovision Song Contest, often known simply as Eurovision, is an international song competition organized annually by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), featuring entries from primarily European countries. Each participating country submits an original song to be performed on live television and radio, transmitted to national broadcasters via the EBU's Eurovision and Euroradio networks, with competing countries then casting votes for the other countries' songs to determine a winner.

Based on the Sanremo Music Festival held in Italy since 1951, Eurovision has been held annually since 1956 (apart from 2020), making it the longest-running annual international televised music competition, and one of the world's longest-running television programs. As of 2022, 52 countries have participated at least once. Each participating broadcaster sends one original song of three minutes duration or less to be performed live by a singer or group of up to six people aged 16 or older.

Spotify just released the newest episode of its podcast series, Spotify: Discover This and in this episode, listeners can learn about all things Eurovision that garners up to 200 million viewers (almost twice the size of the Super Bowl audience in the U.S.). 

You can listen to the full episode here, and check out exclusive footage from on-the-ground in Liverpool on YouTube and Spotify.

Last year, rap group Kalush Orchestra won the title representing their home country of Ukraine with a soaring power anthem. The contest winners are usually awarded the honor of hosting the following year’s event, but the continuing war meant the UK, as runners-up, was invited to host on Ukraine’s behalf.

As this year’s competitors prepare to compete in the city of Liverpool this week, Spotify podcast host Lea Palmieri caught up with several artists, including Ukrainian music duo Tvorchi, UK’s Mae Muller, Israel’s Noa Kirel, Italian artist Marco Mengoni and Swedish superstar Loreen, who could become only the second artist to win Eurovision twice. 

On Saturday, May 13th, Swedish singer Loreen was named the winner of the Eurovision Song Contest for her pop ballad "Tattoo," beating out 25 other nations at the event's final on Saturday night.

It's her second time winning over the hearts of the jury and public, having first won for Sweden in 2012.

Lea also speaks to the Editor-at-Large of Esquire Magazine, Dave Holmes, who offers light-hearted insights on the competition's popularity and peculiarities. Passionate Eurovision fans share what they are looking for in a Eurovision winner while Spotify’s Music Team Lead for Eastern and Southern Europe, Mateusz Smolka, reveals unique Eurovision insights from Spotify streaming data.

See below for interview highlights in the episode. 

Dave Holmes on how Eurovision Started “Eurovision started in 1956 as Europe was recovering from World War Two…trying to find activities to do together to sort of reunify. And how better to do that through music. It was just, you know, artists singing songs. There was a voting body. That was it. And over time, it got bigger and flashier and campier and it started to produce some stars. ABBA came from it in the early years…Celine Dion..and it became more of a camp Super Bowl.”

Dave Holmes on why America has not caught on to the phenomenon yet “It's really difficult to explain how massive the Eurovision Song Contest is everywhere in the world, really but America. The best way that I can put it for an American audience is that it's like the Miss America pageant and American Idol and the Super Bowl, but sort of gay and just all together with just an extra little bit of glitter on top. America does not know what to do with the tone that Eurovision creates. It's sincere, but it's also like 10% making fun of itself at any given moment. It's just it's. It's a tone that we as Americans do not know how to do. We're either fully ironic or we're fully sincere. And it's just we can't do it.”

Tvorchi band member, Jeffrey Kenny on what fans can expect from Ukraine this and a special shout-out to the UK for hosting. “Ukraine has been represented in the past years with folk songs, and it was a great representation. But this year we will show the country from another side with progressive electronic music, and we will show everyone how different Ukraine can be…we would like to say a huge thank you to the United Kingdom for hosting and all the support they've offered. They have really created a lot of initiatives to really bring the culture and feel of Ukraine into Liverpool, and they have done an amazing job with that.”

Loreen on what Eurovision Song Contest means to her. “Basically, that was the community that accepted me for who I am. I was a struggling artist before that, you know, trying to find my space. And then I knocked on the Eurovision door, and they're like, You know what? We like you. We like what you're doing. Come on in, we'll give you a shot. That was where it all started.”

Loreen on what it would mean to her home country of Sweden if she won again. “My performance has to have certain values. I think that's one of the reasons why they want me to represent them. The message is pretty clear. It's about nature. It's about hope, It's about love. All those things that I guess the majority of the Swedish people believe in and want to send out there.”

Mae Muller on what it would mean if her home country of the United Kingdom won this year. “I feel like, especially in the last few years, there's been a change in tides and how people are seeing Eurovision in the UK. And I feel like we're taking it more seriously now, and I feel like, you know, a victory like that would just really like help, just like catapulting it in a different way. And I feel like Sam (Ryder) doing so well last year, like completely kind of changed the game.”

Mateusz on artists that are proving most popular on Spotify ahead of the final. “In terms of Spotify streams, it's Swedish superstar Loreen and her song Tattoo. Actually Loreen already won Eurovision many years ago with her amazing track Euphoria. And that actually started her amazing career. And now she's back with another stellar song and is already having amazing numbers - actually twice as many streams as the second song in this list, Marco Mengoni…Marco is like an Italian artist. And then these two tracks are followed by Norway's song Queen of Kings…”