Duets

Laura Põldvere

© EBU/Andres Putting About Quick Facts NameLaura Põldvere Born30 August 1988 Nationality🇪🇪 Estonian National SelectionUuden Musiikin Kilpailu 2021 (Finland)Eesti Laul 2020Eesti Laul 2017Eesti Laul 2016Eesti Laul 2009Eurolaul 2007Eurolaul 2005 In Eurovision2017 Kyiv2005 Kyiv SongVerona (2017, with Koit Toome)Let’s get loud (2005, Suntribe) Biography Laura Põldvere is an Estonian singer. She was born in the Estonian city of Tartu. Laura’s career started in 2005, when she took part in Eurolaul, the national final for the Eurovision Song Contest. As a solo singer, she sang “Moonwalk”. The song became 2nd and reached the #1 spot in the Estonian charts. However, she also participated as a member of the girlband Suntribe. The group won and represented Estonia in the Eurovision Song Contest with the song “Let’s get loud”. The band had previously recorded a song in Estonian, “Ei tunne mind”. After 2005, the group split up and Laura went for a solo career. In 2007, Laura was back in Eurolaul, this time with the song “Sunflower”. She reached the 3rd place. Again, Laura’s song reached the #1 spot in the Estonian charts. In the same year, on 1 September, her debut album “Muusa” was released. Laura took a break from her singing career to study at Berklee College in Boston, USA.In 2009, Laura made a comeback at Eesti Laul, now the national final for the Eurovision Song Contest. Her song “Destiny” reached a 3rd place. Another album followed, “Ultra”, which was released on 8 December 2009. In November 2011 the album was followed by a compilation album with the title “Sädemeid taivast”. After a few years of silence, Laura made a comeback in 2016, and her stage again was Eesti Laul. The song “Supersonic” became 2nd and again was good for a #1 in the Estonian charts. The follow up song “94-95” had the same success. Together with Koit Toome, Laura took part in Eesti Laul 2017. The song “Verona” won and took part in the Eurovision Song Contest 2017. “Verona” did not reach the final. On 12 May 2017 however, a “Greatest hits” album appeared with “Verona” on it. In 2018, Laura released a few non-album singles: “Waterfall”, “Tõusulained” and “Lennujaamas”. A new album, “9 Elu” found it’s release on 3 December 2019. On this album a.o. another duet with Koit Toome. In 2020, Laura took part in Eesti Laul again. The song this time was called “Break me”. Laura reached the 11th place in the final this time. The song was followed by one in Estonian, “On meie aeg”. In 2021, Laura participated in Uuden Musiikin Kilpailu, the Finnish national selection for the Eurovision song contest. Unfortunately, her song “Play” became last in the final. After this, she released two new singles and went on to perform in Poland and Italy. In 2022, on 11 March, a new single was released: “Gameboy”, which was a collaboration with Jyrise. The band Tabloided invited her to record a song together, which was titled “Zeitgeist”. In May of that year, the new song “Prayers to you” came out. In the summer, Laura organized a music camp, Make Music Until You Drop.  It was in March 2023 that Laura released a song called „Lilled jäävadki Sulle“. With that song, she participated in the show Uus Laul II. She and her team reached the final of the contest. In August she opened for Bonnie Tyler. A new single, “Pahupidi”, was released in September. Laura took part in Eesti Laul 2024, where she sang “Here’s Where I Draw The Line”. Unfortunately, she didn’t make it to the final. Entries Verona (with Koit Toome) Country🇪🇪 Estonia Year2017 LanguageEnglish LyricsSven Lõhmus MusicSven Lõhmus BackingsKaire VilgatsDagmar OjaRolf Roosalu Results Semi Points: 85Position: 14Running order: 17 Results Finals Points: –Position: –Running order: – https://youtu.be/NxqPpzWYN1c Let’s get loud (Suntribe) Country🇪🇪 Estonia Year2005 LanguageEnglish LyricsSven Lõhmus MusicSven Lõhmus Backings– Results Semi Points: 31Position: 20Running order: 12 Results Finals Points: –Position: –Running order: – https://youtu.be/mqvOUfdwQtw

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Ermal Meta

© EBU/Andres Putting About Quick Facts NameErmal Meta Born20 April 1981 Nationality???????? Italian National SelectionFestival di Sanremo 2021Festival di Sanremo 2018Festival di Sanremo 2017 In Eurovision2018 Lisbon SongNon mi avete fatto niente (2018) Biography Ermal Meta is an Italian songwriter, composer and multi-instrumentalist. He was born in Albania but went to Italy when he was 13. Ermal began playing piano and guitar at 16 and was part of several bands before joining Ameba 4, as a guitarist. This band took part in the Festival of San Remo 2006 in the sezione Giovani . They released one album, but broke up not too long after the festival.In 2007 Meta founded the group La Fame di Camilla, with whom he made the three studio albums. Also this band took part in the sezione Giovani of the Festival of San Remo, in 2010. Following the dissolution of the group, Meta started writing for other artists. In 2014 he wrote the song “Tutto misce”, inserted in the soundtrack of the television series Braccialetti rossi. In october he released his debut single “Lettera a mio padre”.  In november 2015 the single “Odio le favole” was released. Meta took part in Sanremo Giovani 2015, being selected among the Nuove Proposti of the Sanremo Festival 2016.  Around that time, his first studio album “Umano” was released.In 2017 Meta took part in the Festival of San Remo in the “Big” section with the song “Vietato morire”. This was also the title of Meta’s second album. The album reached the top of the Italian charts.  Together with Fabrizio Moro, Meta took part in the festival of San Remo 2018 with the song “Non mi avete fatto niente”. The song won the first prize in San Remo. When asked to represent Italy in the Eurovision Song Contest, the two decided to say yes. The festival was followed by a new album, “Non abbiamo armi”. He promoted the album by a tour and in 2019, he released a live album “Non abbiamo armi – Il concerto”. In 2019 he wrote several songs for Alberto Urso. The following year Meta joined the Italian supergroup Allstars 4 Life which brought together over fifty Italian artists for the recording of the song “Ma il cielo è semper blu”. The money, earned with the single, was donated to the Italian Red Cross to support Il Tempo della Gentilezza, a project to support the most fragile people affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Meta presented the new single “Finerà bene” during the concert of the 1st of May.  On January 15, 2021, the single “No Satisfaction” was released, aimed at anticipating his fourth album. The album, titled “Tribù urbana” was released on March 12 of the same year and included in the track list the other single “Un milione di cose da dirti”. With this song, Ermal took part in the 71st Sanremo Festival, where it was ranked third. On November 26, Meta released single “Milano non esiste”, which was followed on March 4, 2022 by “Una cosa più grande” in collaboration with Giuliano Sangiorgi. In the same year he published the book “Domani e per sempre”, set in Albania during World War II. Entries Non Mi Avete Fatto Niente Country???????? Italy Year2018 LanguageItalian LyricsErmal MetaFabrizio MoroAndrea Febo MusicErmal MetaFabrizio MoroAndrea Febo BackingsRoberto MaccaroniAndrea Vigentini Results Semi Points: –Position: –Running order: – Results Finals Points: 308Position: 5Running order: 26 https://youtu.be/81M-mp5t8uM

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Waylon

© EBU/Andres Putting About Quick Facts NameWillem Bijkerk Born20 April 1980 Nationality???????? Dutch National SelectionInternal selection 2018Internal selection 2014Nationaal Songfestival 2005 In Eurovision2018 Lisbon2014 Copenhagen SongOutlaw in ’em (2018)Calm after the storm (The Common Linnets, 2014) Biography Waylon is a Dutch singer, songwriter and musicion. He was born in Apeldoorn, the Netherlands. He chose his stage name as he was a fan of Waylon Jennings. In 1995 he started singing in the tv show Telekids. He signed a record contract in 1997 and was allowed to record an album in Nashville. However, it was never released. In 2001 he lived and worked in the United States for a year . He appeared in the show of his idol Waylon Jennings with whom he also worked. Jennings passed away and Bijkerk returned to the Netherlands. After his return, he sang in the bands Santa Rosa and Millstreet. Waylon joined Rachel Kramer in 2005 as the duo ‘Rachel & Waylon’ in Het Nationaal Songfestival, the Dutch national selection for the Eurovision Song Contest. In 2008 he reached the final of Holland’s Got Talent. Despite the fact he did not win, this marked his breakthrough. His first record, “Wicked way”, became a huge hit in the Netherlands. It was followed by a debut album, “Wicked ways”, in 2009. In april 2010, he won a 3FM Award as ‘best newcomer’ and a TMF Award as ‘new talent’. In october 2011, his second album “After all” followed and he won another 3FM Award, now for ‘best singer’.Together with Ilse Delange, Waylon formed The Common Linnets. They represented the Netherlands in the Eurovision Song Contest with the song “Calm after the storm” and became 2nd. After Eurovision, the only performance of the two together was at the Tuckerville concert in Enschede, organized by The Common Linnets. After this concert, Waylon left the band.Two solo albums followed: “Heaven after midnight” (2014) and “Seeds” (2016). Meanwhile, Waylon was a coach in The Voice of Holland. In 2018, Waylon took part in the Eurovision Song Contest again, now as a solo singer with the song “Outlaw in ’em’. He reached the final again. The song was also released on his new album, “World can wait”. A tour with the subject ‘outlaws in country music’ followed: My heroes have always been cowboys. In december 2019, Waylon released a 6th album, “Human”. During the first lockdown of COVID19, he sang a version of Willeke Alberti’s song “Samen zijn”, together with the original singer and Wibi Soerjadi.In 2022, Waylon started singing in Dutch. His duet with former Eurovision-host Jan Smit (as Willem & Jan), “Tussen jou en mij” was released on single. Entries Outlaw In ‘Em Country???????? The Netherlands Year2018 LanguageEnglish LyricsJim BeaversWaylonIlya Toshinskiy MusicJim BeaversWaylonIlya Toshinskiy BackingsJustin PieplenboschPierre AngandaRoger MakadiPieter LikiyoBrandon Likiyo Results Semi Points: 174Position: 7Running order: 8 Results Finals Points: 121Position: 18Running order: 23 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p7jHz5asMs8 Calm After Storm (The Common Linnets) Country???????? Country Year2014 LanguageEnglish LyricsIlse De LangeJB MeijersRob CrosbyMatthew CrosbyJake Etheridge MusicIlse De LangeJB MeijersRob CrosbyMatthew CrosbyJake Etheridge BackingsJB MeijersBart VergoossenMartijn Van Agt Results Semi Points: 150Position: 1Running order: 14 Results Finals Points: 238Position: 2Running order: 24 https://youtu.be/4ggBPAm5XLA

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Elnur Hüseynov

© EBU/Elena Volotova About Quick Facts NameElnur Hüseynov Born03 March 1987 Nationality🇦🇿 Azerbaijani National SelectionInternal selection 2015Land of Fire 2008 In Eurovision2015 Vienna2008 Belgrade SongHour of the wolf (2015)Day after day (Elnur & Samir) Biography Elnur Hüseynov is an Azerbaijani singer. He was born on March 3, 1987, in Ashgabat. In 1992, he entered the ROXMIM for gifted children alongside the Turkmenistan Conservatory, where he received education in piano class. In 1999, Elnur Hüseynov came to Baku and was admitted to the Dental Technical Specialty of the Medical School in 2000. However, in 2001, he left the medical school and joined the Asaf Zeynalli Music School. Elnur worked at the Azerbaijan State Opera and Ballet Theater for a while. After graduating from the Music School in 2004, he learned the profession of stylist-barber. In the early years, in 2003, Elnur participated for the second time in the Sing Your Song project. He won the grand prize. This was his first success in his career. In 2005, he recorded the song “Besdir” with the group Prestij, written by Eldar Mansurov. Later, a music video was made for this song. In late 2007, Elnur performed at the Lighting Azerbaijan international concert program in the assembly hall of the Kiev President Hotel in Ukraine.  In 2008, Elnur Hüseynov participated in the national selection to represent Azerbaijan for the first time at the Eurovision Song Contest. Elnur performed the song “If You Never Back,”. Later, he performed the song “Day After Day” in a duet with Samir Javadzadeh. After the jury’s voting, it was announced that they had won the duet category with Samir. At the Eurovision Song Contest in 2008, they were the first ever representants from Azerbaijan. In the final held on May 24, they placed 8th among the 25 countries competing in the final. Travel to Ukraine and subsequent years In December 2009, Elnur announced that he would continue his music career in Ukraine and would not return to Azerbaijan. However, he returned to his homeland a few months later. In April 2010, Elnur participated as a contestant in the  reality show Maşın but was eliminated on the first day. In 2010, Elnur participated in a musical based on Victor Hugo’s novel “The Hunchback of Notre-Dame” at the Heydar Aliyev Palace, portraying the character of Phoebus de Châteaupers. This musical marked a first in Elnur’s career.  On December 1, 2014, Elnur participated in the O Ses Türkiye (The Voice of Turkey) competition, which aired on Turkey’s TV8 channel.  After winning the final stage, it was determined that Elnur received the highest number of votes ever recorded in the competition, reaching one million votes.  Elnur was chosen internally to represent Azerbaijan again in the Eurovision Song Contest in 2015. He presented his song “Hour of the wolf”, reached the final and became 12th in the contest. In 2015, Elnur performed the song “Avropa Oyunları qədim Bakı torpağında” (European Games in Ancient Baku Land) dedicated to the inaugural European Games held in Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan. He performed the song together with Samir Javadzadeh and Honored Artist Sevda Elekberzadeh. Although Samir and Sevda initially performed the duet, Elnur later joined them. They performed the song in both Azerbaijani and English languages. Elnur Hüseynov also performed live shows before the opening ceremony held at Baku Olympic Stadium on June 12.  In 2017, Elnur released a music video for his new song “Vibration,” with lyrics by Diana Hajiyeva and music by Isfar Sarabski. In September 2018 he released a new single again, this time with the title “Dreamer”. Ali Nasib wrote another song for Elnur. “Try to be yourself” was released on 26 April 2019. In 2020, Elnur teamed up with Ilgara Kazimova for the song “Deniz ver”. In 2021, Elnur joined a new band, the Sonar House Collective. Their debut single “Since I know you” was released on the 1st of February of that year.  In February 2023, Elnur had a concert together with the “Mavi Ürəklər” blue choir, consisting of members with autism syndrome. On 7 April of the same year, his new video and song “Monster pop” was released. He performed at a youth festival organized for the Heydar Aliyev Year. Entries Hour Of The Wolf Country🇦🇿 Azerbaijan Year2015 LanguageEnglish LyricsLina HanssonNicklas LifNicolas RebscherSandra Bjurman MusicLina HanssonNicklas LifNicolas Rebscher BackingsKrysten CummingsNicklas LifTamara Nivillac DancersJulia SpiesserLukas McFarlane Results Semi Points: 53Position: 10Running order: 11 Results Finals Points: 49Position: 12Running order: 24 https://youtu.be/IcVrAFtc5YI Day After Day (Elnur & Samir) Country Azerbaijan Year2008 LanguageEnglish LyricsZahra Bədəlbəyli MusicGovher Hasanzadə BackingsNames of the 2 dancers and 2 backing singers are unknown. Results Semi Points: 96Position: 6Running order: 7 Results Finals Points: 132Position: 8Running order: 20 https://youtu.be/6OGVL_9P5fw

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Electro Velvet

© EBU/Andres Putting About Quick Facts MembersAlex LarkeBianca Nicholas Active2014-2015, 2018 Nationality🇬🇧 British National SelectionInternal selection 2015 In Eurovision2015 Vienna SongStill In Love With You Biography Electro Velvet were a British musical duo. The duo existed of Bianca Nicholas and Alex Larke. Bianca Nicholas has appeared on popular TV shows like The X Factor and The Voice UK. She has had notable performances, including singing a duet with Will Young and performing in front of Prince William, Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, and Prince Harry. In 2011, Nicholas released a single called “Hold On To Your Dreams,” which made it onto the UK Top 100 singles chart. Additionally, she had a small role in the 1999 film Sleepy Hollow with Johnny Depp. It’s worth noting that Nicholas suffers from cystic fibrosis. Larke, on the other hand, was born in Welwyn Garden City. He currently serves as the lead singer for The Rolling Stones tribute group called The Rolling Clones and has toured extensively with the band in the UK and internationally. Larke has collaborated with notable artists like Cut La Roc and Donald D on their album Larger Than Life, which also features Gary Lightbody, the frontman of Snow Patrol. Apart from his music career, Larke works part-time in a primary school and teaches ukulele and recorder. In the past, he worked in a special needs school, focusing on children and young adults with profound to severe learning difficulties. Regarding their participation in the Eurovision Song Contest in 2015, Electro Velvet was chosen by the BBC to represent the United Kingdom with their song “Still in Love with You.” The song received mixed to negative reviews upon its announcement. In the contest, they received 5 points and ranked 24th out of 27 participants.  Following their Eurovision experience, Electro Velvet expressed gratitude to their fans on their official Facebook page and hinted at upcoming plans. However, their debut EP, which was scheduled for release and available for pre-order on PledgeMusic, was ultimately canceled due to Nicholas’ ongoing health issues. After a pause of three years, Electro Velvet went back to the studio in 2018 to record a new song, “Take me home”. However, the song did not know any follow up. Entries Still In Love With You Country🇬🇧 United Kingdom Year2015 LanguageEnglish LyricsDavid MindelAdrian Bax White MusicDavid MindelAdrian Bax White BackingsScarlette DouglasJoe HuntSophie Carmen JonesRyan Heseltine Results Semi Points: –Position: –Running order: – Results Finals Points: 5Position: 24Running order: 5 https://youtu.be/Ethyx4A5ajM

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Maraaya

About Quick Facts MembersMarjetka VovkAleš Vovk (Raay) Founded2014 Nationality🇸🇮 Slovenian National SelectionEMA 2015 In Eurovision2015 Vienna SongHere For You (2015) Biography Maraaya is a Slovenian pop duo founded in 2014 by Marjetka Vovk and Raay. The name is a combination of their names.  Before music author and producer Raay (real name: Aleš Vovk) and singer Marjetka Vovk (born Jurkovnik) started working as Maraaya, they were members of the bands Turbo Angels and Tangels. In 2014, they released their first single “Lovin’ Me” under the name Maraaya. The song experienced great success on the iTunes charts in Belgium, Germany, Italy and Slovenia. It was among the twenty best-selling singles in Italy. It was among the ten best-selling singles in Italy, and was also included on the Polish compilation “Bravo Hits Zima 2015”. It reached  the German DJ’s Dance Top 100 singles chart. The highest rankings of the song “Lovin’ Me” on the most important official national single charts: on the Slovenian SloTop50, it ranked 13th. It also reached the charts in Italy and Belgium. They won the 2015 EMA, the national final for the Eurovision Song Contest with their second single “Here for You” and thus qualified for Eurovision, where they reached the final. The song reached the #1 spot in the Slovenian charts. It also became a hit in Austria, Slovakia, Belgium, Sweden and Germany. In September 2015, they premiered their third single “Living Again” at the Red Cross charity concert in Cankarjev dom.  At EMA 2016, they presented their fourth single “Nothing Left for Me” as special guests. On May 26, 2017, Maraaya, in collaboration with BQL, performed live on Cankarjeva cesta in Ljubljana, where they premiered their fifth single “It’s Complicated” and at the same time the music video.  On June 10, 2017, Maraaya performed at the Croatian festival CMC Vodice 2017, where they presented a Croatian version of the single “Sjaj”, which was officially released the day before. In fall, Maraaya signed a contract with Warner Music, one of the biggest labels in the world. On September 22, their sixth single “Diamond Duck” was released. In the official SloTop50 ranking, they took first place already in the first week of airing. So far, only BQL has managed to do this. In 2018, they performed again at the CMC Vodice festival, in a duet with Domestikus with the song “Noć (Mi corazón es tuyo)”. They recorded it in Croatian – “Noć (Mi corazón es tuyo)” – and English – “Mi corazón es tuyo” – version (both also have Spanish lyrics). The music video for the Croatian version was uploaded to YouTube on June 8, 2018. In fall, they started the Maraaya & Jazzilaz project, in which they perform world hits in a swing-jazz guise. In September 2020, they released their first song in Slovenian, “Obujem nove čevlje”. They shot a video, in which the Croatian dancer and tiktoker Luciano Plazibat performs. The ballad “Drevo” followed in November. In March 2021, their new single “Dobr’ gre” was released. The song reached the no.1 spot in the Slovenian charts. Marjetka became a judge in Slovenia Ima Talent in the 2021 season. Meanwhile, the duo teamed up with Jan Plestenjak for the song “V naju še verjamem”. It was followe in November by the song “Zdaj pa greš”. Both songs became no. 1 in the trending for music list. Maraaya teamed up with Kvatropirci for the song “Življenje”, which was released in September 2022. One month later, Maraaya’s own single “Le ob tebi” was released.  On 6 June 2023, Maraaya released a brand new single, “Nebesa”. Entries Here For You Country🇸🇮 Slovenia Year2015 LanguageEnglish LyricsRaayCharlie Mason MusicRaayMarjetka Vovk BackingsManca ŠpikNika ZorjanKarin ZemljičLara Slekovec (Violin)   Results Semi Points: 92Position: 5 Running order: 16 Results Finals Points: 39Position: 14Running order: 1 https://youtu.be/y1c7gDOaFY0

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Mahmood

About Quick Facts NameAlessandro Mahmoud Born12 september 1992 Nationality🇮🇹 Italian National SelectionFestival di San Remo 2019Festival di San Remo 2022 In Eurovision2019 Tel Aviv2022 Turin SongBrividi (with Blanco, 2022)Soldi (2019) Biography Mahmood is an Italian singer-songwriter from Milan. He was born to a Sardinian mother and an Egyptian father. His stage name Mahmood is a play on words between the surname (Mahmoud) and the English expression my mood (my mood). After graduating from high school, he studied at the CPM Music Institute-Centro Professione Musica in Milan, where he met Andrea Rodini, his teacher and first manager, and Francesco Fugazza, Elia Pastori and Marcello Grilli, members of his band and first producers. In 2012 he took part in the talent show X Factor. After the X Factor, he begins to write and produce his songs. In 2013 he published the EP Fallin ‘Rain, containing five versions of the song. In 2015 he took part in Area Sanremo, winning the first prize and the right to participate in the Sanremo Festival 2016 in the Nuove Proposti category with the song “Dimentica”. Meanwhile, he published an English-language single, “The Chair”, in collaboration with Martha. In 2017 he published the single “Pesos”, with which he participated in the Summer Festival 2017. In the same year, he collaborated with Michele Bravi,  writing and singing a duet “Presi Male”. He also wrote songs for other artists. In September 2018 his EP “Gioventù bruciata” was released.  A victory in Sanremo Giovani allows Mahmood to participate in the Sanremo Festival 2019 with the song “Soldi”. He was the surprise winner of the festival. Following the victory, the song reached the top of the Italian charts, where it remained for six weeks. Because of his victory in Sanremo, Mahmood became first choice to represent Italy in the Eurovision Song Contest. He said yes, but later started to doubt about it. After a Twitterstorm, he decided to do it, and became 2nd in Tel Aviv with “Soldi”. In 2020, Mahmood wrote a song for Elodie, which she sang at the Sanremo festival. A year later, he wrote songs for Francesca Michelin and for Fedez. Also in 2021, he was finally able to release his second album “Ghettolimpo”. In 2022 he participated in the festival of Sanremo again, now in duet with Blanco. They won the prize. They represented Italy in the Eurovision Song Contest with their song “Brividi”. Entries Brividi (with Blanco) Country Italy Year2022 LanguageItalian LyricsAlessandro MahmoodRiccardo ‘Blanco’ FabbriconiMichele ‘Michelangelo’ Zocca MusicAlessandro MahmoodRiccardo ‘Blanco’ FabbriconiMichele ‘Michelangelo’ Zocca BackingsMichelangelo Results Semi Points: –Position: –Running order: – Results Finals Points: 268Position: 6 Running order: 9 https://youtu.be/blEy4xHuMbY Soldi Country Italy Year2019 LanguageItalian LyricsAlessandro Mahmoud MusicCharlie CharlesDario ‘Dardust’ FainiAlessandro Mahmoud Backings– Results Semi Points: –Position: –Running order: – Results Finals Points: 472Position: 2Running order: 22 https://youtu.be/M-aoyPa41Ic

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S!sters

© EBU/Thomas Hanses About Quick Facts MembersCharlotte TrumanLaura Kästel Active2019-2020 Nationality🇩🇪 German National SelectionUnser Lied für Israel 2019 In Eurovision2019 Tel Aviv SongSister (2019) Biography Sisters was an occasional duo, put together by NDR in 2019. They sang a song called “Sister”, which was rejected in the Swiss national selection for the Eurovision Song Contest in 2018. The song won the German final and the duo represented Germany in the 2019 Eurovision Song Contest. In February 2020 the duo decided to quit. Carlotta Truman (19 october 1999) was born in Hannover. She participated in the talent show “Das Supertalent” when she was only 9 years old. She performed in several tv-shows, among others in “The voice Kids”, where she became the runner up. She performed in Alex Christensens show ‘Classical 90s dance’. In 2019, Truman made her debut as an actress in an episode leading role in the series “In aller Freundschaft – Die jungen Ärtzte”. About a year later she had another episode role in the RTL series Nachtschwestern. From season 6 in 2022 she will be part of the main cast of the youth series Spotlight. Laura Kästel, stage name Laurita Spinelli, (29 september 1992) was born in Königsau but currently lives in Wiesbaden. When she was 10 years old, she won a children’s song contest on ZDF tv, and a year later she participated in the casting show ‘Star reach’. She was a backing vocal for a.o. Sarah Connor and Stefanie Heinzmann, and currently for Lena. She is also the lead singer of a band called Waterproof. In October 2020 she released her first solo single “Stumm” under the pseudonym Laurita Spinelli. Entries Sister Country🇩🇪 Germany Year2019 LanguageEnglish LyricsLaurell BarkerMarine KaltenbacherTom OehlerThomas Stengaard MusicLaurell BarkerMarine KaltenbacherTom OehlerThomas Stengaard BackingsVerena HeinzSonja WiegandInga LühningRay Lozano Results Semi Points: –Position: –Running order: – Results Finals Points: 24Position: 25Running order: 4 https://youtu.be/yFbSj_yPCPM

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Laura Põldvere

© EBU/Andres Putting About Quick Facts NameLaura Põldvere Born30 August 1988 Nationality🇪🇪 Estonian National SelectionUuden Musiikin Kilpailu 2021 (Finland)Eesti Laul 2020Eesti Laul 2017Eesti Laul 2016Eesti Laul 2009Eurolaul 2007Eurolaul 2005 In Eurovision2017 Kyiv2005 Kyiv SongVerona (2017, with Koit Toome)Let’s get loud (2005, Suntribe) Biography Laura Põldvere is an Estonian singer. She was born in the Estonian city of Tartu. Laura’s career started in 2005, when she took part in Eurolaul, the national final for the Eurovision Song Contest. As a solo singer, she sang “Moonwalk”. The song became 2nd and reached the #1 spot in the Estonian charts. However, she also participated as a member of the girlband Suntribe. The group won and represented Estonia in the Eurovision Song Contest with the song “Let’s get loud”. The band had previously recorded a song in Estonian, “Ei tunne mind”. After 2005, the group split up and Laura went for a solo career. In 2007, Laura was back in Eurolaul, this time with the song “Sunflower”. She reached the 3rd place. Again, Laura’s song reached the #1 spot in the Estonian charts. In the same year, on 1 September, her debut album “Muusa” was released. Laura took a break from her singing career to study at Berklee College in Boston, USA.In 2009, Laura made a comeback at Eesti Laul, now the national final for the Eurovision Song Contest. Her song “Destiny” reached a 3rd place. Another album followed, “Ultra”, which was released on 8 December 2009. In November 2011 the album was followed by a compilation album with the title “Sädemeid taivast”. After a few years of silence, Laura made a comeback in 2016, and her stage again was Eesti Laul. The song “Supersonic” became 2nd and again was good for a #1 in the Estonian charts. The follow up song “94-95” had the same success. Together with Koit Toome, Laura took part in Eesti Laul 2017. The song “Verona” won and took part in the Eurovision Song Contest 2017. “Verona” did not reach the final. On 12 May 2017 however, a “Greatest hits” album appeared with “Verona” on it. In 2018, Laura released a few non-album singles: “Waterfall”, “Tõusulained” and “Lennujaamas”. A new album, “9 Elu” found it’s release on 3 December 2019. On this album a.o. another duet with Koit Toome. In 2020, Laura took part in Eesti Laul again. The song this time was called “Break me”. Laura reached the 11th place in the final this time. The song was followed by one in Estonian, “On meie aeg”. In 2021, Laura participated in Uuden Musiikin Kilpailu, the Finnish national selection for the Eurovision song contest. Unfortunately, her song “Play” became last in the final. After this, she released two new singles and went on to perform in Poland and Italy. In 2022, on 11 March, a new single was released: “Gameboy”, which was a collaboration with Jyrise. The band Tabloided invited her to record a song together, which was titled “Zeitgeist”. In May of that year, the new song “Prayers to you” came out. In the summer, Laura organized a music camp, Make Music Until You Drop.  It was in March 2023 that Laura released a song called „Lilled jäävadki Sulle“. With that song, she participated in the show Uus Laul II. She and her team reached the final of the contest. In August she opened for Bonnie Tyler. A new single, “Pahupidi”, was released in September. Laura took part in Eesti Laul 2024, where she sang “Here’s Where I Draw The Line”. Unfortunately, she didn’t make it to the final. Entries Verona (with Koit Toome) Country🇪🇪 Estonia Year2017 LanguageEnglish LyricsSven Lõhmus MusicSven Lõhmus BackingsKaire VilgatsDagmar OjaRolf Roosalu Results Semi Points: 85Position: 14Running order: 17 Results Finals Points: –Position: –Running order: – https://youtu.be/NxqPpzWYN1c Let’s get loud (Suntribe) Country🇪🇪 Estonia Year2005 LanguageEnglish LyricsSven Lõhmus MusicSven Lõhmus Backings– Results Semi Points: 31Position: 20Running order: 12 Results Finals Points: –Position: –Running order: – https://youtu.be/mqvOUfdwQtw

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Ermal Meta

© EBU/Andres Putting About Quick Facts NameErmal Meta Born20 April 1981 Nationality???????? Italian National SelectionFestival di Sanremo 2021Festival di Sanremo 2018Festival di Sanremo 2017 In Eurovision2018 Lisbon SongNon mi avete fatto niente (2018) Biography Ermal Meta is an Italian songwriter, composer and multi-instrumentalist. He was born in Albania but went to Italy when he was 13. Ermal began playing piano and guitar at 16 and was part of several bands before joining Ameba 4, as a guitarist. This band took part in the Festival of San Remo 2006 in the sezione Giovani . They released one album, but broke up not too long after the festival.In 2007 Meta founded the group La Fame di Camilla, with whom he made the three studio albums. Also this band took part in the sezione Giovani of the Festival of San Remo, in 2010. Following the dissolution of the group, Meta started writing for other artists. In 2014 he wrote the song “Tutto misce”, inserted in the soundtrack of the television series Braccialetti rossi. In october he released his debut single “Lettera a mio padre”.  In november 2015 the single “Odio le favole” was released. Meta took part in Sanremo Giovani 2015, being selected among the Nuove Proposti of the Sanremo Festival 2016.  Around that time, his first studio album “Umano” was released.In 2017 Meta took part in the Festival of San Remo in the “Big” section with the song “Vietato morire”. This was also the title of Meta’s second album. The album reached the top of the Italian charts.  Together with Fabrizio Moro, Meta took part in the festival of San Remo 2018 with the song “Non mi avete fatto niente”. The song won the first prize in San Remo. When asked to represent Italy in the Eurovision Song Contest, the two decided to say yes. The festival was followed by a new album, “Non abbiamo armi”. He promoted the album by a tour and in 2019, he released a live album “Non abbiamo armi – Il concerto”. In 2019 he wrote several songs for Alberto Urso. The following year Meta joined the Italian supergroup Allstars 4 Life which brought together over fifty Italian artists for the recording of the song “Ma il cielo è semper blu”. The money, earned with the single, was donated to the Italian Red Cross to support Il Tempo della Gentilezza, a project to support the most fragile people affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Meta presented the new single “Finerà bene” during the concert of the 1st of May.  On January 15, 2021, the single “No Satisfaction” was released, aimed at anticipating his fourth album. The album, titled “Tribù urbana” was released on March 12 of the same year and included in the track list the other single “Un milione di cose da dirti”. With this song, Ermal took part in the 71st Sanremo Festival, where it was ranked third. On November 26, Meta released single “Milano non esiste”, which was followed on March 4, 2022 by “Una cosa più grande” in collaboration with Giuliano Sangiorgi. In the same year he published the book “Domani e per sempre”, set in Albania during World War II. Entries Non Mi Avete Fatto Niente Country???????? Italy Year2018 LanguageItalian LyricsErmal MetaFabrizio MoroAndrea Febo MusicErmal MetaFabrizio MoroAndrea Febo BackingsRoberto MaccaroniAndrea Vigentini Results Semi Points: –Position: –Running order: – Results Finals Points: 308Position: 5Running order: 26 https://youtu.be/81M-mp5t8uM

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Waylon

© EBU/Andres Putting About Quick Facts NameWillem Bijkerk Born20 April 1980 Nationality???????? Dutch National SelectionInternal selection 2018Internal selection 2014Nationaal Songfestival 2005 In Eurovision2018 Lisbon2014 Copenhagen SongOutlaw in ’em (2018)Calm after the storm (The Common Linnets, 2014) Biography Waylon is a Dutch singer, songwriter and musicion. He was born in Apeldoorn, the Netherlands. He chose his stage name as he was a fan of Waylon Jennings. In 1995 he started singing in the tv show Telekids. He signed a record contract in 1997 and was allowed to record an album in Nashville. However, it was never released. In 2001 he lived and worked in the United States for a year . He appeared in the show of his idol Waylon Jennings with whom he also worked. Jennings passed away and Bijkerk returned to the Netherlands. After his return, he sang in the bands Santa Rosa and Millstreet. Waylon joined Rachel Kramer in 2005 as the duo ‘Rachel & Waylon’ in Het Nationaal Songfestival, the Dutch national selection for the Eurovision Song Contest. In 2008 he reached the final of Holland’s Got Talent. Despite the fact he did not win, this marked his breakthrough. His first record, “Wicked way”, became a huge hit in the Netherlands. It was followed by a debut album, “Wicked ways”, in 2009. In april 2010, he won a 3FM Award as ‘best newcomer’ and a TMF Award as ‘new talent’. In october 2011, his second album “After all” followed and he won another 3FM Award, now for ‘best singer’.Together with Ilse Delange, Waylon formed The Common Linnets. They represented the Netherlands in the Eurovision Song Contest with the song “Calm after the storm” and became 2nd. After Eurovision, the only performance of the two together was at the Tuckerville concert in Enschede, organized by The Common Linnets. After this concert, Waylon left the band.Two solo albums followed: “Heaven after midnight” (2014) and “Seeds” (2016). Meanwhile, Waylon was a coach in The Voice of Holland. In 2018, Waylon took part in the Eurovision Song Contest again, now as a solo singer with the song “Outlaw in ’em’. He reached the final again. The song was also released on his new album, “World can wait”. A tour with the subject ‘outlaws in country music’ followed: My heroes have always been cowboys. In december 2019, Waylon released a 6th album, “Human”. During the first lockdown of COVID19, he sang a version of Willeke Alberti’s song “Samen zijn”, together with the original singer and Wibi Soerjadi.In 2022, Waylon started singing in Dutch. His duet with former Eurovision-host Jan Smit (as Willem & Jan), “Tussen jou en mij” was released on single. Entries Outlaw In ‘Em Country???????? The Netherlands Year2018 LanguageEnglish LyricsJim BeaversWaylonIlya Toshinskiy MusicJim BeaversWaylonIlya Toshinskiy BackingsJustin PieplenboschPierre AngandaRoger MakadiPieter LikiyoBrandon Likiyo Results Semi Points: 174Position: 7Running order: 8 Results Finals Points: 121Position: 18Running order: 23 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p7jHz5asMs8 Calm After Storm (The Common Linnets) Country???????? Country Year2014 LanguageEnglish LyricsIlse De LangeJB MeijersRob CrosbyMatthew CrosbyJake Etheridge MusicIlse De LangeJB MeijersRob CrosbyMatthew CrosbyJake Etheridge BackingsJB MeijersBart VergoossenMartijn Van Agt Results Semi Points: 150Position: 1Running order: 14 Results Finals Points: 238Position: 2Running order: 24 https://youtu.be/4ggBPAm5XLA

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Elnur Hüseynov

© EBU/Elena Volotova About Quick Facts NameElnur Hüseynov Born03 March 1987 Nationality🇦🇿 Azerbaijani National SelectionInternal selection 2015Land of Fire 2008 In Eurovision2015 Vienna2008 Belgrade SongHour of the wolf (2015)Day after day (Elnur & Samir) Biography Elnur Hüseynov is an Azerbaijani singer. He was born on March 3, 1987, in Ashgabat. In 1992, he entered the ROXMIM for gifted children alongside the Turkmenistan Conservatory, where he received education in piano class. In 1999, Elnur Hüseynov came to Baku and was admitted to the Dental Technical Specialty of the Medical School in 2000. However, in 2001, he left the medical school and joined the Asaf Zeynalli Music School. Elnur worked at the Azerbaijan State Opera and Ballet Theater for a while. After graduating from the Music School in 2004, he learned the profession of stylist-barber. In the early years, in 2003, Elnur participated for the second time in the Sing Your Song project. He won the grand prize. This was his first success in his career. In 2005, he recorded the song “Besdir” with the group Prestij, written by Eldar Mansurov. Later, a music video was made for this song. In late 2007, Elnur performed at the Lighting Azerbaijan international concert program in the assembly hall of the Kiev President Hotel in Ukraine.  In 2008, Elnur Hüseynov participated in the national selection to represent Azerbaijan for the first time at the Eurovision Song Contest. Elnur performed the song “If You Never Back,”. Later, he performed the song “Day After Day” in a duet with Samir Javadzadeh. After the jury’s voting, it was announced that they had won the duet category with Samir. At the Eurovision Song Contest in 2008, they were the first ever representants from Azerbaijan. In the final held on May 24, they placed 8th among the 25 countries competing in the final. Travel to Ukraine and subsequent years In December 2009, Elnur announced that he would continue his music career in Ukraine and would not return to Azerbaijan. However, he returned to his homeland a few months later. In April 2010, Elnur participated as a contestant in the  reality show Maşın but was eliminated on the first day. In 2010, Elnur participated in a musical based on Victor Hugo’s novel “The Hunchback of Notre-Dame” at the Heydar Aliyev Palace, portraying the character of Phoebus de Châteaupers. This musical marked a first in Elnur’s career.  On December 1, 2014, Elnur participated in the O Ses Türkiye (The Voice of Turkey) competition, which aired on Turkey’s TV8 channel.  After winning the final stage, it was determined that Elnur received the highest number of votes ever recorded in the competition, reaching one million votes.  Elnur was chosen internally to represent Azerbaijan again in the Eurovision Song Contest in 2015. He presented his song “Hour of the wolf”, reached the final and became 12th in the contest. In 2015, Elnur performed the song “Avropa Oyunları qədim Bakı torpağında” (European Games in Ancient Baku Land) dedicated to the inaugural European Games held in Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan. He performed the song together with Samir Javadzadeh and Honored Artist Sevda Elekberzadeh. Although Samir and Sevda initially performed the duet, Elnur later joined them. They performed the song in both Azerbaijani and English languages. Elnur Hüseynov also performed live shows before the opening ceremony held at Baku Olympic Stadium on June 12.  In 2017, Elnur released a music video for his new song “Vibration,” with lyrics by Diana Hajiyeva and music by Isfar Sarabski. In September 2018 he released a new single again, this time with the title “Dreamer”. Ali Nasib wrote another song for Elnur. “Try to be yourself” was released on 26 April 2019. In 2020, Elnur teamed up with Ilgara Kazimova for the song “Deniz ver”. In 2021, Elnur joined a new band, the Sonar House Collective. Their debut single “Since I know you” was released on the 1st of February of that year.  In February 2023, Elnur had a concert together with the “Mavi Ürəklər” blue choir, consisting of members with autism syndrome. On 7 April of the same year, his new video and song “Monster pop” was released. He performed at a youth festival organized for the Heydar Aliyev Year. Entries Hour Of The Wolf Country🇦🇿 Azerbaijan Year2015 LanguageEnglish LyricsLina HanssonNicklas LifNicolas RebscherSandra Bjurman MusicLina HanssonNicklas LifNicolas Rebscher BackingsKrysten CummingsNicklas LifTamara Nivillac DancersJulia SpiesserLukas McFarlane Results Semi Points: 53Position: 10Running order: 11 Results Finals Points: 49Position: 12Running order: 24 https://youtu.be/IcVrAFtc5YI Day After Day (Elnur & Samir) Country Azerbaijan Year2008 LanguageEnglish LyricsZahra Bədəlbəyli MusicGovher Hasanzadə BackingsNames of the 2 dancers and 2 backing singers are unknown. Results Semi Points: 96Position: 6Running order: 7 Results Finals Points: 132Position: 8Running order: 20 https://youtu.be/6OGVL_9P5fw

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Electro Velvet

© EBU/Andres Putting About Quick Facts MembersAlex LarkeBianca Nicholas Active2014-2015, 2018 Nationality🇬🇧 British National SelectionInternal selection 2015 In Eurovision2015 Vienna SongStill In Love With You Biography Electro Velvet were a British musical duo. The duo existed of Bianca Nicholas and Alex Larke. Bianca Nicholas has appeared on popular TV shows like The X Factor and The Voice UK. She has had notable performances, including singing a duet with Will Young and performing in front of Prince William, Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, and Prince Harry. In 2011, Nicholas released a single called “Hold On To Your Dreams,” which made it onto the UK Top 100 singles chart. Additionally, she had a small role in the 1999 film Sleepy Hollow with Johnny Depp. It’s worth noting that Nicholas suffers from cystic fibrosis. Larke, on the other hand, was born in Welwyn Garden City. He currently serves as the lead singer for The Rolling Stones tribute group called The Rolling Clones and has toured extensively with the band in the UK and internationally. Larke has collaborated with notable artists like Cut La Roc and Donald D on their album Larger Than Life, which also features Gary Lightbody, the frontman of Snow Patrol. Apart from his music career, Larke works part-time in a primary school and teaches ukulele and recorder. In the past, he worked in a special needs school, focusing on children and young adults with profound to severe learning difficulties. Regarding their participation in the Eurovision Song Contest in 2015, Electro Velvet was chosen by the BBC to represent the United Kingdom with their song “Still in Love with You.” The song received mixed to negative reviews upon its announcement. In the contest, they received 5 points and ranked 24th out of 27 participants.  Following their Eurovision experience, Electro Velvet expressed gratitude to their fans on their official Facebook page and hinted at upcoming plans. However, their debut EP, which was scheduled for release and available for pre-order on PledgeMusic, was ultimately canceled due to Nicholas’ ongoing health issues. After a pause of three years, Electro Velvet went back to the studio in 2018 to record a new song, “Take me home”. However, the song did not know any follow up. Entries Still In Love With You Country🇬🇧 United Kingdom Year2015 LanguageEnglish LyricsDavid MindelAdrian Bax White MusicDavid MindelAdrian Bax White BackingsScarlette DouglasJoe HuntSophie Carmen JonesRyan Heseltine Results Semi Points: –Position: –Running order: – Results Finals Points: 5Position: 24Running order: 5 https://youtu.be/Ethyx4A5ajM

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Maraaya

About Quick Facts MembersMarjetka VovkAleš Vovk (Raay) Founded2014 Nationality🇸🇮 Slovenian National SelectionEMA 2015 In Eurovision2015 Vienna SongHere For You (2015) Biography Maraaya is a Slovenian pop duo founded in 2014 by Marjetka Vovk and Raay. The name is a combination of their names.  Before music author and producer Raay (real name: Aleš Vovk) and singer Marjetka Vovk (born Jurkovnik) started working as Maraaya, they were members of the bands Turbo Angels and Tangels. In 2014, they released their first single “Lovin’ Me” under the name Maraaya. The song experienced great success on the iTunes charts in Belgium, Germany, Italy and Slovenia. It was among the twenty best-selling singles in Italy. It was among the ten best-selling singles in Italy, and was also included on the Polish compilation “Bravo Hits Zima 2015”. It reached  the German DJ’s Dance Top 100 singles chart. The highest rankings of the song “Lovin’ Me” on the most important official national single charts: on the Slovenian SloTop50, it ranked 13th. It also reached the charts in Italy and Belgium. They won the 2015 EMA, the national final for the Eurovision Song Contest with their second single “Here for You” and thus qualified for Eurovision, where they reached the final. The song reached the #1 spot in the Slovenian charts. It also became a hit in Austria, Slovakia, Belgium, Sweden and Germany. In September 2015, they premiered their third single “Living Again” at the Red Cross charity concert in Cankarjev dom.  At EMA 2016, they presented their fourth single “Nothing Left for Me” as special guests. On May 26, 2017, Maraaya, in collaboration with BQL, performed live on Cankarjeva cesta in Ljubljana, where they premiered their fifth single “It’s Complicated” and at the same time the music video.  On June 10, 2017, Maraaya performed at the Croatian festival CMC Vodice 2017, where they presented a Croatian version of the single “Sjaj”, which was officially released the day before. In fall, Maraaya signed a contract with Warner Music, one of the biggest labels in the world. On September 22, their sixth single “Diamond Duck” was released. In the official SloTop50 ranking, they took first place already in the first week of airing. So far, only BQL has managed to do this. In 2018, they performed again at the CMC Vodice festival, in a duet with Domestikus with the song “Noć (Mi corazón es tuyo)”. They recorded it in Croatian – “Noć (Mi corazón es tuyo)” – and English – “Mi corazón es tuyo” – version (both also have Spanish lyrics). The music video for the Croatian version was uploaded to YouTube on June 8, 2018. In fall, they started the Maraaya & Jazzilaz project, in which they perform world hits in a swing-jazz guise. In September 2020, they released their first song in Slovenian, “Obujem nove čevlje”. They shot a video, in which the Croatian dancer and tiktoker Luciano Plazibat performs. The ballad “Drevo” followed in November. In March 2021, their new single “Dobr’ gre” was released. The song reached the no.1 spot in the Slovenian charts. Marjetka became a judge in Slovenia Ima Talent in the 2021 season. Meanwhile, the duo teamed up with Jan Plestenjak for the song “V naju še verjamem”. It was followe in November by the song “Zdaj pa greš”. Both songs became no. 1 in the trending for music list. Maraaya teamed up with Kvatropirci for the song “Življenje”, which was released in September 2022. One month later, Maraaya’s own single “Le ob tebi” was released.  On 6 June 2023, Maraaya released a brand new single, “Nebesa”. Entries Here For You Country🇸🇮 Slovenia Year2015 LanguageEnglish LyricsRaayCharlie Mason MusicRaayMarjetka Vovk BackingsManca ŠpikNika ZorjanKarin ZemljičLara Slekovec (Violin)   Results Semi Points: 92Position: 5 Running order: 16 Results Finals Points: 39Position: 14Running order: 1 https://youtu.be/y1c7gDOaFY0

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Mahmood

About Quick Facts NameAlessandro Mahmoud Born12 september 1992 Nationality🇮🇹 Italian National SelectionFestival di San Remo 2019Festival di San Remo 2022 In Eurovision2019 Tel Aviv2022 Turin SongBrividi (with Blanco, 2022)Soldi (2019) Biography Mahmood is an Italian singer-songwriter from Milan. He was born to a Sardinian mother and an Egyptian father. His stage name Mahmood is a play on words between the surname (Mahmoud) and the English expression my mood (my mood). After graduating from high school, he studied at the CPM Music Institute-Centro Professione Musica in Milan, where he met Andrea Rodini, his teacher and first manager, and Francesco Fugazza, Elia Pastori and Marcello Grilli, members of his band and first producers. In 2012 he took part in the talent show X Factor. After the X Factor, he begins to write and produce his songs. In 2013 he published the EP Fallin ‘Rain, containing five versions of the song. In 2015 he took part in Area Sanremo, winning the first prize and the right to participate in the Sanremo Festival 2016 in the Nuove Proposti category with the song “Dimentica”. Meanwhile, he published an English-language single, “The Chair”, in collaboration with Martha. In 2017 he published the single “Pesos”, with which he participated in the Summer Festival 2017. In the same year, he collaborated with Michele Bravi,  writing and singing a duet “Presi Male”. He also wrote songs for other artists. In September 2018 his EP “Gioventù bruciata” was released.  A victory in Sanremo Giovani allows Mahmood to participate in the Sanremo Festival 2019 with the song “Soldi”. He was the surprise winner of the festival. Following the victory, the song reached the top of the Italian charts, where it remained for six weeks. Because of his victory in Sanremo, Mahmood became first choice to represent Italy in the Eurovision Song Contest. He said yes, but later started to doubt about it. After a Twitterstorm, he decided to do it, and became 2nd in Tel Aviv with “Soldi”. In 2020, Mahmood wrote a song for Elodie, which she sang at the Sanremo festival. A year later, he wrote songs for Francesca Michelin and for Fedez. Also in 2021, he was finally able to release his second album “Ghettolimpo”. In 2022 he participated in the festival of Sanremo again, now in duet with Blanco. They won the prize. They represented Italy in the Eurovision Song Contest with their song “Brividi”. Entries Brividi (with Blanco) Country Italy Year2022 LanguageItalian LyricsAlessandro MahmoodRiccardo ‘Blanco’ FabbriconiMichele ‘Michelangelo’ Zocca MusicAlessandro MahmoodRiccardo ‘Blanco’ FabbriconiMichele ‘Michelangelo’ Zocca BackingsMichelangelo Results Semi Points: –Position: –Running order: – Results Finals Points: 268Position: 6 Running order: 9 https://youtu.be/blEy4xHuMbY Soldi Country Italy Year2019 LanguageItalian LyricsAlessandro Mahmoud MusicCharlie CharlesDario ‘Dardust’ FainiAlessandro Mahmoud Backings– Results Semi Points: –Position: –Running order: – Results Finals Points: 472Position: 2Running order: 22 https://youtu.be/M-aoyPa41Ic

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S!sters

© EBU/Thomas Hanses About Quick Facts MembersCharlotte TrumanLaura Kästel Active2019-2020 Nationality🇩🇪 German National SelectionUnser Lied für Israel 2019 In Eurovision2019 Tel Aviv SongSister (2019) Biography Sisters was an occasional duo, put together by NDR in 2019. They sang a song called “Sister”, which was rejected in the Swiss national selection for the Eurovision Song Contest in 2018. The song won the German final and the duo represented Germany in the 2019 Eurovision Song Contest. In February 2020 the duo decided to quit. Carlotta Truman (19 october 1999) was born in Hannover. She participated in the talent show “Das Supertalent” when she was only 9 years old. She performed in several tv-shows, among others in “The voice Kids”, where she became the runner up. She performed in Alex Christensens show ‘Classical 90s dance’. In 2019, Truman made her debut as an actress in an episode leading role in the series “In aller Freundschaft – Die jungen Ärtzte”. About a year later she had another episode role in the RTL series Nachtschwestern. From season 6 in 2022 she will be part of the main cast of the youth series Spotlight. Laura Kästel, stage name Laurita Spinelli, (29 september 1992) was born in Königsau but currently lives in Wiesbaden. When she was 10 years old, she won a children’s song contest on ZDF tv, and a year later she participated in the casting show ‘Star reach’. She was a backing vocal for a.o. Sarah Connor and Stefanie Heinzmann, and currently for Lena. She is also the lead singer of a band called Waterproof. In October 2020 she released her first solo single “Stumm” under the pseudonym Laurita Spinelli. Entries Sister Country🇩🇪 Germany Year2019 LanguageEnglish LyricsLaurell BarkerMarine KaltenbacherTom OehlerThomas Stengaard MusicLaurell BarkerMarine KaltenbacherTom OehlerThomas Stengaard BackingsVerena HeinzSonja WiegandInga LühningRay Lozano Results Semi Points: –Position: –Running order: – Results Finals Points: 24Position: 25Running order: 4 https://youtu.be/yFbSj_yPCPM

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Laura Põldvere

© EBU/Andres Putting About Quick Facts NameLaura Põldvere Born30 August 1988 Nationality🇪🇪 Estonian National SelectionUuden Musiikin Kilpailu 2021 (Finland)Eesti Laul 2020Eesti Laul 2017Eesti Laul 2016Eesti Laul 2009Eurolaul 2007Eurolaul 2005 In Eurovision2017 Kyiv2005 Kyiv SongVerona (2017, with Koit Toome)Let’s get loud (2005, Suntribe) Biography Laura Põldvere is an Estonian singer. She was born in the Estonian city of Tartu. Laura’s career started in 2005, when she took part in Eurolaul, the national final for the Eurovision Song Contest. As a solo singer, she sang “Moonwalk”. The song became 2nd and reached the #1 spot in the Estonian charts. However, she also participated as a member of the girlband Suntribe. The group won and represented Estonia in the Eurovision Song Contest with the song “Let’s get loud”. The band had previously recorded a song in Estonian, “Ei tunne mind”. After 2005, the group split up and Laura went for a solo career. In 2007, Laura was back in Eurolaul, this time with the song “Sunflower”. She reached the 3rd place. Again, Laura’s song reached the #1 spot in the Estonian charts. In the same year, on 1 September, her debut album “Muusa” was released. Laura took a break from her singing career to study at Berklee College in Boston, USA.In 2009, Laura made a comeback at Eesti Laul, now the national final for the Eurovision Song Contest. Her song “Destiny” reached a 3rd place. Another album followed, “Ultra”, which was released on 8 December 2009. In November 2011 the album was followed by a compilation album with the title “Sädemeid taivast”. After a few years of silence, Laura made a comeback in 2016, and her stage again was Eesti Laul. The song “Supersonic” became 2nd and again was good for a #1 in the Estonian charts. The follow up song “94-95” had the same success. Together with Koit Toome, Laura took part in Eesti Laul 2017. The song “Verona” won and took part in the Eurovision Song Contest 2017. “Verona” did not reach the final. On 12 May 2017 however, a “Greatest hits” album appeared with “Verona” on it. In 2018, Laura released a few non-album singles: “Waterfall”, “Tõusulained” and “Lennujaamas”. A new album, “9 Elu” found it’s release on 3 December 2019. On this album a.o. another duet with Koit Toome. In 2020, Laura took part in Eesti Laul again. The song this time was called “Break me”. Laura reached the 11th place in the final this time. The song was followed by one in Estonian, “On meie aeg”. In 2021, Laura participated in Uuden Musiikin Kilpailu, the Finnish national selection for the Eurovision song contest. Unfortunately, her song “Play” became last in the final. After this, she released two new singles and went on to perform in Poland and Italy. In 2022, on 11 March, a new single was released: “Gameboy”, which was a collaboration with Jyrise. The band Tabloided invited her to record a song together, which was titled “Zeitgeist”. In May of that year, the new song “Prayers to you” came out. In the summer, Laura organized a music camp, Make Music Until You Drop.  It was in March 2023 that Laura released a song called „Lilled jäävadki Sulle“. With that song, she participated in the show Uus Laul II. She and her team reached the final of the contest. In August she opened for Bonnie Tyler. A new single, “Pahupidi”, was released in September. Laura took part in Eesti Laul 2024, where she sang “Here’s Where I Draw The Line”. Unfortunately, she didn’t make it to the final. Entries Verona (with Koit Toome) Country🇪🇪 Estonia Year2017 LanguageEnglish LyricsSven Lõhmus MusicSven Lõhmus BackingsKaire VilgatsDagmar OjaRolf Roosalu Results Semi Points: 85Position: 14Running order: 17 Results Finals Points: –Position: –Running order: – https://youtu.be/NxqPpzWYN1c Let’s get loud (Suntribe) Country🇪🇪 Estonia Year2005 LanguageEnglish LyricsSven Lõhmus MusicSven Lõhmus Backings– Results Semi Points: 31Position: 20Running order: 12 Results Finals Points: –Position: –Running order: – https://youtu.be/mqvOUfdwQtw

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Ermal Meta

© EBU/Andres Putting About Quick Facts NameErmal Meta Born20 April 1981 Nationality???????? Italian National SelectionFestival di Sanremo 2021Festival di Sanremo 2018Festival di Sanremo 2017 In Eurovision2018 Lisbon SongNon mi avete fatto niente (2018) Biography Ermal Meta is an Italian songwriter, composer and multi-instrumentalist. He was born in Albania but went to Italy when he was 13. Ermal began playing piano and guitar at 16 and was part of several bands before joining Ameba 4, as a guitarist. This band took part in the Festival of San Remo 2006 in the sezione Giovani . They released one album, but broke up not too long after the festival.In 2007 Meta founded the group La Fame di Camilla, with whom he made the three studio albums. Also this band took part in the sezione Giovani of the Festival of San Remo, in 2010. Following the dissolution of the group, Meta started writing for other artists. In 2014 he wrote the song “Tutto misce”, inserted in the soundtrack of the television series Braccialetti rossi. In october he released his debut single “Lettera a mio padre”.  In november 2015 the single “Odio le favole” was released. Meta took part in Sanremo Giovani 2015, being selected among the Nuove Proposti of the Sanremo Festival 2016.  Around that time, his first studio album “Umano” was released.In 2017 Meta took part in the Festival of San Remo in the “Big” section with the song “Vietato morire”. This was also the title of Meta’s second album. The album reached the top of the Italian charts.  Together with Fabrizio Moro, Meta took part in the festival of San Remo 2018 with the song “Non mi avete fatto niente”. The song won the first prize in San Remo. When asked to represent Italy in the Eurovision Song Contest, the two decided to say yes. The festival was followed by a new album, “Non abbiamo armi”. He promoted the album by a tour and in 2019, he released a live album “Non abbiamo armi – Il concerto”. In 2019 he wrote several songs for Alberto Urso. The following year Meta joined the Italian supergroup Allstars 4 Life which brought together over fifty Italian artists for the recording of the song “Ma il cielo è semper blu”. The money, earned with the single, was donated to the Italian Red Cross to support Il Tempo della Gentilezza, a project to support the most fragile people affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Meta presented the new single “Finerà bene” during the concert of the 1st of May.  On January 15, 2021, the single “No Satisfaction” was released, aimed at anticipating his fourth album. The album, titled “Tribù urbana” was released on March 12 of the same year and included in the track list the other single “Un milione di cose da dirti”. With this song, Ermal took part in the 71st Sanremo Festival, where it was ranked third. On November 26, Meta released single “Milano non esiste”, which was followed on March 4, 2022 by “Una cosa più grande” in collaboration with Giuliano Sangiorgi. In the same year he published the book “Domani e per sempre”, set in Albania during World War II. Entries Non Mi Avete Fatto Niente Country???????? Italy Year2018 LanguageItalian LyricsErmal MetaFabrizio MoroAndrea Febo MusicErmal MetaFabrizio MoroAndrea Febo BackingsRoberto MaccaroniAndrea Vigentini Results Semi Points: –Position: –Running order: – Results Finals Points: 308Position: 5Running order: 26 https://youtu.be/81M-mp5t8uM

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Waylon

© EBU/Andres Putting About Quick Facts NameWillem Bijkerk Born20 April 1980 Nationality???????? Dutch National SelectionInternal selection 2018Internal selection 2014Nationaal Songfestival 2005 In Eurovision2018 Lisbon2014 Copenhagen SongOutlaw in ’em (2018)Calm after the storm (The Common Linnets, 2014) Biography Waylon is a Dutch singer, songwriter and musicion. He was born in Apeldoorn, the Netherlands. He chose his stage name as he was a fan of Waylon Jennings. In 1995 he started singing in the tv show Telekids. He signed a record contract in 1997 and was allowed to record an album in Nashville. However, it was never released. In 2001 he lived and worked in the United States for a year . He appeared in the show of his idol Waylon Jennings with whom he also worked. Jennings passed away and Bijkerk returned to the Netherlands. After his return, he sang in the bands Santa Rosa and Millstreet. Waylon joined Rachel Kramer in 2005 as the duo ‘Rachel & Waylon’ in Het Nationaal Songfestival, the Dutch national selection for the Eurovision Song Contest. In 2008 he reached the final of Holland’s Got Talent. Despite the fact he did not win, this marked his breakthrough. His first record, “Wicked way”, became a huge hit in the Netherlands. It was followed by a debut album, “Wicked ways”, in 2009. In april 2010, he won a 3FM Award as ‘best newcomer’ and a TMF Award as ‘new talent’. In october 2011, his second album “After all” followed and he won another 3FM Award, now for ‘best singer’.Together with Ilse Delange, Waylon formed The Common Linnets. They represented the Netherlands in the Eurovision Song Contest with the song “Calm after the storm” and became 2nd. After Eurovision, the only performance of the two together was at the Tuckerville concert in Enschede, organized by The Common Linnets. After this concert, Waylon left the band.Two solo albums followed: “Heaven after midnight” (2014) and “Seeds” (2016). Meanwhile, Waylon was a coach in The Voice of Holland. In 2018, Waylon took part in the Eurovision Song Contest again, now as a solo singer with the song “Outlaw in ’em’. He reached the final again. The song was also released on his new album, “World can wait”. A tour with the subject ‘outlaws in country music’ followed: My heroes have always been cowboys. In december 2019, Waylon released a 6th album, “Human”. During the first lockdown of COVID19, he sang a version of Willeke Alberti’s song “Samen zijn”, together with the original singer and Wibi Soerjadi.In 2022, Waylon started singing in Dutch. His duet with former Eurovision-host Jan Smit (as Willem & Jan), “Tussen jou en mij” was released on single. Entries Outlaw In ‘Em Country???????? The Netherlands Year2018 LanguageEnglish LyricsJim BeaversWaylonIlya Toshinskiy MusicJim BeaversWaylonIlya Toshinskiy BackingsJustin PieplenboschPierre AngandaRoger MakadiPieter LikiyoBrandon Likiyo Results Semi Points: 174Position: 7Running order: 8 Results Finals Points: 121Position: 18Running order: 23 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p7jHz5asMs8 Calm After Storm (The Common Linnets) Country???????? Country Year2014 LanguageEnglish LyricsIlse De LangeJB MeijersRob CrosbyMatthew CrosbyJake Etheridge MusicIlse De LangeJB MeijersRob CrosbyMatthew CrosbyJake Etheridge BackingsJB MeijersBart VergoossenMartijn Van Agt Results Semi Points: 150Position: 1Running order: 14 Results Finals Points: 238Position: 2Running order: 24 https://youtu.be/4ggBPAm5XLA

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Elnur Hüseynov

© EBU/Elena Volotova About Quick Facts NameElnur Hüseynov Born03 March 1987 Nationality🇦🇿 Azerbaijani National SelectionInternal selection 2015Land of Fire 2008 In Eurovision2015 Vienna2008 Belgrade SongHour of the wolf (2015)Day after day (Elnur & Samir) Biography Elnur Hüseynov is an Azerbaijani singer. He was born on March 3, 1987, in Ashgabat. In 1992, he entered the ROXMIM for gifted children alongside the Turkmenistan Conservatory, where he received education in piano class. In 1999, Elnur Hüseynov came to Baku and was admitted to the Dental Technical Specialty of the Medical School in 2000. However, in 2001, he left the medical school and joined the Asaf Zeynalli Music School. Elnur worked at the Azerbaijan State Opera and Ballet Theater for a while. After graduating from the Music School in 2004, he learned the profession of stylist-barber. In the early years, in 2003, Elnur participated for the second time in the Sing Your Song project. He won the grand prize. This was his first success in his career. In 2005, he recorded the song “Besdir” with the group Prestij, written by Eldar Mansurov. Later, a music video was made for this song. In late 2007, Elnur performed at the Lighting Azerbaijan international concert program in the assembly hall of the Kiev President Hotel in Ukraine.  In 2008, Elnur Hüseynov participated in the national selection to represent Azerbaijan for the first time at the Eurovision Song Contest. Elnur performed the song “If You Never Back,”. Later, he performed the song “Day After Day” in a duet with Samir Javadzadeh. After the jury’s voting, it was announced that they had won the duet category with Samir. At the Eurovision Song Contest in 2008, they were the first ever representants from Azerbaijan. In the final held on May 24, they placed 8th among the 25 countries competing in the final. Travel to Ukraine and subsequent years In December 2009, Elnur announced that he would continue his music career in Ukraine and would not return to Azerbaijan. However, he returned to his homeland a few months later. In April 2010, Elnur participated as a contestant in the  reality show Maşın but was eliminated on the first day. In 2010, Elnur participated in a musical based on Victor Hugo’s novel “The Hunchback of Notre-Dame” at the Heydar Aliyev Palace, portraying the character of Phoebus de Châteaupers. This musical marked a first in Elnur’s career.  On December 1, 2014, Elnur participated in the O Ses Türkiye (The Voice of Turkey) competition, which aired on Turkey’s TV8 channel.  After winning the final stage, it was determined that Elnur received the highest number of votes ever recorded in the competition, reaching one million votes.  Elnur was chosen internally to represent Azerbaijan again in the Eurovision Song Contest in 2015. He presented his song “Hour of the wolf”, reached the final and became 12th in the contest. In 2015, Elnur performed the song “Avropa Oyunları qədim Bakı torpağında” (European Games in Ancient Baku Land) dedicated to the inaugural European Games held in Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan. He performed the song together with Samir Javadzadeh and Honored Artist Sevda Elekberzadeh. Although Samir and Sevda initially performed the duet, Elnur later joined them. They performed the song in both Azerbaijani and English languages. Elnur Hüseynov also performed live shows before the opening ceremony held at Baku Olympic Stadium on June 12.  In 2017, Elnur released a music video for his new song “Vibration,” with lyrics by Diana Hajiyeva and music by Isfar Sarabski. In September 2018 he released a new single again, this time with the title “Dreamer”. Ali Nasib wrote another song for Elnur. “Try to be yourself” was released on 26 April 2019. In 2020, Elnur teamed up with Ilgara Kazimova for the song “Deniz ver”. In 2021, Elnur joined a new band, the Sonar House Collective. Their debut single “Since I know you” was released on the 1st of February of that year.  In February 2023, Elnur had a concert together with the “Mavi Ürəklər” blue choir, consisting of members with autism syndrome. On 7 April of the same year, his new video and song “Monster pop” was released. He performed at a youth festival organized for the Heydar Aliyev Year. Entries Hour Of The Wolf Country🇦🇿 Azerbaijan Year2015 LanguageEnglish LyricsLina HanssonNicklas LifNicolas RebscherSandra Bjurman MusicLina HanssonNicklas LifNicolas Rebscher BackingsKrysten CummingsNicklas LifTamara Nivillac DancersJulia SpiesserLukas McFarlane Results Semi Points: 53Position: 10Running order: 11 Results Finals Points: 49Position: 12Running order: 24 https://youtu.be/IcVrAFtc5YI Day After Day (Elnur & Samir) Country Azerbaijan Year2008 LanguageEnglish LyricsZahra Bədəlbəyli MusicGovher Hasanzadə BackingsNames of the 2 dancers and 2 backing singers are unknown. Results Semi Points: 96Position: 6Running order: 7 Results Finals Points: 132Position: 8Running order: 20 https://youtu.be/6OGVL_9P5fw

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Electro Velvet

© EBU/Andres Putting About Quick Facts MembersAlex LarkeBianca Nicholas Active2014-2015, 2018 Nationality🇬🇧 British National SelectionInternal selection 2015 In Eurovision2015 Vienna SongStill In Love With You Biography Electro Velvet were a British musical duo. The duo existed of Bianca Nicholas and Alex Larke. Bianca Nicholas has appeared on popular TV shows like The X Factor and The Voice UK. She has had notable performances, including singing a duet with Will Young and performing in front of Prince William, Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, and Prince Harry. In 2011, Nicholas released a single called “Hold On To Your Dreams,” which made it onto the UK Top 100 singles chart. Additionally, she had a small role in the 1999 film Sleepy Hollow with Johnny Depp. It’s worth noting that Nicholas suffers from cystic fibrosis. Larke, on the other hand, was born in Welwyn Garden City. He currently serves as the lead singer for The Rolling Stones tribute group called The Rolling Clones and has toured extensively with the band in the UK and internationally. Larke has collaborated with notable artists like Cut La Roc and Donald D on their album Larger Than Life, which also features Gary Lightbody, the frontman of Snow Patrol. Apart from his music career, Larke works part-time in a primary school and teaches ukulele and recorder. In the past, he worked in a special needs school, focusing on children and young adults with profound to severe learning difficulties. Regarding their participation in the Eurovision Song Contest in 2015, Electro Velvet was chosen by the BBC to represent the United Kingdom with their song “Still in Love with You.” The song received mixed to negative reviews upon its announcement. In the contest, they received 5 points and ranked 24th out of 27 participants.  Following their Eurovision experience, Electro Velvet expressed gratitude to their fans on their official Facebook page and hinted at upcoming plans. However, their debut EP, which was scheduled for release and available for pre-order on PledgeMusic, was ultimately canceled due to Nicholas’ ongoing health issues. After a pause of three years, Electro Velvet went back to the studio in 2018 to record a new song, “Take me home”. However, the song did not know any follow up. Entries Still In Love With You Country🇬🇧 United Kingdom Year2015 LanguageEnglish LyricsDavid MindelAdrian Bax White MusicDavid MindelAdrian Bax White BackingsScarlette DouglasJoe HuntSophie Carmen JonesRyan Heseltine Results Semi Points: –Position: –Running order: – Results Finals Points: 5Position: 24Running order: 5 https://youtu.be/Ethyx4A5ajM

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Maraaya

About Quick Facts MembersMarjetka VovkAleš Vovk (Raay) Founded2014 Nationality🇸🇮 Slovenian National SelectionEMA 2015 In Eurovision2015 Vienna SongHere For You (2015) Biography Maraaya is a Slovenian pop duo founded in 2014 by Marjetka Vovk and Raay. The name is a combination of their names.  Before music author and producer Raay (real name: Aleš Vovk) and singer Marjetka Vovk (born Jurkovnik) started working as Maraaya, they were members of the bands Turbo Angels and Tangels. In 2014, they released their first single “Lovin’ Me” under the name Maraaya. The song experienced great success on the iTunes charts in Belgium, Germany, Italy and Slovenia. It was among the twenty best-selling singles in Italy. It was among the ten best-selling singles in Italy, and was also included on the Polish compilation “Bravo Hits Zima 2015”. It reached  the German DJ’s Dance Top 100 singles chart. The highest rankings of the song “Lovin’ Me” on the most important official national single charts: on the Slovenian SloTop50, it ranked 13th. It also reached the charts in Italy and Belgium. They won the 2015 EMA, the national final for the Eurovision Song Contest with their second single “Here for You” and thus qualified for Eurovision, where they reached the final. The song reached the #1 spot in the Slovenian charts. It also became a hit in Austria, Slovakia, Belgium, Sweden and Germany. In September 2015, they premiered their third single “Living Again” at the Red Cross charity concert in Cankarjev dom.  At EMA 2016, they presented their fourth single “Nothing Left for Me” as special guests. On May 26, 2017, Maraaya, in collaboration with BQL, performed live on Cankarjeva cesta in Ljubljana, where they premiered their fifth single “It’s Complicated” and at the same time the music video.  On June 10, 2017, Maraaya performed at the Croatian festival CMC Vodice 2017, where they presented a Croatian version of the single “Sjaj”, which was officially released the day before. In fall, Maraaya signed a contract with Warner Music, one of the biggest labels in the world. On September 22, their sixth single “Diamond Duck” was released. In the official SloTop50 ranking, they took first place already in the first week of airing. So far, only BQL has managed to do this. In 2018, they performed again at the CMC Vodice festival, in a duet with Domestikus with the song “Noć (Mi corazón es tuyo)”. They recorded it in Croatian – “Noć (Mi corazón es tuyo)” – and English – “Mi corazón es tuyo” – version (both also have Spanish lyrics). The music video for the Croatian version was uploaded to YouTube on June 8, 2018. In fall, they started the Maraaya & Jazzilaz project, in which they perform world hits in a swing-jazz guise. In September 2020, they released their first song in Slovenian, “Obujem nove čevlje”. They shot a video, in which the Croatian dancer and tiktoker Luciano Plazibat performs. The ballad “Drevo” followed in November. In March 2021, their new single “Dobr’ gre” was released. The song reached the no.1 spot in the Slovenian charts. Marjetka became a judge in Slovenia Ima Talent in the 2021 season. Meanwhile, the duo teamed up with Jan Plestenjak for the song “V naju še verjamem”. It was followe in November by the song “Zdaj pa greš”. Both songs became no. 1 in the trending for music list. Maraaya teamed up with Kvatropirci for the song “Življenje”, which was released in September 2022. One month later, Maraaya’s own single “Le ob tebi” was released.  On 6 June 2023, Maraaya released a brand new single, “Nebesa”. Entries Here For You Country🇸🇮 Slovenia Year2015 LanguageEnglish LyricsRaayCharlie Mason MusicRaayMarjetka Vovk BackingsManca ŠpikNika ZorjanKarin ZemljičLara Slekovec (Violin)   Results Semi Points: 92Position: 5 Running order: 16 Results Finals Points: 39Position: 14Running order: 1 https://youtu.be/y1c7gDOaFY0

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Mahmood

About Quick Facts NameAlessandro Mahmoud Born12 september 1992 Nationality🇮🇹 Italian National SelectionFestival di San Remo 2019Festival di San Remo 2022 In Eurovision2019 Tel Aviv2022 Turin SongBrividi (with Blanco, 2022)Soldi (2019) Biography Mahmood is an Italian singer-songwriter from Milan. He was born to a Sardinian mother and an Egyptian father. His stage name Mahmood is a play on words between the surname (Mahmoud) and the English expression my mood (my mood). After graduating from high school, he studied at the CPM Music Institute-Centro Professione Musica in Milan, where he met Andrea Rodini, his teacher and first manager, and Francesco Fugazza, Elia Pastori and Marcello Grilli, members of his band and first producers. In 2012 he took part in the talent show X Factor. After the X Factor, he begins to write and produce his songs. In 2013 he published the EP Fallin ‘Rain, containing five versions of the song. In 2015 he took part in Area Sanremo, winning the first prize and the right to participate in the Sanremo Festival 2016 in the Nuove Proposti category with the song “Dimentica”. Meanwhile, he published an English-language single, “The Chair”, in collaboration with Martha. In 2017 he published the single “Pesos”, with which he participated in the Summer Festival 2017. In the same year, he collaborated with Michele Bravi,  writing and singing a duet “Presi Male”. He also wrote songs for other artists. In September 2018 his EP “Gioventù bruciata” was released.  A victory in Sanremo Giovani allows Mahmood to participate in the Sanremo Festival 2019 with the song “Soldi”. He was the surprise winner of the festival. Following the victory, the song reached the top of the Italian charts, where it remained for six weeks. Because of his victory in Sanremo, Mahmood became first choice to represent Italy in the Eurovision Song Contest. He said yes, but later started to doubt about it. After a Twitterstorm, he decided to do it, and became 2nd in Tel Aviv with “Soldi”. In 2020, Mahmood wrote a song for Elodie, which she sang at the Sanremo festival. A year later, he wrote songs for Francesca Michelin and for Fedez. Also in 2021, he was finally able to release his second album “Ghettolimpo”. In 2022 he participated in the festival of Sanremo again, now in duet with Blanco. They won the prize. They represented Italy in the Eurovision Song Contest with their song “Brividi”. Entries Brividi (with Blanco) Country Italy Year2022 LanguageItalian LyricsAlessandro MahmoodRiccardo ‘Blanco’ FabbriconiMichele ‘Michelangelo’ Zocca MusicAlessandro MahmoodRiccardo ‘Blanco’ FabbriconiMichele ‘Michelangelo’ Zocca BackingsMichelangelo Results Semi Points: –Position: –Running order: – Results Finals Points: 268Position: 6 Running order: 9 https://youtu.be/blEy4xHuMbY Soldi Country Italy Year2019 LanguageItalian LyricsAlessandro Mahmoud MusicCharlie CharlesDario ‘Dardust’ FainiAlessandro Mahmoud Backings– Results Semi Points: –Position: –Running order: – Results Finals Points: 472Position: 2Running order: 22 https://youtu.be/M-aoyPa41Ic

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S!sters

© EBU/Thomas Hanses About Quick Facts MembersCharlotte TrumanLaura Kästel Active2019-2020 Nationality🇩🇪 German National SelectionUnser Lied für Israel 2019 In Eurovision2019 Tel Aviv SongSister (2019) Biography Sisters was an occasional duo, put together by NDR in 2019. They sang a song called “Sister”, which was rejected in the Swiss national selection for the Eurovision Song Contest in 2018. The song won the German final and the duo represented Germany in the 2019 Eurovision Song Contest. In February 2020 the duo decided to quit. Carlotta Truman (19 october 1999) was born in Hannover. She participated in the talent show “Das Supertalent” when she was only 9 years old. She performed in several tv-shows, among others in “The voice Kids”, where she became the runner up. She performed in Alex Christensens show ‘Classical 90s dance’. In 2019, Truman made her debut as an actress in an episode leading role in the series “In aller Freundschaft – Die jungen Ärtzte”. About a year later she had another episode role in the RTL series Nachtschwestern. From season 6 in 2022 she will be part of the main cast of the youth series Spotlight. Laura Kästel, stage name Laurita Spinelli, (29 september 1992) was born in Königsau but currently lives in Wiesbaden. When she was 10 years old, she won a children’s song contest on ZDF tv, and a year later she participated in the casting show ‘Star reach’. She was a backing vocal for a.o. Sarah Connor and Stefanie Heinzmann, and currently for Lena. She is also the lead singer of a band called Waterproof. In October 2020 she released her first solo single “Stumm” under the pseudonym Laurita Spinelli. Entries Sister Country🇩🇪 Germany Year2019 LanguageEnglish LyricsLaurell BarkerMarine KaltenbacherTom OehlerThomas Stengaard MusicLaurell BarkerMarine KaltenbacherTom OehlerThomas Stengaard BackingsVerena HeinzSonja WiegandInga LühningRay Lozano Results Semi Points: –Position: –Running order: – Results Finals Points: 24Position: 25Running order: 4 https://youtu.be/yFbSj_yPCPM

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Laura Põldvere

© EBU/Andres Putting About Quick Facts NameLaura Põldvere Born30 August 1988 Nationality🇪🇪 Estonian National SelectionUuden Musiikin Kilpailu 2021 (Finland)Eesti Laul 2020Eesti Laul 2017Eesti Laul 2016Eesti Laul 2009Eurolaul 2007Eurolaul 2005 In Eurovision2017 Kyiv2005 Kyiv SongVerona (2017, with Koit Toome)Let’s get loud (2005, Suntribe) Biography Laura Põldvere is an Estonian singer. She was born in the Estonian city of Tartu. Laura’s career started in 2005, when she took part in Eurolaul, the national final for the Eurovision Song Contest. As a solo singer, she sang “Moonwalk”. The song became 2nd and reached the #1 spot in the Estonian charts. However, she also participated as

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Ermal Meta

© EBU/Andres Putting About Quick Facts NameErmal Meta Born20 April 1981 Nationality???????? Italian National SelectionFestival di Sanremo 2021Festival di Sanremo 2018Festival di Sanremo 2017 In Eurovision2018 Lisbon SongNon mi avete fatto niente (2018) Biography Ermal Meta is an Italian songwriter, composer and multi-instrumentalist. He was born in Albania but went to Italy when he was 13. Ermal began playing piano and guitar at 16 and was part of several bands before joining Ameba 4, as a guitarist. This band took part in the Festival of San Remo 2006 in the sezione Giovani . They released one album, but broke up not too

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Waylon

© EBU/Andres Putting About Quick Facts NameWillem Bijkerk Born20 April 1980 Nationality???????? Dutch National SelectionInternal selection 2018Internal selection 2014Nationaal Songfestival 2005 In Eurovision2018 Lisbon2014 Copenhagen SongOutlaw in ’em (2018)Calm after the storm (The Common Linnets, 2014) Biography Waylon is a Dutch singer, songwriter and musicion. He was born in Apeldoorn, the Netherlands. He chose his stage name as he was a fan of Waylon Jennings. In 1995 he started singing in the tv show Telekids. He signed a record contract in 1997 and was allowed to record an album in Nashville. However, it was never released. In 2001 he lived and worked

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Elnur Hüseynov

© EBU/Elena Volotova About Quick Facts NameElnur Hüseynov Born03 March 1987 Nationality🇦🇿 Azerbaijani National SelectionInternal selection 2015Land of Fire 2008 In Eurovision2015 Vienna2008 Belgrade SongHour of the wolf (2015)Day after day (Elnur & Samir) Biography Elnur Hüseynov is an Azerbaijani singer. He was born on March 3, 1987, in Ashgabat. In 1992, he entered the ROXMIM for gifted children alongside the Turkmenistan Conservatory, where he received education in piano class. In 1999, Elnur Hüseynov came to Baku and was admitted to the Dental Technical Specialty of the Medical School in 2000. However, in 2001, he left the medical school and joined

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Electro Velvet

© EBU/Andres Putting About Quick Facts MembersAlex LarkeBianca Nicholas Active2014-2015, 2018 Nationality🇬🇧 British National SelectionInternal selection 2015 In Eurovision2015 Vienna SongStill In Love With You Biography Electro Velvet were a British musical duo. The duo existed of Bianca Nicholas and Alex Larke. Bianca Nicholas has appeared on popular TV shows like The X Factor and The Voice UK. She has had notable performances, including singing a duet with Will Young and performing in front of Prince William, Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, and Prince Harry. In 2011, Nicholas released a single called “Hold On To Your Dreams,” which made it onto the

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Maraaya

About Quick Facts MembersMarjetka VovkAleš Vovk (Raay) Founded2014 Nationality🇸🇮 Slovenian National SelectionEMA 2015 In Eurovision2015 Vienna SongHere For You (2015) Biography Maraaya is a Slovenian pop duo founded in 2014 by Marjetka Vovk and Raay. The name is a combination of their names.  Before music author and producer Raay (real name: Aleš Vovk) and singer Marjetka Vovk (born Jurkovnik) started working as Maraaya, they were members of the bands Turbo Angels and Tangels. In 2014, they released their first single “Lovin’ Me” under the name Maraaya. The song experienced great success on the iTunes charts in Belgium, Germany, Italy and Slovenia.

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Mahmood

About Quick Facts NameAlessandro Mahmoud Born12 september 1992 Nationality🇮🇹 Italian National SelectionFestival di San Remo 2019Festival di San Remo 2022 In Eurovision2019 Tel Aviv2022 Turin SongBrividi (with Blanco, 2022)Soldi (2019) Biography Mahmood is an Italian singer-songwriter from Milan. He was born to a Sardinian mother and an Egyptian father. His stage name Mahmood is a play on words between the surname (Mahmoud) and the English expression my mood (my mood). After graduating from high school, he studied at the CPM Music Institute-Centro Professione Musica in Milan, where he met Andrea Rodini, his teacher and first manager, and Francesco Fugazza, Elia Pastori and

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S!sters

© EBU/Thomas Hanses About Quick Facts MembersCharlotte TrumanLaura Kästel Active2019-2020 Nationality🇩🇪 German National SelectionUnser Lied für Israel 2019 In Eurovision2019 Tel Aviv SongSister (2019) Biography Sisters was an occasional duo, put together by NDR in 2019. They sang a song called “Sister”, which was rejected in the Swiss national selection for the Eurovision Song Contest in 2018. The song won the German final and the duo represented Germany in the 2019 Eurovision Song Contest. In February 2020 the duo decided to quit. Carlotta Truman (19 october 1999) was born in Hannover. She participated in the talent show “Das Supertalent” when she was

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