Duets

Jake Shakeshaft

© EBU/Thomas Hanses About Quick Facts NameJake Shakeshaft Born25 July 1995 Nationality🇬🇧 British National SelectionEurovision: You Decide 2016 In Eurovision2016 Stockholm SongYou’re not alone (2016, Joe & Jake) Biography Jake Shakeshaft was born in 1995 in Newcastle under Lyme. Since 2012, Jake Shakeshaft has been honing his guitar playing and singing skills, starting his solo performances the following year. In August 2014, he distinguished himself as a finalist at the NUA Entertainment Next Big Thing, held at The Cavern in Liverpool, making it to the final five. While studying Music Technology at Newcastle-under-Lyme College and juggling part-time work, he decided to focus on music full time and left his job. In 2015, Jake took part in The Voice UK, being coached by Will.i.am. Jake did not reach the live shows as he had to leave in the knockout round. While participating in The Voice UK, Joe Woolford and Jake Shakeshaft developed a strong friendship that led them to team up for Eurovision: You Decide, a competition organized by the BBC to select the UK’s representative for the 2016 Eurovision Song Contest. They emerged victorious among six contenders in the national final, a decision determined entirely by public voting that involved both televoting and online voting. Their performance of the song “You’re Not Alone” took place on May 14, 2016, at the Ericsson Globe in Stockholm, Sweden. On March 11, 2016, Sony Music UK announced that they had signed a record deal with Joe and Jake. Despite their efforts, the duo placed 24th in the Eurovision Song Contest 2016. The follow up, “Tongue tied”, was released in January 2017. After a break, Jake started performing again in September 2018. Entries You’re Not Alone (Joe & Jake) Country🇬🇧 British Year2016 LanguageEnglish LyricsMatt SchwartzJustin BensonSiva Kaneswaran MusicMatt SchwartzJustin BensonSiva Kaneswaran BackingsMikey BurkeRoss HarrisChris MoncrieffLai Shin-Aba Results Semi Points: –Position: –Running order: – Results Finals Points: 62Position: 24Running order: 25 https://youtu.be/XgGahKsBtts

Joe Woolford

© EBU/Thomas Hanses About Quick Facts NameJoe Woolford Born11 December 1994 Nationality🇬🇧 British National SelectionEurovision: You Decide 2016 In Eurovision2016 Stockholm SongYou’re Not Alone (2016, Joe & Jake) Biography Born in Ruthin, Wales in 1994, Joe Woolford discovered his deep-seated love for music at the tender age of nine, nurtured by his musically inclined family. His talent truly began to shine when he made it to the Grand Final of the Open Mic UK competition during the period of 2013 to 2014. Equally adept at rapping and songwriting, Woolford’s music is inspired by various influences, not least of which is Tupac Amaru Shakur, better known as 2Pac. In 2015, Joe decided to participate in The Voice UK. With Rita Ora as a coach, he made it to the 2nd live show before he got eliminated. While participating in The Voice UK, Joe Woolford and Jake Shakeshaft developed a strong friendship that led them to team up for Eurovision: You Decide, a competition organized by the BBC to select the UK’s representative for the 2016 Eurovision Song Contest. They emerged victorious among six contenders in the national final, a decision determined entirely by public voting that involved both televoting and online voting. Their performance of the song “You’re Not Alone” took place on May 14, 2016, at the Ericsson Globe in Stockholm, Sweden. On March 11, 2016, Sony Music UK announced that they had signed a record deal with Joe and Jake. Despite their efforts, the duo placed 24th in the Eurovision Song Contest 2016. The follow up, “Tongue tied”, was released in January 2017. Beside performances as Joe & Jake after Eurovision, Joe teamed up with Hapoly & OutaMatic for the song “Turn back time”, which was released in November 2016. In early 2019, Joe performed in the Caribbean and in Brasil, but also in Hongkong. On 28 January 2021, Joe’s new single “Superpowers” was released. The follow up “Because of you” was released in August of the same year. Entries You’re Not Alone (Joe & Jake) Country🇬🇧 United Kingdom Year2016 LanguageEnglish LyricsMatt SchwartzJustin BensonSiva Kaneswaran MusicMatt SchwartzJustin BensonSiva Kaneswaran BackingsMikey BurkeRoss HarrisChris MoncrieffLai Shin-Aba Results Semi Points: –Position: –Running order: – Results Finals Points: 62Position: 24Running order: 25 https://youtu.be/XgGahKsBtts

Jimmie Wilson

© EBU/Thomas Hanses About Quick Facts Name Jimmie Wilson Born 07 February 1981 Nationality 🇺🇸 American National Selection Internal selection 2017 In Eurovision 2017 Kyiv Song Spirit Of The night (2017, with Valentina Monetta) Biography Jimmie Wilson is an American singer, born in Detroit, Michigan. As a child, Jimmie was already singing in a gospel choir. Later, he studied acting in Hollywood. When he was 16, he had a role in the musical Sisterella, produced by Michael Jackson. He also worked with stars such as Seal, Lionel Richie, The Wheather Girls and DJ Bobo. After the European tour with Sisterella, Jimmie decided to stay in Frankfurt, Germany. He played the role of Barack Obama in the musical Hope! – Das Obama Musical. This musical premiered at 17 January 2010 in Frankfurt. He also participated in Tylko Muzyka, the Polish version of the British show Must be the Music. In 2014, Jimmie featured in several singles: “Summer time” with Burak Yeter, “No more” with Divided Souls, Le Alen and Samuri and “We can touch the Sky” with DJ Andi. A year later, he released the song “You’re the one (Miss Model of the world)”. He recorded “The color red” in 2016. One year later, he was asked by Sammarinese TV to represent the country at the Eurovision Song Contest. The song, “Spirit in the Sky”, was a duet with Valentina Monetta. The two did not reach the final of the contest. In the same month, Jimmie’s first solo album “So damn beautiful” was released. For the promotion of the album, Jimmie was able to perform in Stockholm. The single “Give me 5” brought him to Bucharest. In July 2018, Jimmie teamed up with FXMO, in whose song “Taxi ride” he featured. In 2018 and 2019, Jimmie also performed in and outside Germany, in Poland, Turkey and Romania. In March 2020, a video of the song “So damn beautiful” was released. In August 2021 he teamed up with Russian DJ Lev Kitkin, soon followed by his solo single “Respect”. Jimmy performed in the Belgrade Fashion Week. Entries Spirit Of The Night (with Valentina Monetta) Country 🇸🇲 San Marino Year 2023 Language English Lyrics Steven Barnacle Jutta Staudenmayer Music Ralph Siegel Backings Erin Perry Spiller Meredith Murray Mezzulo Giuseppe Tirolean Results Semi Points: 1 Position: 18 Running order: 10 Results Finals Points: – Position: – Running order: –

Monika Linkytė

© EBU/Sarah Louise Bennet About Quick Facts NameMonika Linkytė Born03 June 1992 Nationality🇱🇹 Lithuania National SelectionPabandom iš naujo! 2023Eurovizijos dainų konkurso nacionalinė atranka 2015Eurovizijos dainų konkurso nacionalinė atranka 2014Eurovizijos dainų konkurso nacionalinė atranka 2011Eurovizijos dainų konkurso nacionalinė atranka 2010 In Eurovision2023 Liverpool2015 Vienna SongStay (2023)This time (2015, with Vaidas Baumila) Biography Monika Linkytė (born June 3, 1992) is a Lithuanian singer. After graduating from high school Monika entered Vilnius University. That is where, at the Faculty of Medicine, she completed three semesters of the public health bachelor’s program. Since 2014 studied law at the VU Faculty of Law in September, but in 2016 she chose to study music creation at the BIMM Institute in London. Although Monika wanted to be a dancer as a child, after encountering music in piano lessons, she wanted to pursue a career as a singer. From 2006 to 2008 she participated in various competitions where she achieved high places. in 2007 she participated in the national selection for the Junior Eurovision Song Contest. Monika also participated in the Eurovision selection in 2010, 2011, 2014 and 2015. in 2014 she represented Lithuania in the New Wave contest in Jūrmala with the song “Tonight”. She took the 4th place there. In the same year, the singer competed in the second season of Lietuvos balsas (The Voice of Lithuania) and took the second place. Together With Vaidas Baumila she represent Lithuania at the 2015 Eurovision Song Contest in Vienna. There, the duet with the song “This Time” . The two made it to the finals, where they took 18th place. In September of the same year, Monika released her debut album “Walk With Me”, which was promoted by the recent Eurovision song and perhaps the artist’s most popular single “Po dangum”. Both the single and the album went platinum. in 2015 she was awarded at the M.A.M.A. awards ceremony. She won awards wfor Album of the Year (for “Walk with Me”), Song of the Year (for “Po dangum”) and Female Artist of the Year. At the 2016 M.A.M.A. awards, she was once again nominated for the artist of the year award. The song “Padovanojau” became Gold in the same year. On 30 August 2016, Monika released a new song called “Gal Tai Meilė?”. It was followed by “O tu” on 20 February 2018. On 28 March 2019, Monika released a song and video in English again: “All alone”. It took some time, but in June 2020 a new song was released, including the video “Visada šalia”. The song was accompanied by a mini documentary about the singer and song. In 2022, Monika released two songs: “Naktis” in April and “Degtukas” in June. In November of the same year she teamed up with Leon Somov for the song “Dūšia”. Monika Linkytė won the national selection for the Eurovision Song Contest 2023, Pabandom iš naujo! with the song “Stay”. In the Eurovision Song Contest in Liverpool she reached the 11th place in the Grand Final. Entries Stay Country🇱🇹 Lithuania Year2023 LanguageEnglish LyricsChris NoahMonika Linkytė MusicChris NoahMonika Linkytė BackingsYvonne GarshNicola LambrianosDeborah ‘Ouraa’ OsiboduCharleen Afolabi Results Semi Points: 110Position: 4Running order: 15 Results Finals Points: 127Position: 11Running order: 22 https://youtu.be/QsgouAEd34U This time (with Vaidas Baumila) Country🇱🇹 Lithuania Year2015 LanguageEnglish LyricsMonika Liubinaitė MusicVytautas Bikus BackingsRūta ŽibaitytėJustė KraujalytėDainotas VarnasJurijus Veklenko Results Semi Points: 67Position: 7Running order: 1 Results Finals Points: 30Position: 18Running order: 7 https://youtu.be/xtB_slM63JA

Vaidas Baumila

About Quick Facts NameVaidotas Baumila Born28 March 1987 Nationality🇱🇹 Lithuanian National SelectionEurovizijos dainų konkurso nacionalinė atranka 2016Eurovizijos dainų konkurso nacionalinė atranka 2015Eurovizijos dainų konkurso nacionalinė atranka 2014 In Eurovision2015 Vienna SongThis Time (2015, with Monika Linkytė) Biography Vaidas Baumila (born in 1987 in Vilnius) is a Lithuanian singer. When he started his career in 2005, Vaidas Baumila was known by the pseudonym Ozono. Soon, he decided to participate in the TV reality show “Danguje”. He reached the final there and finished third. After the success of “Danguje”, he started to perform a lot. On 11 December 2006 Vaidas released his debut album “Ká tu mýsti?”, which sold over 5,000 copies. In 2007 he was working on the second album. 6 songs were already prepared for the new album. Vaidas Baumila hoped to record a song with the lead singer of “G&G Sindikato”, Gabrielis Liaudanskas-Svarus. in 2008 he released the solo album “Išklausyk”, won two Radiocentr statuettes – in the best artist and post-realism nominations. He was chosen as the best children’s performer of that year at the Vaikau balsa awards held at the beginning of the summer. He participated in the music show Žvaigždžių duetai 2 with businesswoman Violeta Buožyte. In January 2009 month of January, his duet with Daura Zenkevičiūte reached the semi-finals of Žvaigždžių duetai and reached the semi-finals. In Vilnius College he finished his studies in entertainment stage art and decided to continue his studies at the University of Scotland. He attended preparatory acting courses. In 2010 he entered the GSA musical theater school in Guilford, UK. in 2012 worked as a singer on the cruise ship Queen Elizabeth. in 2015 participated in the Eurovision Song Contest, in a duet with Monika Linkyte. The duo reached the final where they got an 18th place. in 2022, Vaidas led the project The Voice of Lithuania, together with Ieva Prudnikovaite, members of the group 69 Danguje, Karina Krysko, Nijolė Pareigyte-Rukaitiene and Goda Aliyeva and rock music representative Bena Aleksandravičius from the group Ba. Entries This time (with Monika Linkytė) Country🇱🇹 Lithuania Year2015 LanguageEnglish LyricsMonika Liubinaitė MusicVytautas Bikus Backings Rūta ŽibaitytėJustė KraujalytėDainotas VarnasJurijus Veklenko Results Semi Points: 67Position: 7Running order: 1 Results Finals Points: 30Position: 18Running order: 7 https://youtu.be/xtB_slM63JA

Salena

About Quick Facts NameSelina-Maria Edbauer Born1998 Nationality🇦🇹 Austrian National SelectionInternal Selection 2019Internal Selection 2023 In Eurovision2023 Liverpool SongWho the hell is Edgar? (2023, with Teya) Biography Salena, whose real name is Selina-Maria Edbauer, was born in Leoben, Styria, in 1998. Her first steps in showbiz came in 2017. She then took part in The Voice of Germany. Unfortunately, she had to leave after three rounds. In 2019, she submitted a song for the Eurovision Song Contest. “Behind the waterfalls” was her hope to represent Austria. However, Austrian broadcaster ORF chose Pænda instead. In 2021, Salena took part in Starmania. She managed to reach the semifinals there. On 31 January 2023, it was announced that Salena, together with Teya, will represent Austria at the Eurovision Song Contest 2023, which will be held in Liverpool. They sang the song “Who the hell is Edgar”. They reached the final and ended up 15th. Entries Who the hell is Edgar? (With Teya) Country🇦🇹 Austria Year2023 LanguageEnglish LyricsTeodora ŠpirićSelina-Maria EdbauerRonald JanečekPele Loriano MusicTeodora ŠpirićSelina-Maria EdbauerRonald JanečekPele Loriano DancersAlex SchoendorfAlexandre NovelliAngel Grace WharmbyRia Hunte Results Semi Points: 137Position: 2Running order: 13 Results Finals Points: 120Position: 15Running order: 1 https://youtu.be/8uk64V9h0Ko

Teya

About Quick Facts NameTeodora Špirić Born12 April 2000 Nationality🇦🇹 Austrian National SelectionBeovizija 2020 (Serbia)Internal selection 2023 (Austria, with Salena) In Eurovision2023 Liverpool SongWho the hell is Edgar (2023, with Salena) Biography Teya (also known as Thea Devy), is an Austrian singer of Serbian roots. Teodora was born in Vienna, Austria. The singer spent part of her childhood in Kladovo, after which her family returned to Vienna. Teodora studied English and German at the University of Vienna. Teodora gained her first musical experiences in the high school jazz orchestra, and then on the musical stage in the Broadway Company. She decided early on to devote herself to music. She wrote her first song in 2017, and the following year she started collaborating with Austrian producers. Teodora, aka Thea Devy, recorded the song “Waiting For”. In 2019, she started working in Switzerland with Kate Northrop and producer Pele Lorient. She also participated in the Beyond Music project. At the end of 2019, she submitted her song “Judgment Day” for Austria’s internal selection for Eurovision Song Contest 2020. Austrian national broadcaster ORF shortlisted her, but in the end they selected Vincent Bueno to represent Austria. She decided to submit the song to Beovizija 2020, the Serbian national selection for Eurovision. The song was translated into Serbian by her parents Aleksandra and Petar, and was now entitled “Sudnji dan”. She was selected, reached the final and got the 4th place. In 2021, she was a participant in the fifth season of the Austrian competition Starmania, under her real name, Teodora Špirić. Teodora did not make it to the finals of the show, but was among the top eight in the competition. At the end of 2021, Croatian singer Ninski released the pop single “Runaway (Stay)” with Teodora. It is also the first time she presented herself under her new stage name – Teya. On 31 January 2023, it was announced that Teja, together with Salena, will represent Austria at the Eurovision Song Contest 2023, which will be held in Liverpool. With their song “Who the hell is Edgar” they reached the final, where they ended up in 15th place. Entries Who the hell is Edgar (with Salena) Country🇦🇹 Austria Year2023 LanguageEnglish LyricsTeodora ŠpirićSelina-Maria EdbauerRonald JanečekPele Loriano MusicTeodora ŠpirićSelina-Maria EdbauerRonald JanečekPele Loriano DancersAlex SchoendorfAlexandre NovelliAngel Grace WharmbyRia Hunte Results Semi Points: 137Position: 2Running order: 13 Results Finals Points: 120Position: 15Running order: 1 https://youtu.be/8uk64V9h0Ko

Austria: Teya & Salena will sing in Liverpool

photo: ORF A lot of Eurovision news comes in these days. This morning, radiostation Ö3 announced that Teya and Salena will represent Austria. The song, of which we don’t know the title yet, will be presented the 8th of March, International Women’s Day. Both Teya and Salena have some Eurovision experience. Salena did an attempt in the internal selection in 2019 and Teya in 2020. Under the name of Thea Devy, Teya took part in the 2020 Serbian national selection with the song “Sudnji dan”. Teya in the Serbian final in 2020. Salena in The Voice Germany in 2017. The announcement for the Eurovision Song Contest (in German).

Dion Cooper

About Quick Facts NameDion Cuiper Born29 November 1993 Nationality🇳🇱 Dutch National SelectionInternal selection 2023 In Eurovision2023 Liverpool SongBurning Daylight (& Mia Nicolai, 2023) Biography Dion Cuiper is a Dutch singer-songwriter. He debuted in 2020 with the release of the EP “Too young, too dumb”. In 2021, he signed at Duncan Laurence‘s Yellow Field Publising at Sony ATV. In October and November of that year he opened for Duncan Laurence in his Dutch tour.In February 2022, Dion released a new single called “Know”. In april of the same year he opened for Benedict Cork and on 5 May he performed at the annual Bevrijdingsfestival. On 29 September 2022, his new single “Blue jeans” was released.On 1 November 2022, it was announced that Dion and Mia Nicolai are going to represent the Netherlands in the 2023 Eurovision Song Contest. On March 1st 2023, the song “Burning Daylight” found it’s première. It was a difficult path to the final, as performances in Madrid and Amsterdam were not good. Shortly before Eurovision, the song was made 1 1/2 octave higher to fit it to their voices. It didn’t help, Mia and Dion didn’t make it to the final. Entries Burning Daylight (with Mia Nicolai) Country🇳🇱 The Netherlands Year2023 LanguageEnglish LyricsDuncan LaurenceJordan Garfield MusicDuncan LaurenceJordan Garfield BackingsRachell MelanieKatie van SteenisKris Rietveld Results Semi Points: 7Position: 13Running order: 14 Results Finals Points: –Position: –Running order: – https://youtu.be/3XAsam043OY

Mia Nicolai

© EBU/Sarah Louise Bennett About Quick Facts NameMichaja Nicolaï Born07 March 1996 Nationality🇳🇱 Dutch National SelectionInternal selection 2023 In Eurovision2023 Liverpool SongBurning Daylight (& Dion Cooper, 2023) Biography Mia Nicolai is a Dutch singer. She was born in Amsterdam of a Russian mother and a Dutch father. Mia attended music school in London, and moved to Melbourne after that. Back in Amsterdam, she released a song called “At last”. Mia currently lives in Los Angeles, where she released two singles in 2020: “Set me free” and “Mutual needs”. She created a lyric video vor “Set me free”, while She also released a 3 episode documentary about herself. In 2021, the songs were followed by “People pleaser”, a cooperation with Jordan Garfield, the boyfriend and partner of Duncan Laurence. The song got the support of Billboard. On 18 May 2022, she stated on Instagram “6 months from now a project very very dear to me will be out in the world and it’s gonna blow the f upppp!”. Half a year later, it was announced that she and Dion Cooper are going to represent the Netherlands in the Eurovision Song Contest. Their song was “Burning daylight”. It was a difficult path to the final, as performances in Madrid and Amsterdam were not good. Shortly before Eurovision, the song was made 1 1/2 octave higher to fit it to their voices. It didn’t help, Mia and Dion didn’t make it to the final. Entries Burning Daylight (With Dion Cooper) Country🇳🇱 The Netherlands Year2023 LanguageEnglish LyricsDuncan LaurenceJordan GarfieldMia NicolaïDion CooperLoek van der Grinten MusicDuncan LaurenceJordan GarfieldMia NicolaïDion CooperLoek van der Grinten BackingsRachell MelanieKatie van SteenisKris Rietveld Results Semi Points: 7Position: 13Running order: 14 Results Finals Points: –Position: –Running order: – https://youtu.be/3XAsam043OY