rapper

🇫🇮 Road to Malmö: Finland

We can not wait for the Eurovision Song Contest in Malmö. Therefore, we have a closer look at one of the contestants every day. Today: Finland. Windows95man Teemu Keisteri, born in 1985 in Espoo, Finland, has emerged as a prominent figure in the visual arts scene, celebrated for his creation of the Ukkeli character in 2008. This iconic figure, a testament to Keisteri’s whimsical and culturally insightful style, adorns apparel, postcards, and tableware, capturing the essence of Finnish life with humor and personality. Known also as the Windows 95 man during his DJ performances, Keisteri’s diverse talents span across visual and video arts. Educated in photography at the Lahti Institute of Design, he discovered his passion lay with visual arts, leading him to establish Kalleria in Helsinki’s vibrant Kallio area, further solidifying his status as a dynamic artist and DJ. Henri Piispanen Henri Piispanen, born in 1994, is a multifaceted Finnish talent, acclaimed as a voice actor, singer, and presenter. Noteworthy for voicing characters in “PAW Patrol,” “Lego Ninjago,” and more, Piispanen’s diverse skills shine through his roles and as the lead vocalist and bassist for Pasa. His collaboration with Teemu Keisteri as Windows95man won the 2024 UMK, highlighting his dynamic presence in Finnish entertainment. Uuden Musiikin Kilpailu (UMK) In the past, the national final for Finland was called Euroviisut. Since 2012, we have Uuden Musiikin Kilpailu (UMK). The last few years, it’s a contest with 7 contestants. The winner is chosen by jury and televote. This year, Sara Siipola was the hot favourite to win the contest. She won the jury vote with a landslide. However, televote overruled them; windows95man gained 32,35% of the televote. Finland in the Eurovision Song Contest The first ever Finnish contestant for the Eurovision Song Contest was Laila Kinunen, back in 1961. A long road with bad scores and even 3 zeros followed; in 2006 the monsters of Lordi broke the spell and brought the Eurovision Song Contest to Helsinki with “Hard Rock Hallelujah”. Käärijä almost did it again last year. With his “Cha cha cha” he won the televote and became 2nd overall. The Bookmakers Finland is currently no. 14 in the betting odds to win the contest. Looks like it is likely that Finland will reach the final; it is also likely that a score like last year is a bridge too far for the country of the thousand lakes. And this is the song:

Nemo

© EBU/Corinne Cumming About Quick Facts NameNemo Mettler Born03 August 1999 Nationality🇨🇭 Swiss National SelectionInternal selection 2024 In Eurovision2024 Malmö SongThe Code (2024) Biography Nemo, full name Nemo Mettler, is a Swiss pop music personality born on August 3, 1999, in Biel/Bienne, located in the canton of Bern. They are a native German speaker. In 2012, Nemo played a role in the jukebox musical “Ich war noch niemals in New York,” inspired by the hit song by Udo Jürgens. In 2015, Nemo appeared on the show “Die grössten Schweizer Talente” as a rapper. That same year, they released their first EP titled “Clownfisch,” which reached 95th in the Swiss music charts. Their 2017 single “Du” achieved 4th place in the charts, and they were awarded the SRF 3 Best Talent prize in the same year. Since 2021, Nemo has been living in Berlin. They participated in the second season of “The Masked Singer Switzerland,” the Swiss adaptation of Masked Singer, as the Panda, and were unmasked in the fourth episode, finishing in 5th place. On November 2023, Nemo came out as non-binary in the SonntagsZeitung newspaper, announcing they adopt the neutral pronouns they/them. On February 29, 2024, it was revealed that Nemo would represent Switzerland at the Eurovision Song Contest 2024 with the song “The Code.” The song reached the Grand Final and won it, gaining a landslide victory at the juries and a 5th place in the televote. After the contest, on the winners’ press conference, Nemo was critical about the organization of the contest itself. Entries The Code Country🇨🇭 Switzerland Year2024 LanguageEnglish LyricsBenjamin AlasuLasse Midtsian NymannLinda DaleNemo Mettler MusicBenjamin AlasuLasse Midtsian NymannLinda DaleNemo Mettler Backings– Results Semi Points: 132Position: 4Running order: 4 Results Finals Points: 591Position: 1Running order: 21 https://youtu.be/CO_qJf-nW0k?si=6e5mctmJ4AnLkveQ

RiskyKidd

© Albin Olsson About Quick Facts NameShane Schuller Born17 June 1994 NationalityUnknown National SelectionEurosong 2014 – A Mad Show In Eurovision2014 Copenhagen SongRise Up (2014, with Freaky Fortune) Biography Shane Schuller, known better by his stage name RiskyKidd, is a British-Greek rapper and singer. He was born on 17 June 1994 in London, England, to a Jamaican father and a German mother. His musical career gained momentum when he moved to Greece at the age of 13. RiskyKidd’s distinct multicultural background influences his unique music style, blending elements from various genres. RiskyKidd began his music journey as a rapper, participating in school performances and local shows. His talent caught the attention of music labels, leading to his initial signing. In 2010, he collaborated with the successful Greek hip-hop group NEVMA for the song “Emena Thes,” which increased his recognition in the Greek music industry. The rapper garnered international attention when he represented Greece alongside the duo Freaky Fortune in the Eurovision Song Contest 2014. They performed the song “Rise Up,” which won them a 20th place in the competition. Despite not winning, the contest boosted RiskyKidd’s exposure and led to further opportunities in the music scene. He releases his music independently through Melody Gang, a joint venture with Gio Melody. RiskyKidd released numerous singles, but his first album came out in 2016: “I am RiskyKidd”. Songs like “Bang” and “Fire in the Night” followed. Two years later the song “Diamonds” came out. In May 2021 he released a single, “Demise”. In November of the same year, the album “I am RiskyKidd II” was released. In May 2022, the song “Smooth operator” and “Top G” were published. Entries Rise Up (& Freaky Fortune) Country🇬🇷 Greece Year2014 LanguageEnglish LyricsNikolas RaptakisTheophilus PouzbourisRiskyKidd MusicRiskyKidd Backings Mihalis ZeisVasilis Manthopoulos DancersArthour Geremyan (trampoline) Results Semi Points: 74Position: 7Running order: 13 Results Finals Points: 35Position: 20Running order: 10 https://youtu.be/c9y6A1uXLn8

Flo Rida

© EBU/Thomas Hanses About Quick Facts NameTramar Lacel Dillard Born17 september 1979 Nationality🇺🇸 American National Selection– In Eurovision2021 Rotterdam SongAdrenalina (with Senhit, 2021) Biography Tramar Dillard was born in Carol City, Florida, USA. Already at a young age, he started making music as a member of the group called The Groundhoggz. Later, he started working with Fresh Kid Ice. He was featured on Fresh Kid Ice’s album in 2004. In 2008, Flo Rida got the chance to record his debut album “Mail on sunday”. The first single was “Low”, featuring T-Pain. “Low” reached the no. 1 spot on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.The follow up “Elevator”, featuring Timbaland, “In the Ayer” featuring will.i.am, and “Roll” featuring Sean Kingston became chart successes as well. Flo Rida made guest performances on other R&B, rap, and pop singles, among others “We Break the Dawn” by Michelle Williams, the remix of “4 Minutes” by Madonna and “Running Back” by Australian singer Jessica Mauboy. He also cooperated with Lady Gaga. Flo Rida’s second album “R.O.O.T.S.”, was released on March 31, 2009. The first single, “Right Round”, featuring Kesha, jumped from number 58 to the top spot in one week in late February. The song broke a record for the most digital one week sales in the US, with 636,000. “Right Round” also became Flo Rida’s first huge hit in the United Kingdom. The second official single was “Sugar”, which featured R&B singer Wynter Gordon. “Jump”, featuring singer Nelly Furtado, was the third official single. and was released on July 27, 2009, in the United Kingdom, and July 28, 2009, worldwide. “Be on You”, featuring singer Ne-Yo, and “Available”, featuring Akon, followed. He kept on featuring in songs for other artists. Flo Rida’s third album “The only One” was released in 2010. Apart from the album, he released a single called “Zoosk girl”. On June 28, 2010, Flo Rida released the song “Club Can’t Handle Me” featuring David Guetta, which was stated to be the official first single for the album. Flo Rida also made guest appearances on Cody Simpson’s song “iYiYi” and collaborated with The Saturdays, recording a new version of their single, “Higher”. In December 2010, Flo Rida created his own label, International Music Group. Flo Rida’s fourth album, “Wild Ones” was released in July 2012. Its debut single was “Good Feeling”, released on August 29, 2011. The song samples Etta James’ 1962 song, “Something’s Got a Hold on Me”. Following the death of Etta James on January 20, 2012, Flo Rida dedicated the song in her memory. The song peaked at No. 3 in the United States, and topped the charts in several European countries. In November 2012, he collaborated with Olly Murs for his song “Troublemaker”. In June 2013, Flo Rida collaborated with Marc Mysterio on the song “Booty on the Floor” to benefit the families and victims of the Boston Marathon bombing. In January 2014, Flo Rida was featured in the song “One Night Stand” by Slovak duo TWiiNS. In November, he appeared on Nickelback’s album No Fixed Address in the track “Got Me Runnin’ Round”. An EP, “My house”, followed, from which several songs became hits. In 2016, Flo Rida released a single “Hello Friday” featuring Jason Derulo. His new album was called “Masterminds”. He also featured on Pitbull’s single “Greenlight”. It took Flo Rida a long time to release his fifth album. It was supposed to be released in January 2021. However, the album is not released yet. Flo Rida was featured on the song “Adrenalina” by Italian singer Senhit. The two represented San Marino in the 2021 Eurovision Song Contest. Whether Flo Rida would really join Senhit on stage was a long kept secret. Only a few days before the contest Flo Rida arrived in Rotterdam. Entries Adrenalina (Senhit ft. Flo Rida) Country🇸🇲 San Marino Year2021 LanguageEnglish Lyrics and musicChanel TukiaTramar Dillard (Flo Rida)Jimmy ThörnfeldtJoy DebLinnea DebKenny SilverdiqueMalou RuotsalainenSenhit Zadik ZadikSuzi PancenkovThomas Stengaard BackingsIlaria CavolaLucrezia StopponiStefano Rei FerrariPatrizio Ratto Results Semi Points: 118Position: 9Running order: 1 Results Finals Points: 50Position: 22Running order: 6 https://youtu.be/TkhiH-JXFPs