It is about three months ago that Israel secured its fourth Eurovision victory with Netta and her equally catchy and quirky track ‘Toy’. Although Netta herself hasn’t released any new material yet, some of her fierce competition graced us with some fresh tunes over the summer. From Sweden to Cyprus, the Eurovision 2018 stars are back!
Eleni Foureira (Cyprus) – Caramela
Eleni Foureira brought Cyprus its best result with the second place for her ‘Fuego’. The track became a hit in some countries post Eurovision and Foureira was quick to move on to the next release. She first dropped a Greek version of ‘Caramela’, but an English version followed soon. She sticks to latin pop with some Spanish words thrown in, but goes a bit more traditional on this one. It is insanely catchy, campy and swings. Needless to say it would have fit right in at Eurovision!
Benjamin Ingrosso (Sweden) – I Wouldn’t Know
Sweden scored another top 10 finish in Eurovision 2018, but it was one with a bit of a sour aftertaste. After it was announced Benjamin Ingrosso’s ‘Dance You Off’ reached the second place of all juries combined, it turned out that the televoters only placed him 23rd. That must have been quite the disappointment, but Benjamin is ready for the next step in his career with the brand new single ‘I Wouldn’t Know’. It is a modern, midtempo pop number with a big singalong chorus, dealing with feeling lonely in a relationship doomed to fail. “Tell me what it’s like to love someone who gives a damn ’bout you, cause I wouldn’t know”, Benjamin states. Another great taste of his upcoming debut album!
Laura Rizzotto (Latvia) – Ruby EP
Latvia’s Laura Rizzotto was the most underrated Eurovision 2018 artist if you ask me. Her track ‘Funny Girl’ was one of the most on trend tunes and her performance was classy. The juries voted her well into the final, but the televoters let her down majorly. Rizzotto is not one to feel defeated though and hit back with the four track Ruby EP. She launched the breezy ‘Bonjour’ as a single first, but went on to record videos for all tunes. The swinging uptempo pop tune ‘The High’ is my favourite. You might have to accept that you will have the chorus singing through your head for the rest of your day before you hit the play button on this one!
Madame Monsieur (France) – Comme Une Reine
French duo Madame Monsieur already released their sophomore album before heading to Portugal for Eurovision 2018. After a decent 13th position (which of course should have been a spot in the top 10) they continued promotion of the record by launching ‘Comme Une Reine’ as the next single. It is an upbeat pop number with an exquisite electro pop production and hooks for days. The uplifting music video is worth a watch too!
Lea Sirk (Slovenia) – Moj Profil
Lea Sirk proved herself as one of the strongest performers of Eurovision by reaching the final for Slovenia with her track ‘Hvala, Ne!’. She finished 22nd in the grand final, but already went on to win another festival in her home country with the track ‘Moj Profil’. On the tropical, electronic bop she criticizes the selfie culture that comes with our obsessive use of social media these days. Even for those who don’t understand the message because of the language barrier, there is a cute little bop to enjoy that brings summer through your speakers.
Ieva Zasimauskaité (Lithuania) – Paslepk Mane
Ieva from Lithuania was one of the biggest surprises of Eurovision 2018 with her heartwarming little song ‘When We’re Old’. Before the contest not many gave her any chance to qualify for the grand final, but she did and finished 12th overall. Not bad, not bad at all! Now Ieva returned with a track in her mother tongue, ‘Paslepk Mane’. The track starts out quietly, but builds into a full bodied pop ballad with a vivacious chorus. Her angelic vocals did it again!
Franka (Croatia) – Kao Ti I Ja
Franka is one artist I would love to see return to Eurovision. She gave a stunning performance for sure, but I believe she is capable of more than the track ‘Crazy’ she sang for Europe. Just like Ieva, she returned to her mother tongue for her new release, ‘Kao Ti I Ja’. The style of the track is completely different too. Franka serves a warm and laidback pop tune this time. Perfect for the time of the year for sure! There is a funky little breakdown after the chorus and her vocals shine as always. She’s a star!
Saara Aalto (Finland) – DANCE!!!
Finnish pop star Saara Aalto delivered one of the best performances and one of catchiest, typical Eurovision pop song with ‘Monsters’, but only reached the 25th spot in the grand final. Talk about a pop injustice! A week before the contest, Saara released the poptastic album Wild, Wild Wonderland and to continue the promotion for the record she dropped the 80s inspired tune and a half ‘DANCE!!!’ as next single. What a queen!