Another week, another article about new artist announcements! Last weekend has been full with music shows, with the Festival di Sanremo final, the Finnish Uuden Musiikin Kilpailu (UMK) and the Latvian Supernova final. Let’s meet the winners!
Angelina Mango for Italy
Angelina Mango is the big winner of the 74th Festival di Sanremo 2024 with her song ‘La noia’ (=boredom). The festival lasted in total 5 nights, with 30 competing acts which included some big names in Italian music industry and also some previous Eurovision participants- Mahmood (2019, 2021), Diodato (2020) and Il Volo (2015). Angelina Mango, with her catchy song, amazing vocals and powerful performance, managed to beat the other 29 acts and was crowned champion of the night.
She started her career in 2020 when she released her first single ‘Va tutto bene’. She then released her first EP and her career grew bigger, opening concerts for some big names in Italy and performing during Milan Music Week in 2021. In 2022 she participated in the musical talent show Amici di Maria De Filippi, finishing second. Since then, she has released more singles and EPs which made it to the top of Italian charts. Ci vediamo a Malmö Angelina!
Windows95man for Finland
Whoever thought Windows 95 are long gone, they are wrong. They are still here and they won the Finnish UMK, securing their golden ticket to Malmo. Seven artists competed for the successor to Käärijä at the Finnish national selection, which happened on Saturday 10th of February in the city of Tampere. Despite finishing last from the international jury vote (25%), Windows95man with the song ‘No Rules‘ came first by winning the televote (75%). Windows95man is a stage persona created by Teemu Keisteri, a Finnish visual artist and DJ. His appearance and style are inspired from the late 90s, and the song title refers to the artist’s motto. The vocals to the song are provided by Henri Piispanen. Even though he sings about ‘No Rules’, he might need to change his performing name since the contest rules prohibit product placement.
Dons for Latvia
The Latvian Supernova final happened last Saturday in Riga where 10 participants were competing for the golden Eurovision ticket. After combination of jury and public voting, Dons won with his song ‘Hollow’. Dons is the stage name of Artūrs Šingirejs, a 39-year-old singer and songwriter. He is one of the most famous singers in Latvia, with 9 albums and 7 Top Radio Hit awards for the most played song. He started his career back in 2003 after winning the talent show Talantu Fabrika, and he released his first solo album in 2006. He has been a judge at the Supernova national selection two times, in 2015 and 2017. Latvia hasn’t qualified to the grand final for 6-years in a row. Will Dons win the magic ticket and take Latvia to the final? Good luck Don and Latvia!
