Even amid war, Ukraine finds time for glitz, pop galore Eurovision Song Contest, Maybe now more than ever.
Ukraine’s participants in the pan-continental music competition – the female duo of rapper Alyona Alyona and singer Jerry Heil – left Kiev for the competition on Thursday. In wartime, that meant a long train trip to Poland, from where they would travel to the competition in Malmö, Sweden, next month.
“We need to be visible to the world,” Heil told The Associated Press at the Kiev train station before his departure. “We need to show that even now, during the war, our culture is developing, and Ukrainian music is something the world is waiting to discover”.
Ukrainian rapper Alyona Alyona, left, and singer Jerry Heil hold a Ukrainian flag as they pose for the media before departing from the main train station in Kiev, Ukraine, on Thursday, April 25, 2024. Ukraine’s participants in the pan-continental music competition, the female duo of rapper Alyona Alyona and singer Jerry Heil, left Kiev for the competition on Thursday. In wartime, that meant a long train journey to Poland, from where they would travel to the competition in Malmö, Sweden, next month. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)
“We have to spread it and share it and show people how strong (Ukrainian) women and men are now,” said Alyona, who writes her name with all lowercase letters.
Ukraine has long used Eurovision as a form of cultural diplomacy, a way to show the world the country’s unique sound and style. This mission becomes more urgent after Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022. Russian President Vladimir Putin Denies that Ukraine existed as a separate country and people before the Soviet era.
Ukrainian singer Jamala won the contest in 2016 – two years after Russia illegally annexed the Crimean peninsula – with a song about Stalin’s expulsion of Crimean Tatars in 1944. Folk-rap band Kalush Orchestra won the Eurovision title in 2022 with “Stefania”. A song about the frontman’s mother that became an ode to the war-ravaged homeland, featuring a haunting melody on a traditional Ukrainian wind instrument.
Alyona and Heil will perform “Maria & Teresa”, a song for inspiring women. The title refers to Mother Teresa and the Virgin Mary, and the lyrics include the statement in English: “All divinities were born human beings” – the people we consider saints were once flawed, just like the rest of us. And were humane.
Heal said the message is that “we all make mistakes, but your actions are what define you.”
And, Alyona said: “With enough energy you can win the war, you can change the world.”
The song blends Alyona’s powerful rap style with Heil’s funky melodies and distinctive Ukrainian vocal style.
“Alyona is a great rapper, she has a powerful energy,” Heel said. “And I’m more gentle.”
“But great tunes,” Alyona said. “So she makes all the tunes and I just jump into it.”
Ukraine has been at the forefront of transforming Eurovision from a contest dominated by English-language pop songs to a more diverse and multilingual event. Jamala sang part of her song in the Crimean Tatar language, while the Kalush Orchestra sang and rapped in Ukrainian.
Ukraine’s Eurovision win in 2022 earned the country the right to host the following year, but due to the war the 2023 contest was held in the English city of Liverpool, which was decorated with blue and yellow Ukrainian flags for the occasion – a celebration of Ukraine. Soul and culture.
Thirty-seven countries from Europe and beyond – including Israel and Australia – will compete in two Eurovision semi-finals on 7 and 9 May in Malmö, followed by the final on 11 May. Ukraine is currently one of the bookmakers’ top five favorites alongside Swiss singer Nemo and Croatian singer-songwriter Baby Lasagna.
Russia, a longtime Eurovision contestant, was eliminated from the contest due to the invasion.
The Ukrainian pair caught a train after holding a press conference where they announced a campaign to raise funds for a school destroyed by the Russian attack.
The pair are teaming up with charity fundraising platform United 24 to raise 10 million hryvnia (about $250,000) to rebuild a school in the village of Velika Kostromka in southern Ukraine that was destroyed by a fire. Russian rocket In October 2022. The school’s 250 students have since been unable to attend class, relying on online learning.
From the debris, a teacher managed to rescue one of the school’s treasured possessions – a large wooden key that is traditionally given to first grade students to symbolize that education is the key to their future.
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Alyona and Heil have also adopted the key as a symbol, wearing T-shirts covered with small metal house keys.
“It symbolizes something that maybe some people in Ukraine won’t have, because a lot of people have lost their homes,” Heil said. “But they’re holding these keys in their pocket, and they’re holding out hope.”
