Now That’s What I Call… The Extended Eurovision Universe
As any Eurovision megafan knows, Eurovision neither starts nor ends with the main contest. From National Final season introducing the world to new and exciting artists, to former Junior Eurovision artists, to the big-name songwriters and producers that work behind the scenes, people from all over the music industry make Eurovision the amazing thing that it is. Here are some of the best new releases by Eurovision-adjacent acts. Plus, music by 2024 representatives, because they will be here until they’ve hit the Eurovision stage.
Besa & Marin Hoxha – “Plastic Heart”
Besa once again joins forces with producer Marin Hoxha for her latest single “Plastic Heart”. Besa’s goes for a fairly traditional style of singing over the modern electronic beats and melody, which leads to a great and lush sounding end result. The song is about Besa feeling stuck with her lover’s “Plastic Heart”, while she gave them her real love.
Tanxugueiras, Fillas de Cassandra – “Quen é a que canta?”
Will I ever run out of praise for Tanxugueiras? Their latest amazing release is a collab with the duo Fillas de Cassandra and is called “Quen é a que canta?” (Who is the one who sings?). The song is about childhood, friendship, and also a whole lot more. The latter half of the song goes into some clubmix territory in the absolute best way possible (very reminiscent to what they did with “Terra” live at a preparty, in my opinion).
Júlia Machado – “Rollercoaster”
Portugal’s 2023 Junior Eurovision representative Júlia Machado has released her new song “Rollercoaster”. She premiered the song all the way at Times Square in New York, at The Fantastic World of the Portuguese Sardine (a store that is dedicated to and celebrates, well, Portuguese Sardine). The song is a lovely pop ballad written by the same people that also worked on her JESC song.
Bárbara Tinoco – “Não és tu, sou eu”
Bárbara Tinoco wants you to know that “Não és tu, sou eu” (It’s not you, it’s me). This song is quite the musical departure for Bárbara, as the song turns her usual sound on its head and uses her characteristic acoustic instrumentation to create a pop track. Frequent collaborator Feodor Bivol (the “Bichinho” album, Rita Rocha, Nena) returns to produce and write the song with Bárbara. CHARLIE BEATS (“Chamada não Atendida”, Diogo Piçarra, Wet Bed Gang) also worked on the track.
Yoly Saa – “SN 2020Z (Capítulo 1)”
Yoly Saa has a puzzle for us, but so far we have just gotten one tantalizing piece of it. “SN 2020Z (Capítulo 1)”. The Benidorm Fest 2024 contestant says that the song is her deepest yet. She adds that she was more involved than ever in every step of the creative process ahead of releasing the song, including making the cover. The song itself is a beautiful acoustic ballad that morphs into gorgeous, pounding electronica towards the end. At the end of her message, Yoly says that all will make sense in time, and that she hopes we enjoy this mysterious musical trip as much as she does.
Felicia Lu – “Narcissist”
It’s been a while since we last saw Felicia Lu in the round-up, but this month she finally released new music. “Narcissist” is a strong slice of electropop that borrows from the early 2010s to make something fresh and exciting. On Instagram, Felicia Lu shares that this is the first song of her next album. Said album will be the follow-up to last year’s debut “Something Regrettable”.
KUUMAA – “Tuhoaisti”
KUUMAA are feeling “Tuhoaisti” on their latest single. And what is that feeling, exactly? Well, apparently it was a misreading of “tuntoaisti” (sense of touch) that KUUMAA member Johannes then decided to define as “sense of destruction”. As for the song itself, it’s another excellent 80s inspired pop track by the Finnish group as they prepare to release their album “Pisara meressä” (A drop in the ocean) next month. That album, the follow-up to last year’s “Hyvikset ja pahikset” will also feature the song “Tässa on kaikki” and 10 more tracks, and is available for pre-saving on Spotify ahead of the release on April 19.
Nilsen’s Southern Harmony, Anne Fagermo – “A House of Gold”
MGP 2024 contestant Anne Fagermo joins forces with Nilsen’s Southern Harmony to offer up some pitch-perfect country in “A House of Gold”. The song is a cover of the Hank Williams classic. Just like the original, is very much worth checking out if you like country (like I do).
Gunilla Persson – “VIVA LA GUNILLA”
Meanwhile in the electronic party corner of the yeehaw section is Gunilla Persson with her new song “VIVA LA GUNILLA”. It’s an upbeat, midtempo track that I can see many people clapping along to as she is “on the road again”. There also some very out-of-left-field musical choices in this track in the post-chorus breakdown, courtesy of André Zuniga (his own “MEDVETSLÖS”, but also Hearts On The Run, De Vet Du) and Rasmus Gozzi (FRÖKEN SNUSK, Klara Hammarström, Sean Kingston).
The one question is whether you can actually listen to the song again anytime soon, however. A strange and as of yet unclear situation regarding who owns the rights to the song has erupted. This has led to “VIVA LA GUNILLA” to disappear from streaming services for now.
Darin – “Electric”
Darin is back and he is feeling “Electric” in his latest dance-pop offering. Hewrites that the song was inspired by the great time he had on his birthday. The singer co-wrote the track with Jordan Shaw (Armin van Buuren, Gabry Ponte, Robin Schulz), and the song’s producers James Hurr (Tiësto, Hannah Laing, more remixes than you can imagine) and Paul Harris (Tiësto, Oliver Heldens, Felix Jaehn).
Listen to all the songs above and more
We’ve made a handy Spotify playlist of the songs in this article and all other releases from Eurovision artists this month, including remixes and other special releases. So get ready for everything from Sudden Lights, Olly Alexander, and Felicia Lu to Sakis Rouvas, Nathan Trent, Andrei Ursu, and many more. The playlist gets updated every month, so don’t forget to follow it to always stay up to date. Did we miss anything? Then send Angus a message over on your social media of choice.
What were your favourite releases this month? And whose music are you looking forward to next month? As always, let us know what you think by commenting below. Also, be sure to follow ‘That Eurovision Site’ on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, Threads, and Bluesky for all the latest Eurovision news.
News Source: That Eurovision Site / Various
Photo Credit: Sudden Lights, Lena, KUUMAA, Rosa Linn. Collage by That Eurovision Site
Giwrgos Oiko