If you want to jump straight to a specific section, here’s a list of pages, each filled to the brim with excellent music:
- 2026, 2025 and 2024 Eurovision artists
- Previous Eurovision artists
- 2026 and 2025 national final artists
- Previous national final artists & Honourable mentions (this page)
Previous national final artists
🇫🇮 BESS – “Naarmuja (Vain elämää kausi 17)”
BESS competed in the 2022 edition of Finland’s UMK national final with her electro-pop record “Ram pam pam”, becoming a fan favourite in the process. She would place 3rd in the national final, behind Cyan Kicks and eventual Eurovision representatives The Rasmus (who also feature on this week’s round-up). Despite not winning the national final, “Ram pam pam” became a massive hit in Finland. It was the most streamed Finnish song of 2022, and broke records in the country by spending 19 weeks at number one on the Finnish Radio Airplay Chart. She returned to the UMK stage the following year and appeared as one of the interval acts alongside The Rasmus. For the 2023 Contest in Liverpool, BESS acted as the jury spokesperson, giving the 12 Finnish points to Loreen’s “Tattoo”. In 2025, BESS once again appeared as an interval act in the UMK national final, alongside Linda Lampenius, Keira and other Finnish icons.
This week, BESS appeared on the popular Finnish reality music show Vain elämää, reimagining an early single of UMK 2023’s Benjamin – “Naarmuja”. This new version is as fun as the original, with a bigger beat and dancier sound.
Vain elämää (meaning “It’s only life” in Finnish) is a popular Finnish reality music television series, where a group of well-known Finnish musicians live and record music together. Each show features the music of a specific member of the group, with the original artist listening and reacting to the new interpretations of their song. The final episode usually features duets or group performances. The show is an adaptation of the Dutch format De beste zangers van Nederland. The title of the show comes from the classic 1973 song “Vain elämää” by legendary Finnish singer Irwin Goodman. The show premiered in 2012, and has become one of Finland’s most successful and long-running reality television programs, spanning numerous seasons and featuring dozens of Finland’s top recording artists. This week, the musical theme came from the hits of UMK 2023 icon Benjamin.
🇮🇹 Mr. Rain – “Super-héros”
Italian singer, rapper, and producer Mr. Rain (real name Mattia Balardi) has entered Sanremo on multiple occasions, most recently in 2024, with “Due altalene”, and most notably in 2023 when he placed 3rd in the Festival with his viral, chart-topping smash hit “Supereroi”. This week, Mr. Rain has reimagined his Sanremo 2023 entry as a bilingual ballad with the help of French singer-songwriter Julien Lieb. The song was already a huge, much–loved hit across European, but with this addition of French, it’s undeniably addictive. Just when I had got this song out of my head after 3 years, Mr. Rain and Julien Lieb do this. Do I dare to say this is somehow even better than the original…?
🇪🇸 Sofia Coll – “SUPERSTAR”
Benidorm Fest 2024 would not have been the same without the presence of Sofia Coll and her infectious track “Here To Stay”. The singer has gone on to find success in Spanish music scenes since her appearance at the national final, and has released 6 tracks so far in 2026. The latest of these, “SUPERSTAR” is big dance energy, with a repetitive yet catchy chorus of ‘I’m a supertsar’. The new track is reminiscent of Charli XCX and modern electro-pop queens, while maintaining the Spanish influence. The single comes ahead of Sofia’s upcoming album “IDK”, due to be released later in September.
🇸🇪 Klaudy – “Here we go again”
Klaudy appeared in the 2024 edition of Sweden’s Melodifestivalen with his song “För dig”. The young musician made it through to the final qualification round of the national final, but was unable to make the final in 2024. Klaudy features on Hemliga Klubben’s latest single “Here we go again”. The track is a light, fun, uptempo pop song with a catchy hook and infectious chorus.
🇪🇸 Almácor – “Decido Esperarte”
Almácor competed in Spain’s national selection Benidorm Fest with his electro-latin hit “Brillos Platino” making the Grand Final of the selection and becoming one of the fan favourites of the contest in the process. The singer/rapper from the Canary Islands has amassed a huge amount of fans in Spanish speaking Europe, gaining millions of streams across a number of hits. Latest release from the musician sees him collaborate with young Spanish singer Marmi on “Decido Esperarte”. This is perfect for an end of summer release, with Spanish heat throughout the song.
🇫🇷 Silvàn Areg – “Destress (Piano version)
In recent years, France have stepped away from a national final to choose their Eurovision participant. But back in 2019, Silvàn Areg competed, and eventually placed 5th in the Destination Eurovision selection show with his catchy French pop sound, “Allez Lear Dire”. The latest release from the singer-songwriter sees him rework July’s “Destress” release into a soft, piano ballad. The original mix had Silvàn team up with Casus Belli for a blend of intimate French piano pop, with contemporary Francophone rap. This new, paired back version is even more intriguing than the original.
🇺🇦 DEMCHUK – “Paranoid”
Vidbir 2023 alumni DEMCHUK features on the new track from one of China’s most talked about up-and-coming DJs. “Paranoid” is a big EDM song, with a great electro-pop beat. The chorus is perhaps a little simple and repetitive, but it’s great for a dance floor!
🇪🇸 Rigoberta Bandini – “chicle mal enganchado”
Rigoberta Bandini went into the 2022 edition of Spain’s Benidorm Fest as one of the heavy fan favourites. She performed “Ay mamá”, an electro-pop hit, championing motherhood, feminism and female anatomy, with a performance featuring a giant glowing globe shaped like a breast. Despite just missing out on the win to eventual Spanish Eurovision icon Chanel, “Ay mamá” became a massive viral hit and a feminist anthem in Spain, topping the national charts and achieving 2x Platinum certification. Latest single from Rigoberta, “chicle mal enganchado”, is an intriguing blend of ecltro-pop beats and synth-guitar riffs, with her recognisable vocals on top. It’s a great, fresh piece of music from the Spanish star.
🇦🇺 Sheppard – “Night Drive”
Aussie indie-rock band Sheppard appeared in the 2019 national final Australia Decides with the song “On My Way”, finishing in third place. The band recently collaborated with Australian musical legends Bachelor Girl, alongside many famous Eurovision names. Latest single from Sheppard comes in the form of country-pop record “Night Drive”. It’s light, positive and enjoyable.
🇪🇸 Yoly Saa – “Se siente fuerte”
It is a busy week for Benidorm Fest 2024 alumni, with Yoly Saa also releasing new music. The Spanish singer competed in the national selection in 2024 with her song “No se me olvida”, reaching the final stages of the competition. This week, Yoly releases emotional pop-guitar ballad “Se siente fuerte”, which feels like a song from a movie soundtrack or the perfect song for a single tear cry.
🇭🇺 Szekér Gergő – “Akik voltunk”
Gergő participated in the 2019 editions of Hungary’s A Dal national selection with the song “Madár, repülj!”, where he placed 5th in the final. Latest release from the Hungarian musician is a sultry, sexy RnB song “Akik voltunk”. With the increasing media reports of a possible MTVA return to Eurovision, could Gergő be one to watch for a future ESC appearance?
🇳🇴 Carina Dahl – “Venninna mi”
Carina Dahl has made multiple attempts to represent Norway in the Eurovision Song Contest. Debuting in the Melodi Grand Prix national selection in 2011 with her song “Guns & Boys”, she most recently returned in the 2019 edition of MGP with her entry “Hold Me Down”. The Norwegian country-pop star is back with a new single, “Venninna mi”. This one is more one the side of tongue-in-cheek country than her more pop-ballad sound in MGP 2019, but its enjoyable all the same.
🇪🇸 MARLENA – “Amiga Date Cuenta”
Yet another Benidorm Fest 2024 contestant features on this week’s list, in the form of pop duo MARLENA. The pair competed in Spanish national final in 2024 with their song “Amor de verano”. Latest single “Amiga Date Cuenta” is a Spanish infused, emotional pop ballad with a big chorus and great vocals throughout. This duo really shine together.
🇪🇪 Wiiralt – “Greatest splits”
Estonia’s Wiiralt describe themselves as sounding like ‘Led Zeppelin’ playing ‘Johnny Cash’. The 3 time Eesti Laul entrants, most recently in the 2023 edition of the competition, are a country rock’n’roll band with a small following in Estonia, but a big sound. The band have so far released two singles with rapper Tommyboy, and are back for a full length album. The 10 track “Greatest splits” record features both of the previous singles, “Kaif” and “Emotsoon”, as well as 8 new tracks. The sound and musicality changes throughout the record, featuring heavy, rockier rap in parts before transitioning to a mix of country-Hip-Hop. “Suur pilt” is a personal highlight of the new songs featured on the album.
🇪🇸 José Otero – “La Decepción”
José Otero appeared in the 2023 edition of Spain’s Benidorm Fest, where he placed 4th with “Inviernos en Marte”. The song was written by José himself, alongside long time collaborator Karen Méndez. Both musicians in their own right, together they make up the duo project Karen & Jose. Latest single “La Decepción” follows last month’s release of “La Habitación” from the pair, and is another big Spanish power ballad.
Honourable mentions / tenuous links
🇺🇦 Sofia Nersesian – “Заплету Віночок”
At last year’s Junior Eurovision, Sofia Nersesian placed 2nd behind only Junior Eurovision powerhouses France at the Contest in Tbilisi. The young Ukrainian singer has continued to make new music in recent months, and seems to excel in the dark, electronic pop anthem genre. Sofia is back with a new track “Заплету Віночок”, which features Ukrainian musician and actress TARABAROVA, who alongside alyona alyona has served as the musical producer for Ukraine’s Junior Eurovision entries in recent years. This is a big pop ballad from the duo and shows off both of their talents amazingly well.
🇺🇦 OTOY – “Повільне диско”
Hip-hop, R&B, Punk and Soul blend together in OTOY’s music. The Ukrainian rapper and producer performed at the Contest in Liverpool in 2023 as a featured interval act in semifinal 2, alongside Mariya Yaremchuk and Zlata Dziunka. Latest single to feature OTOY comes in the form of KLER’s “Повільне диско”, on which the rapper appears. The track is fun, light and has an instantly catchy beat.
🇬🇧 Mae Muller – “Made My Night”
If I can get a chance to talk about the last time the UK got televote points in Eurovision (it was Mae Muller 2023 btw) I will take it. The UK’s Mae Muller appears on the songwriter credits of the chorus of new LE SSERAFIM track “Made My Night” so it is going on this list. The popular Korean girl-group on the Source Music / Hybe label currently have over 20 million monthly listeners on Spotify, and our Mae deserves her flowers also. Also this is just camp.
Listen to the Official TES New Music Round-up playlist
Don’t forget to follow the official playlist of ThatEurovisionSite’s New Music Round-up! All the best new releases covered in recent weeks, in one master playlist, updated every week:
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News Sources: ThatEurovisionSite / Spotify / Instagram
Image Credits: Malik Harris – Jakob Lauber. KALUSH – SevenEleven. Filarri & Anastasija Spasevska – Filarri. Gåte – Joakim Mangen. Reiley – Reiley. Alessandra – Aleksandra Suchkova. Kyle Alessandro – Warner Music Norway. Ladaniva – Ladaniva.