With national finals for Eurovision 2027 getting announced by the day, we thought we’d take a dive into delusional hope our wishes for who we want to see return to the contest. Up next is Estonia, with their national final Eesti Laul announcing its 2027 participants later today.
Our dream returnees
Rory: Cätlin Mägi
Newer Eurovision fans may not have known this but Eesti Laul used to be a lot weirder – both in terms of songs and show production. ERR was a lot more willing to include these bizarre songs that really were left-field but were really interesting and made you pay attention, even though they weren’t joke entries. In 2019, we had a few of these songs – but “Parmumäng” really turned me onto Estonian folk music, and I have been loving Cätlin’s music – featuring looping vocals, Estonian flutes and jaw harps (!!!) ever since. We need something a bit weird back in the overly-sterile Eesti Laul again. Let’s have some new and interesting concepts. Bring her back!
Samantha : Karl Killing
Okay, I have to be honest: my knowledge of the Estonian music scene is mostly limited to rap artists, thanks to the rabbit hole I went down in 2024 with 5MIINUST. When it comes to Karl Killing, I don’t think his previous Eesti Laul entries really give you an idea of what I’m getting at. But if you listen to some of his more recent stuff (I’m thinking “hoitud” ft. Yasmyn and “Hoia End” ft. Villemdrillem), I genuinely think he has the potential to bring something different to the table for Estonia. I’m not necessarily sure I see him fitting the Eurovision stage, but I could absolutely see him doing something interesting at Eesti Laul. And a Karl Killing x nublu Eesti Laul entry would actually be the death of me! (one day I will stop banging on about my love for nublu)
Mateo: Elina Nechayeva
I absolutely need this queen back at Eurovision. Elina represented Estonia at Eurovision in 2018 with the song “La Forza”, which remains one of my all-time favorite Eurovision songs. She participated in Eesti Laul again in 2022 with “Remedy”, a terribly dull song that unsurprisingly failed to impress both the jury and the audience. I absolutely need her to come back with a better song. I just have one request: No opera, please! “La Forza” was quite revolutionary due to its mixture of opera and pop, but we have had so many songs in this genre since 2018 that it would no longer be impressive. I would love to see Elina trying something new, maybe a song that is a little more radio-friendly and/or contains traditional Estonian musical elements. It would also be great to hear her sing in Estonian.
Tom: Sissi
Sissi is an absolute icon. The Estonian singer is the daughter of Estonian Eurovision winner Dave Benton, who took the win in the 2001 Contest with the incredibly catchy, disco track “Everybody” (alongside Tanel Padar and the boy band 2XL). Sissi has competed in Eesti Laul a number of times, most recently in 2023 with the song “Lighthouse”, but my personal favourite of her attempts was back in 2021, with “Time”. She was pipped to the win that year by Uku Suviste, and I can absolutely understand why, even if I am still a little bitter. Gladly, we saw her at the Contest in Rotterdam, as the jury spokesperson for Estonia, but I’m still lacking Sissi on the Eurovision stage. Imagine a Dad-Daughter Eurovision winner duo. How iconic?! I need a Sissi ballad in the Contest PLEASE.
What is Eesti Laul?
For over a decade now Eesti Laul has showcased Estonian talent in a multi-stage format to select Estonia’s Eurovision entrant. Traditionally featuring two semi finals and a final, in recent years the show has been adapted year on year to feature (then subsequently remove) quarter finals, as well as wild card rounds. The winner is typically decided by a hybrid voting of juries and televotes, with superfinal of usually three acts vying for the chance to represent Estonia.
Estonia’s Eurovision Journey
Estonia has appeared at almost every Eurovision since their debut in 1994. They have won the contest once with Tanel Padar, Dave Benton and 2XL in 2001, singing Everybody. Other notable Estonian entrants include 3rd placer Sahlene with Runaway in 2002 and Ines with Once In A Lifetime in 2000, who placed 4th. More recently, their highest-placing entries have been Urban Symphony with Rändajad in 2009 and Ott Lepland with Kuula in 2012, both of which finished in 6th place.
In 2026, Estonia elected to send 2005 Swiss representative Vanilla Ninja through Eesti Laul to the Contest with “Too Epic to be True”. They failed qualified for the final, ultimately finishing in 11th place in the first semi-final with a total of 79 points. Of these, 46 came from the televote – while the remaining 33 came from the jury.
Are you excited for next year’s Eesti Laul? Who would you like to see take part? Let us know your thoughts on social media and follow ‘That Eurovision Site’ on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Threads, Bluesky, and ZOOP for more information on Eurovision 2027!
Source: That Eurovision Site
Photo credit: That Eurovision Site
Tim J