"Ukrainians win..." Topic

… the annual Eurovision Song Contest.

Yesterday, the Ukrainian group Kalush Orchestra, combining traditional Ukrainian folk music elements with modern hip-hop, won the Eurovision Song Contest held in Turin, Italy. The group had been given a special permission to exit Ukraine for the duration of the competition (despite being all men).

Here is a recording of their winning performance Stefania (a song dedicated to the mother of one of the members):

YouTube link

This contest is organised annually by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), with each member country sending a contestant. However, this year the Russian member organisation was not allowed to send their representative.

While the Eurovision song contest is known for a featuring performances of quite varying style and quality, the ones coming from Ukraine are usually very much worth watching. As far as I can remember, Ukrainian performers have won the competition at least twice in the past.

Slava Ukraini!

Slava Ukraine 🇺🇦!

And a few alternative performances of the song.

1.) Live performance at Ukrainian television, filmed earlier this year before the outbreak of the war (notice the background graphics inspired by Ukrainian folk art):

YouTube link

2.) Music video filmed in ruins across war-torn Ukraine, released earlier today (very touching):

YouTube link

With all due respect but that song is not my favorite. Lots of respect for them but not my cup of tea when it comes to music.

Not a fan of hip hop but it was an energizing presentation.