Loreen’s Euphoria Smells Baku Victory in the Eurovision 2012

Loreen
Loreen

Loreen’s ‘Euphoria’ has turned out to be the pan-European favorite as the ESC final in Baku draws to a close. The singer will, however, need to qualify for the final this Thursday. Few question that. In an interview with Aftonbladet’s Torbjörn Ek, the surging interest for the singer is quite taking its toll. “I just felt to be on my own today, I did not anyone around me,” the singer told Aftonbladet. Being a favorite obviously mounts pressure on the singer. Loreen did get 670,551 tele-votes upon winning the Swedish final.

Remember Carola’s Invincible in 2006?

Long-time Swedish ESC general Christer Björkman hasn’t experienced such interest in the Swedish winner since Carola’s performance in Athens. In 2009, Norwegian singer Alexander Rybak was close to collapse and actually canceled all interviews ahead of the final. He finally won the whole competition with ‘Fairytale.’

Christer Björkman, to Aftonbladet:

“I do not feel that Loreen is in the same condition as Rybak. But we will support her a lot as we see how much attention she gets compared to the other artists. We will need to be vigilant. A bit like what we did with Carola in Athens. To support her with air so fans won’t get too close.”

Baku Eurovision Song Contest Party Flops

According to a recent Aftonbladet article, a party in honor of the ESC participants turned out to be a flop. The artists were kept waiting for three hours in buses, food wasn’t complimentary and the highlight was fireworks that only lasted for one minute. The Swedish delegation with Loreen at the front left after 20 minutes.

Today, Sweden’s news daily DN publishes an article with Loreen where the singer reveals that she sets her sight on Svalbard. Alone. There’s not much serenity in the midst of ESC euphoria, she’d like to go there alone and see the glaciers before they melt. She finally share a piece of wisdom on what she absolutely do not want with her life.

“Live a lie. I do not like illusions, to be a piece in a someone else’s puzzle. I’d like to be the boss in my own life. To be my own manager.”

No Compromises

Loreen will compete in Thursday’s heat. Always driven by the mantra to make it on her own. In an interview with Svenska Dagbladet’s Harry Amster, Loreen says that “it’s a deliberate choice not to release an album. I am not somebody else’s product. I follow my own flow and have turned a lot of offers down. It’s about have the courage to be yourself in your own energy. You shouldn’t compromise. It has taken me seven years to realize that.”

A debut album is waiting in the wings, where Loreen has worked with the Swedish producer Kleerup. A superb choice, back in 2007 Kleerup managed to place Robyn atop of the UK singles chart with ‘With Every Heartbeat.’ In 2008, he released the No.7 hit ‘Longing for Lullabies’ with Neneh Cherry’s half-sister Titiyo.

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Roman Lob Is Standing Still

Roman Lob
Roman Lob

With the help from the songwriters of hits with The Wanted, JLS and Cheryl Cole, Roman Lob is certainly ‘standing still’ in Baku come Saturday. We’re only a week away from the annual Eurovision Song Contest. I’ve listened quite a lot to the various participants who will compete Sweden’s Loreen.

Roman Lob won the honors of representing Germany via the series ‘Unser Star für Baku.’ He is also the singer of Rooftop Kingdom. Lob was born in German Düsseldorf some 21 years ago. No stranger to talent shows, he first joined ‘Deutschland sucht den Superstar’ back in 2006. It’s the German version of Simon Fuller’s Idol franchise. Lob, unfortunately had to quit the contest due to a vocal cord infection.

Roman Lob – Standing Still

Roman Lob representing Germany at the 2012 Eurovision Song Contest with the song ‘Standing Still.’

‘Standing Still’ peaked at No.3 I native Germany. The Poplight blog is happy about Germany’s choice of Roman Lob, leaving Lena at home this time. TV Latest says ‘Standing Still’ ‘sounds like a pleasant rebuttal to last year’s winning entry “Running Scared” from Azerbaijan.’

According to T-Online’s entertainment section Loreen remains one of the favorites to win this year’s ESC.

 

Donna Summer – Always a Disco Diva

Donna Summer’s ‘Crayons’ was released in 2008.
Cover art of Donna Summer’s last album ‘Crayons’ (2008).

Today, Donna Summer tragically lost her battle against lung cancer. Initially using the stage name Donna Gaines, her first hit single ‘Love to Love You Baby’ became the breakthrough of Donna Summer. The single peaked at No.2 on the Hot 100 in 1975, while charting in the UK a year later (reaching No.4).

Donna Summer earned one UK No.1 throughout her career – ‘I Feel Love’ in 1977. According to the news site TMZ, the singer was recording new material. My favorite Summer track is ‘This Time I Know It’s for Real,’ the hit written and produced by UK production team Stock-Aitken-Waterman.

In Sweden, Donna Summer had two No.1’s – ‘Last Dance’ (1978) and the duet with Barbra Streisand from 1979, ‘No More Tears (Enough Is Enough).’

Expect a surge in interest for Donna Summer’s music, to date she has earned 4.1m spins via Last.fm. By far, ‘Hot Stuff’ was her most popular with 23,085 plays ahead of ‘I Feel Love.’

According to Dagens Nyheter, the singer was raised by Christian parents who interested her to gospel and classical music.

‘This Time I Know It’s for Real’ spent 14 weeks on the UK Top 40, peaking at No.3.

DONNA SUMMER FACTS

  • Donna Summer released 17 studio albums and 89 singles.

  • The singer placed no less than four singles atop the Hot 100, managing to achieve 20 Top 40 singles.

  • As Donna Gaines, ‘Sally Go Round the Roses’ was released as a single in 1971. It has also been recorded in French dubbed ‘Rose (Parmi les roses).’

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