Ukraine’s Kalush Orchestra favored to win Eurovision music contest

nypost.com:

Russia’s unprovoked invasion.Bookmakers have given Kalush Orchestra’s song “Stefania” a 46 percent chance to win the 2022 Eurovision Song Contest, which has been televised across the continent annually since 1956.Oleh Psiuk, 27, the rapping frontman of the band, insists his song will win the competition on the merits, not because of an outpouring of support for his war-torn homeland, according to The Times of London.The contest is decided both by a panel of music industry experts and viewers at home.“Now we have first place with the bookmakers, but before the beginning of the war we were fifth.

It turns out people really like our song, so huge gratitude to everybody who have paid attention to Ukrainian music,” Psiuk said.“Stefania,” a love song to Psiuk’s mother that features elements of traditional music and rap, was written before the war began, but has taken on a new meaning as fans equate the lyrics with the Ukrainian motherland, the artist told the paper.

It features stanzas like “I’ll always find my way home even if all roads are destroyed,” and “Mother sing me the lullaby, I want to hear your dear word.”“Our song is loved by Europeans not only because of the war.

The more people pay attention to Ukraine, the more they hear about the song, so this song is loved by an ever-wider audience,” he said.Members of Kalush Orchestra needed a special governmental waiver to leave Ukraine to compete in the contest’s final round next week in Turin, Italy, according to the Times of London.