Five Famous Winners of the Eurovision Song Contest

We are currently in the midst of the 2019 Eurovision Song Contest, the annual singing competition bringing together countries from around the European continent (plus Australia and Israel) to vie for the glass microphone trophy, bragging rights and the opportunity to host the contest next year. This year’s competition takes place in Tel Aviv, Israel following their win last year with Netta’s dance-pop entry “Toy.” The finale happens Saturday, May 18.

Over the last few years the popularity of the event has grown exponentially, catching the attention of curious onlookers around the world, including right here in the United States. A new version was adapted for the Asia-Pacific market and will take place sometime this year. An American version, dubbed the ‘American Song Contest’ is currently being discussed with a air date being eyed for 2021.

The Eurovision Song Contest has been an ongoing television event since its first broadcast in 1956. In such a long history, the competition has seen its fair share of successful artists come through. Artists as varied as Olivia Newton-John, Bonnie Tyler, Julio Iglesias, Justin Hawkins (The Darkness), Cliff Richard and t.A.T.u all graced the stage as competitors, though they did not win.

With the 2019 finale coming up this weekend, Vinyl Bay 777, Long Island’s music outlet, is taking a look back at some of the Eurovision Song Contest’s most recognizable competitors. From those that gained notoriety from the competition to those whose fame was bolstered by their participation, here are five of the most well-known winners in Eurovision Song Contest history.

1.       Lulu (1969): With a role in James Bond film ‘To Sir, with Love,’ a stack of top 10 hits (including the film’s title track) and a handful of television series, British singer Lulu was already a popular singer by the time she represented the UK in the 1969 Eurovision Song Contest. In fact, her television audience was the one that chose the song she would sing during the competition. Lulu ended up winning along with entries from Spain, the Netherlands and France in the event’s first (and last) four-way tie.

2.       ABBA (1974): Undoubtedly one of the biggest names to come out of the Eurovision Song Contest, ABBA won the competition for their native Sweden in 1974. Not only did they win, but the song that they performed, “Waterloo,” became an international top 10 hit. The song was also voted the best Eurovision Song Contest entry ever during the event’s 50^th anniversary celebration in 2005. ABBA went on to sell millions of albums worldwide and have gone multiple-times platinum. The group recently reunited for a television special, for which they recorded their first new music together in nearly four decades.

3.       Celine Dion (1988): Already known in her native Canada for her French-language albums, Celine Dion made a name for herself globally when she competed for Switzerland in the 1988 Eurovision Song Contest. She won with the song “Ne Partez Pas Sans Moi” (“Don’t Leave Without Me”), giving the country its first win in the competition. After learning English, she turned that recognition into a successful global career, one that has led her to perform all over the world, have one of the most successful Las Vegas Residencies in history and release many platinum-selling albums.

4.       Katrina & the Waves (1997): Katrina and the Waves already had a massive global hit with 1985’s “Walking On Sunshine” when the band competed for the UK in the 1997 Eurovision Song Contest. Their entry proved to be a comeback of sorts. The band won in a landslide against their closest competitor and gave them their biggest UK hit, “Love Shine a Light.”

5.       Lordi (2006): In a win for hard rock fans everywhere, Finnish metal band Lordi won the Eurovision Song Contest in 2006 with their song “Hard Rock Hallelujah,” earning the highest amount of points a contestant had ever gotten at that point. The win was a first for Finland, who had been participating in the competition since 1961. It was also the first time a metal band won, as well as the first time a contestant won both the semi-final and the final.

The Eurovision Song Contest has played host to some truly talented artists, including many who have found fame prior to or following their appearance at the event. As more attention is paid toward the competitors the world over, there is no doubt that even more stars will be made in years to come.

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Find music from the Eurovision Song Contest’s highly successful past contestants and more at Vinyl Bay 777. As Long Island’s top new independent record shop, we have thousands of titles to choose from in a wide variety of genres. Browse our selection of new and used vinyl records, CDs, cassettes, music DVDs, memorabilia and more in store at our Plainview location or online at vinylbay777.com. With more titles being added to our selection all the time, you never know what you might find at Vinyl Bay 777.