Eurovision’s Voyager frontman Danny Estrin has given his two cents on the Loreen v Kaarija debate (Picture: PA / AP)
The big divide between Eurovision fans after the 2023 Song Contest continues to be a major talking point days after the winner was crowned – and Australia act Voyager understand why.
Last Saturday, Loreen won for Sweden a second time with her certified bop Tattoo, 12 years after taking the glory with her club favourite Euphoria thanks to smashing the jury votes.
A favourite from the beginning, it seemed at one point that nothing would stand in Loreen’s way – until Finland’s entry Kaarija came along with his absolutely manic track Cha Cha Cha, which topped the public vote.
There were plenty of surprises on the night – some disappointing, like Mae Muller placing second last despite the crowd going wild for her performance – and some joyous, like Australia’s underdogs Voyager clinching a top 10 slot with their track Promise.
Metro.co.uk caught up with frontman Danny Estrin after the madness of the previous few weeks, where he admitted he didn’t understand how the votes were so ‘brutal’ for Mae – and also waded in to the Finland v Sweden debate.
Asked if he understood the annoyance from Team Kaarija, he admitted he did – and had some first-hand experience of it.
Voyager gained an international spotlight at the 2023 Eurovision, clinching a top 10 placing ahead of their new album and European tour (Picture: Michael Dann)
‘When we were in the Australian finals, we were the favourites and we came second,’ he explained.
‘So there was a bit of “They got robbed!” kind of situation in Australia, but on a smaller scale. I do understand how Kaarija and Finland must feel.’
‘You can’t deny the fact that Loreen is a terrific performer and a brilliant singer, the whole thing is brilliant,’ he said, but added: ‘Would I have liked to see something as unique as a Finnish language song winning Eurovision? Yeah, absolutely, and I think that’s why the crowd were so outraged.’
Loreen brought glory to Sweden once again with her first-place track Tattoo (Picture: PA)
There were ‘awkward’ moments in the arena as the crowd chanted for Kaarija as Loreen’s points were read out (Picture: AP)
Reflecting on the chaos as the votes came in, he continued: ‘If you were in the arena, there were some awkward moments – the crowd chanting Cha Cha Cha when Loreen’s 12 points were announced and things like that. At the end of the day people know what the competition is – they know it’s 50% jury, 50% public, so I can definitely understand the sentiment that at the end of the day.’
It’s not necessarily a bad thing for Kaarija and his fanbase however, as the underdog’s fans could be more behind them than ever.
‘Even being the underdog and having that feeling from the public overwhelmingly that you were robbed, it’s actually more than a consolation prize. It’s almost like people get behind you more than if you’d actually won sometimes.’
Voyager made firm friends with many other acts during their time at Eurovision, saying ‘the saddest thing about post-Eurovision is having to say goodbye’ to their new pals who they’ve ‘made such close connections with.’
He names Kaarija, as well as fellow Aussie Andrew Lambrou who represented Cyprus, as new pals – and says the band struck up an instant rapport with Austria’s Teya and Salena, who blew fans away with their bizzar-o song Who The Hell Is Edgar?
‘It’s like band camp really,’ he laughed. ‘It’s so sad to say goodbye at the end! There were wonderful moments and connections, all through the magic that was Eurovision.’
Danny remains in awe at the ‘magic’ of Eurovision and the connections they made with other acts
In the wide-ranging conversation, in which Danny suggested a ‘curse’ may have been the reason for Maae’s less-than-ideal result, the Wesstern Australia native also spoke of how they were gearing up to release a new album – and return to Europe for a tour.
New LP Fearless In Love releases in July, which the frotman describes as ‘uplifting, melancholic and synth-sational,’ and which he hopes will be a fit for metal and non-metal fans alike.
The extra spotlight on the band means they are now planning changes to their October tour, which is ‘selling out left right and centre,’ leading them to try and ‘upgrade venues and add shows.’
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‘It’s gonna be so good to come back,’ he admitted.
‘I wish I could add so many more dates to that tour, but if we added all the dates of the places we wanted to go we’d be away all year.’
Fearless In Love is out 14th July; preorder here.
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MORE : Australia’s Eurovision act Voyager speculates ‘curse’ was behind Mae Muller’s ‘brutal’ result
The Eurovision fandom is firmly divided.
