With a number of national selections fast approaching, we wanted to learn more about the people and personalities behind some of the entries hoping to reach Rotterdam this year.
ESC United kick off their interviews for the 2020 season in Latvia, ahead of Supernova 2020 this weekend. First up, we speak to ANNNA who will be performing “Polyester”!
Hello ANNNA!
First of all thank you for your time talking to us. How are you? Can you introduce yourself? What can you tell us about yourself?
Hey guys! I’m ANNNA, I’m from Amsterdam and I write music about themes that make me angry and/or emotional. I’ve just released my latest song, “Polyester” which is the third song from my upcoming EP that will be out in May. This song is also in the final of the Latvian national Eurovision selection this year!
The song that you will be presenting for Supernova is “Polyester”. What can you tell us about the song?
“Polyester” is a story about the realities behind the fashion industry: about the waste, carbon emissions and the people involved in making every single piece of our clothing.
What was the inspiration for the song, and did you write it specifically for Supernova and Eurovision?
Firstly, my inspiration was the Netflix film “The True Cost” which made me so curious and angry that I started my own 100% sustainable fashion & merchandise brand, Masa Organic (https://masa.organic). The song was not written specifically for Supernova, “Polyester” was initially just the third song from my upcoming EP, I had no idea that it would get this far up the national selection!
What is your impression of the Eurovision Song Contest in general? Do you watch it every year? What is your favourite entry?
I do watch it every year, it has become quite a tradition to watch the song contest in my living room with a lot of friends, make our own votes and cheers every time when someone gets 12 points! I have three favourite entries: 1) Salvador Sobral 2) Mahmood 3) Duncan Laurence – all three are huge inspirations of mine.
Do you think performing at the Eurovision Song Contest will have a positive impact on your career?
Wow, what a big question. Nobody has asked this yet, but this was the question that I asked myself about a hundred times last summer. However, I think that if you stay true to yourself, have a song that’s yours and not “just a song that’s specifically and typically written for Eurovision” , then Eurovision could be a great platform to spread your message.
What is the best bit of advice you have ever been given?
My Brazilian friends always used to say ‘The worst you can get is a “no”, so that’s kind of the attitude that I’ve been trying to practice during the last years.
What’s the one thing that might surprise people about you?
That I can make some badass latte art!
Can you tell us about your first experience with music?
That must be when I was very young then, I started the classical piano school when I was six. I guess that was my first experience then – the piano. Or when pretending to be very high class opera singers with my best friend and trying to sing “La Traviata” at the top of our voices at my mom’s house (poor mom that she had to listen to all that).
Thanks for your time. We wish you the best of luck for Supernova. Maybe we will see you in May in Rotterdam!
Photo credit: Dennis Ten Hove
ANNNA will compete in Latvia’s Supernova final on Saturday 8th February with “Polyester”. #YOU can check out and follow ANNNA on Facebook, Instagram, Spotify or check out her personal website HERE.
What do #YOU think of ANNNA and “Polyester”? Share your thoughts with us on our forum HERE or join the discussion below in the comments and on social media!
