Welcome back to ESCUnited for another edition of the music round-up series! This month we are doing things a little bit different, and have added all Junior Eurovision alumni into the mix, celebrating all artists assoicated with the two song contests. The month of September was filled with releases from former Eurovision artists, with 129 singles or albums dropping throughout the month. Dive on in and find something new for your musical collection!
Tina Karol – “ВІЛЬНІ. НЕСКОРЕНІ” (Ukraine 2006)
Despite embarking on her North American tour just last month, Tina Karol has not let travel and touring stop her from releasing new music. In fact, on Friday Tina dropped her new album “Scandal” which features English versions of some of her greatest Ukrainian hits, and earlier in the month released the music video for her new song “ВІЛЬНІ. НЕСКОРЕНІ / Free. Incorrected“. These are Tina’s first releases since the war began, and her new music video paints a very parallel picture to the current war in Ukraine. The song tells a story of being ready to fight for a free, invincible country that is resistant and liberated.
Viki Gabor – “Barbie” (JESC Poland 2019)
Following her win in Junior Eurovision, Viki Gabor has quickly become one of the biggest pop stars that Poland has to offer – and her new single “Barbie” showcases exactly why. Complete with a driving dance pop beat and a catchy melody, Barbie is another fast hit for the singer racking up 264,000 views on YouTube in 2 weeks. The song is co-penned by Gabor herself, and was also written by Mikołaj Trybulec (writer of Ochman’s ESC 2022 song “River“) and Polish singer Jeremi Sikorski.
Jill Johnson – “Ja må hon leva” (Sweden 1998)
Fanatics of “Kärleken är” and Swedish music alike will be estatic that Jill Johnson has released her first single of the 2022 year this month! The song “Ja må hon leva/Yes, may she live” is a collaboration with the non-profit Sverigelotten and aims to highlight the work of the organization around Breast Cancer. The song perfectly captures the enchanting qualities of Johnson’s voice, and is the first song in Swedish she’s released commercially (outside of an SVT or TV4 production) since her 2013 album Duetterna.
Gabry Ponte, LUM!X (feat. Daddy DJ) – “We Could Be Together” (Austria 2022)
It’s been 22 years since Daddy DJ’s Eurodance hit of the same name rocked the world – and now it’s gotten a new coat of paint thanks to Eurovision alumni and fellow DJ LUM!X and Gabry Ponte. Despite using the original melodic line from “Daddy DJ”, this new track tells the story of love instead of dancing at the club. The music video features Tiktok star Anna Ciati as the central character in the music video’s storyline, a girl who is looking (rather unsuccessfully) for love through a dating app. She gets close to love, before her phone ultimately dies and the DJs utter the words “We were so close!”
Michael Rice – “Reasons” (United Kingdom 2019)
Michael has had a busy year, releasing new music and being featured in the first album that credit card company Mastercard has ever produced. And now he’s back with a brand new song that combines his unique Hartlepool dialect, pop music, and the bagpipes and flute motifs of Highland music. The song is cowritten by Rice and songwriter AMBERLIND (Staffan Amberlind) who works with Rice at the Swedish company Woodhouse Publishing. The company is also responsible for Rebecka Karlsson’s 2019 Melfest entry “Who I Am“, John Lundvik’s 2019 single “Loving You“, and all of Michael’s post Eurovision releases.
Lee Kernaghan, Mitch Tambo, and Isaiah Firebrace – “Come Together” (Australia 2017)
For those who might have missed it, Isaiah Firebrace has been busy this year writing his upcoming children’s book Coming Together: Things Every Aussie Kid Should Know about the First Peoples set to release next month. The book hopes to educate Australian youth about 20 Key topics from First Nations knowledge from the importance of the Elders to Dreaming, and is illustrated by Jaelyn Biumaiwai. His newest release “Coming Together” brings together one of Australia’s greatest country singer Lee Kernaghan and Australia Decides 2020 and fellow First Nations singer Mitch Tambo in a call for unity through song.
Need more music to listen to? Check out the full September Round-Up playlist below!
Are there any songs that stand out to #YOU from our playlist? Let us know on social media @ESCUnited, on our discord, or on our forum page!
