Eurovision 2024 will start on May 7 and last until May 11. This year's edition will take place in Sweden exactly 50 years after the group's legendary victory ABBA. Representatives of 37 countries will take part in the competition, including: returning after over 30 years of absence Luxembourg. There will be no more in the mix eventually Romaniawho withdrew from the competition for financial reasons.
We have already met all the participants of this year's Eurovision and their songs. According to bookmakers, the Croatian is the main favorite to win the entire competition Baby Lasagna. Will the Balkan country actually enjoy its first triumph in the competition? There are many indications of this
Baby Lasagna it's really Marko Purisic, 28-year-old singer, guitarist, composer and producer. He previously performed as a guitarist in a rock band Mantrawith which he took fourth place in the Eurovision preselections in 2019.
In 2023, the Croatian decided to leave the group and start a solo career. His first number was “IGBoy”. It was then that he used his pseudonym for the first time Baby Lasagna. He released his second solo song at the end of 2023.
Where did the unusual nickname come from? The artist himself explains that he had an epiphany when he was looking for a shop in the town Novigradto buy water and take a headache pill. He describes his image as: “a combination of goth, emo and Ken”.
He entered the Eurovision pre-selection in 2024 with a song “Rim Tim Tags Dim”. The catchy chorus quickly made the 28-year-old the main favorite to win the DORA 2024 competition. And with each performance during the national qualifiers, the Croatian also rose to the top among bookmakers dealing with Eurovision.
It is true that Baby Lasagna got to the semi-finals of the local pre-selection from the reserve list when the singer withdrew from participation. Zsa Zsa, but in the final he was unrivaled, scoring as many as 321 points (the results were decided by the viewers and the jury in a 50:50 ratio). There was another one Vinka (82 points) and last year's representatives of Croatia at Eurovision – Let 3 (79 points).
Just as Baby Lasagna's popularity was growing, bookmakers began to appreciate his song. Initially, Croatia was ranked in the second ten of the competition, but after the end of the DORA competition, they were already among the top. After a few days, Marko jumped over the Ukrainian duo – Jerry Heil and Alyoa Alyona – and currently, according to bookmakers, the Croatian has a 21 percent chance of winning the entire competition (second place Ukraine has 12 percent).
A catchy chorus, a big voice, and a great stage presence made Baby Lasagni a favorite to win the entire Eurovision Song Contest. While the words from his song are instantly catchy, the lyrics themselves talk about the problems of young Croatians, which Ukrainians, Poles and other representatives of the former Eastern Bloc can identify with.
In an interview with Wiwibloggs, the 28-year-old singer revealed that the words of the chorus alone mean nothing, but the song makes sense when you hear a little more.
The issue tells the story of the economic emigration of young Croatians who are looking for opportunities to earn money abroad. The song was created in a bedroom Purisic, and was inspired by his real experiences – he was offered a job on a cruise ship, which he ultimately did not accept. The singer comes from the small town of Umag and, as he himself admits, many of his peers leave small towns and emigrate to large centers due to lack of prospects – Zagreb, Rijeka, Zadar – or leaves the country and looks for happiness in other EU countries, including in Italy and Germany.
As he himself admits Baby Lasagnathese trips, apart from great hopes, are often accompanied by anxiety, fear and panic.
The music video for the single, which was shot in Umag, also says a lot about the entire song Istria. In it we see the hero saying goodbye to his family, but also to the farm animals – cows, chickens and a cat.
Service eurowizja.org, who collected opinions from the Croatian media, noted that despite the huge chances of victory Baby Lasagna, its potential success will be greatly influenced by the Croatian broadcaster HRT. The local television was heavily criticized immediately after the pre-selections, especially the admission of the singer at the last minute and the very poor packaging of the participant's performance during the DORA competition.
“Fotos of Dora that looked as if they were filmed on a wedding camera will spread across Europe for the next three months and there is no way around it. Gone are the days when we found out the winner of the Eurovision Song Contest on a Saturday in May. Today, the winner is also chosen by YouTube, Instagram and TikTok, and Europe will see what HRT has recorded for it. The performer does not go to or win Eurovision alone – he needs television to make sure he gives his best. (…) If Baby Lasagna had a production like the Swedes or the Serbs, and HRT appreciated the song on time, today we would be worried about how HRT will organize Eurovision in Zagreb. (…) The song, which had (and still has) the potential to be Croatia's biggest success at Eurovision, was first rejected and then almost sabotaged by the sound engineers, lighting workers, photographers and cameramen,” she wrote Marina Rados from the website Indeks.hr.
The diaspora, which is not very active during Eurovision, is also expected to be a problem for the Croatian, but perhaps the chances for the first triumph in history and the song about them will activate Baba Lasagni's compatriots living in Western Europe.
The artist can count on the support of the star of the previous Eurovision – Kaariji – to whom the Croatian was compared. The Finn admitted on social media that the song has a similar style to his song. “I love this crazy Croatian song,” he wrote on Instagram.
Baby Lasagna will perform in the first Eurovision semi-final. His competition will include, among others: Polish singer Luna with the song “The Tower”.