Just like every year, Eurovision took over the households of Europe (and Australia) for a week in May. There was lots of excitement due to the fact that this was Sweden’s eighth time winning and hosting the song contest, however this did not overshadow the protests and arguments around the participation of certain countries this year.

This year’s Eurovision saw the entry of some very beautiful songs and ballads like France’s “Mon Amour” and “Teresa & Maria” from Ukraine, which in true Eurovision fashion, were accompanied by some stunning visuals and vocals. On the other hand, this song contest is also known for their bizarre and over-the-top choreography and lyrics: We saw this last year with Finland’s entry “Cha Cha Cha”, and this year’s Croatia “Rim Tim Tagi Dim” which took second place. Finland, in fact, seems to have found its genre of music, by having the famous software Windows95Man representing it, in a song you could only describe as explosive.

Unfortunately, the protests around Israel’s participation were also a big highlight of this 2024 edition, which at times overshadowed the actual singers and participants, with critics and complaints for Eden Golan’s Hurricane. We also cannot forget Joost Klein’s disqualification, which caused outrage within Eurovision fans, and especially on social media. The Dutch singer was kicked out from the contest after allegations were made to the Swedish police that the singer was threatening a member of the production crew. Joost Klein hasn’t released anything, commented or disputed the statement since. 

This year’s edition, special for many reasons, also saw the reentry of Luxembourg as a competing country for the first time in over thirty years. The talented TALI performed the song “Fighter” and was definitely a jury favourite. Moreover, this was one of the two french songs performed this year. 

It is rare that the jury’s favourite song and the audience’s favourite song match, and this year it was no different. The public’s winner was Croatia, with the very catchy “Rim Tim Tagi Dim”. The winner of the Eurovision Song Contest 2024 was Switzerland! Nemo with “The Code” came in first place with the majority of their points coming in from the jury. Personally, I think that this was the right choice, as I love both Croatia’s and Switzerland’s entry. Generally, the public’s disappointment was with Estonia’s “(nendest) narkootikumidest ei tea me (küll) midagi”, which didn’t even make it into the top 15. 

Overall, this edition brought out some very interesting and new music that we can all enjoy, and despite the drama surrounding it, we can call it a very successful Eurovision!