1. What is our contribution “Halo” actually about?
“Let me be your halo, because we went through hell – and that in just one night”: This is the German translation of the chorus of “Halo” (“Heiligenschein”), the Austrian entry for the 2022 song contest Luca Michlmayr alias LUM!X and Pia Maria want to achieve one thing with their pop-dance number: after a good two-year break from celebrations, give young people a feel-good song for musical pre-glowing and partying. “A party song with a message,” Michlmayr calls the song, “reopening, going out, having fun!”
This is how Austria’s contribution “Halo” sounds:
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2. Who are LUM!X and Pia Maria?
LUM!X is an established name in the international DJ scene: three times platinum, one gold in Austria, plus almost 400 million (!) Spotify streams alone for the two singles “Thunder” and “Monster” – the 19-year-old native Rohrbacher is a real up-and-coming star in the electro sector. Now the DJ and producer, who has been living in Milan for some time, is taking the next step in his career. A real newcomer is singer Pia Maria. The trained make-up artist from Tyrol has been writing her own songs since she was 16 and will now have her first major international appearance alongside LUM!X.
3. What are the betting odds?
The betting odds currently see the Austrian duo in eleventh place in their semifinals – which would just not be enough for entry, because only ten final tickets will be distributed. On the other hand, their up-tempo number “Halo” is in the absolute top group among the songs of this year’s competition on YouTube with more than 3.4 million views (as of Monday noon), which should indicate the large fan base of LUM!X.
What’s your opinion?
4. Which countries will Austria meet in the first semi-final?
LUM!X and Pia Maria will compete with the hopefully unlucky number 13 in the first semi-final on Tuesday. With 17 countries, there is one less than in the second semi-final on Thursday. Austria’s competitors on Tuesday are: Albania, Latvia, Lithuania, Switzerland, Slovenia, Ukraine, Bulgaria, the Netherlands, Moldova, Portugal, Croatia, Denmark, Iceland, Greece, Norway and Armenia.
Weird – weird song contest! Here are the best pictures from the ESC opening party on Sunday in Turin:
View picture gallery
5. What happens if Ukraine wins?
From the bookmakers’ point of view, the Ukrainians are pretty sure of winning the Grand Prix this year. But what happens if the country really wins the ESC 2022 in Turin with the “Kalush Orchestra” group? According to the usual rules of the singing competition, the ESC 2023 would then have to take place in the country of the winner – in this case in a potential crisis area. The ESC organizers do not want to commit themselves to this point. “It’s too early to speculate about next year’s ESC host,” said a spokesman for the European Broadcasting Union EBU in Geneva.
6. Who moderates and comments on “den Schas”?
In addition to the Italian TV presenter Alessandro Cattelan, the two pop stars Mika and Laura Pausini will present the two semi-finals on May 10th and 12th and the final show on May 14th. As usual, Ö3 man Andi Knoll will be there live for ORF in the Pala Alpitour in Turin (his legendary statement after Conchita Wurst’s ESC win: “Now she’s won us the Schas”).
7. How will the winner be determined?
This graphic illustrates the complex voting system consisting of jury and audience voting:
8. Why are some countries set for the final?
In principle, the representatives of the largest sponsors of the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and the defending champions always have a guaranteed starting place in the final. In 2022, this illustrious circle will be formed from the following five countries: Germany, France, Great Britain, Spain and Italy as the “Big Five”, whereby the defending champion and host would definitely be in the final – even if he were not a member of the big payer club.
9. How many ESC participants have come from Upper Austria so far?
Ten artists and duos of Upper Austrian origin have represented our country at the world’s largest singing competition – sometimes more, sometimes less successfully.
The song contest participants from Upper Austria:
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10. Who are the most successful song contest nations?
Ireland is still the most successful song contest country. Just behind the island nation with its seven wins on the all-time list of winners since 1956 is Sweden. The Scandinavians have had six wins since the Vienna ESC 2015. Ireland and Sweden are followed in the list by the Netherlands, France, Great Britain and Luxembourg with five triumphs each. Austria can record two victories, in 1966 with Udo Jürgens and in 2014 with Conchita Wurst.
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Source: Nachrichten
