VARIOUS: Sweden's Loreen says she's adjusting to fame after winning this year's Eurovision Song Contest

Record ID: 760663

  • Title: VARIOUS: Sweden's Loreen says she's adjusting to fame after winning this year's Eurovision Song Contest
  • Date: 1st June 2012
  • Summary: LONDON, ENGLAND, UNITED KINGDOM (MAY 30, 2012) (REUTERS) (SOUNDBITE) (English) LOREEN, SWEDISH EUROVISION WINNER, ON WHAT HER SONG REPRESENTS AND WHY AUDIENCE HAS VOTED FOR HER, SAYING: "I think they do. And my performance represent at least to me some of these things to be -- one to be yourself, two not to compromise, three, integrity, freedom you know it represents a lot of things and in today's society I would say we have a lot of pressure. We're supposed to be a certain way, look a certain way, talk a certain way -- and that's a lot of pressure. So my form is representing us and that's why I think people like it because there's no effects. I don't have any big titties and I don't have -- them lips or botox."
  • Embargoed: 16th June 2012 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Sweden, Azerbaijan, United Kingdom
  • City:
  • Country: Azerbaijan Sweden United Kingdom
  • Topics: Arts
  • Reuters ID: LVA3M1EPX0DXIH1OCKMUQ4W9X64G
  • Story Text: Since winning last weekend's Eurovision Song Contest in Azerbaijan, Sweden's Loreen has not had much time to catch some sleep. She has quickly had to learn to adjust to her new-found fame, with everybody wanting to talk to her and hear what she has to say.
    "I feel the change and it feels a bit strange, it does", the 28-year-old singer from Stockholm told Reuters Television in an interview on Wednesday (May 30). "I am used to being alone you know. I could go to silent meditation for ten days, just not doing anything. And so I am used to having --my space and my time and now it's the straight opposite of that," she said, adding "which is cool, it works."
    Loreen's performance in Baku was watched by an estimated international TV audience of 100 million on Saturday. She won ahead of Russia's entry, rural folk group Buranovskiye Babushki (Grannies from Buranovo), dressed in traditional peasant dress and somewhat incongruous in the dancing spotlights.
    Serbia's Zeljko Joksimovic was placed third.
    The show's voting system had in recent years been criticised for allowing politically and geographically motivated bloc voting thus compromising on supporting talent. This year professional judges were introduced whose votes accounted for 50 percent of a performer's score. The other half came from telephone and SMS votes from the public, with fans unable to vote for their own country's entry.
    Convincing both the judges as well as the voting public, Loreen who scored an impressive 372 points also thinks that people nowadays also want to see a good qualitative performance win.
    "I think they do. And my performance represent at least to me some of these things to be -- one to be yourself, two not to compromise, three, integrity, freedom you know it represents a lot of things and in today's society I would say we have a lot of pressure. We're supposed to be a certain way, look a certain way, talk a certain way -- and that's a lot of pressure. So my form is representing us and that's why I think people like it because there's no effects. I don't have any big titties and I don't have -- them lips or botox," she said.
    The Eurovision Song Contest has on occasion been a launch pad for international careers. Loreen will hope to follow in the footsteps of Swedish pop group ABBA who became famous after winning in 1974 with "Waterloo" and Canada's Celine Dion who took top honours in 1988 for Switzerland.
    However the singer says she wants to plan her next steps slowly.
    "Just to come out or create music that has quality, I want everything that I do that comes out that it has a certain quality you know. A lot of artists when they won Eurovision or they participated in Eurovision, they wanna come out with stuff fast and it doesn't matter what they come out with. They still wanna come out just you know to ride on this thing. But I'm not in a hurry. I'm gonna finish up my album this summer. And hopefully you guys will like it," she said.
    Already tipped as a strong contender ahead of the competition, Loreen made headlines after angering Azeri authorities by meeting rights activists critical of the host country's human rights record.
    The multi-purpose Crystal Hall, which was especially commissioned to host the contest, was built by a German firm in eight months for an undisclosed sum of money.
    But human rights groups say some buildings in the centre of Baku were specifically torn down with the song contest in mind and that the forced eviction of residents, especially in areas around the Crystal Hall.
    Azeri authorities responded by criticising Loreen for making political statements that had no place at a musical event.
    During a news conference following her win Loreen had steered clear of making any controversial statements. However on Wednesday she told Reuters Television why Eurovision should indeed be used as a platform by contestants to raise awareness of critical issues.
    "You have so many people listening to you and why not use it for something good. Because to be quite honest so many people get treated bad, you know thrown out of their houses, have everything taken from them you know. And the females, they don't have any rights to speak their minds. Nobody has. They have so many journalists and reporters put in prison -- because of them speaking their minds and -- I think everybody's responsibility you know and to me it's a cultural thing. I am from Morocco. The way we see music there, we see it differently from -- perhaps others. Music is power, basically. You use it to cleanse your system or you use it to gain energy from it you know. And it is a power. And I say why not use it. And that's why I went and met all these organisations, just to create some awareness around what's really going on there," she said.
    Loreen's triumph was celebrated in her hometown of Stockholm, where hundreds were seen dancing in the Swedish capital's central roundabout, honking horns and waving flags and playing the winning song.
    Her winning song, "Euphoria" is now available for download. It is proving a great success across Europe, topping the iTunes charts in the UK, Germany, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Greece, Ireland, Luxembourg, Holland, Norway, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland.
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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