Life in Finland: Eurovision

Don't take it too seriously.

..and now for something COMPLETELY different, especially for those of you who read Sixty Degrees North for the information on icebreaker construction or Nordic policy.

I often attempt to explain some of the details about life in Finland to my American friends and family. If you want more of an explanation that what I have below regarding Eurovision or the Finnish competitor, it’s best to ask someone else. I will try and put it in some context, but in the end, I can really offer no explanation. :)

I lived in London from 2003-2005, and during that time learned a bit about the Eurovision Song Contest. From what I came to understand, it was purposefully campy- the competitors were decidedly B or C tier, and the song contest was an opportunity to have fun and for the selected artists to enjoy a few minutes of fleeting fame. The English announcers treated it very seriously because they were in on the joke.

I was told this bears a resemblance to Strictly Come Dancing (the original British version of Dancing with the Stars), in which it is B-listers who have a bit of fun, with the announcers again in on the joke by taking it very seriously. This is quite different from the over-the-top glitz and glamor that seems associated with the American version of the show. I can’t say much more about these television shows from experience, as I’ve only seen a few episodes of either.

I didn’t plan on watching Eurovision 2024, but my daughter did. So, I watched some with her this past Saturday evening. I’m not sure what to make of Eurovision now. Some people seem to take it very seriously, while others just think of it as good fun. The ridiculous, over-the-top expensive staging that I saw in last weekend’s broadcast seems a far cry from the campy humor that I recall from the early 2000s. But maybe that old campy fun is still there.

Windows 95 Man - Coeval Magazine (coeval-magazine.com)

Allow me to introduce Finland’s 2024 competitor, Windows 95 Man. My wife and I first saw him on television as he DJ’d the Helsinki New Year’s party in the wee hours of January 1, 2022. We had a bit of a laugh at his ridiculous outfit and cringed at his ridiculous dance moves, but the music was familiar, fun, and high energy. He was clearly having fun and must have been laughing at himself the entire time. Here’s how he describes himself:

Windows95 Man, real name Teemu Keisteri, describes himself as 'an embodiment of the '90s, who frees a once timid family man from his everyday life'. The character Windows95 Man was born in 2013, when Keisteri performed a DJ set at the Flow Festival and the rest is history.

Talking about being in the contest, Windows 95 Man said: "In my opinion, all Finns are a bit looney-tunes deep inside, and I wanted to bring that out more. Now I can share my music with an even bigger audience as well as spread the joyous message of No Rules"

Here’s a ‘clip’ from his 2022 New Year’s performance (warning: contains awful dancing and some crude dance moves):

His Eurovision performance was, well, something else. Take a look, and then I’ll give my thoughts.

I’ll admit, the first time I saw this performance my reaction was “I can’t believe Finland picked this guy. This is stupid.” It was just one, long, running gag about his jean shorts. Only after considering it in comparison to the other acts did I start to laugh.

I’ve heard his performance described as taking Eurovision back to what it used to be- ridiculous, fun, and campy. And I have to agree! Too many of the other performers seemed to take themselves far too seriously, both on stage and off stage. The press coverage around the event even became quite serious and political. Windows 95 Man was trolling them all and inviting us to be in on the joke.

I think much of Finland might be in on the joke, too. According to this article, Mr. Teemu Keisteri (as Windows 95 Man is also known) won his spot in Eurovision by winning Finland’s Uuden Musiikin Kilpailu (New Music Competition) 2024. The contest had two components- an “international jury” that awarded 25% of the points while the remaining 75% of the score came from a popular televote. Despite being awarded last place by the jury, Windows 95 man received the overwhelming majority of the popular vote, propelling him to Eurovision 2024 fame.

Perhaps is this part of the reason that Finland remains the World’s Happiest Country- Finns don’t take themselves, or life, too seriously.

NO RULES!

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Don’t worry, I’ll be back to writing about icebreakers and such soon.

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All the Best,

PGR

I forgot to mention that he finished nineteenth in the contest. But I don’t think that he cares, so why should anyone else?