Linda Lampenius and Pete Parkkonen are the musical duo hoping to bring Eurovision glory to Finland this year, as one of the favourites to win the competition.
Lampenius is known around the world as a classical violinist who has been performing with orchestras since she was eight years old. She is also the subject of an award-winning documentary series and her autobiography, My Untamed Life.
Parkkonen, meanwhile, rose to fame through Finland’s TV series Idols, where he placed third in 2008. He has released a number of solo albums, gone on headline tours and, in 2014, won Dancing with the Stars Finland with his professional dance partner Katri Mäkinen.
They are competing at this year’s Eurovision Song Contest with the song "Liekinheitin", which means “flamethrower”. They’ve thrown everything at it, as it melds rock and pop elements with dance and techno. Parkkonen sings in more of a ballad style on the verses before building to the stormy instrumental sections.
Eurovision loves a violin (remember 2009 winner Alexander Rybak with “Fairytale”?), so Lampenius’s swooning strings should do well to move both the public and judges.
Read our Q&A with Lampenius and Parkkonen below. They are competing in the first semi-final in Vienna, Austria, on Tuesday May.
Hi Linda and Pete, what should our readers know about you?
Pete: ”Something that is interesting and funny is that we didn’t know each other before the Liekinheitin project started.”
Linda: ”We knew of each other and when I was in the studio making the song, I told the producer that my dream collab would be Pete Parkkonen. The producer turned out to know Pete. One phone call and 24 hours later we were in the studio and the rest is history.”
Can you tell us about the inspiration and meaning behind your song "Liekinheitin"?
The story behind this song is actually quite deep and sad. It’s about when you get involved with someone and let them fall in love with you, but when they get too close, you turn ice cold. The protagonist in “Liekinheitin” can either be seen as the victim of someone’s behaviour, or as a person who becomes addicted to other people, even when they know that the relationship will never evolve. It symbolises the passion these two people are experiencing, but it’s also the desperation that could kill you.
What would it mean to you to win the Eurovision Song Contest for Finland?
It’s such an honour for us to have the opportunity to represent Finland – the chance of winning is something we haven’t been able to quite fathom yet! We are so excited to get to perform and the rest is up to the juries and the audience.
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