Eurovision 2023: Finland's Second Rehearsal! - Eurovision News | Music

Closing the First Semi Final with an explosive performance is Finland with Käärijä and his Finnish rap song “Cha Cha Cha”.

Who is Käärijä?

Jere Pöyhönen is known in the music industry as Käärijä, which it means someone who rolls or wraps something up. He is a Finnish rapper, singer and songwritter. Käärijä grew up in a neighbourhoud outside Helsinki, while his passion for music kept increasing. He learned how to play the drums and started producing music in 2014. In 2020, he released his debut album called Fantastista.

On January, Käärijä was announced as one of the seven participants in the Finnish National Selection Uuden Musiikin Kilpailu 2023 where he managed to finish in the first place with a landslide of 539 points (467 from the public and 72 from the juries).

The Rehearsal

Unfortunately this year, accredited journalists don’t get the chance to watch the first and second rehearsals, so we only get the information and content that the organizers officaly release to the public.

It was confirmed for the first rehearsal that, the acid green bolero jacket from UMK along with four pink-clad dancers are accompaning with the singer. There is a new prop compared to the national final performance, a huge wooden box among with a stack with paletes are placed on stage. In the begining of the song the singer is inside it, then he climbs on top and throws a few moves before returning to the floor and leading his dancers in a routine.

Sarah Louise Bennett / EBU

At the end of the song, he pours himself with champagne, at which point the thumping techno/rap first half transforms into a joyful schlager anthem to the end. A “crazy” and “party” way to close the first semi final!