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Finland: Record Number of Viewers for UMK 2025

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This year’s broadcast of the Uuden Musiikin Kilpailu (UMK) on Saturday night drew a record number of viewers, according to a press release from Yle.

According to Finnpanel, the Finnish national final was watched by an average of 1.48 million viewers on the day of the broadcast. The broadcast reached a total of 2.27 million people in Finland.

Both numbers are all-time records for UMK.

This year also saw more votes cast than ever before, with a total of 342,543. Of these, 274,004 were cast via the app, while 68,539 were cast by phone and SMS. Viewers could vote for their favorite artist for free via the Yle app or for a fee via SMS or phone call.

Erika Vikman won UMK 2025 with the song “Ich komme“. Erika’s victory means that she will succeed Windows95Man as Finland’s representative at Eurovision 2025. She will perform in the second half of the second semi-final on May 15th.

Stay tuned to EurovisionFun for all the latest news!

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Finland: The Grand Final of UMK 2025 Takes Place Tonight!

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The moment has arrived! Finland is set to choose its representative for the 69th Eurovision Song Contest, which will take place this May in Basel, Switzerland. The grand final of Uuden Musiikin Kilpailu (UMK) 2025 will be held tonight in Tampere, with six artists competing for the coveted Eurovision ticket.

The Finalists

These are the six artists battling it out for victory at UMK 2025:

  1. Costee – “Sekaisin“
  2. Neea River – “Nightmares“
  3. Goldielocks – “Made Of“
  4. VIIVI – “Aina“
  5. Nelli Matula – “Hitaammin hautaan“
  6. Erika Vikman  – “ICH KOMME“

How the Winner Will Be Chosen

The UMK 2025 winner and Finland’s Eurovision 2025 representative will be determined through a combination of public and jury voting.

  • 75% of the final result will be decided by the Finnish public.
  • 25% will come from an international jury panel.

This voting system gives the Finnish audience the biggest say in who will represent their country in Basel!

Hosts & Show Details

️ Venue: Nokia Arena, Tampere
Hosts: Jasmin Beloued & Sanni
Start Time: 21:00 CET
Where to Watch: Live on Yle’s official website, with options for English commentary or no commentary.

Finland at Eurovision 2024

Last year, Windows95man won UMK 2024 and went on to represent Finland in Malmö with No Rules. Despite delivering an unforgettable performance, Finland finished 19th in the Grand Final with 38 points.

Can Finland improve its result in 2025 and return to the Eurovision top spots? We’re about to find out!

Stay tuned to Eurovisionfun for all the latest updates on Finland’s Eurovision 2025 journey!

Finland: One Morning Left Excluded from Finland’s UMK Music Contest!

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In Finland’s annual music competition, UMK, which determines the country’s representative for Eurovision, the Finnish metalcore band “One Morning Left”, will no longer participate.

In more detail, Finland’s public broadcaster, Yle excluded the band from the competition due to a contract violation. Following discussions between “One Morning Left” and Yle, both parties agreed that the band’s withdrawal was the most appropriate decision.

The executive producer of UMK, Anssi Autio, commented as follows:

Unfortunately, the band One Morning Left will not appear in this year’s UMK, as it did not fully comply with the competition’s rules. This decision also involved the rules of the Eurovision Song Contest, set by the EBU, which clearly state that such a violation constitutes an unequivocal obstacle to Eurovision participation.

 

The UMK 2025 competition, where Finland’s representative for Eurovision 2025 will be chosen, will culminate on February 8 at Nokia Arena in Tampere. After the exclusion of “One Morning Left”, six artists will now take the stage. According to UMK rules, it is not necessary to replace the band that withdrew with a new contestant.

SOURCE: Yle

Stay tuned to Eurovisionfun for all the updates!

Finland: Listen to the seventh song for UMK 2025!

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The finnish broadcaster has released the seventh and last song competing in UMK 2025, the finnish national final for Eurovision 2025.

The song is “ICH KOMME” by Erika Vikman and you can listen to it here:

One of the brightest stars in the Finnish pop world, Erika Vikman, started her career in the entertainment industry at a very young age. In the early stages of her career, she performed at summer theatres and various TV programmes and, in 2016, Vikman became famous among Finnish people by winning the popular Tangomarkkinat festival. In 2019, Vikman signed a recording agreement with Warner Music and Mökkitie Records. In 2020, she participated in UMK with the song Cicciolina, and the following year, she released the Erika Vikman album, which reached the top of the Finnish album charts.

“Cicciolina encouraged female artists to be bolder. Female artists tend to be put inside a certain mould. You must not reveal too much, otherwise you get labelled a whore. Someone had to pop the cork to let the champagne flow!” Vikman says.

Vikman’s music resonates with many Finns, and her fans are all across the country, from the Helsinki Metropolitan Area to small municipalities. The message inside her music is clear.

“People should be loved exactly as they are. When people are allowed to be themselves, they are free and happy,” says Vikman.

Vikman and UMK have a long history together. In 2020, she came second with her performance of Cicciolina. The following year, she performed UMK’s opening number together with Antti Tuisku. At last year’s UMK, Vikman and Käärijä performed their duet Ruoska during the intermission.

Vikman had initially thought that she would not return to the UMK stage as a contestant. However, the plans changed when she made a song when working on her next album with producers Chisu and Jori Roosberg. That was how the UMK song ICH KOMME was born.

“I asked Chisu and Jori to make a Eurovision-type song for me. They asked me directly if I wanted to take part in the Eurovision Song Contest. That’s where it all started.”

We remind you that the artists/songs competing to represent Finland will be revealed in this order:

  • Thu, 9 January NEEA RIVER – “Nightmares”
  • Fri, 10 January Nelli Matula – “Hitaammin Hautaan”
  • Mon, 13 January costee – “Sekaisin”
  • Tue, 14 January VIIVI – “Aina”
  • Wed, 15 January One Morning Left – “Puppy”
  • Thu, 16 January Goldielocks –  “Made Of”
  • Fri, 17 January Erika Vikman – “ICH KOMME”

The UMK grand final will take place on Saturday, 10 February, 20:00 CET and will be broadcast on Yle TV1, Yle Areena and Yle radio channels.

Stay tuned to Eurovisionfun for all news regarding UMK and the finnish representative for Eurovision 2025!

Finland: Listen to the sixth song for UMK 2025!

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The finnish broadcaster has released the sixth song competing in UMK 2025, the finnish national final for Eurovision 2025.

The song is “Made Of” by Goldielocks and you can listen to it here:

Goldielocks, whose real name is Ella Mäntynen, is the youngest UMK 25 contestant at the age of 23. She describes herself as an ordinary girl from North Karelia. Goldielocks is a character created by Mäntynen, “a rock star inside the shell of a pop star”. The alter ego was inspired by the Disney Channel series Hannah Montana, in which actor and artist Miley Cyrus transforms into a fictional pop star.

Goldielocks’ career path has taken her from Joensuu via Helsinki to her current home town Berlin. Prior to her solo career, she created music for Finland’s biggest pop stars, including Gasellit, Isac Elliot, ABREU, and Sara Siipola.

At the beginning of 2020, Goldielocks signed her first publishing agreement with M-Eazy Music, in 2021 a manager contract with Comusic management and, in 2022, a recording agreement was signed with Sony Music Finland. Her first single, Electrifying, was released in the spring of 2023, and she went on a tour in the autumn of the same year.

Goldielocks’ career development has been dizzying. She has already performed on all major stages in Finland, and is now on the verge of an international breakthrough, supported by her own record company.

The catchy and pure pop UMK song Made Of was born in a studio in Berlin, in collaboration with Goldielocks, producer-brother Lauri Mäntynen, and producer Topi Kilpinen. The song can be seen as the artist’s own reflection of herself or another person.

We remind you that the artists/songs competing to represent Finland will be revealed in this order:

  • Thu, 9 January NEEA RIVER – “Nightmares”
  • Fri, 10 January Nelli Matula – “Hitaammin Hautaan”
  • Mon, 13 January costee – “Sekaisin”
  • Tue, 14 January VIIVI – “Aina”
  • Wed, 15 January One Morning Left – “Puppy”
  • Thu, 16 January Goldielocks –  “Made Of”
  • Fri, 17 January Erika Vikman – “ICH KOMME”

The UMK grand final will take place on Saturday, 10 February, 20:00 CET and will be broadcast on Yle TV1, Yle Areena and Yle radio channels.

Stay tuned to Eurovisionfun for all news regarding UMK and the finnish representative for Eurovision 2025!

Finland: Listen to the fifth song for UMK 2025!

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The finnish broadcaster has released the fifth song competing in UMK 2025, the finnish national final for Eurovision 2025.

The song is “Puppy” by One Morning Left and you can listen to it here:

One Morning Left has been making music for 16 years, and consists of five members from different parts of Finland. The founder and lead vocalist of the band is Mika Lahti, second lead vocalist, guitarist and songwriter Leevi Luoto, bass player and background vocalist Miska Sipiläinen, drummer Dennis Hallbäck and songwriter, guitarist and background vocalist Juuso Turkki. The story of the band began when Lahti met Teemu Rautiainen from Jyväskylä in the Finnish social media service IRC Galleria. They had a similar taste in music, which led them to found One Morning Left in 2008.

The band’s first EP was released in 2008, and the following year they went on their first European tour. In 2010, the band signed a recording contract with Spinefarm Records and the following year they released their first full-length album, The Bree-Teenz. The album Metalcore Superstars, which was released in 2016, featured the hit song You’re Dead, Let’s Disco. The song became particularly popular in Japan, and the band’s gigs in Tokyo sold out. In 2022, One Morning Left toured Europe with UMK winner Blind Channel and the German band Electric Callboy. Today, the band makes music under the German record company Arising Empire.

The band describe themselves as a hyperactive, boundary-pushing feel-good act. Their unique sense of humour sets them apart from other Nordic metal bands.

“Musically, we rely on the ’80s and ’90s, and we do not take ourselves too seriously. Sometimes, people look at you in a funny way if you mess around too much. You can dance to the beat of our music, and that’s fantastic,” Leevi Luoto says.

The band had been planning to apply for UMK for a long time.

“We already spoke with our previous drummer that UMK would be a great experience. After meeting Kiro, who produced Cha Cha Cha for Käärijä, we began to think about making an UMK song with him,” Mika Lahti reveals.

The UMK song Puppy is exactly what the name suggests. It is, very simply, about a puppy.

We remind you that the artists/songs competing to represent Finland will be revealed in this order:

  • Thu, 9 January NEEA RIVER – “Nightmares”
  • Fri, 10 January Nelli Matula – “Hitaammin Hautaan”
  • Mon, 13 January costee – “Sekaisin”
  • Tue, 14 January VIIVI – “Aina”
  • Wed, 15 January One Morning Left – “Puppy”
  • Thu, 16 January Goldielocks –  “Made Of”
  • Fri, 17 January Erika Vikman – “ICH KOMME”

The UMK grand final will take place on Saturday, 10 February, 20:00 CET and will be broadcast on Yle TV1, Yle Areena and Yle radio channels.

Stay tuned to Eurovisionfun for all news regarding UMK and the finnish representative for Eurovision 2025!

Finland: Listen to the fourth song for UMK 2025!

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The finnish broadcaster has released the fourth song competing in UMK 2025, the finnish national final for Eurovision 2025.

The song is “Aina” by VIIVI and you can listen to it here:

Music has been a part of VIIVI’s life since childhood. Originally from Joroinen, VIIVI studied music actively and stepped onto the stage whenever she could. She gave her first performances in singing competitions.

At the age of 18, VIIVI signed a recording contract with Capitol Records, and her first song was released three years later. The same year, Lääke ranked third on Finland’s official singles list. VIIVI’s debut album Parisuhdehautausmaa, published in early 2022, won three Emma awards (Finnish Grammy Awards) and VIIVI won the newcomer of the year award. In the same year, Ihana kipu, a duet with Robin, a previous UMK contestant, broke Spotify Finland’s daily streaming record for this decade. At the beginning of 2024, VIIVI joined Warner Music Finland.

VIIVI has collaborated with many artists, including Ahti, Ani and JVG. Her career has taken significant turns, but its core has remained the same.

“Writing songs is really important to me. When I’m involved in making the songs myself, the songs look like me and you can clearly hear my voice in them. My hobby has become my life’s work, and that’s really cool,” says VIIVI.

VIIVI had been planning to apply for UMK for a long time, but she wanted to wait for the right song.

“The song must have a “douze points” vibe! Aina is loaded with such an indescribable emotion that it requires an arena to perform it. I feel like this is the most important song in my career,” VIIVI concludes.

We remind you that the artists/songs competing to represent Finland will be revealed in this order:

  • Thu, 9 January NEEA RIVER – “Nightmares”
  • Fri, 10 January Nelli Matula – “Hitaammin Hautaan”
  • Mon, 13 January costee – “Sekaisin”
  • Tue, 14 January VIIVI – “Aina”
  • Wed, 15 January One Morning Left – “Puppy”
  • Thu, 16 January Goldielocks –  “Made Of”
  • Fri, 17 January Erika Vikman – “ICH KOMME”

The UMK grand final will take place on Saturday, 10 February, 20:00 CET and will be broadcast on Yle TV1, Yle Areena and Yle radio channels.

Stay tuned to Eurovisionfun for all news regarding UMK and the finnish representative for Eurovision 2025!

Finland: Listen to the third song for UMK 2025!

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The finnish broadcaster has released the third song competing in UMK 2025, the finnish national final for Eurovision 2025.

The song is “Sekaisin” by costee and you can listen to it here:

costee, whose real name is Jussi Tiainen, grew up in the Turku region and started his music hobby at the age of 8. He got a drum set as a gift from his father, but soon changed his instrument to a guitar as the desire to compose his own music grew. Now, 7 years into his solo career, he has over 100 million streams, three hit albums and a large number of sold-out gigs behind him. He has become known as a pioneer in alternative pop.

costee’s solo career escalated quickly and the pace has been fast. In 2017, he signed a recording contract with Etenee Records, and in March 2018, he released his first single Pakoon pahaa oloo. In 2019, he was chosen as one of YleX’s breakthrough artists, and his debut album Ehkä joskus tääl viel naurattaa was released in May. The following year, costee was nominated as the newcomer of the year and the audience’s favourite at the Emma Gala (Finnish Grammy Awards). He released his second album Kaikki loppuu aina in the same year. In 2022, costee released his third album Kaikki vampyyrit ei juo verta and founded his own record company, Tuhma Music. This allows him to share his expertise with new artists.

costee strives to be as honest as possible in his art. As a performer, costee is full of energy and captivates the audience with his mystery. His performances often involve an element of darkness.

“I want to be a mysterious performer in my own way. I want some of that darkness on the stage, but I also like strong lights that create contrast,” says costee.

costee and his fans have a particularly close relationship and community. Many fans have had tattoos of the titles, lyrics and illustrations of his songs.

costee is aiming to win UMK first and then the Eurovision Song Contest. As soon as the UMK song Sekaisin was completed, costee realised that it had to become a UMK and Eurovision song.

We remind you that the artists/songs competing to represent Finland will be revealed in this order:

  • Thu, 9 January NEEA RIVER – “Nightmares”
  • Fri, 10 January Nelli Matula – “Hitaammin Hautaan”
  • Mon, 13 January costee – “Sekaisin”
  • Tue, 14 January VIIVI – “Aina”
  • Wed, 15 January One Morning Left – “Puppy”
  • Thu, 16 January Goldielocks –  “Made Of”
  • Fri, 17 January Erika Vikman – “ICH KOMME”

The UMK grand final will take place on Saturday, 10 February, 20:00 CET and will be broadcast on Yle TV1, Yle Areena and Yle radio channels.

Stay tuned to Eurovisionfun for all news regarding UMK and the finnish representative for Eurovision 2025!

Finland: Listen to the second song for UMK 2025!

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The finnish broadcaster has released the second song competing in UMK 2025, the finnish national final for Eurovision 2025.

The song is “Hitaammin Hautaan” by Nelli Matula and you can listen to it here:

Nelli Matula has been working since a very young age. In upper secondary school, Matula got her first professional role in show-business when she was cast to one of the main roles in the musical Mary Poppins at Helsinki City Theatre. After finishing Kallio upper secondary school, Matula had a gap year, during which she completed a vocational qualification in confectionery, which normally takes 2–3 years to complete. During her studies, Matula decided to send a demo and open application to Rähinä Records and was invited to an interview, which led to a recording contract in 2016. In the same year, Matula graduated from the Pop-Jazz Conservatory in Helsinki.

Matula’s second single, Lemmikki, exploded into huge popularity. In 2018, Matula performed in the newcomers’ medley at the Emma Gala (Finnish Grammy Awards). Her success continued with the release of the debut album Jumalatar in 2019. The album was nominated for the Pop of the Year award at the Emma Gala. In 2021, Matula joined Universal Music Finland, and her second album Kiltti tyttö was released the following year.

Putting on a show means the world to Nelli Matula, and it was the show element that made Matula apply for UMK.

“My dream is to become so big as an artist that I can perform at arenas. This is a good place to start, because there’s no bigger show than UMK in this country,” Matula says.

The UMK song Hitaammin Hautaan is meaningful to Matula, as it describes details from her personal life. The song is a reflection of her desire to change the direction of her life and find new meanings.

We remind you that the artists/songs competing to represent Finland will be revealed in this order:

  • Thu, 9 January NEEA RIVER – “Nightmares”
  • Fri, 10 January Nelli Matula – “Hitaammin Hautaan”
  • Mon, 13 January costee – “Sekaisin”
  • Tue, 14 January VIIVI – “Aina”
  • Wed, 15 January One Morning Left – “Puppy”
  • Thu, 16 January Goldielocks –  “Made Of”
  • Fri, 17 January Erika Vikman – “ICH KOMME”

The UMK grand final will take place on Saturday, 10 February, 20:00 CET and will be broadcast on Yle TV1, Yle Areena and Yle radio channels.

Stay tuned to Eurovisionfun for all news regarding UMK and the finnish representative for Eurovision 2025!

Finland: Listen to the first song for UMK 2025!

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The finnish broadcaster has released the first song competing in UMK 2025, the finnish national final for Eurovision 2025.

The song is “Nightmares” by NEEA RIVER and you can listen to it here:

Originally from Nurmijärvi, NEEA RIVER‘s passion for an international singing career started as a teenager. The biggest leap towards her dreams coming true happened by chance on a holiday to Los Angeles. During the trip, RIVER uploaded her own singing videos to Instagram, and a local producer found them and asked RIVER to come to the studio. After returning to Finland, RIVER stayed in contact with the producer who two years later proposed that RIVER move to Los Angeles.

The American dream came true quickly for RIVER. The artist’s third song ended up on the soundtrack of a film, which made everything happen even faster. RIVER networked with Finnish music professionals in the United States, which resulted in a publishing deal with Warner Music Finland. For three years, RIVER created hits for both domestic and foreign artists, and RIVER’s reputation in the music industry strengthened.

Later, RIVER realised she wanted to create songs for herself. She stopped writing for others and focused on her own career. Around the same time, she launched her own record label. Today, she’s making waves with her English-language pop hits.

A fan of artists such as Britney Spears, Rihanna and The Weeknd, NEEA RIVER sums up her artistry in two words: “pop machine”.

“I have a suit of pop armour that’s full of power. When I’m wearing it, nothing can stop me,” says River.

UMK is a natural continuation for NEEA RIVER’s rising career and the first time that RIVER will perform one of her own songs in public. The UMK song Nightmares was based on the ambitious idea of creating a winning song for the Eurovision Song Contest.

UMK expert jury: “NEEA’s voice is the first thing that catches your attention in the song Nightmares. Clearly, this is a top professional who controls her voice exceptionally well. The next thing you notice is the stellar composition that combines modern pop aesthetics with epic Eurovision vibes and cinematic glamour. The finishing touch is the uplifting dance production with its big drops. It is great to see a self-publishing independent artist like NEEA RIVER at UMK.”

We remind you that the artists/songs competing to represent Finland will be revealed in this order:

  • Thu, 9 January NEEA RIVER – “Nightmares”
  • Fri, 10 January Nelli Matula – “Hitaammin Hautaan”
  • Mon, 13 January costee – “Sekaisin”
  • Tue, 14 January VIIVI – “Aina”
  • Wed, 15 January One Morning Left – “Puppy”
  • Thu, 16 January Goldielocks –  “Made Of”
  • Fri, 17 January Erika Vikman – “ICH KOMME”

The UMK grand final will take place on Saturday, 10 February, 20:00 CET and will be broadcast on Yle TV1, Yle Areena and Yle radio channels.

Stay tuned to Eurovisionfun for all news regarding UMK and the finnish representative for Eurovision 2025!