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Swedish singer Loreen will represent her country for the second time at Eurovision in the 2023 edition of the contest.
Loreen will perform the song ‘Tattoo’ at the 2023 Eurovision Song Contest, which is the first to be held in England since 1998, with the city of Liverpool playing host this year.
She managed to qualify for the 2023 final, which will take place on Saturday 13 May 2023, giving Sweden another chance to win the famous trophy.
So, who actually is Loreen? Has Sweden won Eurovision before? Has the country ever failed to qualify for the final stage of the contest?
Here is everything you need to know about Loreen and Sweden’s Eurovision history.
Loreen performs at the 2023 Eurovision Preparty in Madrid, Spain, in preparation for the contest
Loreen is representing Sweden at Eurovision for the second time, after her previous appearance in 2012 saw her bring home the trophy. She is seen here performing at the 2012 contest in Baku after her victory
She is seen here on the Turquoise Carpet outside St George’s Hall in Liverpool at the opening ceremony for the 2023 edition of Eurovision
Loreen attends the Eurovision Preparty, which was held in April 2023 in Amsterdam. A victory for her and Sweden would bring them level with the Republic of Ireland on seven Eurovision wins
Who is Loreen?
Lorine Zineb Nora Talhaoui was born in the Swedish capital of Stockholm, before moving to the city of Vasteras.
Keen to become a musician, she appeared on the Swedish talent show Idol in 2004, under the name of Loren Talhaoui. Despite initially being eliminated at the qualifying round, she received a wildcard from the show’s judges, and would go on to finish fourth overall in the competition.
After presenting Swedish TV show Lyssna, she took an extended hiatus, not returning to the public eye until 2011. She returned with an appearance at that year’s Melodifestivalen, finishing fourth in the second semi-final of the competition.
Loreen’s major breakthrough came in 2012 when, after winning the Melodifestivalen, she was chosen to represent Sweden at that year’s edition of Eurovision.
Her track ‘Euphoria’ would go on to win the competition for Sweden, with the song entering the UK Official Singles Chart at number three.
She subsequently released her debut album, ‘Heal’, which would top the charts in Sweden and become Platinum-certified.
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Away from music, Loreen has also made a number of appearances on screen. As well as roles on Swedish TV, she was part of the cast for Swedish language film ‘JJ+E’, which aired in 2021.
She has used her platform as a singer to engage extensively in political activism, most notably meeting with Nobel Peace Prize winner Malala Yousafzai in 2014.
Loreen made her fourth appearance at the Melodifestivalen in February 2023, entering with her song ‘Tattoo’, which would win her the competition and allow her to compete at Eurovision for a second time.
Has Sweden won Eurovision?
Including Loreen’s victory in 2012, Sweden has a proud history at the Eurovision Song Contest, winning the competition six times in total since its inception in 1956.
ABBA were largely unknown outside of Sweden prior to entering Eurovision, but would go to achieve international fame. Pictured: Agnetha Faltskog and Anni-Frid Lyngstad perform ‘Waterloo’ at the 1974 Eurovision Song Contest
This puts them in second place behind the Republic of Ireland, which has seven, for the most wins in Eurovision.
In the 1974 contest, a group largely unknown to audiences outside of Sweden by the name of ABBA entered with ‘Waterloo’.
Although many of the band had found prior success in different bands, Bjorn, Benny, Agnetha and Anni-Frid were catapulted into stardom after winning Eurovision.
Going on to sell over 150 million records, writing hits such as ‘Dancing Queen’, ‘Mamma Mia’ and ‘Fernando’, ABBA are undoubtedly the band to have achieved the most success after a Eurovision appearance.
Herrey’s performance of ‘Diggi-Loo Diggi-Ley’ earnt Sweden victory in 1984. The nation’s other wins came in 1991, with Carola’s ‘Fangad Av En Stormvind’ 1999, thanks to Charlotte Nilsson’s track ‘Take Me To Your Heaven’.
Pictured: Loreen’s performance in the first semi-final of the 2023 contest, which she entered with her song ‘Tattoo’ after winning the Melodifestivalen
Has Sweden ever not qualified for Eurovision?
Sweden made its debut at the Eurovision Song Contest in 1958, and has only missed three contests – in 1964, 1970 and 1976 – since its first appearance.
At the 1997 edition of the event, Sweden became one of the first countries to adopt a televoting system for viewers.
In 2010, Anna Bergendahl became the first Swedish representative to fail to qualify for the final.
Since the introduction of semi-finals to the competition in 2004, Sweden is one of only two countries, along with Ukraine, to win Eurovision on multiple occasions.
