![Reaching out. Christopher Lesh, student at Central Catholic High School, serves ice cream during the event on March 2, 2025, at the Portland waterfront. Central Catholic was just one of the schools that sent student volunteers out to cook, prepare, dish, and serve food. Interact club’s co-president Rachel Gerber, junior, plated the food during the event. “I like how direct the contact is,” Gerber said. “You’re there [and] you’re just doing something good. It’s simple, it’s easy, you can feel good about it.”](https://wlhsnow.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/interact-1-edited-1200x744.jpg)
One afternoon, I was scrolling through Peacock, when I noticed a strange looking music competition. I had nothing else to do, so I clicked on it and started watching. It was about half way through the performances, and when I started watching, it played “Cha Cha Cha” by Käärijä.
From the performance, set design, to even the song itself, after that one performance, I was hooked on Eurovision. Since then I have watched the last two editions of the competition.
Involving 37 individual countries sending their best performers, Eurovision is a song competition between European countries, including some from West Asia and Oceania. Each year, the countries’ artists compete for the glass microphone and allow the winners to host the competition the following year.
The 2025 edition was held from May 13 to May 17 in Basel, Switzerland, after the country won the 2024 competition with the song “The Code” by Nemo.
Below is a list of my top five songs from Eurovision for this year’s competition.
5) France: “Maman” by Louane
“Maman” is a song dedicated to Louane’s late mother, who passed away due to cancer when she was 17 years old. The song talks about how much Louane has grown and how she has a kid who calls her mom. This song is also a sequel to one she made in 2015 with the same title.
The song itself is very beautiful. The melody mixed with the French lyrics, consistent vocals, and constant words of maman throughout tie together very well. Plus, the ending with the final maman said by Louane’s daughter adds a nice touch to an already amazing song.
4) Estonia: “Espresso Macchiato” by Tommy Cash
Originally, “Espresso Macchiato” wasn’t written for Eurovision. According to Cash, in an interview with the Estonian magazine Kroonika, the idea for the song was born “naturally” without the intention of writing it to compete in the competition. The song also talks a lot about Italian stereotypes, which caused some controversy, with people wanting the song to be disqualified.
This song is funny. I love the melody and how it’s clean and consistent throughout the song, and the lyrics are a perfect combination of broken English, Spanglish, and an old dialect of American Italian that work so well together. I also really like the creativity presented in the song. Overall, everything from the music video to the live performance to the song itself meshes well and creates a groovy song.
3) Netherlands: “C’est La Vie” by Claude
“C’est La Vie” in English means “that’s life.” Claude is originally from the Democratic Republic of Congo, but fled to the Netherlands when he was nine. The song itself is described as a tribute to Claude’s parents, who taught him to focus on the brighter side of things even through darkness and to find the positives in life’s experiences.
This song is very calming and emotional, which I think is what makes it so good. The constant repetition of “c’est la vie” throughout the song is placed perfectly, and the melody and beat combine for a wonderful listening experience. On top of that, their live performance in the semifinal was absolutely amazing, and if they carry it on to the Grand Final, they have a high chance of winning it all.
2) Portugal: “Deslocado” by NAPA
“Deslocado” in English means “displaced.” The song describes the band’s origins and how they are all Madeirans, from autonomous islands off the coast of Portugal, living displaced in mainland Portugal when they were 18. This song became popular on TikTok, where several young people who were displaced or migrants made videos about their experiences.
This song is just beautiful. I’m not the biggest fan of a lot of slower songs, but NAPA does it perfectly. The Portuguese lyrics combined with the slower rock in the background mix to make a beautiful melody. The overall harmony from the band, even in the live performance, is just astonishing, and is overall an amazing ballad.
Honorable Mentions: Australia, Italy, and Austria
Australia’s song is called “Milkshake Man” by Gojo. This song aims to be a motivational push for the listener to find who they really are and feel confident in that. This song is amazing and funny. Despite how well it flows in the song, it feels like a bit too many elements were happening at the same time at certain points, though not to take anything away from the song. I like how it tries to convey its message and its creativity, but I think there are better songs.
Italy’s song is called “Volevo essere un duro” by Lucio Corsi. This song, translated, means “I wanted to be a tough guy”. The song is about life, where as a child you’d dream about being all these crazy things like a firefighter or astronaut when you grow up, but not many people fulfill these dreams, whether it be because they grew out of it, found difficulties along the way, or found another interest. This song is just the epitome of nostalgia, from the lyrics to the calming tone coming from this rock song. It’s done so well and encapsulates the message through the music video almost perfectly. However, the song can get really repetitive, and there are random pauses throughout the song itself, which drag it down a bit.
Austria’s song is called “Wasted Love” by JJ. This song is about someone failing to let go of the past amidst a breakup and falling into an overwhelming sea of emotions and love. The song’s genre falls under pop-opera, with the vocals in this song being out of this world. Alongside the amazing voice are well-written lyrics that mesh with the opera style to create an incredible song. This song won the competition, after winning the jury vote and placing fourth in the televote.
Graphic by Garrett Arendt
1) Ukraine: “Birds of Pray” by Ziferblat
“Birds of Pray” is about the families who were separated from each other in refugee camps due to the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine. Ziferblat is a band of three singers from Ukraine. They also almost qualified for last year’s competition, but ultimately placed second.
After the first listen, I was hooked. This song has so much going for it. From the sweet and somber vocals to the electrifying chorus, as well as the mix of English with Ukrainian lyrics, holds this song together to tell a beautiful story. Everything about this song just works, and it flows between each part of the song and each switch from Ukrainian to English.
