#BIRTHDAY: Jerry Heil from Ukraine is 30 today

We know that our favourite TV show is generally a light-hearted affair. Lots of shiny-ness, memorable costumes, and cramming as many smiles into three minutes as a song can. But some try a different approach.

Our friends in Ukraine have not had the easiest of times lately, but war or no war are one of the countries that really get Eurovision. Their entries have been jolly in the past, but are rightfully a bit more serious these days. In 2024 they sent today’s birthday girl Дже́ррі Гейл/Jerry Heil (née Яна Олександрівна Шемаєва/Yana Oleksandrivna Shemaieva) who teamed up with Alyona Alyona and they duetted a song in two parts. Jerry was the singer, not the rapper. It may have stopped you in your tracks. In fact, it stopped enough people in their tracks to finish second in its semi-final, and third in the Grand Final. It was even more remarkable because they performed second in the Grand Final. Is it the sole stand-out song of 2024? If not, it’s definitely one of them. Слава Україні!

Authors: Riigi Ametnik, John Stanton

Source: OnEurope