Last weekend, Finnish audiences and seven international juries selected Finland's Eurovision Song Contest representative for this year – and the outcome was historical! Pop singer Pete Parkkonen and classical violinist Linda Lampenius received the most public votes in the history of our national qualifying competition, UMK.

Firstly, let it sink in that Pete Parkkonen and Linda Lampenius' Liekinheitin caught 492 points from the Finnish public. That is almost 56 per cent of all the public votes, and 15 points more than the previous record holder, Käärijä, got in 2023. Of course, the outcome was no surprise to anyone who had been following the media in the past weeks: Liekinheitin was predicted to win all along, with the biggest amount of Spotify streams and a historical amount of YouTube viewers. So probably the only surprise was the magnitude of their win.

The international jury's scores were collected from seven different countries (the UK, the Netherlands, Montenegro, Spain, Malta, Denmark, and Austria), out of which Linda and Pete received a full 12 points from five.

The first runner-up, accordionist extraordinaire, Antti Paalanen, placed no real challenge to Pete and Linda’s dynamic duo, although there’s nothing to sneer at in his 152 points (17% of the votes).

The song – so what does it sound like?

Pete Parkkonen and Linda Lampenius’ Liekinheitin (“flamethrower”) is a dramatic pop song with an emphasis on (programmed) strings and fierce violin leads. The lyric focuses on problematic relationship behavior: a person giving mixed signals, at times being willing and approachable, and other times distancing. A pivotal line, drawing much attention among Finnish listeners, goes “voiko ihminen kuolla kiimaan”, literally, “can a person die from heat”. Linda Lampenius’ frenetic violin melodies (which, unfortunately, have not and will not be played live in either UMK or ESC) intertwine with Parkkonen’s lead vocals, creating an interesting layer of drama untypical for a basic pop song. The chorus, already teased at the song’s beginning, is very melancholic, but also very catchy.

Of course, what we all want to know is: will this be a victorious song for Finland this year? We certainly hope so – but you can form your own opinion by checking out the performance video below!

Pete Parkkonen: from Idol-winning rocker to local favorite

Singer Pete Parkkonen, born 1990 in the small municipality of Pihtipudas in Central Finland, kick-started his career in the Finnish version of the talent show franchise Pop Idol in 2008, becoming third in the contest. Soon, he was signed to Sony Music, via whom he released two English-sung albums (First Album, 2009, and I’m An Accident, 2010) with a strong rock focus. The debut album reached number one on the Finnish album chart and went gold.

After Parkkonen’s 2^nd full-length came a 4-year hiatus, and on his 3^rd, eponymous album (2014), he had switched his musical style to pop and his singing language to Finnish. After taking part in the local version of Dancing with the Stars and another 4-year recording hiatus, he returned in 2018 with another Finnish album, named, in true Whitney Houston fashion, Pete (yes, Whitney Houston also has albums named both with her full name and with just her first name). This album gained Parkkonen his biggest streaming hits, Mitä mä teen feat JVG, and Kohta sataa (known for its racy music video), and is currently his latest full-length release.

Besides Idols and Dancing with the Stars, he has appeared in TV shows such as Kuorosota (based on the international Clash of the Choirs format), Tähdet tähdet, and Vain elämää (based on the Dutch format De beste zangers).

Linda Lampenius: a true 90s icon

Linda Lampenius (born 1970 in Helsinki), also known by her stage name Linda Brava, is a Swedish-speaking Finnish violinist, public figure, and former model. Since 1997, Lampenius has lived and worked mainly abroad, having been signed with the EMI Classics label for several years. Lampenius started performing with The Helsinki Strings at the age of seven, which took her to concert halls around the world at a very young age. Lampenius has had a very versatile career in classical music: she has studied at the Sibelius Academy (violin, music theory, music history, pedagogy, and opera singing), played as a chamber violinist around the world, and collaborated with musicians from many genres, from rock to pop to jazz – and even Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber and Jim Steinman! Lampenius has four solo albums under her belt, out of which the first one, Linda Lampenius (1997), contains pop music and the others are classical compositions.

In Finland, Lampenius’ public image has largely concentrated on her private life, modelling career (mainly for Björn Borg and magazines such as Elle, Esquire, GQ, and Playboy), and acting (local theatre and television – and Baywatch). One of the most iconic details about her illustrious career was the “Linda cider” sold in the Nordics between 1997 and 2000, which moved about 12 million units during that period. Since leaving Finland in 1997, Lampenius has lived in Los Angeles, London, and Stockholm, where she has resided since 2002.

“Should we stay or should we go” – UMK still polarizes the media and audience

Again this year, UMK has raised the discussion about Finland taking part in Eurovision Song Contest – especially with a growing number of countries withdrawing from the race due to Israel not being disqualified from the show. Recently, under media pressure, the competition organizer, Yle, announced that the winner of UMK does not have to participate in Eurovision if the artist finds it impossible to compete with Israel. Still, Pete Parkkonen and Linda Lampenius have recently been vocal in public about their willingness to compete in Vienna in May.