After facing criticism, Baby Lasagna, Croatia’s Eurovision 2024 representative, has responded to his harsh critique of the Irish singer’s behavior, stating: “I pray for the Palestinians.”

Recently, a new controversy erupted after many people were exposed to an interview Baby Lasagna gave for the podcast “Podcast Inkubator,” where he criticized the Irish representative, Bambie Thug, for their conduct during the contest and their treatment of the Israeli delegation, which he claimed “was not a nuisance at all.” As a result, Baby Lasagna received numerous hateful messages from fans who labeled him a “genocide supporter.” Additionally, pro-Palestinian Eurovision contestants collectively unfollowed him on Instagram.

Following the controversy, Baby Lasagna responded on his Instagram account with a statement regarding the issue.

After the interview went viral on social media, he received both positive feedback and a flood of harsh criticism. Eurovision fans and his supporters reached out to him after he portrayed the Israeli delegation positively, calling him a “genocide supporter.” In response, the Irish representative Bambie Thug, Greek representative Marina Satti, and Swiss representative Nemo decided to unfollow him on Instagram.

The incident stirred up social media across Europe, prompting Baby Lasagna to post an Instagram story addressing the issue. He stated: “I won’t beat around th bush and I like i have to respond because I owe that to ESC community. I didn’t feel like I had to express this online, but now I see that there’s some confusion about it, so let me say it: I condemn the actions of the Israeli government. I bow my head for Palestine and its victims. I keep them in my prayers every night I go to sleep. Likewise, I will truly give my best to help those wounded by this horrific tragedy.”

Those who inferred from the interview that Baby Lasagna supports Israel now have a clear answer that this is not the case. Baby Lasagna’s heart is entirely with the Palestinians, as he did not feel the need to mention the October 7 massacre that sparked the war, to maintain a certain balance. He preferred to condemn the democratically elected Israeli government rather than the Hamas terror organization, which took control of the Palestinians in Gaza through terror.

However, he did not retract his comments about the Irish representative at Eurovision. His perspective and statements during the interview indicate his awareness of the unfairness that occurred behind the scenes and his disagreement with mixing politics in a competition meant to “unite love and peace.” He described the Irish representative as “yelling like an angry dog” at the Israeli delegation, which he claimed was not a nuisance at all.

Since being chosen to represent Croatia at Eurovision, Baby Lasagna has avoided political statements and “taking sides” in the Israel-Hamas conflict. Even if he disagrees with Israel’s actions, he has kept his distance from the issue and has not used the sensitive topic to provoke, unlike representatives from other countries such as Ireland, Switzerland, Norway, and Portugal.

The interview that caused a stir

Yesterday, new details were published about the interview Baby Lasagna gave to the “Podcast Inkubator” with his PR manager Krešimir Šustić, where they both harshly criticized the conduct at this year’s competition, the treatment of the Israeli delegation, and the actions of the representatives competing against him in the final.

Baby Lasagna shared his perspective on the incident before the last rehearsal between the Irish representative and the Israeli delegation: “I almost died laughing; this is the first time I’m actually talking about it. We were standing in line to join the flag parade, and everything was fine. The Irish representative and the Greek representative were standing there, and just then someone passed by and filmed a video; I guess it was someone from the Israeli delegation. Bambie started shouting at him, ‘Don’t film me!’ She yelled like an angry dog! And added that it’s a ‘celebration of love and peace’ while drooling… and everyone was really shocked. I bit my lips trying not to laugh. She talks about a celebration of love and peace while shouting and getting angry, just unnecessary drama. In the end, Bambie, Nemo, and I don’t know who else ran to the room and started crying. What’s going on with you guys? This is supposed to be Eurovision…”

The interviewer also mentioned that the Irish representative planned to perform for pro-Palestinian protesters outside the venue, but her personal manager ultimately forbade it. The interviewer believes her performance for the protesters was canceled due to concern over the reaction of the Palestinian Arabs when Bambie Thug, with her “unique” appearance, called for the liberation of Palestine, and he does not recommend her to do so.

Krešimir Šustić, Baby Lasagna’s PR manager, joined the conversation and said: “This drama is so unnecessary because if you wanted to withdraw from the competition, you would just withdraw and not create drama and draw attention. If you want attention so much, just go on stage.”

“I don’t know why Bambie, Marina, and Nemo were so upset with the Israeli delegation. The Israeli delegation was not a nuisance at all, at least from what I saw,” added the Croatian singer. “As for Bambie’s claim that they were filming her, there are cameras everywhere, and everyone is filming everyone. It just amused me that she shouted about peace and love while behaving with anger and frustration.”

Watch the full interview below:

Croatia in Eurovision 2024:

“Rim Tim Tagi Dim” is the name of the song performed by the singer Baby Lasagna, which was chosen to represent Croatia after winning the national finals. Croatia advanced to the final after winning the first semi-final with 177 points, and in the grand final, it reached second place with 547 points.

Croatia won the public vote but finished in second place in the overall tally. This is Croatia’s best achievement in all its years of participation.

Source:  Hurricaneeur

Eurovision 2025: This will be Croatia’s 30th participation in the Eurovision Song Contest. Croatia joined the competition in 1993 and achieved its best result in Eurovision 2024 by finishing in second place with the song “Rim Tim Tagi Dim” performed by the singer Baby Lasagna.