Amid expected changes backstage at Eurovision 2025 and the Eurovision 2024 events in Malmö, past contestants share their experiences of mental challenges during the competition.

The Eurovision Song Contest 2024 in Malmö, Sweden, will be remembered not only for its dramatic moments, political controversies, and widespread statements from artists but also as a competition that changed how we, the fans, and the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) view the contestants and the immense mental pressure they face.

Following the dramatic disqualification of Dutch representative Joost Klein after an incident with a production photographer and his subsequent refusal to return for Eurovision 2025, despite an offer from the Dutch national broadcaster, various past Eurovision contestants have shared their experiences about the intense pressure of participating in Eurovision and how mental health plays a crucial role in their well-being during the competition. So, are the expected changes for Eurovision 2025 indeed appropriate? It seems that the EBU has taken a step in the right direction.

Artists Speak Out: The Psychological Toll of Eurovision

Baby Lasagna – Croatia’s Representative in Eurovision 2024

Baby Lasagna, who won the televote, led the betting odds, and finished second (a record result for Croatia in Eurovision), shares his experience:

“My advice for any future Eurovision Song Contest contendant, maybe think more about your mental health while you’re over there… To be honest with you, during the time, I didn’t recognize under how much pressure I really am. When we got back home and when things, you know, settled down a little bit, I was looking back on it and I was like, ‘wow, I was actually really stressed out’ and I just didn’t recognize it at the moment.”

The singer adds: “Eurovision is a very stressful environment, you have months of work invested in those two nights (semi-final and final). It’s crazy, nobody knows about you and then the next day you have sold-out shows in London.”

Isaak – Germany’s Representative in Eurovision 2024

Germany’s Eurovision 2024 representative, Isaak, also felt the pressure. Throughout the season, Isaak observed the political dramas, which could undoubtedly affect everyone’s mental stress behind the scenes and consistently spoke out against this phenomenon. He shares his experiences during the competition:

“They drop you in a situation, they’re like, ‘OK, we’re going to do this and that and that.’ They don’t ask you, they just tell you, and then you have to decide. This is a very high stress level. Do whatever you think is right, not what you think people might say could be right.”

Gåte – Norway’s Representatives in Eurovision 2024

The band Gåte, representing Norway in Eurovision 2024 and finishing last in the final, also shared their feelings, after also considering withdrawing from the competition until the last moment.

“We were crying. This wasn’t the Eurovision that we wanted to be in. They didn’t live up to their values, this year, not at all. To the very last minute, a lot of the artists, we were talking together, we talked about not doing it (participating in Eurovision)… When it’s over, the light turns off and it gets very quiet, and just, be prepared for that.”

Damiano David (Måneskin) – Italy’s Representative and Eurovision 2021 Winner

The significant mental challenges experienced by artists this year were apparently not new, but a phenomenon that had begun in previous competitions. This can be understood from the words of Måneskin’s lead singer, Damiano David, whose band won Eurovision 2021 for Italy:

“I had to kind of shut down my emotional part in order to be able to hold that pressure.”

In light of the expected changes for Eurovision 2025, it’s clear that the European Broadcasting Union understands the many mental challenges artists face alongside the intensive preparations for Eurovision, and that it’s part of their role to ensure that behind the scenes, the situation will be as calm as possible, while actively working for the contestants’ well-being.

What’s Expected to Change in Eurovision 2025?

While no situation of mental stress justifies the use of violence or threats, physical or mental, which those alleged claims led to the disqualification incident of Dutch representative Joost Klein, it apparently started from significant mental pressure. According to Dutch national broadcaster AVROTROS, the European Broadcasting Union signed an agreement with them regarding filming the singer backstage, but the Dutch never published the agreement, while the European Broadcasting Union denies its existence.

We recently reported that in an interview given this week by the Chairperson of the ESC Reference group, Bakel Walden, it was clarified that artists will be given a private space where they will not be filmed, in order to ensure their mental and physical well-being during preparations and rehearsals. AVROTROS general director Taco Zimmermann confirmed Walden’s statement that changes will be made to the behind-the-scenes filming policy in the upcoming competition.

An AVROTROS spokesperson explained: “[Filming] is now a lot more restricted and it is also really forbidden for people to just approach artists behind the scenes. That must first go through a Head of Media who then has to give permission. So no one can be unexpectedly confronted with a camera anymore.” In fact, this dramatic statement confirms that anyone who wants to film the artists backstage, including EBU representatives themselves, will need explicit permission from the head of the relevant delegation’s media department, including accompanying media representatives who come to the competition as part of the national delegation.

Will this step be enough? Probably not. However, it’s a step in the right direction by the EBU, who are responsible for the well-being of artists at Eurovision. While reducing backstage filming and giving artists the opportunity to relax from the stress of rehearsals, interviews, and press conferences is a helpful and perhaps even necessary step, the EBU’s next and even more important step will need to be maintaining Eurovision’s apolitical nature and ensuring that artists focus on the competition itself and the music, not on various political issues in the world, especially not those of the countries competing in the contest, before the Eurovision final has ended.