After announcing that eight songs remained in Austria’s selection process, five names out of the seven contenders to represent the country at Eurovision 2025 in Basel have now been revealed.

Austria announced in July that it would choose its representative for Eurovision 2025 in Basel, Switzerland, through an internal selection, as it has done every year since 2017, after calling for artists to submit songs. Now, after the song submission window has closed and it was announced that the Austrian national broadcaster ORF had only eight songs left in the selection process to represent the country in the competition, five names of artists out of the seven remaining after the screening has been revealed.

Leading Candidates for Eurovision 2025

Although the Austrian national broadcaster (ORF) is keeping the names of the candidates to represent the country secret, several artists have hinted at their candidacy for the Eurovision Song Contest through their social media activities or even confirmed it through their managers. Who are these artists, you ask? Let’s get to know them.

Philip Piller

Philip Piller, one of the well-known names in Austria who was born in Upper Bavaria and currently resides in Vienna, has gained extensive experience in musical reality shows. This includes participation in “Starmania” in 2021, “The Voice of Germany”, and “Die große Chance – Let’s sing and dance” this year. Piller focuses on pop songs in German and isn’t afraid to sing about personal topics in his songs. Interestingly, he is on the list with two different songs, which increases his chances of being chosen.

Johannes Pietsch

Johannes Pietsch, who also stood out in “Starmania” in 2021 and even participated in “The Voice UK”, spent most of his childhood in Dubai. His musical style differs from that of other artists. At age 11, he had a formative experience when he watched Mozart’s “The Magic Flute” at the Vienna State Opera. This experience deeply influenced his musical direction. In 2022, at the age of 21, he sang the role of the first boy in the same opera, hinting at the stylistic direction he might take at Eurovision.

Dominic “Dodo” Muhrer

Dominic Muhrer, known by his nickname “Dodo,” is the lead singer of the band The Makemakes, which represented Austria in the Eurovision Song Contest 2015 in Vienna with the song “I Am Yours.” Despite an impressive performance that included a burning piano, the band finished without any points in the final. This unfortunate outcome led to Austria becoming the first country to host the competition and receive no points. Now, Dodo is trying is luck as a solo artist, and reportedly sent a song in a local dialect.

Kayla Krystin

Kayla Krystin, whose real name is Michaela Rimml, is a 29-year-old singer from Tyrol. She recently released her fourth single, “Queen of Hearts”, which is not intended for Eurovision. Her previous three singles managed to enter radio playlists in the United States and Australia, indicating the international potential of her songs. A few weeks ago, Kayla performed as an opening act for Jackson 3 at the Krone Circus in Munich, where she impressed the audience with her soulful voice.

NNOA

NNOA, whose real name is Christina Kerschner, is a graduate of the Pop Academy in Mannheim. She is a regular singer in the musical project DelaDap, which participated in the preliminary round of “Austria rocks the Song Contest” in 2012. Musically, she is a very versatile artist, but she defines her style as pop influenced by R&B. She recently released the song “UFO”, which was a finalist in last year’s ORF internal selection for Eurovision in Malmö.

Final Decision Process

The final decision will be made by ORF’s program director, Stefanie Groiss-Horowitz, following recommendations from an expert panel and international fan clubs. The process includes consultations with music industry professionals, artists, and songwriters.

Austria in Eurovision 2024

Austria was represented by Kaleen with the song “We Will Rave”. She performed in the second semi-final, qualifying to the grand final, where she closed the show and finished in 24th place with 24 points.

Source: ESC compact, kleinezeitung