KALUCH ORCHESTRA. With the song “Stefania”, the Ukrainian group Kalush Orchestra won a big victory at Eurovision 2022 last May.
Kalush Orchestra, spokesperson for Ukraine. Currently in Paris to raise awareness of the war that is hitting their country, the group is invited on the set of Yann Barthès, in Quotidien, this Monday, June 20, 2022. Their objective is to raise funds to help the Ukrainian people, at war with Russia for four months.
To do this, Kalush Orchestra sold its trophy, won at Eurovision last May 14 and thus donated 900,000 dollars to the Ukrainian army. Quite a symbol after their overwhelming victory at Eurovision. “Our victory has helped lift the spirits and warm the hearts of many Ukrainians. We now travel to many European countries to show our music, tell stories about Ukraine and raise funds to help the populations”, confides Oleh Psiuk, the singer of Kalush Orchestra, in the columns of the Parisian.
In addition to its charismatic singer recognizable by its pink bob, the Ukrainian group, formed in 2019, is made up of six members: rapper Oleh Psiuk therefore, Ihor Didenchuk, Vlad Kurochka (the three original members of the formation), Vitalii Duzhyk, Tymofii Muzychuk and Oleksandr Slobodianyk. It is the rapper Oleh Psiuk who initiates the project, initially baptized Kalouch, in reference to his birthplace, in the west of Ukraine.
The first song of the now named Kalush Orchestra, Ne marynouireleased on October 17, 2019, followed by a second clip, ty honych. In 2021, the group publishes two albums, Hotin and io-io. In February 2022, the formation took part in the Ukrainian selection for Eurovision, a program called Vidbir, in which he ranks second. But after the withdrawal of the winner after a controversy linked to a trip to Crimea and Russia, it is Kalush Orchestra which becomes the Ukrainian standard bearer in Turin, with the song Stefania.
Ukraine’s victory. A symbol in the midst of war with Russia: the group Kalush Orchestra was crowned winner of Eurovision 2022 with its song Stefania May 14, 2022. The Ukrainian formation has (very) largely imposed itself on its 24 competitors, ahead of the United Kingdom (2nd) and Sweden (3rd). Twelfth in the running order of the evening, the Ukrainians ignited the public in Turin, Italy, where this edition was held on Saturday May 14, 2022.
A craze confirmed by the points awarded to Ukraine: the public rewarded Kalush Orchestra with 439 points, a record in the history of Eurovision, no country having ever obtained such a score from the public. In total, Ukraine finished with 631 points. It must be said that for weeks, Ukraine pranced at the top of the forecasts of international bookmakers, who lent Kalush Orchestra a 60% chance of winning.
Relive their performance below:
We said it, so it’s with the song Stefania that the Ukrainian group Kalush Orchestra won Eurovision 2022. Originally, the song, composed long before the Russian invasion, was written by Oleh Psiuk in tribute to his mother. But today, the lyrics sound completely different: “I will always find my way home, even if all the roads are destroyed,” sings the band, for example.
“Since the beginning of the war, (the song) has taken on an even wider resonance, because many mothers miss their children. This song has come closer to the hearts of many Ukrainians. But we also hope that many people around the world will be able to identify with this title”, explains Oleh Psiuk to Entertainment TV.