Holding the title of Eurovision winner

As Malta gears up to cheer Firelight, our representatives at this year’s Eurovision Song Contest, Jo Caruana catches up with last year’s winner Emmelie De Forest.

Emmelie De Forest blends into her chic entourage as she walks to the hotel check-in. Within minutes, she has removed her shoes and taken up her trademark barefoot stance. Plonked on a sofa and sipping a large glass of water, she chats away to me as though we are old friends.

Although when we meet, before the Malta Eurovision final, she has only been on the island for a few hours, De Forest feels right at home and looking forward to her upcoming performance, as well as having a few hours to sightsee.

“This is my first trip to Malta and I am so excited to be here,” she says, adding that her uncle has told her all about the scuba diving scene.

“I have also heard about how much the Maltese love the Eurovision. It’s always fun to play to an eager crowd.”

She goes on to explain that she also knows a little about Malta through her Eurovision experience. She was a fan of our “really cute” singer from last year (Gianluca), whom she didn’t meet but whose performance she admired.

“He was great and the fact he’s a doctor too is amazing. I also remember I’ll Be Your Angel by Chiara a few years back. I thought that was a fantastic song and it’s evident there’s a lot of talent here.”

De Forest has loved the Eurovision since she was a little girl. Her father is from Sweden, where the competition is very popular and she grew up watching the show year in, year out. She recalls when Denmark (her home country) won the competition in 2007 with the song Fly On The Wings of Love.

“The singers returned home as heroes after that and I recall looking up to them and knowing I wanted to emulate their success,” she says.

An announcement popped up on screen showing the Danish flag and announcing me as the winner. I knew then that all my dreams had come true

“Although I’d watched the Eurovision on TV for years, I’d never been to a live show. The first time I was there live I went on to win it, which was pretty incredible.”

Despite the fact that she was tipped as one of the favourites all along last year, the 20-year-old singer didn’t expect to win – especially as she didn’t get any points from the first country that voted.

“But, by the time the second country voted, we started to inch up the board and it got exciting. In the end we were announced as the winners before the final votes had even come in as we were far into the lead. Then an announcement popped up on screen showing the Danish flag and I knew all my dreams had come true.”

De Forest recalls that one of the her highlights from that night came as she walked down the bridge to collect her trophy – stopping to say hello to her mother, brother and his girlfriend, all of whom had been resolutely supportive of her journey that far. She then performed her winning song again before heading to the first of hundreds of press calls, press conferences and interviews.

A day later she was also given a hero’s welcome when she returned to Demark. So much so that 15,000 people gathered to celebrate with her in Tivoli, in the centre of Copenhagen.

“There was a funfair on and the atmosphere was incredible. I went on stage to sing my song, as well as the Danish national anthem, while the crowd cheered. I think it was then that I realised the magnitude of what had happened. It was overwhelming and I was ecstatic.”

De Forest actually started her music career when she was just 14. She studied singing, toured her works with her mother supporting her as a ‘roadie’, and recorded at different studios. She now makes her full-time living through music.

As a result of winning the Eurovision Song Contest, De Forest believes her life has changed in every conceivable way. She has since travelled the world performing and released an album of her songs. She is now working on her second album, which she hopes will be released later on this year, and is going on tour with her new work.

Looking back on the performance that transformed her into an international star, De Forest believes it was the honesty of the number that really set it apart.

“It was so true to me,” she says, reliving the excitement of that moment in Azerbaijan last year. “I decided everything about the performance and knew I didn’t want an intricate choreography but rather actions explaining the meaning of the song. It was brilliant to perform alongside my drummers as they added so much drama to the result.”

De Forest believes that her audiences also related well to the message of the song – a simple ideology on how to treat people and how everything can go wrong if it’s not dealt with correctly.

“I love having strong messages in my songs. Even if I haven’t written them myself I have to relate to them on a certain level. Rainmaker, which is the song I debuted at the Malta Eurovision, also has a key message about the environment and the future.”

Now De Forest is eagerly looking forward to her role at this year’s Eurovision event in Denmark, where she will be proud to hand the baton to the next winner.

As for her advice to Firelight, this year’s Malta Eurovision entry?

“Enjoy every moment because it all goes so quickly,” she says with a knowing smile.

“You’re going to get nervous, but that’s OK. I still get nervous now, which I think is a good thing. Also, take a moment to let it sink in – that special moment on stage with your team. I remember doing that myself right before we walked on, and I knew we were ready. The journey since then has been incredible and I can’t wait to experience the rest of it.”