More than two years after Russia invaded Ukraine, the latter nation will once again send one of its best entries to the Eurovision Song Contest to represent its beleaguered nation on the world stage. Alyona Alyona and Jerry Heil will sing 'Teresa & Maria', a song about the strength, courage and resilience of Ukrainian women at the 68th Pan-European competition, which will be held on May 11 in Malmö, Sweden.
Alyona Alyona (real name: Aliona Olehivna Savranenko) and Jerry Heil (real name: Yana Oleksandrivna Shemaieva) were both solo artists before becoming a duo. “We knew each other before we made music together because our market is smaller than America,” explains Heil. “So all the artists know each other, but we started being productive when the big invasion started. I was a refugee [in Sweden at first] and Alyona volunteered in Ukraine for several months. I kept asking her music producer, “Where's Alyona? Comes; Why is she putting herself in danger?' Finally, he came to Europe to generate some donations with concerts. We started doing this together and working on an album that consisted of eight songs. People started sending us “Go to Eurovision” messages. At first we said, 'Ha-ha, of course' and here we are.”
“People in Ukraine wanted this,” says Alyona. “So we decided to unite and remind the European public how united they were in the beginning for the great invasion.” Heil adds, “It's really important to us because we want people to know that there's not just a war going on in Ukraine. We want you to feel empathy for Ukraine, to feel that we are equal, to feel that we are the same people as you and to know our culture and listen to our music. If you don't know what a country's music sounds like, you don't know the face of the nation. You feel nothing for them, and we want you to feel something for us, because our culture goes so deep into history and can bring so many new things to the world. We want you to see and hear it. And our song has a mission.
“We're talking about people who live maybe not perfect lives and make some mistakes, but in the end they do good. If you unite kindness and love, you can win the war. You can change the world. You can leave something for the children and the children's children. It's important,” says Alyona.
For their Eurovision entry, “Teresa and Maria”, Hale explains that “[Ukrainian] women carry such a heavy world on their shoulders and still manage to be divas. But we're all born human, so we make mistakes, but ultimately, you define yourself by your actions.”
In addition to performing at Eurovision, Heil and Alyona have another mission – to raise money for the Velykokostromska School. In July 2023, a Russian missile destroyed his high school and forced the school to close. Through the government foundation United24, Alyona and Heil aim to raise 10 million hryvnias (over $250,000) to rebuild the facility and allow 250 children to return to school.
“A lot of schools were destroyed, but we're working on this one,” Heil says. “It was historic and very beautiful,” adds Alyona, “but they destroyed more than 450 schools and educational buildings.” “You have to rebuild the past to build the future,” Hale says. Alyona and Heil are offering a prize to one lucky donor. “One person will win a Zoom meeting with us and we can talk to you, we can even sing for you, whatever you want us to do, but something normal!” Hale explains. “You can make a small donation, like $10,” adds Alyona.
Meanwhile, the two women promote their Eurovision song and performance while missiles hit targets in Ukraine. “War is part of our song,” says Heil. “We can't separate this. The song was created under attack and under alarm. Sometimes we feel that war is nothing because it has become a part of our lives. But subconsciously we are always stressed. And leaving the country is more stressful than coming back here.”
If Alyona and Heil are triumphant in Malmö, it will be Ukraine's fourth Eurovision win. In 2004, Ruslana brought the trophy home for the first time with “Wild Dances”. Jamala won in 2016 with “1944,” a song about the expulsion of the Crimean Tatars from the Soviet Union. And in 2022, a few months after Russia invaded Ukraine, the Kalush Orchestra won with “Stefania,” a song about a Ukrainian mother that became a war anthem.
Additionally, if Alyona and Heil do win, music director Tanu Muino, born in Odesa, Ukraine, will have played a role. Having previously worked on videos for Harry Styles (“As It Was”) and Lil Nas X (“Montero (Call Me By Your Name)”), Muino directs the duo's stage show.
“You can imagine how we felt when we realized we were going to be working with her,” says Heil. “She's incredibly talented and what she's doing is so important to us because she's not only a talented Ukrainian who started working in Hollywood, but she's done something that no one in the music industry has done before her and we're so proud of her.” “It's part of our culture,” adds Alyona. “Well, it's a union of Ukrainian divas.”
The Eurovision Song Contest 2024 grand final will be broadcast live in the US on Peacock at 3pm. ET on May 11.
from our partners at https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/alyona-alyona-jerry-heil-eurovision-ukraine-1235670029/
