Eric Lehman from Luxembourg started out as a Eurovision fan, attending his first contest in Birmingham, England, in 1998 after Katrina & the Waves won in 1997 with 'Love Shine a Light'. Lehman eventually became a journalist, reporting for various media in his country, even though the Grand Duchy withdrew from the competition in 1994.
Nine years later, when the song contest was held in Riga, Latvia, Lehman stayed an extra day.
“I invited a close friend of mine to my hotel room for coffee. We discussed the possible return of Luxembourg. At that point we hadn't participated in 10 years. My friend said, “Why don't you try to tell them what the benefits are of coming back and participating in the Eurovision Song Contest? You are well equipped with all your Eurovision knowledge and you have all those contacts. Why don't you reach out and tell them if they need a head of agency, you're the perfect choice.' I was very reluctant because I thought I would be too young for it. He said, “No, just go ahead and propose it.”
Fast forward to 2024. Lehman's badge of accreditation lists his name and title: head of agency.
There aren't many things Eurovision Song Contest fans hate about the long-running, pan-European competition – but one of them is when countries quit. But as much as they hate it when it happens, they love it when it comes back.
The small European nation was there at the start of Eurovision in 1956, one of seven countries in that inaugural show. Luxembourg consistently returned to the competition every year until 1993, missing out only in 1959.
Things went south in 1994. Seven new countries were accepted, bringing the total number of participants who wanted to take part to 32, too many for one broadcast. A relegation system was implemented and the six lowest scoring countries in the 1993 competition were out. Goodbye Belgium, Israel, Denmark, Slovenia, Turkey and Luxembourg. Italy withdrew voluntarily.
All these nations returned, sooner or later. But not Luxembourg – until now.
Eric Lehman was 10 years old in 1988. “I saw Eurovision with my family,” he says Advertising sign. “My father worked for RTL, the national television station in Luxembourg, and had worked on the 1984 competition, the last time Luxembourg hosted [after a 1983 win with “Si La Vie Est Cadeau” by Corinne Hermès]. As a kid, I was allowed to stay up very late at night because the show would end at midnight CET. We were represented in 1988 by Lara Fabian, who became a big star. It was the same year that Celine Dion sang for Switzerland. Lara was in first place so I was really excited. I thought we might win. I like geography and hearing different languages and I like music and TV production, so Eurovision gave me everything I wanted.”
In 1998, having access to the Internet to buy a ticket, Lehman traveled to Birmingham alone to be in public for the first time. “I met so many people and joined the local fan club and went on to be president in 2000. There are 42 chapters today.”
Lehman's next step was to cover Eurovision for the Luxembourg media, including RTL, Radio Luxembourg and local newspapers. He then joined various delegations over the years, including Lithuania, Turkey and France. He also returned as a journalist to Luxembourg TV.
All the while, Lehman was determined to bring Luxembourg back into the Eurovision fold. “I fought very hard. I wanted to be the face of Eurovision in Luxembourg. I organized annual fundraisers for Televie, a television marathon that raises funds to fight cancer and leukemia. It was all about Eurovision, so we made Eurovision popular again at home.”
Lehman was at the competition in Turin (2022) and Liverpool (2023) and did “massive coverage” for RTL. “I started a big campaign with our previous prime minister, Xavier Bettel.” Lehman and Bettel had an hour-long meeting with RTL CEO Christophe Goossens.
“It took me three weeks to prepare this presentation. I got in touch with 14 delegation heads, EBU staff and former contest producers to find out all the information we would need to find out what it takes to take part in Eurovision and what it costs.”
Lehman, who says he doesn't even break a sweat in the gym, felt drops of water run down his spine during the presentation. “I knew this was the moment. If we don't convince them now, we never will. We explained what the benefits are, that Eurovision has a large audience, especially young people aged 15 to 29. This is very interesting for them. And it's not about the three minutes on stage. It is good for the whole country – branding the nation, creating new music, promoting and highlighting new local talent and allowing a group of singers and songwriters to collaborate with foreign composers and labels. It's a way to expand your music industry to the rest of the world.”
Shortly afterwards, Lehman received a call from RTL asking if she would take the job of head of delegation for Luxembourg's return to Eurovision.
Thus began the search for candidates to represent the country after a gap of 31 years. “We went through the selection process with a nationally televised competition. We received over 500 entries. From this field, we selected 70 songs to listen to. And from those 70, we selected eight singers to compete in a national final.”
One of those eight performers was Tali, an Israeli-born singer living in Luxembourg. She was in New York studying theater when Lehman called and asked if she would consider representing Luxembourg at Eurovision.
And what about the friend who told Lehman she should pursue her dream all those years ago?
“Last year when I was appointed HOD, I knew I had to find him. We haven't been in touch for years because he stopped coming to Eurovision in 2007. I didn't have his phone number or email address. I checked Facebook and other social media and couldn't find him. Then I traveled to Malmö. I was in the lobby of the official delegation hotel on the day of the opening ceremony and saw him after 17 years. I stood up and said, “Do you remember me?” I'm Eric from Luxembourg.” He recognized me immediately and we talked for a while and later at dinner I showed him my badge and said, “Remember what we said back in 2003 in the hotel room?” He started crying and I said to him: “I was looking for you because I wanted to tell you that your idea and my dream came true. I became head of the Luxembourg delegation and brought the country back.' Can you imagine? Twenty-one years later, it happened. It's a complete coincidence because he hadn't attended the pageant for 17 years. And just when I was thinking of him, he was there.”
Tali will sing “Fighter” for Luxembourg in the grand final of the Eurovision Song Contest 2024. She is fourth in line. US viewers can watch the four-hour live broadcast on Saturday, May 11 at 3 p.m. ET.
from our partners at https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/luxembourg-eurovision-return-1235680782/