He’s the revelation of Eurovision. Singer JJ, who represented Austria at the 69th edition of the globally famous song contest, won the coveted glass microphone in Basel on Saturday, May 17. “It’s absolutely crazy, my dreams have come true,” marveled JJ, whose real name is Johannes Pietsch, at the post-competition press conference. “It’s incredible.” The 24-year-old Filipino-Austrian won with 436 points. He was ahead of Israeli contestant Yuval Raphael, who came second with 357 points, just one point ahead of Estonian Tommy Cash and his controversial song “Espresso Macchiato.”
With each passing performance, JJ solidified his position as the clear favorite. Not because of any shortcomings in the other twenty-five candidates (although the standard was lower this year) but because of his excellence, which immediately set him apart from the rest of the group. Endowed with a countertenor voice (the highest range among men) capable of catching excessively high notes, he delivered a performance as delicate as it was powerful. With its false airs of innocent pop balladry, the song surprises with airy operatic swerves before its frenetic grand finale with techno accents. The almost three minutes of condensed pop opera gave him time to demonstrate the quality of his vocal technique. “Wasted Love,” which he co-wrote and co-composed, evokes a drifting love into which his protagonist throws himself, leading him to his doom. This is his first and only recorded track to date.
JJ —the stage name he chose for himself after being nicknamed by his friends — was born in Vienna in 2001, to a mother from the Philippines, a cook by trade, and an Austrian father who works as an IT specialist. He grew up in Dubai before returning to his hometown in 2016. Eurovision was not his first singing competition. In 2020, he took part in the English version of the The Voice, joining Will.i.am‘s team, before finishing, the following year, among the finalists of the Austrian show Starmania. At the same time, he won over classical music fans by performing supporting roles at the Vienna Opera. He honed his techniques at the MUK, Vienna’s demanding private art and music university, while drawing inspiration from his role models, the immense sopranos Maria Callas, Montserrat Caballé and Anna Netrebko, along with Whitney Houston and Mariah Carey.
“What a success! What a voice! What a show!” said Austrian President Alexander Van der Bellen on X. “Dear JJ, congratulations on your brilliant first place at the Eurovision Song Contest. All of Austria is delighted!”
This was Austria’s third victory, after Udo Jürgens, winner in 1966 who performed “Merci, Chérie,” and then Conchita Wurst, in 2014, with “Rise Like a Phoenix.” The latter took JJ under her wing. “When JJ sings, it’s like the clocks stop ticking,” she commented to AFP, emphasizing how “impressive” the performer is.
In the meantime, JJ will have to forgo the week off he had planned for himself to recover from this adventure, he confided after his victory. On the agenda: weeks of writing and recording his first EP. Plus he’s already thinking about hosting Eurovision in Austria next year. If possible in the capital, he asks, as his boyfriend lives there, which would enable him “to have practical accommodation.”
Originally published in Vanity Fair France.
