🇨🇭 Road to Malmö: Switzerland

In the spotlight: Nemo

photo: EBU

We can not wait for the Eurovision Song Contest in Malmö. Therefore, we have a closer look at one of the contestants every day. Today: Switzerland.

Nemo

Nemo Mettler, known as Nemo, was born on August 3, 1999, in Biel/Bienne, Switzerland. Speaking German naturally, Nemo stepped into the spotlight in 2012, acting in a musical inspired by Udo JĂĽrgens’ famous song. By 2015, Nemo showcased their rap skills on “Die grössten Schweizer Talente” and released their first EP, “Clownfisch,” which made a splash in the Swiss music charts. Their 2017 hit “Du” climbed to 4th place, earning them the SRF 3 Best Talent award. Choosing Berlin as their new home in 2021, Nemo also participated in “The Masked Singer Switzerland” as the Panda, finishing fifth. A pivotal moment came in November 2023, when Nemo publicly identified as non-binary, adopting they/them pronouns. In a thrilling announcement on February 29, 2024, Nemo was chosen to represent Switzerland at the Eurovision Song Contest 2024 with their song “The Code,” promising an exciting performance on the international stage.

Non-binary artists in Eurovision

2024 is a special year in Eurovision. No less than three participants identify as non-binary. It is the first time in Eurovision that people, participating, have come out as non-binary at the moment of their participation. Apart from Nemo, als Bambie Thug (Ireland) is non-binary. Their pronouns are they and them. Olly Alexander already came out in 2016: “I feel very non-binary, and you know, I identify as gay and queer and non-binary.” However, he identifies as he and him.
The reason that this only happens in 2024 is the term non-binary. People who do not (solely) identify as male or female only use the term since not too long ago. As said, Olly Alexander used the term in 2016. 
Artists who later came out as non-binary are Jamie-Lee (2016, Germany), Rykka (2016, Switzerland), Montaigne (2021, Australia) and Roxen (2021, Romania).

Switzerland in the Eurovision Song Contest

Switzerland takes part in the Eurovision Song Contest from the first moment on. They even organized the first contest in Lugano, ánd their contestant Lys Assia won it with the song “Refrain”. It took a long time before the second Swiss victory was there. In 1988, it was Celine Dion who did the job. In those years she was quite unknown and sang “Ne partez pas sans moi”. Oh, how things have changed since then!

The Bookmakers

Currently, the bookmakers think that Swiss Nemo will be the winner. Ever since they took over the first place from Croatian Baby Lasagna, their change to win is groing more and more. Who knows, next year we will head to ZĂĽrich, or Geneva, or Basel, or…..

The song

And this is the song:

 

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