Ukraine music band Kalush Orchestra calls for help post Eurovision 2022 victory

Ukrainian band Kalush Orchestra was crowned champion of the Eurovision Song Contest on Saturday in a global show of solidarity with the country braving the Russian invasion. The band performed a Ukrainian language song called “Stefania” which was a rap fused with traditional folk music. The song was a tribute to band founder and frontman Oleh Psiuk’s mother, however in the wake of the Kremlin's military assault, it became a patriotic anthem.

“I’ll always find my way home, even if all roads are destroyed," reads the lyrics of the song, which has now become a symbol of Ukraine's resistance. 

'Please help Azovstal ! Please help Mariupol'

Meanwhile, the leader of the Kalush Orchestra group, after his performance at the Eurovision 2022 finale, addressed the world community from the stage and shouted: "Please help Azovstal, help Mariupol!". His clarion call came as dozens of soldiers from the Azovstal Battalion remain trapped inside the Soviet-era steel plant.

Zelenskyy celebrates the country's victory 

Ukraine's embattled president Volodymyr Zelenskyy was quick to celebrate Sunday’s victory. In a statement, the 44-year leader said that “we will do our best” to host next year’s contest in the besieged port city of Mariupol. "Our courage impresses the world, our music conquers Europe!", the President said, adding " We will do everything so that one day the participants and guests of Eurovision hosted Ukrainian Mariupol. Free, Peaceful and Restored". 

More about Kalush Orchestra's Stefania

Kalush Orchestra's song Stefania took the internet by storm amid the Russia-Ukraine war. The song became one of the most viewed tracks on YouTube among the 35 national entries that made their way to Eurovision 2022. As per a report by NME, the frontman of the band, Oleh Psiuk, earlier this week, reacted to the band's achievement and mentioned how he composed and dedicated Stefania to his mother and added that the track acquired lots of nuances as many people were perceiving as if their homeland is their mother amid the war.

"To represent Ukraine in the international arena is always a responsibility, but to represent it during the war is just the highest responsibility possible. The song was composed and dedicated to my mother, but after the war the song has acquired lots of nuances because a lot of people are perceiving it as if Ukraine is my mother. That’s why the song has become so close to the Ukrainian people, and it is in the Ukrainian hearts,' Psiuk said. 

(Image: AP)