Eurovision — the world’s most watched non-sporting event and the longest-running annual TV music competition — is fast approaching! Now in its 69th year, with more viewers than the Super Bowl, it’s also a spectacle beloved by Queer fans around the globe for its boundary breaking, both politically and musically (as reflected in its slogan: “United through Music”).

Who are the Queer artists representing their countries this year in Basel, Switzerland, in May? Might one of them join other recent Queer winners (Sweden’s Loreen, 2012 and 2023; Austria’s Conchita Wurst, 2014; the Netherlands’ Duncan Laurence, 2019; and Switzerland’s Nemo from last year)? Here’s a rundown:

Austria: JJ (Johannes Pietsch), “Wasted Love”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ieSTNpxvio

Multilingual “JJ,” 23, who is of Filipino descent, grew up in Dubai before moving back to Austria in 2016. He studied classical music and is a member of the Vienna State Opera company. In 2021, he reached the final of the Austrian talent competition Starmania.

According to Wikipedia, “Pietsch's musical style combines elements of opera and pop. As a … countertenor with a range reaching into high soprano heights, he explores both genres through an intense and expressive vocal and interpretative approach.”

His Eurovision song “Wasted Love,” concerning the torment of an unrequited love, employs “pop-opera” (heard also in last year’s winning song, “The Code”), blending with “lyrical elements in a crescendo that flows into techno sounds.” (It’s also been occupying second place on the betting charts.)

He told Queer.de in March, “Classical music is truly something unifying and very beautiful. Many pop songs you hear on the radio today have classical elements... It was also important to me to combine my two musical worlds.”

Asked about being Queer, he added, “Yes, absolutely. I'm Queer myself, and I'm happy to represent the community and give it a voice. I'm now, so to speak, the voice of the Queer community in Austria.... My personal message would simply be to love one another, because love is the most beautiful thing in the world and hate is the most terrible.

Belgium: Red Sebastian (Seppe Herreman), “Strobe Lights”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ScupiVTosHU

Seppe Herreman burst on to the music scene when he made the final of Belgium’s Got Talent at age 14 in 2013. In 2021, while studying pop vocals at the Royal Conservatory of Ghent — under, among others, Gustaph, Belgium’s (Gay) 2023 Eurovision representative — his stage persona of “Red Sebastian” (inspired by The Little Mermaid) was born.

“Red means love and passion. It also means fire [and] ambition, and those are things I like to express on stage,” he told Eurovisionworld.com in April.

Recently, he won the Flemish show Sing Again. He is also an accomplished pianist.

“Strobe Lights,” called “a "suggestive and dark dance song,” is a techno tribute to rave culture.

Eurovoix reported on X in April that Red Sebastian came out as Gay.

Croatia: Marko Bošnjak, “Poison Cake”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ie_v6qGCc5w

The Bosnian-Croat singer first rose to fame in 2015 as the winner of the second season of a Serbian talent show. The official Eurovision site describes Bošnjak as “one of the leaders of a new generation of musicians who are making their mark and setting trends on the Croatian music scene… [he] aims to defy genres and stereotypes.”

His song “Poison Cake” — described as a mix of “pop, garage, opera, and some very dark industrial beats” — is a story of revenge and standing up for oneself. Following its victory in the national selection, Bošnjak, the first openly Gay musician in Croatia, was the target of widespread homophobic backlash online, and the song was accused of being “satanic.”

As for being Gay, Bošnjak told Jutarni.hr in March, "I'm proud of who I am. I think that a lot of people in Croatia are still primitive and have a narrow understanding of the world. I don't hold it against them, and I think they need to refer back to the Christian love that they promote…

“I am proud of who I am, and I want to live it openly and not hide it. That is something I want to focus on because there is no need to live life insincerely. We need to live life to the fullest and authentically."

In April, he told Wiwibloggs, “I definitely feel like [coming out] was the right thing to do. But a lot of people reacted super, super bad to it, because we still have a lot of work to do when it comes to Queer acceptance in the Balkans… So I’m definitely putting on a thick skin… if they want to be homophobic, because then in a few years, somebody else is going to have it easier. So I know that … visibility is the first step toward acceptance.”

What do people say in Herzegovina, where Bošnjak grew up?

"People who are truly open-minded and open-hearted are proud that I … [have] achieved something so great. There are those who are ashamed of me, but I think the shame is theirs. Shame needs to change sides in today's society," he told Jutarni.hr.

Czechia: Adonxs (Adam Pavlovčin), “Kiss Kiss Goodbye”)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hm8CIICKAJU

Adonxs — a Slovak songwriter, dancer, model, and lead singer of PACE before embarking on a solo career — was the first out Queer winner of the joint Czech-Slovak version of Pop Idol, describing his victory as a "huge step forward" for those societies.

“His often gender-nonconforming outfits stirred controversy throughout the competition,” reported Bimm.ac.uk, “to which Adam responded: ‘Clothes don’t have a gender.’”

In Elle, he said: "I believe my victory has helped pave the way for other Queer entertainers, actors, or politicians to come out and not be afraid to be their authentic, Queer selves."

He then moved to London to study songwriting and creative musicianship at the BIMM Music Institute, working as a server at a Gay bar to make ends meet. In an interview with Esquire, he defined his style as "London Queer pop culture influenced."

According to the Eurovision Song Contest Wiki, he is a five-time national champion in street dance and has performed with Robbie Williams, Leona Lewis, and Nicole Scherzinger. In 2022, he won “Singer of the Year” and “Musical Discovery” from the Czech radio station Evropa 2.

His Eurovision song “Kiss Kiss Goodbye” — a dramatic ballad with a dance break — is, he says, “a story of a flawed, wounded hero who, at a crucial moment, is willing to sacrifice a great leap for humanity in the hope of healing a painful wound in his heart. It’s about how love drives and shapes us — but so does its absence.”

Adonxs chose his stage name as a tribute to Adonis, the Greek god of beauty and desire, whose androgynous depiction reflects Adonxs’ own exploration of gender fluidity, according to Wiwibloggs.

He came out as Gay to his parents two weeks after “falling madly in love” with a boy at 18, according to Wikipedia. He has since performed at Pride parades in Brighton, Bratislava, and Prague, as well as a protest march in memory of two Queer victims of the 2022 terrorist attack outside an LGBT bar in Bratislava, Slovakia.

Finland: Erika Vikman, “Ich Komme”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PFWtYcKb7C8

In 2016, Erika Vikman won a tango festival in Finland, but she really busted onto the scene with her 2020 song “Cicciolina,” a massive fan favorite inspired by the Hungarian-Italian porn actress turned politician.

This year, the blonde bombshell won the Finnish national final for Eurovision in a landslide with a rousing number in Finnish (except the title) combining disco and electronic music. According to Wikipedia, “The lyrics reflect ‘the joyous message of pleasure, ecstasy, and a state of trance,’ and its structure reflects sexual pleasure and reaching orgasm.” (It seems complementary to Australia’s 2025 entry, “Milkshake Man.”)

In a March 2020 interview with Apu.fi, she said, “I'm attracted to both men and women. That's everyone's right. … In principle, I may feel more attracted to men, but it depends more on the person than the gender… [see more below]

“I wish no one would have to suppress their sexuality anymore… Sex and sexuality belong to everyone, but everyone also has the right to privacy…

“I have always admired strong feminine women who exude sexual energy without shame and enjoy their beauty! Femininity is not something built just for men.”

Malta: Miriana Conte, “Serving”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sLVSwfRRvMA

Bubbly and quirky Miriana Conte started singing at age 5. According to the official Eurovision site, she “enjoys blending contemporary pop with edgy and dynamic elements, pushing boundaries both vocally and visually,” but “her fun… character always shines through.”

She participated in the first season of X Factor Malta in 2019 as part of the girl group 4th Line, and won the Maltese national selection for Eurovision on her fourth attempt. (Shortly thereafter, she was hospitalized after a car accident but quickly recovered. Her Instagram post said, “Diva down” — which now appears in her music video.)

The name of the upbeat winning song — “Kant,” Maltese for “singing” — caused some controversy due to its similarity to an English word not generally used in a family-friendly program, so in March it was changed to “Serving.” (The Eurovision audience is sure to shout “Kant” though.)

According to PinkNews in March, during an Instagram Live conversation, Conte and Finland’s Vikman gave some insight into their personal lives, revealing that they consider themselves Queer.

“The Queer community is so open-minded,” Vikman said. “You can express yourselves wildly with no limits, and it’s accepted. So, that’s the healthiest community in the world. I feel I’m Queer, because I don’t know what I am, so I say always that I’m Queer.”

Conte replied, “Same, but… I do have a girlfriend. … I don’t know exactly what I am. I don’t like to put a label on myself. I just fall in love with people for who they are, so we’re very much the same on this as well… I know sometimes it’s a bit difficult to talk about these things, [but] the Queer community is so free and open and you can be unapologetically yourself without explaining.”

“I hope that all people in the world will someday see how it feels to be inside the Queer community, because it’s a healthy place,” said Vikman.

Watch the shows — and vote!

Basel is hosting because Switzerland’s (Nonbinary) Nemo won last year’s contest. There are two semifinals — Tuesday, May 13 and Thursday, May 15 — followed by the grand final on Saturday, May 17, all starting at noon Pacific time. All of them can be watched live or on demand on the Eurovision YouTube Channel (if you have a VPN service set to a participating country) at https://www.youtube.com/@EurovisionSongContest/streams or in the US on the Peacock streaming service.

For the third year, viewers all over the world may vote — on the Eurovision app or website —during the shows (also for the 24 hours before the grand final, for those of us in nonparticipating countries). See https://eurovision.tv/vote for more details.

See all of this year’s songs at https://shorturl.at/IU5Ur (including a short roundup of all 37). You can learn more about all the participants and songs at https://eurovision.tv/event/basel-2025/participants. Scorecards can be found at https://eurovisionworld.com/tag/scorecard.