Emmy to represent Ireland in Eurovision Song Contest after RTE Late Late Show Eurosong Special

Norwegian singer Emmy is set to fly the flag for Ireland at this year's Eurovision Song Contest in Switzerland, following her victory on the Late Late Show Eurosong Special with her track Laika Party. The upbeat dance number was neck and neck with Samantha Mumba's My Way after votes from both national and international juries were counted, but it was the public who tipped the scales in Emmy's favour, awarding her top marks and only four to the former teen star.

This means Emmy will be heading to Switzerland to represent Ireland in the Eurovision semifinals between May 13 and 15, with hopes of making it to the grand final on Saturday, May 17. Her song pays homage to Laika, a Soviet dog who journeyed into space aboard Sputnik 2 in 1957.

Although the dog sadly didn't survive the trip, Emmy's song imagines her 'partying in the sky'. With a total of 34 votes, Laika Party beat out My Way's 26 votes and Bobbi Arlo's Powerplay, which had been pegged as the favourite before the contest, with 20 votes.

Read more: Mary McAleese labelled "national treasure" after Late Late Show appearance

Read more: TikTok star Garron Noone announces Belfast show

Reylta's Fire and Niyl's Growth both ended up with 18 votes. Donegal artist Adgy, who performed Run Into The Night alongside his sister Jennie, came last with just 10 votes.

The result seemed to resonate well with the public on social media, with one X (formerly Twitter) user writing: "I can actually see Laika Party doing very, very well... it's fun, catchy, sticks in your head, and people will like it,", reports the Irish Mirror.

"I like Laika Party, it's a cute little dancy tune and the topic is super cute, so I'm happy overall," another agreed. "This is the loveliest and catchiest thing ever, might be my fave Irish entry since I started watching [Eurovision]," enthused a different fan.

The expert panel on the evening featured Bambie Thug, Ireland's representative from the previous year, who had earlier selected Laika Party as one of her top choices. The audience was taken aback when she unexpectedly let slip an F-bomb during the latter part of the broadcast.

The show also saw performances from three past Irish Eurovision victors, Niamh Kavanagh, Linda Martin, and Eimear Quinn, who delivered a joint rendition of Loreen's winning track, Tattoo.

The 69th edition of the Eurovision Song Contest is set to light up St. Jakobshalle in Basel, Switzerland, from May 13 to 17, following Switzerland's triumph last year with the song The Code by Nemo.

For all the latest news, visit the Belfast Live homepage here and sign up to our daily newsletter here.

Story Saved

You can find this story in  My Bookmarks.Or by navigating to the user icon in the top right.