Sam Ryder has suggested a more “diverse” group to represent the UK at Eurovision next year.
The singer took second place at this year’s contest in Turin, Italy, with his song “Space Man”, finishing right behind the Ukrainian Kalusha Orchestra in the best Eurovision show in the UK since 1998.
Now Ryder has weighed in which direction producers should move when it comes to choosing an artist for next year, suggesting that the answer is to look for artists from more diverse genres and professions.
“There is so much diverse talent in the UK and all I can hope for is that what happened this year has encouraged more people from these different genres and professions to think that Eurovision is not a career killer,” Ryder told The Sun [via MusicNews.com ] “I would like to be a fan of Eurovision and its history.”
The Eurovision Song Contest is due to take place at the M&S Bank Arena in Liverpool next year. The UK was asked to hold a contest on behalf of Ukraine because of the country’s ongoing war with Russia.
Ryder recently told Big Read on NME about his story, in which he talked about his experiences playing in various rock bands, including being the frontman of the Texas hardcore punk band Close Your Eyes.
“I heard they needed a singer, so I sent them a clip of me singing,” he said. “There are so many singers in this scene who are really good at screaming — you know, hardcore punk vocals. I wasn’t necessarily good at it, but I was good at pure singing.”
Tomorrow (December 31), Ryder will give a special New Year’s concert on the BBC, where he is going to perform “classical melodies and a number of special duets” after the broadcast of the first New Year’s fireworks in London since 2019.
