Europe News

Europe News

ABBA receive prestigious Swedish knighthood for pop career that began at Eurovision

Sweden's said a big 'Thank you for the music' to its most famous pop exports ABBA by honouring the supergroup with one of the country's most prestigious awards, the Order of the Vasa. It's the first time it's been bestowed in nearly half a century in recognition of ABBA's "very outstanding efforts in Swedish and international music life." The band, which consists of Agnetha Faltskog, Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson and Anni-Frid Lyngstad, sprang to international stardom by winning the 1974 Eurovision Song Contest with their infectious love song 'Waterloo'.

Europe News

Switzerland wins Eurovision Song Contest 2024

Swiss rapper and singer Nemo won this year’s Eurovision Song Contest with The Code, a drum-and-bass, opera, rap and rock tune about Nemo’s journey of self-discovery as a non-binary person. Switzerland scored a total of 591 points, ahead of Croatia in second place with 547 points. Ukraine came third, while Israel came fifth. “I hope that this competition can continue to encourage peace and dignity for everyone,” said an emotional Nemo as they received their award. The 24-year-old then performed their song “The Code” for a second time on stage, which, along with Croatia, had been at the top of the list of names mentioned by bookmakers in recent weeks. “For a country like Switzerland, having a song that incorporates non-binarity is no mean feat,” said Nemo at the press conference following the competition.

Europe News

FEDERICA TREMOLADA PROMOTED TO GENERAL MANAGER FOR EUROPE AT SPOTIFY, AS MICHAEL KRAUSE EXITS AFTER 7 YEARS

Federica Tremolada, who has served as the company’s Managing Director in Southern and Eastern Europe since 2019, has been promoted to the role as of this month. Milan, Italy-based Tremolada succeeds Michael Krause, who revealed on Monday (June 3) that he is leaving his position as Spotify’s GM for Europe after seven years. Krause was formerly Vice President, Central/Eastern Europe at Deezer and CEO, EMEA. He joined Spotify in October 2017. In a note published to LinkedIn on Monday morning, Krause wrote: “All good things come to an end, and now feels like the perfect time to pass the baton switch off a bit and take some care of my family & myself first and then start looking for new adventures later this year.” The exec added that he had already started his handover internally “some time ago and will stay online for another month.” Krause also revealed that Katarina Berg, Spotify’s Chief Human Resources Officer (CHRO), has taken an additional responsibility as General Manager Sweden.