Stealing the attention away from a Eurovision stage show is no small feat, but a 48-year-old Swedish sign language interpreter has done just that, after becoming a viral sensation this week for his spirited signed renditions of euro-pop tunes.
Sweden held the final of their Eurovision entry contest over the weekend, and chose Magnus Carlsson as the contest who will go up against Australia’s first ever entrant Guy Sebastian in Vienna this May. But the actual Eurovision singers are irrelevant at this point.
The real winner is Swedish interpreter Tommy Krångh, whose animated sign interpretations of the songs have prompted calls for him travel to the Eurovision grand final in Vienna. “My world has been turned upside down,” Krångh told The Guardian. “I am thrilled and happy; there has been so much love from the internet.”
Krångh, who is a child of deaf parents and has no formal training, said it took him five weeks of intense preparation and training to get ready for the broadcast.
“I am always all in. I want to give the whole experience of the music. I have to give my whole body. When I get on the stage the music is pumping and I lose myself. I don’t know what’s happening. I am totally lost in the moment – but somehow I still know what exactly I am doing.”
His range isn’t limited to euro-pop either. He had a small viral hit in 2012 with his interpretation of a song by Gothenburg melodic metalcore band Dead by April. Check out his signing prowess below.
The Eurovision finals in Vienna this year will reportedly offer willing nations an interpreting service in international sign language for the first time. It is not known yet if Australia will be the recipient of such a service, or indeed if Krångh will sign the event for Swedish audiences.
Fingers crossed he does.
Watch: Tommy Krångh signs Sweden’s Eurovision Entry
Watch: Tommy Krångh signs Dead by April’s Mystery
Gallery: 13 Acts Australia Should Have Sent To Eurovision (But Probably Wouldn’t Have)
Who Australia Should But Probably Won’t Send To Eurovision
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Who Australia Should But Probably Won’t Send To Eurovision #1
Tkay Maidza - Why she should: She's emblematic of rising Australian talent and would help put an end to the world's clichéd views of Australian art and culture. -
Who Australia Should But Probably Won’t Send To Eurovision #2
Why she won't: Not cliché enough. -
Who Australia Should But Probably Won’t Send To Eurovision #3
Kirin J. Callinan - Why he should: Apart from the fact that he has a killer voice, Kirin J. Callinan's shows are known for being abrasive, surreal and often chaotic, pushing the limits wherever possible. Given the opportunity, Callinan can show the Europeans they're not the only ones with built in quirk. -
Who Australia Should But Probably Won’t Send To Eurovision #4
Why he won't: OK perhaps he's too quirky, even for Eurovision. -
Who Australia Should But Probably Won’t Send To Eurovision #5
Geoffrey Gurrumul Yunupingu - Why he should: We have a captive audience on the world stage, a perfect platform to share the beautiful voice and music of a treasured Indigenous Australian. -
Who Australia Should But Probably Won’t Send To Eurovision #6
Why he won’t: Not enough sequins. -
Who Australia Should But Probably Won’t Send To Eurovision #7
TISM - Why they should: The people have spoken, give them what they want. -
Tism
Why they won’t: Presently, they're broken up. (You might be able to change that though…) -
Who Australia Should But Probably Won’t Send To Eurovision #9
Nick Cave - Why he should: No one can command a theatrical stage like our man Nick and in terms of European fans he's got them. -
Who Australia Should But Probably Won’t Send To Eurovision #10
Why he won't: Too Brechtian for Eurovision. Still there's always the cameo option, if Kylie gets it. -
Who Australia Should But Probably Won’t Send To Eurovision #11
B1 and/or B2 - Why they should: They're national treasures goddammit and with those cuts to the ABC they're going to need some international exposure. -
Who Australia Should But Probably Won’t Send To Eurovision #12
Why they won't: If the Dustin The Turkey experience taught us anything, it's that the Eurovision is not kind to puppets. -
Who Australia Should But Probably Won’t Send To Eurovision #13
Empire of the Sun - The Australia electro pop kings know how to put together a visual feast of a stage show. -
Who Australia Should But Probably Won’t Send To Eurovision #14
Why they won't: It's likely they won't stick to Eurovision's maximunm of 6 people on stage rule. Plus no-one can find Nick Littlemore. -
Who Australia Should But Probably Won’t Send To Eurovision #15
The Red Paintings - Why they should: Experimental art rock is their game and the Geelong act know how to work a costume department and a crowd, known for getting the audience up on stage to paint on human canvases during their shows. -
Who Australia Should But Probably Won’t Send To Eurovision #16
Why they won't: Eurovision's not really big on the whole "audience participation" thing. -
Who Australia Should But Probably Won’t Send To Eurovision #17
Hiatus Kaiyote - Why they should: They're a Grammy-nominated Australian future-soul band with a huge international following. Their music borrows ingredients from far-reaching places across the world and throws them together to create a distinctive soul-infused sound, like no other. -
Who Australia Should But Probably Won’t Send To Eurovision #18
Why they won't: Hiatus Kaiyote's future soul stylings might just be too out of this world, even for Eurovision. And there's no way they'll be able to stick to that 3 minute song time limit. -
Who Australia Should But Probably Won’t Send To Eurovision #19
Tripod - Why they should: They’re the perfect musical representation of our typically dry humour, and the idea of three laid back middle-aged smart arses singing about the Girl In The Comic Book Shop amongst the often deadly serious Euros speaks to our penchant for disrupting the status quo. -
Who Australia Should But Probably Won’t Send To Eurovision #20
Why they won’t: Eurovision might be populated by a bunch of dags, but it’s just not the same if you’re aware of how daggy you actually are. Sorry, guys. -
Who Australia Should But Probably Won’t Send To Eurovision #21
Courtney Barnett - Why she should: If you're after the quintessential Australian voice, Courtney Barnett has it and it's wonderful. She's a modern Australian storyteller, stringing together narratives with signature deadpan puns. -
Who Australia Should But Probably Won’t Send To Eurovision #22
Why she won't: Given it's our first year competing, maybe we should ease up on the Aussie puns. -
Who Australia Should But Probably Won’t Send To Eurovision #23
LOL -
Who Australia Should But Probably Won’t Send To Eurovision #24
Ne Obliviscaris - Why they should: This Melbourne outfit are one of our most promising metal exports. Their dark, dramatic visage and cinematic brand of orchestral thrash proves that Aussies can metal with the best that Europe has to offer. -
Who Australia Should But Probably Won’t Send To Eurovision #25
Why they won’t: Mainstream Australia might shrivel into their couches and turn to dust when they discover Aussie heavy metal bands with this much flair actually exist.
