Dutch national broadcaster, AVROTROS, has unveiled the opening act for the Eurovision Song Contest 2021 Semi-final 1.

Duncan Laurence, the 2019 Dutch Eurovision winner and our beloved competition’s reigning champion, will be playing a key role at the forthcoming edition of the 2021 Eurovision Song Contest.

Going big in the USA!

As the big winner of the Eurovision Song Contest in Tel Aviv in 2019, Duncan Laurence cannot be missed during the 65th edition in Rotterdam. His Eurovision entry ‘Arcade’ is more popular than ever with more than 1 billion streams worldwide and just last week Duncan made his American TV debut on the million-watched The Today Show.

A key role at Eurovision 2021

Duncan Laurence will make a number of unique contributions in both the semi-finals and the Grand Final on Saturday 22 May, including a live world premiere of his new music.

The opening act of the First Sem-final has one message:

The Eurovision Song Contest is back and we are going to celebrate that.

Duncan opens the Eurovision Song Contest in a spectacular way, setting the tone for the three live shows on Tuesday 18 May.

In the Grand Final, Duncan Laurence will perform a new song live on television for the first time. He will also perform his winning Eurovision entry  ‘Arcade’. The song is more popular than ever almost two years after its victory.

From going viral worldwide to Tick Tock

‘Arcade‘ has reached the 50th spot in the Billboard Global Top 200 charts and in the United States it is becoming a big hit with more than 170 million streams. The song has become a true phenomenon on the popular social medium TikTok, with more than 2.5 billion films featuring ‘Arcade’ as the soundtrack.

Duncan Laurence says:

I am really looking forward to performing at the Eurovision Song Contest. We have all had to wait so long for it, but it is almost there. It is very special to be able to return to the stage of the Eurovision Song Contest, where it all started for me two years ago. 

 Gerben Bakker (Eurovision 2021 Head of Show) says:

It is special to work with Duncan and his creative team. In recent months, we have worked hard to present performances at a high level. In short: the quality that we are used to from Duncan Laurence and with which he brought this unique festival to our country. I am convinced that his performance in the Grand Final will once again hit the viewers.

Duncan Laurence was crowned the winner of the 2019 Eurovision Song Contest in Tel Aviv with his epic entry ‘Arcade’.

The 2021 Eurovision Song Contest is scheduled to be held on 18, 20 and 22 May at the Rotterdam Ahoy in Rotterdam, the Netherlands.

Source: AVROTROS
Photo credit: Thomas Bellaart/AVROTROS