Critiquing Finland's National Brand on Stage

Country branding is integral to a countries prosperity, economy and diversity. With our ever-globalized world, countries rely on setting forth a good image to excel in trade, investors, consumers, tourism, etc. Merriam-Webster defines a brand as “a public image, reputation, or identity conceived of as something to be marketed or promoted” (“brand”, 2010). Finland as any other country does, engages in nation branding in some way. To apply Merriam-Webster’s definition of brand with nation added in front, it could be described as the public image a nation as a whole puts forward with the use of national identity as a cornerstone. Some countries take Eurovision seriously by the fact that they carefully select songs that will represent their country ideally on the stage, but others who don’t particularly need to engage in nation branding won’t be so serious. My first blog post didn’t do the best job at identifying Finland’s national identity, I just scratched the surface of what it meant to be Finnish.

Going back to my first blog post, I want to touch on the facet I discussed most which was the importance of Finnish history to its national identity. Even though many discussions of nationalism accredit education as a key factor, most don’t go into depth about the “spatial and social experiences and the roles of the generations in nation-building”(Paasi, 1997 p.48). An example of this would be Finland’s history of conflict. With The Winter War of 1939-40 in perspective, the historical consciousness of the people was affected greatly, uniting the country against Russia, and muddying the lines between the Red and White Finns who fought each other during the civil war of 1918. “The fact that Finland’s history has been a history of conflict puts emphasis on military aspects as a source of national identity”(Paasi, 1997 p.48). This sense of unity can be carried into the Eurovision Song Contest.

Another characteristic of Finland that I should have gone in-depth in was the LGBTQ friendliness as a country. Finland ranks 5^th on Rainbow Europe’s list of LGBTI friendly countries based on the social climate and an annual review of the human rights situation (Rainbow Europe, 2015). Being a very inclusive country when it comes to sexual orientation and LGBTQ rights, there’s no reason why they shouldn’t brand themselves as such in the Eurovision Song Contest. That kind of approach was visible in their 2018 entry of Saara Aalto’s Monsters which I analyzed in my second blog post. The ESC became a site for LGBT politics in 1997 with the first trans woman (Dana International) to perform on stage at the ESC. The contest could not have become a site of these politics without the growth of “a narrative of progression in terms of sexual citizenship linked to European liberalization”(Baker, 2017 p.99). European liberalization refers to the time frame that many European countries made LGBT inclusivity a part of “European Identity” during the 1990s and 2000s. Finland’s actions fit in this time frame regarding legal rights for the LBGT community such as the right to change gender instated in 2003, or making it illegal to discriminate against in 2004. One can see that Finland is pretty progressive in that sense. So how does that translate over to their Eurovision performances specifically in the years 2017 and 2018?

First it is important to understand whether art should be separated from the artist, or in the ESC’s case, the artist from the country. The Eurovision Song Contest is clearly more about the country than the artist. That is evident from how the introduction of the acts are set up, with the countries name in bold and center, and the artists down below in a smaller font. When the audience is watching they have that country in mind, and when they vote they vote for a countries name, not the artist. With just those small factors the emphasis is placed on the country, and how the country is represented through the performance. From when they are chosen to represent their country to when they perform, they are mainly a face for the country they are performing for. Sometimes the performers ideals and message of that performance aligns with the nations brand, and sometimes it doesn’t.  When looking at Finland’s 2017 entry, Norma John’s Blackbird, it doesn’t seem to have a particular message that would be essential if they were partaking in nation branding. In my second blog post, I looked at how Blackbird acted as a simple love ballad with great staging and singing, but offered no deeper meaning when relating back to Finland (Eurovision Song Contest, 2017). That song sadly didn’t make it into the finals, so Finland comes back in 2018 with a stronger contender.

Saara Aalto’s Monsters is a perfect example of nation branding on the Eurovision stage. It is clear that in this day and age, the submissions should be inclusive and progressive for the global audience. Finland didn’t do so well in 2017, so they come back the next year with a strong song about the LGBTQ community overcoming insecurities and letting go of their demons. This performance would be seen as homo-nationalism, the way nations have made queer politics mainstream to promote their nation as progressive. Monsters isn’t seen as pink-washing which is the insincere use of LGBT narratives to appeal to a more liberal audience because Finland is actually very inclusive and can promote these messages because of that. It doesn’t seem like it was forced at all. The change in songs from 2017 to 2018 could be a sign that Finland wants to take Eurovision more seriously, and employ the strategy of nation branding through Eurovision.

            One would think that such a strong and important message would be received with great applause, but that isn’t the case looking at where Finland scored in the final. Coming in second to last place it’s bewildering because the song is not terrible, the message is clean and powerful, and the staging is great. So why did the song do so terribly? Looking back at the staging, the first full minute of the song, she isn’t facing the audience. She starts to sing and rotates in the wheel, but not while facing the audience and the jury. This could create some disconnect with the people. Another aspect of the performance that could have possibly contributed to its downfall was the sexual nature of the dancing and costumes. Some viewers or jury members from more conservative countries may not have voted for Saara Aalto after seeing the fetishistic leather harnesses on the backing dancers, or the sensual dancing at the timestamp 1:24 (Eurovision Song Contest, 2018).

            It seems that Finland took 2018’s contest more seriously and decided to showcase their progressiveness in the performance, but to some it may have been too much. They clearly employed nation branding with her performance, and for some reason it didn’t work out. I certainly think it was an amazing performance by Saara and deserved higher up in the rankings, but that doesn’t matter at this point. Looking at the song chosen for 2019, just by reading the lyrics I think it is about climate change. So they will try again this year with another social message to the world, hopefully this time it lands with the audience.

Word count:  1216

References

Aalto, Saara. (2018). Monsters (Finland). Eurovision Song Contest Lisbon [DVD]. NYC, USA: Warner Music Finland.

Baker, C. (2017). The ‘gay Olympics’? The Eurovision song contest and the politics of LGBT/European belonging. European Journal of International Relations, 23(1), 97-121.

brand. (2019). In Merriam-Webster.com.

Retrieved March 18, 2019, from https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/brand

Country Ranking. (2015). Retrieved from https://rainbow-europe.org/country-ranking

Norma John. (2017). Blackbird (Finland). Eurovision Song Contest Kiev [DVD]. London, UK: EMI Finland.

Paasi, A. (1997). Geographical perspectives on Finnish national identity. GeoJournal, 43(1), 41-50. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/41147118

Finland On Stage (2017-18)

The Eurovision song contest is full of singers wanting to represent the country they were chosen for to the fullest. One may analyze the lyrics, dancing, special effects, and many more to understand the message the performer is trying to convey. Some but not all performances reveal their stance on diversity, which can, in turn, say a lot about the country’s position on it at the time.

In 2017, Finland entered a love ballad into the mix of songs that year, titled “Blackbird” by Norma John. At first, without seeing them perform, one may believe that Norma John is one person, but it is actually made up of the pianist Lasse Piirainen and the vocalist Leena Tirronen. Both are Finns who were selected at Uuden Musiikin Kilpailu, the national contest for choosing who gets to represent Finland at Eurovision. The music and lyrics for this ballad are both written by Leena and Lasse themselves (Eurovision Song Contest).

            When looking at the lyrics, which are sung in English, it appears to be a typical breakup ballad. The song begins with “Blackbird blackbird don’t sing to me... / Don’t sing below my window” (Eurovision Song Contest, 2017). Leena is singing about a blackbird who she does not want to remind her of her previous partner evident in the chorus, “You sang when we was in my bed / You sang when my heart sang, now / Now you remind me of something I’ll never have / So blackbird don’t sing / Blackbird don’t sing”(Eurovision Song Contest, 2017). The song has two verses and three repetitions of the chorus, emphasizing the grief she feels from this blackbird reminding her of her past.

            In terms of staging, it remains the same for most of the performance. In the beginning, the audience sees nothing, a dark stage. As soon as Saara starts singing, the lights come up, and one can see Leena in a great black dress and a moving blue pattern on the back LED screen. The camera pans out, and the viewer can see dry ice (a Eurovision staple) swirling around Leena’s feet and the piano of which Lasse is playing. Not many changes at this point, until she sings the first chorus. The camera starts stage left and as she sings a visual underneath her emerges to the audience, a whirlpool of the same pattern as the back LED screen, all the while the camera circles in front of Leena once, possibly portraying to the audience that they are in this whirlpool with her. As the second verse starts, the camera is low and stage right, and as she sings the chords, Lasse is playing in the song lights up four light bars, separated in pairs at the back of the stage. Another chorus goes by with the camera swirling around as Lasse plays a solo. Before the final chorus, the camera is set back deep into the audience, and at least sixty-eight overhead lights move and bathe the audience in white light. The camera is focused again in, and all the background lights and visuals turn from blue to red while Leena sings with great passion. Red is a very intense color, leading the audience to believe that because this is her third repetition of the chorus, second in a row, that she is angry and determined to tell this blackbird not to sing no more. The song conveyed to the viewer exactly what I think Norma John intended, a song about the pain of a breakup and how the blackbird (everything you do and see) reminds you of the past. The song didn’t make it through to the grand final, upsetting many Finns who saw it as a worthy entry for that year's competition.

            In 2018 Finland came back with Saara Aalto’s “Monsters,” hoping to capture the audience with its submission of an energetic self-described “epic love pop” (Eurovision Song Contest, 2017). The music and lyrics are by Saara Aalto herself, but also by Joy and Linnea Deb, Swedish songwriters and producers, and Ki Fitzgerald, an English singer, and songwriter. Aalto is Finnish born and a decorated singer, finishing second in The Voice of Finland in 2012. She married Meri Sopanen, her personal trainer and life coach in 2016, identifying herself as a lesbian in a DIVA Magazine interview that same year. DIVA Mag is “Europe’s Leading Magazine for Lesbians & Bi Women.”

            Analyzing the lyrics, which are in English again, one can see that she is sending a clear message with this song. The first verse sings, “Closed my eyes, so I couldn’t see it / Felt so numb, but now I’m ready to feel it / So tonight I’m making friends with all the creatures that are hiding / there under my bed”(Eurovision Song Contest, 2018). If the viewer knows Saara’s personal life, they can hear and infer that this song is about the strength of the LGBTQ community for overcoming insecurities. This is visible with such lyrics like “Now I’m gonna let in all the light, tear down the walls / At my worst I found my army strong, all the demons are gone”(Eurovision Song Contest, 2018) found in the chorus.

            The staging for Finland's 2018 submission is immense and active, with each part meaning something for the message of the song. At first, the viewer can see Saara on a raised platform standing in a big wheel that begins to move with her in it as she sings the first verse and chorus. As the hook plays and the song picks upbeat, the camera pans out, and she exits the platform dancing with two male background dancers. What’s most interesting is the way the dancers are dressed. As she walks around the platform two more women in the same attire emerge. They appear to have a paramilitary look with black combat boots, but if one looks closer, it is almost fetishistic. The black leather harness around the chest, black leather gloves, and boots, the revealing chest area of the men and midriff of the women. They may represent the “army” she sings about but instead of a traditional military, its made up of LGBTQ soldiers. All while they are dancing in the foreground, the stage lighting is a familiar pink, blue, and white strobing in the background with massive LED bars and panels. I know when I first watched it I immediately connected the colors with the Transgender Pride Flag, also pink, blue, and white. One can assume that with the colors of that flag, the lyrics about overcoming insecurities, Saara is performing this song for the people in the LGBTQ community who are struggling with “demons” as she sings. She is very involved with the trans community, just recently on February 3rd, 2019, she released a video teaming up with award-winning trans rights charity Mermaids (Bourdillon, 2019). Sadly Monsters in the Eurovision Contest came in 25th, second to the last place out of 26th finalists.

            In conclusion, Finland's 2017 performance didn’t do much of anything for the message of diversity and how Finland wants to present itself in that way. Finland’s 2018 performance on the other hand, instead had a beautiful message to those struggling in the LGBTQ community to overcome their fears and insecurities and instead of fighting them become familiar or “friends” with them to quell their anxiety.

Word Count: 1225

References

Norma John. (2017). Blackbird (Finland). Eurovision Song Contest Kiev [DVD]. London, UK: EMI Finland.

Aalto, Saara. (2018). Monsters (Finland). Eurovision Song Contest Lisbon [DVD]. NYC, USA: Warner Music Finland.

Zeiher, C. (2017, May 10). The artists of Eurovision 2017: Norma John – “Blackbird” (Finland). Retrieved February 19, 2019, from https://www.sbs.com.au/guide/article/2017/05/01/artists-eurovision-2017-norma-john-blackbird-finland

Windle, L. (2017, May 8). Who is Finland’s Eurovision Song Contest 2017 entry? Norma John to perform Blackbird – all you need to know. Retrieved February 19, 2019, from https://www.thesun.co.uk/living/2880111/finland-eurovision-song-contest-2017-norma-john-singing-blackbird/

Butterworth, B. (2016, December 23). Saara Alto opens up about her sexuality as she poses in stunning new photo shoot. Retrieved February 19, 2019, from https://www.pinknews.co.uk/2016/12/23/saara-alto-opens-up-about-her-sexuality-as-she-poses-in-stunning-new-photo-shoot/

Bourdillon, R. (2019, February 3). Pop princess Saara Aalto has dropped her brand new video and it’s breathtaking. Retrieved February 19, 2019, from https://divamag.co.uk/2019/02/03/pop-princess-saara-aalto-has-dropped-her-brand-new-video-and-its-breathtaking/

Escudero, V. M., & Zwart, J. (2018, March 3). Saara Aalto's song for Lisbon is... Monsters! Retrieved February 19, 2019, from https://eurovision.tv/story/saara-aalto-will-sing-monsters-at-eurovision-2018-in-lisbon

Finland's National Self and The Other(s)

       The national identity of a country relies on evident traditions of culture, art, language, and many other factors. The English Oxford Dictionary defines it as "A sense of a nation as a cohesive whole, as represented by distinctive traditions, culture, and language." A nation can have its factors of identity, but nothing matters unless they can distinguish themselves from other countries. This brings the idea of "the other" as seen in Anna Triandafyllidou's article National identity and the `other.' Triandafyllidou states that national identity is about "the distinction between the ingroup, namely the nation, and the foreigners, those belonging to other communities, the 'others'" (Triandafyllidou, 1998).


       To talk about Finland's national identity, we must go back to when Finland became Finland. Originally from the east, the Finno-Ugric group were the oldest inhabitants of the North-East of Eurasia. Finland's culture was heavily influenced by the Swedish hegemony from 1150 until the Finnish war of 1809, causing the Finnish people to re-assess their situation and what it means to be Finnish. Most of the country was being taught Swedish in schools, so it took quite some time to go back to Finnish, re-establish its language, national history, and literature that had been neglected for years and years.


       Language is one of the most essential factors in the definition of identity. The re-introduction of the Finnish language in academia was a significant tool in the construction of this new national identity crisis that they were facing in 1809. Adolf Ivar Arwidsson who was a political journalist and writer said "Swedes we are not, Russians we do not want to become, let us, therefore, be Finns." He is seen as the father of an independent Finland. The publishing of The Kalevala changed the history of the nation. It is a work of epic poetry by Elias Lönnrot from 1835 and is now regarded as one of the most significant works of Finnish Literature. Though this epic advanced the foundation of Finnish as the soon to be majority language, there were still Finnish-Swedes, mainly on the coasts, they were not too pleased to give up their history. Because of this strife, Finland switched from a Unitarian concept of a nation to a bi-cultural one. As time went on, the strength of the Kalevala was starting to show, mainly along the borders of the east and west, contesting the traditional Slavic bylini epic to the east and the old nøger poetry to the west.


       To expand out further, we will look at the Nordic identity and what it means to the people of Finland in their emergence of defining their national identity. Finland is a part of the Nordic countries in Europe, which also includes Denmark, Iceland, Sweden, and Norway. The countries established this identity by homogenization through historical development. In the 1930s, Finland and Estonia secretly agreed on a defense cooperation against the threat of the soviet union. This strengthened the community an idea of unity between Scandinavian neighbors. This Nordic connection is of great importance to Finnish-Swedes, who have "taken the role as cultural middlemen between Sweden and Finland" (Honko, 1996, p. 53). The bilingual Swedish-Finns living in Finland see their identity as Nordic and not Swedish.


       The Finnish and Swedish were headliners of the national discourse, but what about the Saami? The Saami are aboriginal inhabitants to Fennoscandia, which spans from the Norwegian peninsula to part of Russia. They are mainly located in the northern regions of each country, practicing their traditions and culture. About 50-80,000 people are living dependent on the traditionally Saami way of life which includes reindeer breeding, hunting and fishing, and cattle breeding. They have not been able to convince the governments of the Nordic countries to grant them autonomy from the "homeland," though they certainly have internationally minded people, they have only made a small dent in proving their identity nationally. This is a perfect example of "the other" from Triandafyllidou's article. According to her definition, the Saami people would be internal significant others as an ethnic minority who has contributed to the constitution of a nation state. The Saami fit all of her criteria for a definition such an other, "distinct culture, language, traditions and myths of origin from the dominant nation and may, therefore, be perceived by the dominant nation to pose a threat" (Triandafyllidou, 1998). They want rights for themselves as an indigenous group would, but they are conflicted because they want to present their opinions, but must not threaten the legitimacy of the governments of Fennoscandia. The Saami do not want to and never have wanted to secede from the nations, but they view their territory as their own and want governing and other rights for them.


       Another "other" may be the Republic of Karelia. Karelia was a Finnish province that was partly ceded to the Soviet Union after the Winter Wars in 1940. Finns visiting ceded Karelia have said it has been stripped of it is original "Finnishness," but the locals living there feel "Finnishness" everywhere. Karelian nationalism has never taken place, considering it is a transnational area that's claimed by several states. Finland may see Karelia as a significant other, definitely an external one, but it cannot be defined precisely by Triandafyllidou's parameters. Most Finnish residents in the ceded Karelia were resettled back into Finland, with only 155 people opting to stay. Today, there is the Karelian Question, which is a dispute whether or not to try to regain control over the ceded areas of Finnish Karelia. It is not a political issue because the government of Finland has not taken any action, it remains a public debate.


       In conclusion, the Finnish national identity is expressed through their language, literature, and culture which was realized relatively recently during the 19th century and onwards. Finland most definitely has an internal significant other and possibly an external one, though that situation is muddy.

Word Count: 979

Works Cited 

Honko, L. (1996). Changing National Identities: Finland, 1996. Anthropological Journal on European Cultures, 5(2), 35-63. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org.proxy.seattleu.edu/stable/43234804

Anttila, J. (2007). Kansallinen identiteetti ja suomalaiseksi samastuminen Helsingin yliopisto. Retrieved from URN:ISBN:978-952-10-3962-1 http://hdl.handle.net/10138/23476

Tambets, K., Rootsi, S., Kivisild, T., Help, H., Serk, P., Loogväli, E., . . . Villems, R. (2004). The western and eastern roots of the saami—the story of genetic “Outliers” told by mitochondrial DNA and Y chromosomes doi://doi.org/10.1086/383203

Korsmo, F. L. (1988). Nordic security and the saami minority: Territorial rights in northern fennoscandia. Human Rights Quarterly 10(4), 509-524.

Melnikova, E. (2016). Making "Former" the Former Finnish Karelia. Jahrbücher Für Geschichte Osteuropas, 64(3), neue folge, 437-461. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org.proxy.seattleu.edu/stable/44113492

Triandafyllidou, A. (1998). National identity and the `other.’. Ethnic & Racial Studies, 21(4), 593. https://doi-org.proxy.seattleu.edu/10.1080/014198798329784

 

Narrated Breifing of Finland

Welcome to my Blog!

This blog will be about Finland's participation in the Eurovision Song Contest!