Sweden, long known for slick pop and polished choreography at Eurovision, has thrown its rulebook into the sauna this year. Enter KAJ: a Finnish-Swedish comedy trio whose song “Bara bada bastu” (“Just Sauna”) has steamrolled expectations and charmed audiences across Europe.
Forget sequins and dance routines-KAJ brings brown vintage suits, accordion riffs, and a full-on sauna party to the stage. Their act features jovial singing about the joys of sauna life, with dancers roasting sausages and donning towels and wool hats, capturing the quirky spirit of Finnish culture. The catchy chorus, sung in Swedish with a splash of Finnish dialect, is so infectious that even non-Swedish speakers find themselves humming along.
KAJ-Kevin Holmström, Axel Åhman, and Jakob Norrgård-hail from the Swedish-speaking region of Vörå, Finland. The group, better known for local gigs and musicals than arena spectacles, was handpicked by Melodifestivalen’s producer to shake up Sweden’s Eurovision image. Their victory was historic: they won Melodifestivalen 2025 with a record 4.3 million votes, outshining even past Eurovision champion Måns Zelmerlöw.
“Bara bada bastu” is the first Swedish-language entry for Sweden since 1998, and the first time a Finnish group represents the country at Eurovision. The song’s genre, “epadunk,” blends humor, pop, and a dash of satire, marking a bold departure from Sweden’s usual Eurovision fare.
On stage in Basel, expect more lights, more smoke, and a slightly smaller sauna (Eurovision rules, after all). But the heart of KAJ’s act remains: a celebration of togetherness, laughter, and the universal joy of a good steam.
In short: Sweden’s Eurovision 2025 entry isn’t just a song-it’s a sauna party, and everyone’s invited.
You may also like
-
Summer Mashup Hitmix 2026: 28 Tracks of Pure Sunshine by V‑DJ Castor
If your Brussels summer needs a soundtrack that feels like dancing on a rooftop until
-
Music Queer: 20 Songs, 100 Years of Queer History in Three‑Minute Hits
What if every queer anthem you’ve ever screamed in a club came with a mini‑history
-
XRDS 26: Last 400 Combi Tickets for Viaduct’s Queer‑Friendly Concrete Fantasy
XRDS is about to lock in its fifth edition, and the numbers are getting real:
-
Bal National: Brussels dancing in the street
Every year on 20 July, the heart of Brussels beats to the rhythm of the
-
Stop everything you’re doing and run to see Kinky Boots at Festival Bruxellons
Kinky Boots is exploding in rainbow colour at Festival Bruxellons!, and Ket had the joy