Sarah Engels is going to the ESC in Vienna – but her victory in the preliminary round is divisive. Why range and performance are now crucial.
The preliminary decision for the Eurovision Song Contest took place on Saturday, February 28th. Sarah Engels emerged from the show as the winner and German representative at the ESC in May. The reactions to this were mixed: many were disappointed and attributed their victory primarily to their popularity.
From DSDS to a music career
Sarah Engels is best known in Germany for her participation in the show “Deutschland sucht den Superstar”. She competed there three times and reached the final in 2011. This is how her music career began: Immediately afterwards she released her first album “Heartbeat”. In the following years she recorded more songs with her then husband Pietro Lombardi, whom she also met on DSDS. Her single “I Miss You” in a duet with Pietro Lombardi reached number two in Germany, number six in Austria and number 14 in the single charts in Switzerland. The duo often performed together and released several albums, later also in German. However, they became known not only for their music, but above all for their TV appearances and joint documentary soaps.
After the separation, Engels dared to make a new start under the name Sarah and continued to record German-language music. Camera teams also accompanied them. She also has song contest experience: in 2020 she took part in the Free European Song Contest for Italy, her grandparents’ home country, with the single “Te amo mi Amor” and took thirteenth place. She has been on stage in the musical “Moulin Rouge” in Cologne since November.
Reach as a trump card
Sarah Engels is used to the spotlight – not just musically, she has also made numerous appearances on reality TV. That was one of the points that benefited her in the ESC preliminary decision. She is followed by 1.8 million people on Instagram; There she regularly posts videos and clips from her everyday life as well as small sketches. In addition to her participation in DSDS, other reality shows such as “Let’s Dance” and “The Masked Singer” have also contributed to her popularity – especially in Germany, but also in Austria and Switzerland. Even if many reactions attribute her win in the preliminary round solely to her reach, that could definitely benefit her in the ESC final.
International fans, domestic criticism
Her chart positions in Austria and Switzerland as well as her participation in the Free European Song Contest for Italy have brought her international fame. After her win, many people congratulated her in English. Her performance in particular is celebrated internationally: “Germany has finally understood Eurovision!” commented one user.
At the same time, there was a lot of criticism of the outcome, especially in Germany. ESC viewers, especially the younger audience, would have preferred to see wavvyboi with the rock ballad “black glitter” in the ESC finale. Many described “Fire” as a 0-8-15 song and also criticized it for being similar to Cyprus’ 2018 song “Fuego.”
Her performance is nevertheless praised by many – Sarah Engels definitely has stage experience, and that is particularly important at the ESC. The opinion of the fans is particularly crucial for the final on May 16th in Vienna: Not only the jury, but also the television audience can vote for their favorite.
