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High drama. Higher notes. JJ’s “Wasted Love” is the Eurovision aria you didn’t know you needed.
When Austria picked a 24-year-old male soprano with a background in Mozart and a falsetto sharp enough to slice through glass, most fans didn’t see a potential Eurovision winner. Then came “Wasted Love”—a three-act operatic electro-ballad with oceans of heartbreak, strobe-lit staging, and a chorus that punches like Puccini in a nightclub.
Now? JJ isn’t just a curiosity. He’s a frontrunner.
From Vienna State Opera to streaming smash
JJ—real name Johannes Pietsch—isn’t your typical Eurovision hopeful. He’s a classically trained countertenor who cut his teeth in Die Zauberflöte before dabbling in reality TV (The Voice UK, Starmania). But Eurovision? This is the main stage.
And it’s working. “Wasted Love” now tops Austria’s Spotify Eurovision chart and sits 14th globally. The track’s swirling strings, icy synths, and impossibly high notes are pulling in fans—and praise—from across the continent.
Rehearsals, risk, and that high C
At his first Basel run-through, JJ nailed the song’s infamous climax—a high C that reportedly moved the Austrian delegation to tears. The staging, helmed by Sergio Jean, leans into minimalism: moody lighting, oceanic projections, and JJ alone at centre stage.
There’s still nervous chatter about his breathy verses—especially after a wobbly London outing—but vocal coach Natalie Deacon says he’s dialled it in: “The head voice is now poised, not panicked.”
Lyrical longing, diva energy
Co-written with Teya (of Who The Hell Is Edgar? fame), “Wasted Love” is as theatrical as its vocals. It starts hushed, builds into operatic wailing, then crashes into a techno-laced breakdown. Lyrically, JJ clings to a “paper boat” of hope in a sea of heartbreak.
The video leans full arthouse: JJ in a misty forest, JJ underwater, JJ falling through metaphors. As one fan put it: “It’s what would happen if Kate Bush directed Phantom of the Opera on ketamine.”
And the guy got himself a special paper boat tattoo to stay on message – listen to the podcast below.
The odds, the buzz, the catch
JJ is currently high in the odds, breathing down Sweden’s sauna-scented neck. Critics call him a jury magnet; fans are torn between worship and whiplash. Reddit’s verdict? “Genius if the staging lands. Risky if it doesn’t.”
But JJ’s not sweating it. “I’m not here for the trophy,” he told ORF. “I’m here to sing about love—even when it goes nowhere.”
Final countdown
JJ sings 6th in semi-final 2, a sweet spot historically. With the final on May 17, and momentum building, Austria might just pull off its third win.
Opera never sounded this danceable. And Eurovision never saw it coming.