Austria shakes things up: Sidrit Vokshi joins Vienna Calling after last-minute withdrawal

Austria’s Eurovision selection just got a small but juicy twist. Because of course it did.

After Tamara Flores decided to step away from the competition for personal reasons, ORF has confirmed a replacement: Sidrit Vokshi is officially in.

That means Vienna Calling – Who Will Sing for Austria? is back to a full line-up of twelve acts, all chasing the same thing: Austria’s Eurovision ticket.

Meet Sidrit Vokshi

Sidrit is 35, Vienna-based, and enters the race with “Wenn ich rauche”, a German-language pop ballad that is very much in late-night thoughts, quiet pain, staring into space territory.

According to the artist, the song follows a man dealing with heartbreak, drifting from bar to bar, trying to distract himself… until those moments alone when everything comes back at once. Relatable? Possibly. Subtle? Definitely.

Sidrit describes Eurovision as a huge event where countries come together through music, and says that after many years, this finally feels like the right moment to give something back to Austria. Big words. Now comes the test.

Live show on 20 February

The Austrian national final will air live on Friday, 20 February at 20:15, on ORF 1 and ORF ON.

The full line-up now includes Anna-Sophie, Bamlak Werner, Cosmó, David Kurt, Frevd, Julia Steen, Kayla Krystin, Lena Schaur, Nikotin, Philip Piller, Reverend Stomp — and, as of now, Sidrit Vokshi.

Jury and public vote will decide who takes it.

Familiar Eurovision faces on hosting duty

Hosting the live show will be Alice Tumler, who was part of the Eurovision 2015 hosting team in Vienna, alongside Cesár Sampson.

Sampson isn’t just there for the nostalgia factor either. The Eurovision 2018 third-place finisher has also been involved behind the scenes as one of the scouts during the selection process this year.

So… what does this change?

Late replacements don’t always win. But they do tend to stir things up, especially when they bring a different mood to the table.

Whether “Wenn ich rauche” connects with viewers or gets lost in the shuffle remains to be seen. What’s certain is that Vienna Calling just became a little less predictable — and honestly, we’ll take that.

Austria, carry on.

Source: ORF