British Eurovision Music Contest hopeful Sam Battle had no concept that one among his greatest challenges in all the competitors could be a unclean diaper. However that is what it was.
The digital music artist and experimental singer-songwriter – who performs below the stage title Look Mum No Laptop – was introduced because the British entrant to the Eurovision Music Contest 2026 in February.
On the time, the 37-year-old mentioned his choice was ‘fully loopy’, however as a lifelong fan of the match he was honored to ‘be part of the legacy and lift the flag for Nice Britain’.
Nevertheless, as he prepares to carry out in entrance of some 166 million folks world wide, he has additionally reached one other massive milestone: changing into a father for the primary time.
Only a few weeks in the past, Sam and his spouse Melanie welcomed their son Max, whose arrival got here simply as the extraordinary Eurovision rehearsals have been beginning.
Chatting with Metro forward of performing his music Eins, Zwei, Drei for the primary time throughout tonight’s second semi-final, Sam admitted: ‘Having a toddler is nice – however it’s been a problem!’
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“I’ve missed a number of alarms since he was born,” he defined, earlier than sharing a clumsy anecdote about how a diaper change one morning tousled his schedule.
‘I had a rehearsal in London, and I used to be altering a nappy, and my alarm went off at six within the morning, and I turned it off and informed myself I used to be going to lie down for one more 5 minutes…
“I wakened 4 hours later.”
Regardless of arriving on the rehearsal hours later than deliberate, Sam – who lives about an hour and a half outdoors London in Ramsgate, Kent – was eternally grateful that ‘everybody understood’.
“Everybody knew this was a scenario – that two massive issues have been going to occur in my life on the identical time – however all of them determined I might do it. And it paid off. I shocked myself that I might do it,” he added.
Sam began his profession in 2014 because the frontman of indie rock band Zibra and two years later Sam launched his YouTube channel, the place he has now amassed over 85 million views and 1.4 million mixed followers throughout his varied social accounts.
Earlier than being chosen for the Eurovision Music Contest, he was greatest recognized for creating uncommon and eccentric musical gadgets constructed from classic know-how – together with a Furby organ, a synthesizer mixed with a basic Raleigh Chopper bicycle and a Recreation Boy Triple Oscillator synthesizer.
As a toddler, he dismantled toys and family home equipment to discover their internal workings, which he thought might have simply pushed his dad and mom loopy – however as an alternative they supported his experiments.
“My dad and mom have been very open and supportive of me doing issues – they have been glad for me to take issues aside,” he remembers.
“They inspired me to do issues I used to be curious about, however I believe it irritated them a number of occasions. “I keep in mind I acquired some clear toys as soon as, so I ended taking them aside,” he laughed.
Nevertheless, when it got here to his deal with lecturers, Sam initially failed all of his sixth type programs earlier than realizing it was time to ‘get caught’ and retake all of them to safe a spot to check chemistry at college.
However after taking his first few classes, he “knew instantly that this wasn’t what I wished to do,” after which switched to music, though he felt it “may not be fruitful when it comes to employment.”
However I did not wish to let that deter me, as he put it: “I knew that if I saved making an attempt my greatest, it might work, so I attempted.”
What do you consider Look Mum No Laptop’s music for the Eurovision Music Contest?
I adore it – it is a whole lot of enjoyable!
He then took one other leap to delve into music. He left midway by means of faculty to hitch the band Dive Bella Dive, which signed a recording contract however then confronted a stalled album launch and postponed performances.
Wanting again on that point, Sam mentioned it was ‘exceptionally full and an actual crash course in how the music trade works’. “There was a whole lot of stress and I grew up in a short time,” he added.
Though that band’s profession did not go as deliberate, Sam used that point to be taught electronics and started constructing the gear he at present performs with.
After three years within the indie rock band ZIBRA – which as soon as supported fellow British Eurovision act Olly Alexander’s band Years and Years and in addition carried out at Glastonbury – Sam turned his full focus to Look Mum No Laptop ten years in the past.
Along with releasing music, Sam’s additionally co-produced a number of compositions at the moment, together with for the movie adaptation of A Avenue Cat Named Bob and the Netflix collection Secure, he offered a journey documentary collection and co-developed a online game.
Though digital acts are nothing new on the Eurovision Music Contest, Sam initially believed the BBC was ‘taking a threat’ when he requested him to signify Britain.
When it was introduced as this yr’s act, some known as it a “curveball,” however the response was overwhelmingly optimistic.
‘This music feels very Eurovision in a approach that hasn’t been felt within the final 20 years of British Eurovision entries,’ one fan posted on social media, whereas one other declared that this was ‘the primary time in years I wished Britain to win!’.
Reflecting on the general public response to his choice, Sam mentioned he was ‘by no means going to please everybody, however I really feel like everybody was largely shocked’ – together with himself.
‘It is simply fully loopy. Even in September it wasn’t even on my bingo card for the lifetime of me – it is loopy. It is loopy,” he laughed.
It’s now 29 years since Nice Britain final received the competitors. Regardless of Sam Ryder’s second-place success in 2022, Keep in mind Monday acquired zero factors within the public vote final yr, struggling the identical destiny as Olly a yr earlier.
Regardless of Britain being infamous for taking factors lately, Sam mentioned he went in with an ‘open thoughts’.
‘Who is aware of what is going on to occur. We could also be caught with the stigma, however we will additionally get away of it. There’s all the pieces to play for…” he teased.
He additionally mentioned there’s “potential” to choose up factors from Germany this yr – together with his music containing extra German than the nation’s act this yr (Sarah Engel’s pop music Fireplace is sung completely in English).
“So long as we get on stage on time, I am certain it’d please them just a little bit,” Sam joked.
The second semi-final of the Eurovision Music Contest 2026 can be held on Thursday night, whereas the grand last will happen on Saturday night.
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