The Czech Republic are quite new to Eurovision having first taken part in 2007, however they have only competed eight times. The country took a six year break after receiving the dreaded nul points in the 2009 semi final.
Since their return they have qualified for the final several times and they are heading in the right direction as last year they came 11th in the final – the country's highest position to date.
2020 was shaping up to be a good year for the Czech Republic as they chose to send Benny Cristo, a regular on the Czech music scene for the past decade. Benny has amassed a huge fanbase and his biggest hits have over 60 million views on YouTube!
Benny's Eurovision entry Kemama (translated means ok mama) tell the story of a difficult childhood with much adversity despite its upbeat melody. Benny encourages listeners to be confident on the dance floor, singing in the chorus “they can say what they want, you should let it go” – check it out:
Benny's music career began in 2009 where he entered SuperStar, the Czech and Slovak version of Pop Idol, where he got to the final. Since then, his infectious energy has pushed him on to release three albums and two EPs, with the most recent release Kontakt performed live for 15,000 fans in the o2 arena in Prague.
Aside from music, Benny is a professional Jiu-Jitsuu fighter as well as an accomplished tennis player and snowboarder! Check out what he had to say on Eurovisioncalls with NikkieTutorials:
Although the 2020 contest is cancelled, Benny will be going forward to represent his country in 2021 and we are confident that he will bring that same energy and drive to next years event!