Luca Hänni – Biography for ESC 2019

Luca Hänni’s musical career started with a bang in 2012: then just 17 years old, the Swiss teenager won Deutschland sucht den Superstar, Germany’s version of Pop Idol. He was the first non-German to do so and also the youngest ever winner of the show.

Luca, who is now 24 years old, grew up in a musical family. He started learning the drums when he was five, followed by piano, guitar and singing lessons. After finishing school, he began training as a bricklayer, and he still loves practical work today – he likes getting stuck in with both hands.

His first single reached number one in the charts in Germany, Austria and Switzerland, and was followed by sold-out concert tours, festivals and TV shows. He has also won several top music prizes, such as the Swiss Music Award and the Kids’ Choice Award in LA – which he won twice.

Luca Hänni is an approachable star – he lets his fans share in his life, whether through social media, answering fan mail, or meet and greets at his concerts. ‘My fans are fantastic – they are the beating heart of my career. Without them, I would never have got to where I am today. They are a vital part of my work, and I’m looking forward to continuing my music career together with them,’ says Luca enthusiastically.

In addition to his music career, Luca also creates clothes for his own model label and his merchandising shop, stars as a model himself in front of the camera, and publishes his own magazine, Stories. He is also deeply committed to his role as an ambassador for children suffering from epidermolysis bullosa.

In 2017, Luca discovered his love of dancing, and won the German dance show Dance Dance Dance the same year. At Christmas 2018, he featured on entertainment star Helene Fischer’s show, where they performed a sensual contemporary dance together to his song Bei mir. Luca says: ‘Dancing is a central part of my life. It lets me convey my passion and the stories behind my songs even more strongly.’

Despite his life in show business, Luca remains down-to-earth. Spending time with family and friends means a great deal to him, and he loves nature – particularly when walking his dog Nala, a chihuahua. Luca is also very athletic and is happy to take on challenges such as the various Ninja Warrior shows.

In fact, challenges are what keep him going: including, now, the Eurovision Song Contest. He previously acted as the Swiss spokesperson in Kiev, and now wants to sing his country into this final this year. Luca enjoys everything he does: ‘Getting the chance to perform on such a huge stage in front of an audience of enthusiastic fans in the venue and millions of people at home is definitely one of the high points of my life.’ ‘Dare to dream’, the motto of this year’s ESC, couldn’t be more appropriate.

Luca wrote She Got Me together with a team of national and international composers at a songwriting camp. He hopes that the song, which has Middle Eastern elements and plenty of rhythm, will get both young and old dancing: ‘With my ESC song She Got Me, I want to spread some joie de vivre and share my passion for dance and music with the whole audience!’