Image Preview: Slawomir Kuchanski
Poland returned to a national final format in 2022, with Tu Bije Serce Europy! seeing a host of names such as Daria, Lidia Kopania (Poland 2009) & Kuba amongst others compete for the chance to represent the nation at ESC 2022.
It was Ochman however, that won the contest with ‘River’ – find out more about him and his chances below…
Who is Ochman?
Krystian Ochman was born in 1999 to a Polish family in Massachusetts, United States. He moved to Poland as a teenager to study in Katowice. His grandfather is the Tenor Wiesław Ochman.
In 2020, he auditioned for The Voice Poland and joined Poland’s Eurovision 2016 representative Michał Szpak’s team. He won the show & went on to sign a contract with Universal Music Polska.
He released his self-titled debut album in November 2021, which reached #5 on the Polish album charts.
He was announced as one of the participants in Tu Bije Serce Europy! in 2022, with ‘River’. The song was written by Ochman, Adam WiÅ›niewski, MikoÅ‚aj Trybulec and Ashley Hicklin – who was behind other ESC entries such as ‘Amen’ (Austria 2021), Universo (Spain 2020) & Me & My Guitar (Belgium 2010).
Ochman progressed to the super final along with Unmute & Daria, going on to win with 51% of the vote, earning the ticket to Turin.
How Well Will ‘River’ Do At Eurovision 2022?
‘River’ is arguably the strongest Polish entry the nation has submitted to the contest in a long time, and with Ochman’s excellent vocals it’ll be sure to pick up big points – especially from the jury. It’s the 2nd favourite to qualify from Semi-Final 2 & 6th overall favourite to win the entire contest. Ochman will also benefit from those voting in his semi-final. The United Kingdom have a history of giving Poland high televote points due to diaspora but considering ‘River’ is an impressive song, it wouldn’t be a surprise if Brits also decide to go for Poland this year too.
As always there are reservations. The first is its competition – Azerbaijan & Australia will challenge on the ‘big male vocal ballad’ front, but with them both being in the first half, Ochman has the chance to stand out in half two. Belgium also has a strong male vocalist, leading many to wonder if any of them miss out. Poland is also the first of four ballad/mid-tempo vocal-focused songs, being followed by Montenegro, Belgium & Sweden. It’s preceded by Romania, which is currently expected to be a borderline qualifier. With that song being one of the few upbeat solo male songs in this semi-final, could Poland be forgotten amongst all these acts?
There’s also been criticism of his stage presence at pre-parties, but it’s worth remembering that these pre-parties are purely promotional and often don’t have the facilities to allow a performer to give a Eurovision-worthy performance. The lyrics have also been in question, with them not only being repetitive but also with them not making much sense – especially in the chorus.
Bury all of my things, Bury me in my skin
All that I’ve done, Oh Lord, I’m done
Who’d wanna be a king?, Pulling too many strings
All that I’ve done, Oh Lord, I’m done
Lyrics to ‘River’ by Ochman
Whether or not Poland will do as well as it’s predicted to is uncertain & it’s safe to say there’s a case for both arguments for and against its potential. They last qualified 5 years ago in 2017 with ‘Flashlight’ by Kasia MoÅ› – could Ochman could finally be the one to take them to the final. We wish him the best of luck in Turin!
Listen to the Polish entry for Eurovision 2022 below!
What do you think of the Polish song? Do you think it’ll manage to qualify? Let us know in the comments!
