Mae Muller is ready for her moment in the Eurovision spotlight
As Mae Muller prepares for the Eurovision grand final, she tells ITV News entertainment reporter Rishi Davda the pressure isn't getting to her
Just a day out from the Eurovision grand final, 160 million people are expected to watch the UK's entry Mae Muller take centre stage in a bid to win the world's biggest song contest.
But even as the 25-year-old prepares for the glare of the Eurovision spotlight, she told ITV News Entertainment Reporter Rishi Davda that 'she's not freaking out'.
She is stepping into big boots.
Last year's UK contestant, Sam Ryder, came second with hit song Space man.
Winners Ukraine were unable to host due to Russia's invasion, and so the city of Liverpool has stepped in to host its party.
Muller said of the honour of representing her country: "I think it is good pressure. There are so many things that I could freak out about like that it is in the UK and that I'm going last on the night. But, I think all those things are really positive.
"This is all amazing and i'm never going to experience it again."
And though she may be performing on home soil, the singer has said that she knows the show should have been in Ukraine.
She said: "One of the most important things this year is that we are hosting on behalf of Ukraine. It is their party, it is just at our house. I feel that is what has made this year that much more special."
Preparing to take the stage with her most successful song, 'I Wrote A Song' in Saturday night's final, she added: "It has been so much fun, I feel like it has put everything into context.
"I saw all the content and all the staging, but I was watching it on a laptop or on my phone - so to see it on the stage, I got so much more excited and it's amazing as it's the biggest show that I have ever done."
Ryder shot to fame following his performance in last year's contest. But Eurovision commentators Rylan Clark and Scott Mills think Muller has what it takes to win the whole competition too.
'She's a great new captain of this ship,' and 'a ready to go popstar' say Eurovision commentators Rylan Clark and Scott Mills
Plenty of fans are also backing the 25-year-old to win the competition.
One fan told ITV News: "She has a really catchy tune, a really catchy hook and that is what you need. You have three minutes out there to get your song heard and I think she really nailed it."
Who is Mae Muller?
The north London singer was born in 1997 - coincidentally, the year the UK last won Eurovision.
She first came to mainstream attention after releasing top 40 single 'Better Days' with Swedish collective Neiked and American rapper Polo G in 2021.
Muller started writing her own music aged just eight, and says she grew up listening to her mum’s favourite singer-songwriters including The Dixie Chicks, Gwen Stefani and Simon & Garfunkel.
She says her inspirations include Stefani, Florence + The Machine and Lily Allen.
In 2017, aged just 19, Mae asked a family friend to produce some demos for her in exchange for a bottle of wine.
After uploading them online she was discovered and signed by her manager.
She released her first EP, After Hours, in February 2018, and her first album, Chapter 1, in April 2019, before supporting Little Mix on their 2019 tour.
Mae, who is signed to Capitol Records, has 126,000 followers on Instagram and more than 6.1 million monthly listeners on Spotify.
Her aunt is a music video director and Mae says she used to spend afternoons as a runner for chart-topping artists such as Labrinth.
Mae co-wrote 'I Wrote A Song' alongside Brit-nominated songwriter Lewis Thompson, who has worked with acts including David Guetta and Joel Corry, and Karen Poole, whose has been behind hits by Kylie Minogue and Lily Allen.
She describes the song as an empowering summertime pop anthem about resilience and sisterhood.
She said she wrote her song when she was going through a hard time and "wanted to feel empowered about relationships".
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