Mae Muller is the UK’s entrant for the Eurovision Song Contest and will be representing us on home soil tonight in the hopes she will build on Sam Ryder’s success at last year’s event.
The north London-raised singer, 25, will be the first female entrant for the UK since SuRie competed in 2018 with Storm – coming in 24th place.
Following two semi-finals, the UK will be up against Croatia, Moldova, Switzerland, Finland, Czechia, Israel, Portugal, Sweden, Serbia and Norway, who all sailed into the next stage of the competition on Tuesday.
Albania, Cyprus, Estonia, Belgium, Austria, Lithuania, Poland, Australia, Armenia and Slovenia won the second semi-final while the UK, Germany, France, Spain, Italy and Ukraine received automatic qualification.
Here is everything you need to know about the UK hopeful taking to the Liverpool stage for tonight's Grand Final.
Late bloomer
Mae was born in 1997 in Kentish Town, north London, and has described herself as a natural performer from a young age.
Last year she told the Golden Plectrum website her aunt is a music video director and she used to spend afternoons as a runner for chart-topping artists such as Labrinth.
Muller was 19 when she wrote her first song, Close, which was produced by a family friend and “paid” for with wine in lieu of money.
Once uploaded to Soundcloud, the song attracted the attention of record labels and she signed to Capitol.
Speaking about her late start, she previously said: “I feel really lucky that in a way I’ve lived a relatively normal life.”
Inspired by female solo artists
Muller inherited a love of Prince and Sade from her parents, with both artists played often around the house.
It was only later when she discovered Gwen Stefani and the No Doubt star’s debut solo album Love Angel Music Baby, that she began to develop her own tastes.
Florence + The Machine and Lily Allen were also early favourites and would shape her own songwriting in future years.
Breakthrough on TikTok
Muller has so far scored a hit with the 2021 track Better Days that she produced with Swedish Neiked and American rapper Polo G.
The track went viral on TikTok as part of a challenge, which helped boost its streams to more than a million across all platforms.
Better Days peaked at number 32 in the UK but also charted across the world.
This echoed the success of Ryder, who found success on TikTok covering pop songs during lockdown before he was selected to compete for the UK.
Scouted by Sam Ryder's management
The BBC hopes to repeat the UK’s success at the 2022 event by once again joining with global management company TaP Music.
TaP Music, which has counted Lana Del Rey and Ellie Goulding among its clients, helped select Muller and will also help craft her promotional strategy ahead of the contest.
Last year, the company revamped the UK’s strategy after years of dismal results.
This included ensuring Ryder’s single, Space Man, got played on BBC Radio 1 instead of Radio 2 and also saw him targeting smaller countries such as San Marino, Serbia, Croatia and Malta, which have the same voting powers as larger countries such as Germany.
Born in the year UK last won Eurovision
The UK last triumphed at the contest in 1997 with Katrina And The Waves topping the leaderboard with their anthem Love Shine A Light in Dublin.
The song was the highest-scoring UK entry at that time before being overtaken by Ryder with Space Man in 2022.
That win will seem distant to Muller, who was born the same year, but she will still be hoping to mirror that success with her own track, I Wrote A Song.
First role was in Mika music video
Aged nine, Mae appeared in her very first music video. The future pop star took part in Mika's breakout single Grace Kelly.
She dances in a lime green ballgown while lip syncing Grace Kelly's dialogue from The Country Girl.
In a recent episode of Never Mind The Buzzcocks, she said: "I actually got it based on how [messed] up my teeth were, apparently. I guess they saw all the auditions and he went, 'She's got some real intense teeth. That's good, we like that'."
Mae has also already supported large music icons on tour.
She has opened up for Liam Payne and Little Mix as well as singing with Aitch in the BBC Live Lounge.
The singer also sold-out Kentish Town Forum in a homecoming show.
Eurovision entry is a diss-track
The up-beat banger I Wrote A Song tells a story of an ex-boyfriend.
"I was really annoyed at this guy. I wanted to do something crazy, maybe burn his house down, I don't know," she told followers on TikTok,
"But instead I took the high road and I wrote a song. And that's called growth, ladies and gentlemen."
Chances of winning Eurovision
The latest odds predict Mae won't be taking home the top prize tonight as Sweden is marked as the bookies' favourite to win.
After the second semi-final on Thursday bookmaker Ladbrokes now have Loreen chalked up at just 2/5 to emerge victorious, giving Sweden a 71 percent chance of winning.
Unfortunately for Mae, the UK's entry remains an outside shot at 33/1 of finding success this weekend.
Jessica O'Reilly of Ladbrokes said: "It will be the biggest upset since David and Goliath if Loreen isn't crowned Eurovision winner this weekend for Sweden."
Unusual tattoo
The singer has a tattoo of a Tunnock's Teacake on her forearm alongside a host of a few other small inkings.
She also recently revealed she's booked her next inking already - a hand tattoo.
Mae told British Vogue: "I’m obsessed with [tattoos]. I’m getting 'flaws' in gothic font. It’s the title to one of my favourite songs I’ve ever written, and I just thought it’d look cool! If you want the emotional answer to justify the tattoo though, I’d say usually you try to hide your flaws, but I want to have them proudly on my hand."
