Derry’s Brooke Scullion ‘so excited’ to perform ‘That’s Rich’ for Ireland at Eurovision 2022

Brooke Scullion wins The Late Late Show Eurosong Special and will go on to represent Ireland at The Eurovision Song Contest in Turin, Italy, in May. Picture Andres Poveda

The Derry performer has had a whirlwind few years, from performing on The Voice UK and reaching the final to now being chosen to represent Ireland in the Eurovision Song Contest.

Brooke, from Bellaghy, will take to the Eurovision stage in Turin in May to perform her self-penned song ‘That’s Rich’, which was recently chosen by the public as Ireland’s entry during a special episode of the Late Late Show.

The last few weeks have been a ‘real whirlwind’ for Brooke as she prepares for the iconic music competition. She travelled to Dublin yesterday, Thursday, as plans for the performance are ramped up and finalised before the deadline later this month.

Speaking to the ‘Journal’, Brooke described the opportunity to represent Ireland as ‘so exciting’ and told how the song came to be.

“I came off the Voice UK as a finalist and it was peak pandemic time. I thought: ‘What do I do now?’ There were no live gigs, so I got into writing sessions over Zoom. This song. ‘That’s Rich’ was the first one I ever wrote. I wrote it with Izzy Warner and it was produced by Karl Zine. I said that I really wanted to do an 80s song, like a timeless classic that you could listen to anytime and it would sound current. I loved it and didn’t write it for anyone but myself. There was no pressure on me.”

Izzy and Karl are no strangers to Eurovision and also wrote for the Eurovision-themed movie ‘Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga.’ They loved Brooke’s song - an empowering, catchy tune about being powerful focusing on yourself - and it was submitted for inclusion in the shortlist of songs for Ireland’s entry to Eurovision.

This resulted in Brooke performing it on the Late Late Show as, for the first time in seven years, the public were able to vote for their favourite.

Brooke Scullion, pictured during her performance on the Late Late Show.

Waiting for the results live on TV was ‘very hard,’ but Brooke was over the moon when the song was chosen by the voting public. She told how she has had huge support from the Irish public and is hoping this will be mirrored across Europe.

“I think, when people choose you themselves, they’re really invested in how you do and there’s real excitement about it. I’m so looking forward to getting out there and to represent Ireland is such a massive achievement. The really fun part is the European Tour. I perform on the semi-final on May 12 and Spain, Greece and Italy are able to vote, so I’m focusing on these areas to raise awareness. I’ll be going to places like Barcelona, Madrid and Amsterdam. I feel like that’s when it will really feel real for me. The Eurovision fans, too, are on another level.”

Derry has a special place in the competition’s heart and Brooke said previous winner, Dana, has been in touch and is helping to mentor her. Over 180 million viewers will be watching Brooke perform to the Eurovision but she said she won’t let it phase her. “The stadium is what I’ll be focusing on. Even when I was on the Voice UK you start to forget about the millions watching and that fourth wall. I can’t wait. I’m really grateful to get this opportunity.”