Jewish singer selected to represent UK at Eurovision

Jewish singer Mae Muller has been selected to represent the UK at the Eurovision Song Contest in May.

The 25-year-old singer, who says she is “very proud of my Jewish roots” will perform at the event in Liverpool with the track I Wrote A Song.

Muller, who has revealed her grandfather fled Nazi Europe when he was just 12 years old – “I always find myself trying to imagine how scared he must have been” she says – was chosen by BBC bosses and global management company TaP Music, which has counted Lana Del Rey and Ellie Goulding among its clients.

TaP was behind selecting Sam Ryder as the UK entrant for the 2022 event, where he changed the country’s fortunes and came second behind Ukraine.

Muller, who spoke out against antisemitic rapper Wiley on Instagram last year – she wrote “F*** Wiley, I stand with all my Jewish friends and family” – 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.

Muller’s early musical influences included Prince and Sade – while Gwen Stefani, Florence Welch and Lily Allen have impacted her in more recent years.

Her releases have so far explored “dysfunctional relationships and inconvenient emotions with wit and verve”, according to her record label Capitol.

In recent years, she has worked with chart-topping acts including girl group Little Mix, rapper Aitch and music producer and DJ Sigala.

Her 2021 single Better Days, featuring Neiked and Polo G, peaked at number 32 in the UK charts.

Muller has 126,000 followers on Instagram and more than 6.1 million monthly listeners on Spotify.

A BBC spokesman said he would not comment on speculation and that the act would be officially announced during the BBC Radio 2 Breakfast Show on Thursday morning.

Eurovision is set to take place in Liverpool after the UK was chosen to host the competition on behalf of war-torn Ukraine.

The semi-final evening preview kicks off at 8pm on May 8, with the grand final live show bringing the contest to an end starting at 8pm on May 13.