"Krone" interview

Abor & Tynna: “We hope for a good placement”

Abor & Tynna are the siblings Attila and Tünde Bornemisza. In two months' time, the two Viennese will be competing for Germany at the Song Contest in Basel.

(Bild: Sony Music)

At Stefan Raab's "Chefsache ESC 2025", the Viennese siblings Abor & Tynna beat off thousands of competitors to represent Germany at the Song Contest in Basel. In the "Krone" talk, the two tell us how they came to take part, what still needs to be improved and what they think of Austria's entry.

Anyone following the odds at the betting offices for this year's Song Contest in Basel will find Austria's entry "Wasted Love" by countertenor JJ somewhere between first and third place. While the ORF General Directorate should at least keep in mind that the competition could possibly be held in Austria again in 2026, our German neighbors are hoping for a less embarrassing result than in recent years. Curiously, the Viennese are expected to pull the coals out of the fire - the brother and sister duo Abor & Tynna recently (to their own surprise) prevailed against around 3,000 applicants on Stefan Raab's "Chefsache".

With their lively song "Baller", they not only won over the old ESC warhorse Raab, but also many fans in front of the TV and on the various social media platforms. Tünde's mumbling vocals were heavily criticized, although she also suffered from a cold during the live performance. Parallel to the hype surrounding the European singing competition, the classically trained duo are also releasing their debut album "Bittersweet" these days. We asked the two of them what their ESC song is all about and how it came about in the first place.

"Krone": Tünde, Attila - you recently made it through Stefan Raab's show "Chefsache ESC" to compete for Germany at the Eurovision Song Contest in Basel this May. How are you feeling now, a few days after your success?
Attila: The joy is mixed with responsibility and you realize what lies ahead. We are representing a whole nation at the Song Contest.
Tünde: But we're really looking forward to it, because we've had time to let everything sink in. After the performance in Cologne, we had a press conference and a photo shoot. I wasn't quite mentally there yet, but now I'm realizing everything and looking forward to everything else.

The work towards the Song Contest is only really starting for you now ...
Attila: It never stopped. (laughs) After the press conference we went to bed, but the next morning we started with the first meetings.
Tünde: The show lasted three weeks and we arrived a week before - so we were in Cologne for a month and there was work every day. Rehearsals, interviews, social media content.
Attila: We had to organize our own schedule there. Now everything is organized for us.

I noticed that a lot of people didn't seem to be aware that you don't have to be from the country you're competing for. You are there for Germany as a Viennese.
 Tünde: But that's been the case for a very long time. Céline Dion performed for Switzerland back then, for example, and there are many other examples. It was always clear to us and we didn't think much about it when we applied. The label recommended that we send something in and some people on TikTok said we should give it a try - that's how the ball started rolling.

You were also on the Austrian selection committee in 2024. What was it like there?
Attila: We were in talks and did an interview with Peter Schreiber. He asked us if we were interested, but that was it.
Tünde: At the time, it wasn't a 100 percent fit for us because we were just starting out with the music and getting serious about it. It comes with a lot of responsibility and we didn't have any live gigs yet, and musically we were a long way from where we are today.
Attila: But we were never in a selection process, in Austria everything is regulated internally.
Tünde: We didn't apply for two countries this year. Our label sent us the online application for Raab's contest. We clicked on it, filled out the form and gave it a try. We were then selected from more than 3000 applicants for the show and even if you take part there, you're not at the ESC in your head. I really only realized that it had worked out when we won, at the very last moment.

The competition for the German entry this year was very big and immensely varied. You didn't think you were among the favorites for a long time. Did the victory temporarily overwhelm you?
 Tünde: It always takes me two days to process an experience like this, but it's also a really big deal. It was overwhelming, but in a positive way. I just couldn't be happy at first because I was ill and had to process everything. It was really a lot at once.

Austria's participant JJ is enthusiastic about your song. What do you think of his, "Wasted Love"?
Attila: We think his song is very cool. It has a classical approach and is mixed with electronics.
Tünde: We also have a classical background through our dad and we like to incorporate these elements into our music. We think it's great that this is also happening in Austria.

Your father Csaba has been a cellist with the Vienna Philharmonic since 1993. Did he like it when you smashed the cello at the end of the elimination show in Germany?
 Tünde: That was just a show element. Neither our dad nor we harbor any aggression towards our instruments. (laughs) The performance will be changed a lot before the song contest, but we can't reveal any more yet. We are working hard on the staging. In between all the interviews, there are lots of WhatsApp messages and phone calls on the subject.
Attila: The ESC has very strict guidelines and you have to release the plan relatively early. 
Tünde: Germany is also late with the elimination, but I'm very confident that we'll manage it all wonderfully.

As a participant for Germany, you save yourselves the grind of the semi-finals. Does that give you peace of mind?
Attila: We didn't even know for a while that we were going straight to the final.
Tünde: We were never mentally prepared for the fact that we would win and then actually go to the Song Contest. That's why we didn't think much about the structures. But we are in the "Big 5" and are actually in the final right away. That's very cool.

Have you been involved with the Song Contest before? Were there any competitions that you actively watched?
 Tünde: We didn't watch every single song contest, but I remember two or three well. For example, when Loreen won with "Euphoria" or Måns Zelmerlöw with "Heroes". Those are our favorites.

Germany hasn't necessarily had the best results in the Song Contest for many years. Does that mean you feel under different pressure because of the expectations?
Attila: We would have a lot more pressure if Germany had always come first - then we would have to win.
Tünde: Just like Stefan Raab, we also want to win, this attitude is important. But above all, it's a huge music festival that's about Europe coming together and music being the unifying element for all participants. Our song "Baller" is a celebration song about liberation and positive energy - that's exactly what we want to convey at the competition. Regardless of which place we achieve with it.

As far as the song contest is concerned, Austria and Germany don't always see eye to eye. There is still a lot of room for improvement when it comes to awarding points to the respective neighboring country. Have you already been confronted with comments and feedback questioning your participation for Germany?
 Tünde: Above all, it's about togetherness, even though it's a competition. We think it's completely normal and nice to be able to compete for Germany - it's a huge honor. We are there for Germany, with a German song. Personally, I've always liked the fact that the respective countries compete in their national languages. English is also okay, of course, but it's nice when the different cultures are celebrated. If all countries had English songs, I would lose that feeling.

Abor & Tynna in conversation with "Krone" editor Robert Fröwein in the office of their record label Sony Music.

(Bild: Robert Fröwein)

Was it clear to you that you would introduce yourselves to the jury and the people with "Baller", or were there also other song candidates?
Attila: We didn't introduce ourselves with "Baller" per se, but with our own songs in general. When it came to the preliminary round, we even wrote a special ESC song - in English in just four days.
Tünde: It always had to happen really quickly. Stefan Raab then stumbled across a lip-sync video of "Baller" on TikTok because we had already heavily promoted our album "Bittersüß". He liked the video so much that he called us and told us to use the song. We took his advice and now we're here.

How was the collaboration with Raab in general? For the Germans, he's almost a saint in the song contest context?
Tünde: I think it's cool that he took matters into his own hands again and took part in the preliminary decision. We had a casting before the start of the show, where we met him in person for the first time. He was immediately open and friendly. A cool and easy-going guy who was interested in our music. It was and is a great exchange with him. He has a lot of experience with the ESC, has taken part himself and won with Lena Meyer-Landrut - which is of course extremely valuable for us.

Tünde, your vocal performance in the final show was sometimes heavily criticized. Did you try to put this criticism aside and focus on something else?
Tünde: You don't always have to avoid criticism, it definitely has its legitimate place. I'm aware that I didn't put in the best performance of my life and there are various reasons for that. Not everything was technically in order and I was also ill that evening. The important thing is that we both perfect the performance as best we can.
Attila: We can now prepare for the three minutes at the show for two months.
Tünde: I don't take anything that goes beyond this criticism and everything else on the internet to heart. You don't always see it in the postings, but we also get a lot of positive feedback and great private messages. We're going on tour for the first time in September and it's already sold out. That shows that there are enough people who are happy that we are representing Germany.
Attila: And the way people voted for "Chefsache".

When you spend two months really getting to grips with the topic, do you have to make sure that you don't "overdo it"?
 Tünde: We'll see about that. To a certain extent, it's normal for any musician who plays a lot of shows and performs their own songs a lot to get stuck in again and again. But there are ways of avoiding the threat of routine and not falling into this spiral. But it also has its advantages if you know the song inside out. You can then perform it in your sleep. (laughs)

Will you be networking with former Song Contest winners or participants beforehand? Conchita Wurst is omnipresent when it comes to help and support ...
 Tünde: We don't know yet because we are so busy with the preparations, but we will certainly get to know more and more people.
Attila: Especially on the Austrian side. We're actually less well connected here because we were signed in Germany from our living room, so to speak. But we have all the Austrian artists on our radar. Bibiza is a top artist who makes great music. His "Schickeria" album is awesome, it's also a bit of an ode to Falco. I'm looking forward to getting to know all these people.

The public mainly focuses on "Baller", but the album "Bittersweet", which only came out a few weeks ago, tells many more stories ...
 Tünde: That's right. If anyone is really interested in who is competing for Germany, they will hopefully listen to the album and enjoy one or two of the songs. I would say that we have a lot of different styles and musical genres on it and I think there's something for almost everyone.

What is your musical foundation that must always be there despite all the stylistic shifts and changes?
Attila: A good melody. It should always be a catchy tune. Whether we manage that is another matter, but we try. 
Tünde: We worked hard to improve our songwriting for the album and I hope we did quite well. We are very happy with the album.
Attila: We worked on it for a year and a half. Not specifically just on the songs, but we wrote around 70 demos and then selected the best ones.

What actually happened to the English song that was written especially for the ESC?
 Tünde: It's on Attila's laptop and has been kept there for a while. (laughs)
Attila: Maybe it will be released one day and we'll tell people that it should have been at the ESC. But maybe the song will remain a demo. We could do a teaser on TikTok and then see what happens.

Do you have a personal goal for the Song Contest in Basel? On the one hand, in terms of placing, and on the other, in terms of the performance and the contest in general?
Attila: I would like to meet Estonia's candidate Tommy Cash, because he always delivers a great performance. And of course I'd like us to get as good a placement as possible. And as high a TV rating as possible. (laughs)
Tünde: You see, Attila thinks in numbers. My aim is to put in the very best performance and have a lot of fun.

Live in Vienna
If you want to see Abor & Tynna not only on TV at the Song Contest on May 17th, but also live, you have the opportunity to do so on October 4th - they will be playing at Flex in Vienna. Tickets are still available at www.oeticket.com, but they are becoming increasingly scarce.