Eurovision Fact #1296:
Mr. Lordi, otherwise known as Tomi Putaansuu, frontman of the band Lordi which won Eurovision for Finland in 2006, revealed to Finnish news outlet Iltalehti that he and the band wanted to perform at UMK, Finland's national final for Eurovision, this year to celebrate the 20th anniversary of their win, but they were denied.
Two of the band's record labels, Warner Music Finland and Sony Music Finland, reached out to Yle, the Finnish public broadcaster, to see if the group could perform. Both requests were made months in advance of the contest and were met with lukewarm responses.
About the rejection and his desire to perform, Putaansuu said:
"It feels ridiculous. It's not that we needed that performance, the gigs are selling anyway. Now would have been the momentum when the victory will be 20 years and there have been many other winners from Finland. For me, performing would have been a circle closing. Apparently, we thought stupidly and childishly."
After being denied a spot to perform, the band was asked if they would like to come sit in the audience between Käärijä (Finland 2023) and Erika Vikman (Finland 2025), which Putaansuu thought was a ridiculous request, especially because of the distance he would have to travel to get to the arena.
The lead producer of UMK and the Managing Director of Yle Entertainment both noted that Lordi has been featured prominently in other Yle media recently, and had no comments about the band's earlier requests to perform at UMK.
[Source]
"Lordi raivostui UMK:n päätöksestä: ”Saatanan saletti, että tämä oli tässä”," iltalehti.fi.
