Former Sex Pistols frontman John Lydon is aiming to represent Ireland in the upcoming Eurovision Song Contest.
Lydon and his band Public Image Ltd (PiL) will compete against five other acts next month for the chance to represent Ireland at the event in Liverpool this summer.
They are entering their new single ‘Hawaii’ and will perform it at a Late Late Show contest special alongside the other musicians vying for the position.
Lydon, who was known for much of his career as Johnny Rotten, has two Irish parents, with his mother hailing from Cork and his father from Galway.
1/2 PiL will be competing to represent Ireland at Eurovision 2023 with their new single Hawaii - which is available on all digital platforms from today, Monday, January 9th.
Download or Stream Hawaii now! A PiL song like no other. https://t.co/hSdJYEiaoz pic.twitter.com/6Q8jRGag1g— John Lydon Official (@lydonofficial) January 9, 2023
2/2 PiL will perform Hawaii on Late Late Show from 9.30pm on 3rd Feb in order to complete for Eurovision.
Hawaii will be released on limited edition 7" vinyl later in the year. They will also be releasing a new album this year.
More info via pilofficialhttps://t.co/hSdJYEiaoz pic.twitter.com/m5pl7IqWIj
— John Lydon Official (@lydonofficial) January 9, 2023
The song is a love letter to Lydon’s wife Nora who is living with Alzheimer’s and focuses on one of their happiest moments together in Hawaii.
Lydon previously attempted to represent Ireland at the Eurovision in 2018, entering his song ‘Pleased to Meet You’.
The other acts in contention to become Ireland’s Eurovision entry are:
- Wild Youth
- ADGY
- Connolly
- K Muni & ND
- Leila Jane
The Eurovision Song Contest will be held in Liverpool on Saturday May 13th.
The UK is hosting the event on behalf of last year’s winners Ukraine.
