Eurovision winner Nemo: ‘Social media is harming us – but I have a big idea to change that’

Swiss musician Nemo is no stranger to a big stage or a big conversation. In 2023, they entered Eurovision with “The Code”, a drum and bass banger about accepting their gender identity, and won with a mammoth 591 points. In the process, they became the first openly non-binary performer ever to win the iconic song contest. Shortly afterwards, Nemo met with one of Switzerland’s seven presidents to discuss a big issue in their homeland – the lack of a third gender option on passports.

Now, as they release their gloriously raucous debut album Arthouse, Nemo is taking on Big Issue’s Big Questions. The organisers of the Eurovision Song Contest have just postponed a vote on whether Israel should be allowed to perform in next year’s event  – but Nemo is happy to address the issue head-on.

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• Making your mind up: The long history of Eurovision, politics and Israel, explained

What has been your biggest influence?

In terms of being absolutely blown away by an artist, it has to be Marina Abramović. I heard about her as a kid, and everything I read about her really fascinated me. She really pushed her own boundaries, and with that, she pushed the boundaries of performance art. When she started doing it, it was an art form that almost had to fight for recognition, but she really helped to make it renowned and fully accepted as an art form. She’s been really influential to me in the sense that she reshaped how I think about performance and creativity.

What was your biggest dream going up?

I wanted to become an actor. Not a lot of people know this about me, but my dad actually started an ‘idea factory’ – this company called BrainStore that sells ideas to businesses and artists. When I turned 10, I asked if I could buy an idea from him: “How can I make acting my job?” He took it very seriously and put on this big workshop with some of my classmates. At the end, I was presented with 10 ideas on how to make acting my job – and none of them worked out! But one [idea] led me to get involved with Biel children’s opera, which is where I fell in love with singing and performing on stage. I realised what I really love is music, and ever since, I’ve never really cared about acting.

What is the biggest event from your youth?

Participating at the Cypher 2016 contest in Switzerland. It’s a big deal because every year they invite 100 rappers from all over the country to compete. I was 16 at the time and still had braces, but I got to rap in front of a room full of people I admired. And in the [YouTube] video, you can see them being like: “Oh wow, this kid can actually do something.” It kind of went viral overnight in Switzerland, and that was really the start of my career.

What do you see as your biggest success?

I remember when I was 16, I said my biggest dream was to be able to make a living from music. That’s all I’ve ever wanted, so to be doing that 10 years later has got to be my biggest success.

And your biggest failure?

I mean, I remember I failed this one exam that would have let me into a school I didn’t want to be in anyway. So I’m kind of happy that I failed at that! I feel like I’m lucky not to have had this one, like, reshaping mistake that I still think about to this day. I feel like everything has been a flow: some things work out, some things don’t. And I think you kind of find yourself in that flow.

Let’s talk about a big issue for Eurovision: There have been calls for Israel to be banned. Spain, The Netherlands, Iceland, Ireland and Slovenia have threatened to boycott if Israel complete. Should Israel be allowed to compete?

That is a big question. But as I’ve said in the past, I believe that under the current circumstances, Israel shouldn’t be allowed to participate in Eurovision.

[Note: This interview took place before October’s ceasefire between Israel and Hamas. Fans, artist delegations and activists alike have called for Israel to be banned from the competition due to the war in Gaza. Some have argued Israel’s participation does not align with the contest’s message of peace and unity. Similarly, Russia was banned due to its war in the Ukraine. Despite this, Israel came second in this year’s contest.]

If Eurovision’s organisers don’t vote to exclude Israel from next year’s song event, do you think Switzerland, the UK and other countries should follow Ireland’s lead and withdraw?

I’m not here to make these decisions for the individual countries – and I’m glad I don’t have to – but I have a big respect for the countries that have come out and said they would withdraw. I think it’s really important to take a stand against crimes against humanity, so I really appreciate the countries [that have done that]. I think it’s been too long that we’ve ignored this situation, and really, it’s way past time to take action.

What is your big idea to change the world?

I’m not such a big fan of social media apps right now – I think they’re harming us more than they serve us. In Switzerland, we have a direct democracy system where everything gets voted on by the people – like, do we want this new law or not? So I think it would be really cool if there was a social media app that followed that system. It would start out really simple – maybe just a basic text function – but anyone could propose an idea on how to make it better. Do we want photos? Do we want Instagram-style stories? And then everyone on the app would vote on whether to add the new function. I don’t know how to program, so if anyone wants to take the idea, please go ahead and make the app!

Nemo’s debut album Arthouse is out now.

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