Kristian Kostov wins EBBA Public Choice Award 2018
The 2018 edition of the European Border Breakers Awards (the 'EBBA') took place on 17 January in Groningen, the Netherlands. 10 European emerging artists performed and were honoured for their great success across Europe. The big winner of the night was Kristian Kostov, who won the 'Public Choice Award', after an overwhelming majority of fans voted for him.
17-year-old Kostov is probably best known for representing Bulgaria in last year's Eurovision Song Contest, where he finished in second place with the hit 'Beautiful mess'. He's been singing since the age of 6, first in the group Neposedy, and since 2011 as a solo artist.
Hosted by legendary artist and BBC presenter Jools Holland, the show also featured performances of most of the other EBBA winners. It will be broadcasted by several European public channels in the course of the year, and can also be watched online on the EBBA website.
The EBBA is a European prize recognising the best of up-and-coming music and celebrates its 15th birthday this year. The award is given to artists who have achieved success outside their own country with their first release. Previous winners include artists such as Adele, Dua Lipa, Mumford and Sons and Stromae. The EBBA is supported by the European Commission through the Creative Europe programme.
The 10 winners of the EBBA 2018 are: Alice Merton (DE), Alma (FI), Blanche (BE), Kristian Kostov (BG), Off Bloom (DK), Sigrid (NO), Skott (SE), Youngr (UK), The Blaze (FR) and Salvador Sobral (PT).
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