Lordi front-man to join Eesti Laul grand final jury

One of the jury members at this Saturday's Eesti Laul grand final will be Mr. Lordi, leader of Finnish hard rock act Lordi and winner of the Eurovision Song Contest back in 2006.
ETV journalist Karmel Killandi traveled to Rovaniemi, in the far north of Finland, where Mr. Lordi, real name Tomi Petteri Putaansuu, resides.
"He told us why such a famous man lives in Rovaniemi, and not in Helsinki," Killandi said of the interview, which will be broadcast on ETV magazine show "Ringvaade" Wednesday evening.
Putaansuu/Mr. Lordi will likely be appearing in his customary bio-mechanic armor (see photo). In terms of language, many Estonians are fluent in Finnish or, if need be, English.
Lordi won the Eurovision Song Context for Finland in 2006 with the song Hard Rock Hallelujah, polling a record points tally of 292 in the process.
The band does not seem to have dined out solely on that triumph, however, and has released a total of 13 albums since being founded in 1992, and still tours Europe.
Eesti Laul is Estonia's annual contest to find its entry to the Eurovision Song Contest semi-finals and, if the act makes it, the grand final, which this year is in Turin, Italy on May 14.
10 entries will be judged by both jury and 'phone-in poll, while the Eesti Laul event has been granted an exemption from the cap on indoor events at 1,000 participants, meaning a live audience will be permitted at the Saku Suurhall on Saturday.
Estonia won the Eurovision Song Context in when Dave Benton, Tanel Padar and 2XL bagged the most points with the song "Everybody", and its entries often place high up, though Estonia did not qualify for the final in 2006.
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