Lordi represented Finland when it won the 2006 Eurovision Song Contest with “Hard Rock Hallelujah.”
The 2006 final took place in Athens, Greece, on 20 May. Lordi performed in elaborate monster costumes and delivered a hard-rock song that stood out from the contest’s usual pop, ballad and dance entries. Finland won with 292 points, setting a new points record under the scoring system used then.
The victory was Finland’s first Eurovision win. It also became one of the contest’s most recognizable examples of genre contrast: a theatrical hard-rock performance succeeded in a competition often associated with mainstream pop.
Lordi’s presentation was carefully designed as a band performance rather than a conventional solo vocal showcase. The costumes concealed the members’ faces and became central to the act’s identity. The song’s title is commonly shortened in conversation, but its official title is “Hard Rock Hallelujah.”