The Code was the Swiss entry at the Eurovision Song Contest 2024 in Malmo performed by Nemo.
Combining rap, opera and drum and bass, the song relates to Nemo's journey as a non-binary person, with the lyrics "somewhere between the 0's and 1's" being a reference to the binary code.
It qualified from the second semifinal in 4th place. In the final, it was performed 21st following Cyprus and preceding Slovenia. At the close of voting, it was declared the winner with 591 points, giving Switzerland its 3rd victory overall and the first since 1988.
Lyrics[]
Welcome to the show, let everybody know
I'm done playing the game, I'll break out of the chains
You better buckle up, I'll pour another cup
This is my bohème, so drink it up, my friend
(Oh)
(Oh)
This story is my truth
I, I went to hell and back to find myself on track
I broke the code, woah
Like ammonites, I just gave it some time
Now I found paradise
I broke the code, woah
Yeah
Let me tell you a tale about life
'Bout the good and the bad, better hold on tight
Who dеcides what's wrong, what's right
Everything is balance, еverything's light
I got so much on my mind and I been awake all night
I'm so pumped, I'm so psyched
It's bigger than me, I'm getting so hyped, like
(Oh) Let me taste the lows and highs
(Oh) Let me feel that burning fright
(Oh) This story is my truth
I, I went to hell and back to find myself on track
I broke the code, woah
Like ammonites, I just gave it some time
Now I found paradise
I broke the code, woah
Somewhere between the 0's and 1's
That's where I found my kingdom come
My heart beats like a—
Somewhere between the 0's and 1's
That's where I found my kingdom come
My heart beats like a drum
I, I went to hell and back to find myself on track
I broke the code, woah
Like ammonites, I just gave it some time
Now I found paradise
I broke the code, woah, woah
Trivia[]
- The music video featured a couple of clever hidden Easter eggs:
- A map inside each of the train cars shows its destination as "Zurich > Malmö". This represents the journey taken by Nemo as Switzerland's Eurovision representative. Coincidentally, Nemo hitch-hiked from Zurich to get to Malmö.
- The ticket Nemo holds shows the date "May 11 2024" and the time "21:00", the exact date and start time of the 2024 grand final.
- The song made such an impact that the Swiss justice minister Beat Jans was willing to meet with Nemo to discuss the rights of non-binary people in Switzerland.
- The song is the first to win out of the 21st spot in the running order since 1944 in 2016.
- It is the first English-language song to win for Switzerland at Eurovision (the country's last 2 winners were in French).
- It was the first song the Luxembourg jury identified correctly as the winner since 1978.
- Linda Dale previously co-wrote the 2023 Norwegian entry Queen of Kings.
- One of the song's backing vocalists was Teya Spiric, who represented Austria in 2023 as one half of the duo Teya & Salena. She met Nemo during the 2023 SUISA songwriting camp in Zurich.
- It broke a couple of Eurovision records: the most 12-point scores awarded from the juries with 22, as well as the highest-scoring song on the jury side with over 84% of the total vote accumulated.
- As of 2024, it is the third-highest scoring winner of all time.
- It is now the lowest scoring winner in a semifinal, coming in 4th out of the 10 qualifiers, scoring lower than the previous record holder, 2008 winner Dima Bilan who scored 3rd out of 10 qualifiers in his semifinal. However, had the juries returned, it would have won the second semifinal outright.
Videos[]
Nemo - The Code (LIVE) - Switzerland🇨🇭- Grand Final - Eurovision 2024
Nemo - The Code - Switzerland 🇨🇭 - Official Music Video - Eurovision 2024