winner, 2016
Jamala
Jamala represented Ukraine at Eurovision 2016 in Stockholm with “1944”, and won.
- who
- Ukrainian singer
- born
- 27 August 1983, Osh
- contest
- 2016
- win
- 2016
- music
- jazz, soul, electro, pop, folk
- voice
- soprano
- active
- since 2001
- record labels
- Moon Records Ukraine, Enjoy! Records, Universal Music Group, Comp Music
- sang for
- Ukraine
Biography
Jamala is a Ukrainian singer who won the 2016 contest in Stockholm with “1944”, a song Jamala wrote. From 2017 to 2025 Jamala sat on the jury of Vidbir, the show that picks Ukraine’s entry. In November 2023 Russia put Jamala on its wanted list.
Written by ESC Predictions, 8 October 2026. Sources: Wikipedia, “Jamala”.
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The act’s own accounts, as listed on Wikidata. If one is wrong or out of date, tell us and we’ll take it down.
At Eurovision
One song, and what became of it.
-
2016 Stockholm
“1944”
Winner Won the contest with 534 points, ahead of 25 other songs.
- Sung in
- English, Crimean Tatar
- Written by
- Jamala
- Running order
- 21st of 26 in the final
- Semi-final
- 2nd of 18, 287 points
- Age on the night
- 32
Play: Jamala — “1944”, the winning performance at Eurovision 2016 hear it YouTube the contest’s channel Spotify search Apple Music search
The story of Eurovision 2016: A new way of counting, and a winner who topped neither vote
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Away from Eurovision
Awards
- Women in Arts Award 2024
- Order of Princess Olga, 3rd class 2025
- People's Artist of Ukraine
- Shevchenko National Prize
- honorary citizen of Kyiv
As recorded on Wikidata, which is rarely the whole list.
In the drama file
The scene from our index of scandals, mishaps and lore that Jamala is part of.
- 2017 The interval Stage invaders and booing
In our contest stories
What we wrote about Jamala, year by year. Follow a link for the rest of that night.
- 2016 The result
Neither won the contest. Ukraine's Jamala was second with the juries and second with the public, and that was enough: 534 points, to 511 for Australia's Dami Im and 491 for Russia's Sergey Lazarev.
- 2017 The interval
Jamala, the reigning winner, was performing in the interval when a man wrapped in an Australian flag ran onto the stage, bared his backside to the audience and was dragged off. He turned out to be a Ukrainian prankster, not an Australian.
Results as published by the European Broadcasting Union. Biographical details from Wikidata. The photo is from Wikimedia Commons and is credited beside it. Spotted a mistake? Tell us and we'll fix it.