Wasted Love

Born in Vienna in 2001 to an Austrian father and a Filipina mother, JJ (real name Johannes Pietsch) spent much of his childhood in Dubai before returning to Austria in 2016. A countertenor, he has performed in operatic productions at the Vienna State Opera, including Mozart's Die Zauberflöte and Mahler's Von der Liebe Tod. Somewhere along the way, JJ also popped up on two televised talent contests - Starmania in Austria and The Voice in the UK - where he made it to the finals. JJ has a vocal range that soars into the soprano register - something rarely heard in pop music. In "Wasted Love," his debut single, he transitions between breathy, intimate verses and powerful, operatic peaks.

JJ co-wrote "Wasted Love" with Teodora Spiri (known as Teya, Austria's 2023 Eurovision representative), and Thomas Thurner.

Sung entirely in English, the turbulent ballad explores the pain of unrequited love and emotional abandonment. JJ, overwhelmed by an "ocean of love," is left alone when the object of his affection pulls away, leaving him "adrift in an emotional abyss" and unable to fill the void. "There's a unique kind of heartbreak," JJ mused in an interview, "in having so much love to give but nowhere for it to land." He likened it to being lost at sea in a flimsy paper boat, clutching at any faint hope, only to feel it vanish beneath him. "And yet, there's something undeniably beautiful in that naïve devotion," JJ said. "Because, in the end, simply being able to love- no matter how wasted -is a beautiful thing in itself."