It’s crazy it’s arty

Nowadays he’s better at holding his own reins, regarding to downtime and taking time off especially

Does he ever dream of getting the pre-umk käärijä back? He doesn’t miss that life because he wanted to be on stage, and he’s now taking everything as it comes

Hardest thing is stopping and staying still and accepting his own feelings and limits

His team takes care of him and asks if they see everything’s not okay. He loves his team and friends and family, he has amazing support

Beginnings of Käärijä: First songs he did on stage was at Samrock in 2015 or 2016. First own gig on Puksu-pub opening for Gasellit, he’s first own gig was there as well

How UMK happened: thanks to Erika Vikman UMK seemed cool, she showed that you can get success through it (they mistakenly say the song was Syntisten pöytä)

Label got excited and wondered if he should apply, and Jere said he would if the right song came along, and then CCC happened and they decided it’s the right song for Eurovision, not just UMK

Even before the song was released he could see from people’s reactions there’s something special about the song

How has success changed him as a person? He’s a bit more scared. He’s talked about being in public places before. His behavior has changed, like in a public bathroom he might stay in the booth until he can hear there’s no-one there anymore. He’s still working through this stuff and learning

Host talks about how his gigs are entertaining and his speeches are heartwarming

how does he feel about the longevity of his success? He always wanted to have more than just CCC. 

He talked Lauri Haav at one point who said that when people stop filming him and coming to talk to him in public, that’s when he should worry that no-one's interested anymore. He’s tried to change his way of thinking about that.

He loves to chat with people but sometimes his batteries are empty, but he needs to take responsibility of how he’s doing, pacing himself so he can still do those encounters that he loves

Has he been able to enjoy every moment, gigs abroad and such? Most of the time but not always! He mentioned the recent Prague gig, it was amazing, he enjoyed it so much, he didn’t want to leave the stage, he realised how absolutely amazing it is that all these people are here, and he gets to do this. Screw everything else, this is what he’s always wanted to do.

They talk about his life changing overnight, about Eurovision

The finale night was spent partying, no sleep. After the results he rushed to the bathroom to cry. Pretty fast he got over it and realised what an amazing thing it all was

He remembers the moment after, when he went backstage and Bojan was carrying him, there was something magical about it. He’d like to experience it again

But it was hard to wrap his mind around what exactly happened, like at the airport coming back, there were so many people, and everything was a whirlwind

Everything he touches turns to a headline, did it start to scare him? Yes it did, or it’s started to scare him more now. He’s getting annoyed seeing his own face all the time, he doesn’t enjoy it. But he needs the publicity to sell gigs, but no-one enjoys being written about. It annoys him that other people benefit from writing shit about him.

What about his private life, does he feel he can be himself just the way he is? Yes, he gets to be Jere. He might have lost himself a little at some points of this journey, had little breakdowns (especially regarding some scandals, he mentions the Ukraine flag thing on Eurotour), but it’s calmer now. He didn’t know how to handle that kind of stuff, so he felt like everything was crumbling down. But now he knows things will be okay.

He’s opened doors to music in Finnish language abroad, which is new, and other artists are doing it now too, like Erika

It feels amazing to hear people singing in Finnish and enjoying Finnish music and he’s now only realised what a big deal it actually is. The first eurotour didn’t feel like that at first since it was right after Eurovision.

He loves the tour life, being in the bus and waking up in different places, as hard as it is

He’s a bit bummed how the press in Finland doesn’t acknowledge him or other artists succeeding abroad. It’s not about him but everyone who’d like to try making it abroad. 

He talks about Lordi and how people wonder if they’re even making music anymore, when they’ve spent 10 years making a career all over the world. Mentions Turisti and how he said he’d like to try to get abroad, and Jere would love to see him and others rock out over there.

Host mentions Westlife being hyped about Käärijä’s performance

Does he get nervous before gigs? Sometimes, but it’s more excited anticipation which hypes him up.

About the arena show: It’s a big process, to even get to take a huge step like that. 

At first when the label suggested an arena gig, he was a bit apprehensive, but then decided to try it out, let’s go! If all goes to hell then be it. It’s important to take these steps forward and go outside your comfort zone. 

The tickets are selling well and he can sleep well at night. He’s very grateful for getting to do the show.

There’s still a lot to do: setlist, guests, how it all goes down, beginning, end, all of it. He wants to take care of his own physical and mental condition to be in best possible shape for it, and that after the gig he can say he’s given his all to everyone

Host calls him an ambassador of Vantaa

How have the people close to him reacted to his success and this frenzy? He has mixed reactions to how people take it. His family is awesome, they have always believed in him and rooted for him. His mom could maybe chill a little sometimes, she’s very enthusiastic. It’s sometimes funny how excited they all are, asking when the next interview is even though she’s heard all the things a hundred times before

Old friends have also taken it very well, he can see they would be his friends regardless

A lot of new relatives have been found :) But he thinks it’s funny too, quite adorable. People are basically good, he wants to be positive about it nowadays. He has heard some weird stuff about people claiming to be best friends with him, but if it brings joy to those people, oh well?

There have been a few cases where he’s been disappointed in people trying to take advantage

Has he had to talk to anyone (like a professional)? Not in a long while, but he did go to a wellness coach at some point, they did some yoga and mindmaps and stuff. He says he probably should take that step and go yap to someone. 

The other day he sat his mom and dad down to tell them how he’s actually been, how he’s been feeling, about certain things, because sometimes it feels like the house of cards is coming down, that he has to make changes. 

There have been awakenings about many things. He wants to be alive. And keep doing this. There are so many people out there enjoying what he’s doing and getting joy from it, so he wants to stay standing, for them also. He knows he matters to them. He doesn’t want to downplay that.

The host tells a story of his daughter’s 14th birthday, where they saw Isaac Sene, Sexmane and Käärijä performing. They had their own lounge for the party and he asked Jere to come by, and Jere came to say hi, and the kids have been absolutely bonkers to this day about that moment. It meant so much, even though he was tired after the gig and didn’t have to do that.

He’s constantly in those situations where he has to set limits because he can’t do it all. But he wants to be in a shape where he’s able to do that kind of stuff, because he loves to do those things. He also feels guilty for saying no. The encounters also give him a lot, he also gets joy from seeing people happy. But some limits have to be drawn. And people should understand that too.

He doesn’t quite remember where it exactly came from that he has to slow down, probably from everyone (family and label and crew and friends). When his new AR Kalle came along, he was pretty quickly saying that Jere needs some rest. He saw that he was in too deep.

On stage he always comes alive no matter how tired he is, but afterwards the light just goes out

It’s natural to get greedy when opportunities come along, but he needs to have priorities about his health and his career.

For example, he was in Greece on holiday with family, and was offered a gig in Beijing, about 60k people, and he said no. He’s having this holiday, celebrating his brother’s 18th birthday, so he passed.

Previously he would have taken the opportunity, thinking what else could come of it, fearing that something like that wouldn’t happen again, but now he could say no, because he needed rest. Everything is so hectic you need to hold on to some things, things can happen so fast.

Has he ever thought about starting his own label to get to decide everything on his own? It has been discussed, but right now he’s happy with his label and his team, and he doesn’t have the resources (time, interest) to do it right now, maybe in the future? It would be way too much right now.

He’s done really cool things and achieved stuff that no-one can take away. Then again, he also wants to go forward and do bigger things. He needs to have goals and not just be satisfied with everything. It would kill his creativity and drive to do things. The fire needs to be fed, but at the same time he doesn’t want to get too serious with it and get disappointed with the results, wants to enjoy the journey

Before he had a need to prove himself, but that was insecurity, he can’t be bothered anymore. He wants to focus on the important, and having fun.

Has he ever gone overboard with partying, drinking etc? The lifestyle sometimes feels like it’s one neverending party, so it’s essential to find an everyday rhythm that doesn’t revolve around that. It’s partly their own fault, they do have alcohol in their rider… You can’t go to work drunk if you sell kitchens, why should this be any different. 

It’s a constant barrage of highs and lows, and if you’re doing, for example, UMK and preparties and 130 gigs within a year, it’s all one big high, and at some point there’s going to be a huge drop. So when you go home you’re just a ghost. And that’s when for some people alcohol or drugs come along. And he totally gets why. But you have to learn to live with the spikes and that reality and plan your life around it. You can’t live in that hype.

Is he hooked on that feeling or is it numbing? It’s both. Mostly he wants to get more and more, but sometimes he’s on stage doing a song or giving a speech and finds himself thinking what a monkey he is. People are paying to see this circus monkey? But he’s also a person who sometimes thinks really deeply about this stuff and it makes him laugh a lot. Life is funny, people are chasing one thing and then when they get it they chase the next one, it’s crazy.

About other interests: he’s a fan of Salkkarit, likes to watch movies and series, doesn’t listen to music that much anymore, he’s a bit detached from listening to new music (except at the gym). He listens to his own music though, the demos, to feel them out. He’s been trying to get more active with hockey, it’s therapy and exercise for him.

People don’t realise how much work everything is, stuff that no-one ever sees. Being at a gig is not just 60 minutes of performing, it’s so much more. He doesn’t update on stuff like being at an arena meeting or something, why would he. 

It’s difficult when his days are so scattered and unpredictable, he can’t promise his family or friends pretty much anything , like meeting a month from now. So many times he’s had to cancel and disappoint a friend. He’s decided he won’t promise anything anymore. 

Any upcoming gigs? He’s going to the Netherlands to do a few songs, then in Tallinn an outdoor gig in December, and private gigs for companies.

He means to take a vacation in January-February, going to Ruka’s Pipolätkä and take a trip somewhere

How wonderful is his life right now? Could be more wonderful! Work-wise he wouldn’t change a thing, in his everyday life there are different kinds of things going on, but he does his best to be happy

He wants to encourage people to talk about their problems and feelings. Tell at least one person, let go, you might get help when you say things out loud. Don’t get stuck on things, learn from your mistakes, look forward.

Question From The Jar: what do you have nightmares about? For example, he’s at a gig and there’s an audience, but after a few songs everyone just vanishes, everyone leaves. And then he feels that everything is crumbling down. Also, a dream where he can’t find his home. Or that he’s missing his plane.

The host reminds him how he’s done exceptional things and brought so much joy to people. Whenever his song gets played somewhere, everyone starts smiling.

Jere thanks everyone who comes around, buys tickets, listens to his music.