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The 19-year-old Tusse, short for Tousin Chiza,
will represent Sweden in the Eurovision Song Contest in the
Netherlands in May with the song "Voices".
Born in the Democratic Republic of Congo and separated from his
parents at the age of five during an attempted escape from the
civil war-torn African country, he spent three years in a
refugee camp with an aunt before being granted asylum in Sweden.
"It was a whole different world," Tusse told Reuters.
"It's a life that I don't wish for anybody because it's messy
and every day you worry a lot. It's all you do, you just worry.
Will I get food tonight? Will we find water, will we be alive
tomorrow?," he said.
"It's that kind of worrying that here in Sweden we don't have
which is great."
Having sung throughout his childhood in Africa, mainly in church
choirs where he wished he was the minister so he could perform
solos to the congregation, Tusse kept singing in Sweden - in
choirs and eventually in talent contests such as Swedish Idol
which he won in 2019.
"I was like 'I'm tired of just responding, I want to be in the
front' so when I came to Sweden I kept singing in school and in
church," he said.
PARENTS ALIVE
Tusse found out a few years ago that his biological parents were
still alive, although his mother has since died.
"I grew up thinking my parents were gone and ultimately thinking
that they were dead, so to actually find out that they were
alive and well and they got in touch with me for the first time,
it was huge. So much joy and just happiness because there was
something always missing in my heart."
Tusse said his father had been cheering him on during the
Swedish Eurovision qualifier contests.
"He would call and be like "My son. Can I vote from Congo?" and
I'm like 'No, you can't, it' doesn't work like that' and he's
like 'well, fix it. I can get everybody in Congo to vote',"
Tusse said.
Plans to travel to meet his father have been delayed by the
coronavirus pandemic.
This year's Eurovision Song Contest, one of the world's biggest
annual television events, will take place in Rotterdam from May
18-22 following the Netherlands' victory in 2019 with the song
"Arcade". The event will have a limited live audience after the
2020 edition was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
(Reporting by Ilze Filks, writing by Anna Ringstrom, editing by
Ed Osmond)
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