Stefan Airapetjan (; born 24 December 1997), known simply as Stefan, is an Estonian singer and songwriter, best known for winning the first edition of Maskis Laulja, the Estonian version of Masked Singer in 2020 and representing Estonia in the Eurovision Song Contest 2022 with the song "Hope", placing 13th in the final.
Early life Airapetjan was born and raised in Viljandi, Estonia as the son of Armenian immigrants. He has a sister named Stefania.
Career Early career Airapetjan has been singing since his early childhood, with Hedi-Kai Pai his vocal coach, and won a number of contests. In 2010, he entered Laulukarussell, a singing competition for children organised by Eesti Rahvusringhääling, and reached the final.
2018–2020: Eesti Laul and Maskis Laulja Airapetjan entered the music competition Eesti Laul on four occasions, winning once. His first entry was in 2018 as part of a duo called Vajé with the song "Laura (Walk with Me)", finishing third in the superfinal. His first solo entry was in 2019 with the song "Without You", which won the jury vote in the grand final and qualified for the superfinal, finishing third. He then entered in 2020 with the song "By My Side", which finished seventh in the grand final.
In 2020, Airapetjan won as Aries () in the first edition of The Masked Singer. He made his way to the finals, where he was declared the winner of the competition.
Maskis Laulja performances and resultsEpisodeSongOriginal artistResult1"Fly Me to the Moon"Frank SinatraAdvanced4"für Oksana"NubluAdvanced5"Jailhouse Rock"Elvis PresleyAdvanced6"Human"Rag'n'Bone ManAdvanced7"Take Me to Church"HozierAdvanced8"Chop Suey!"System of a DownWinner
2022–present: Return to Eesti Laul and Eurovision
In 2022, Airapetjan participated in Eesti Laul 2022 with the song "Hope" and won, besting out 40 entries. The win earned him the right to represent Estonia in the Eurovision Song Contest 2022 in Turin. In the Eurovision Song Contest, he performed 12th in the second semi-final and placed 5th, which qualified him to the final. In the final, he finished 13th place overall with 141 points.
Discography Studio albums +List of studio albums, with selected details Title Details Hope Released: 30 November 2022 Label: Moonwalk Formats: Digital download, streaming
Extended plays +List of extended plays, with selected details Title Details Released: 23 May 2023 Label: Moonwalk Formats: Digital download, streaming
Singles As lead artist Title Year Peak chart positions Album or EP ESTDom.Peak chart positions for singles in Estonia Domestic Chart: "Without You": "We'll Be Fine": "By My Side": ESTAir.Peak chart positions for singles in Estonian Airplay:
"Without You": "Hope": "Miraaž": "Kiri külmkapi peal" : "Seotud käed": "Katkine tee": "Purjetuul": "Jackpot": "Eiffel": "Langevarjuna": "Better Days" : ICE LTU NLDTip SWE UKDigital "Without You" 2018 5 2 — — — — — Hope "Better Days" 2019 — — — — — — — "We'll Be Fine" 36 — — — — — — "By My Side" 30 — — — — — — "Oh My God" 2020 — — — — — — — "Let Me Know" — — — — — — — "" 2021 rowspan="11" — — — — — — "Hope" 1 35 28 20 87 47 "" 2022 2 — — — — — "" — — — — — — "" 2023 42 — — — — — rowspan="7" "" 45 — — — — — "" 2024 58 — — — — — "" 5 — — — — — "Jackpot" 2025 5 — — — — — "Eiffel" 7 — — — — — "" 2026 14 — — — — — "—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory."*" denotes that the chart did not exist at that time. As featured artist Title Year Album or EP "Headlights" 2021 Disposable Society "" Tiks 086
As part of Vajé Title Year Album or EP "Soldier" 2017 rowspan="3" "Laura (Walk with Me)" "Home" 2018
Other charted songs Title Year Peak chart position Album or EP ESTAir. "Better Days" 2019 77
Awards and nominations Year Award Category Nominee(s) Result 2020 Estonian Music Awards Pop Artist of the Year Himself 2023 Male Artist of the Year Artist of the Year Song of the Year "Hope" Album of the Year Hope Debut Album of the Year
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