Kalush Orchestra received full hospitality while on a break from their US tour after casually being invited to Arnold Schwarzenegger’s home.
The Eurovision winners are currently in the middle of a tour across North America and made good use of their free schedule on Wednesday, spending time with the Hollywood icon and former California governor.
It seems the Terminator actor got on swimmingly with the large hip hop group as they all gathered outside his sprawling mansion for a group photo.
Arnold, 75, even wore a pink panama hat to match Kalush singer Oleh Psiuk’s famous look.
Alongside photos from their surprise meet-up, Oleh wrote in an Instagram post: ‘Yo, yesterday we were visiting Arnold Schwarzenegger. He invited us over to his house and came out to greet us with a big pet donkey😎
‘We talked about the situation in Ukraine and thanked him for his support and shared how important it was to us. You know, Arnold @schwarzenegger has been actively supporting Ukrainians since the early days of the war, for which we are very grateful.’
He added: ‘We believe that support from abroad will only increase. It was a pleasure to meet such a legend, I can say that I grew up on movies with his participation.
‘By the way, Schwartz also appreciated the @panama.kalush. What’s your favorite Arnold movie?’
Arnold wrote in his own post: ‘It was fantastic to meet Kalush Orchestra, the Eurovision champions from Ukraine. You inspire me!’
The actor went viral in March when he posted a video condemning Russia’s war on Ukraine which began the month prior on the direction of President Vladimir Putin.
Arnold, who was born in Austria, recalled how his father was sent to Russia to fight for the Nazis during World War II.
‘When my father arrived in Leningrad, he was all pumped up on the lies of his government,’ he said in an address to the people of Russia who are believed to have been given misinformation about the war on Ukraine.
‘When he left Leningrad he was broken physically and mentally. He lived the rest of his life in pain. I don’t want you to be broken like my father.
‘This is not the war to defend Russia that your grandfathers or great-grandfathers fought. This is an illegal war.’
Kalush Orchestra won this year’s Eurovision after being given permission to leave the frontline in Ukraine to compete in the song contest.
