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At the age of 10, I read about a article in my community gazette about the World Air Guitar Competition, which take place every year in my native city of Oulu, Finland. My family had helped out at the inaugural contest since 1996 – mom handed out flyers, my father organized the music. Since then, country-level contests have been staged globally, with the winners gathering in Oulu every summer.

Back then, I inquired with my family if I could participate. They weren't sure at first; the competition was in a bar, and there would be a lot of adults. They felt it might be an daunting atmosphere, but I was resolved.

In my youth, I was always performing air guitar, pretending to play to the biggest rock tunes with my invisible instrument. Mom and Dad were music fans – dad loved Springsteen and the Irish rock band. the Australian rockers was the initial group I discovered on my own. the guitarist, the lead guitarist, was my hero.

When I stepped on stage, I performed my act to the band's the song Whole Lotta Rosie. The crowd started chanting “Angus”, similar to the concert version, and it hit me: this is what it feels like to be a music icon. I made it to the finals, playing to a large audience in the public plaza, and I was hooked. I was dubbed “Little Angus” that day.

After that I stopped. I was a referee one year, and started the show once more, but I stayed out of the contest. I went back at 18, tried a few different stage names, but people kept calling me “Little Angus” so I embraced it and choose “The Angus” as my performance alias. I’ve reached the finals each competition since then, and in 2023 I was the runner-up, so I was determined to take the title this year.

The worldwide group is like a family. The saying we live by is ‘Create music, not conflict’. It may seem funny, but it’s a genuine belief.

The competition itself is competitive but uplifting. Participants have a short window to give everything – dynamic presence, perfect mime, stage magnetism – on an invisible guitar. Judges score you on a scale from a specific numeric range. When it's a draw, there’s an “air-off” between the last two competitors: a track is selected and you improvise.

Training is crucial. I chose an a metal group song for my act. I listened to it on a loop for a long time. I stretched constantly, trying to get my legs prepared enough to leap, my hands fast enough to copy riffs and my spine prepared for those moves and leaps. Once competition day came, I could internalize the track in my bones.

Once all acts were done, the scores came in, and I had drawn with the winner from Japan, a competitor known as Sudo-chan – it was occasion for an tiebreaker. We competed directly to that classic rock anthem by Guns N’ Roses. When I heard the song, I felt at ease because it was familiar to me, and above all I was so eager to perform one more time. As they declared I’d emerged victorious, the area erupted.

My memory is blurry. I think I lost consciousness from shock. Then everyone started chanting Neil Young’s Rockin’ in the Free World and lifted me on to their backs. A former champion – alias Nordic Thunder – a former champion and one of my dear companions, was embracing me. I cried. I was Finland’s first air guitar global winner in two and a half decades. The prior titleholder, the earlier victor, was also present. He offered me the most heartfelt squeeze and said it was “long overdue”.

This worldwide group is like a close-knit group. Our motto is “Make air, not war”. Though it appears comical, but it’s a real philosophy. People come from globally, and everyone is helpful and motivating. Before you go on stage, each contestant comes and hugs you. Then for a brief period you’re allowed to be uninhibited, silly, the top performer in the world.

Besides that, I'm a percussionist and guitarist in a musical act with my sibling called the Southgates, referencing Gareth Southgate, as we’re fans of British music genres. I’ve been serving drinks for a few years now, and I produce independent videos and music videos. The victory hasn’t affected my daily activities too much but I’ve been doing a many interviews, and I wish it brings more artistic projects. Oulu will be a cultural hub next year, so there are promising opportunities.

At present, I’m just grateful: for the network, for the ability to compete, and for that budding enthusiast who picked up a newspaper and thought, “I'd love to try that.”