Sweden: First insight into the numbers of the 4th Heat of Melodifestivalen 2023 | SVT Pre-Listening Event

Melodifestivalen 2023 next show is on the forthcoming Saturday, February the 25th! The fourth heat of the national selection process of Sweden, will take place at Malmö Arena in Malmö.

What to expect

Back in 26th of February, almost 40 years ago, by just a day, Carola won Melodifestivalen 1983 with the song “Främling“. Now Carola celebrates by returning to where it all began to be a guest at Melodifestivalen on Saturday. She will perform the Swedish winning songs “Främling” (1983) by Lasse Holm and Monica Forsberg, “Fångad av en stormvind” (1991) written by Carola herself and Stephan Berg as well as “Evighet” (2006) written by Bobby Ljunggren, Carola, Henrik Wikström and Thomas G:son.  Forty years later, there are seven contestants, bidding to represent Sweden at the Eurovision Song Contest 2023 to be held in Liverpool.

The Pre-listening Process

This year, we were invited to the pre-listening event that SVT holds every Tuesday at 10am CET, before each of the four heats of Melodifestivalen 2023, or as it is called “Förhandslyssningen deltävling 4“. Approximately 50 people, carefully selected by SVT are invited to listen the entire songs of each heat in the pre-listening events. So, we had the chance to listen to the entire running order of this week’s heat twice.

But how do the songs of this heat sound like?

The numbers

1. Kiana – Where Did You Go
   The sixteen year old Kiana, debuts this year with “Where Did You Go” an absolute banger, that sounds quite familiar and is super radio friendly. It could also become Mello-friendly, with a proper staging. It kind of reminds me of “When Love Takes Over” by David Guetta/Kelly Rowland, but not too old. Rather a modernised version of it, maybe it reminds me a bit of Sigala sounds. I really need to see how this will be staged and if Kiana can pull great vocals and perform an intense choreography cause, seemingly, she will be joined by six dancers on stage. For me, she is on my top 5 list, sure thing! Maybe she will be on the Melodifestivalen 2023 top 5 too! Oh! And direct finalist for sure!
   
2. Signe & Hjördis – Edelweiss
   Signe & Hjördis sing “Edelweiss“, a Swedish kind-of folk song, sung entirely in Swedish. “Edelweiss” is the kind of song that might not appeal to everyone, but Swedes would love and vote for. I have seen this happening in the past and it would not surprise me it happened this Saturday with “Edelweiss” too. Also the song features a key change, the fans of this formula might love it, just for the key change! I have to see this staged, I’m not sure if this one will qualify to either the finals or the semi-final. Most likely not.
   
3. Smash Into Pieces – Six Feet Under
   Third number of this week’s show, Smash Into Pieces‘ “Six Feet Under” is a pop rock song that reminds me of a hybrid of Evanescence‘s “Going Under” and The Rasmus‘ “Livin’ in a World Without You“. The hook is super-nice. This song could be staged in a clever way and qualify at least to the semi-finals, easily. I’m expecting a strong staging here and I would be let down if this doesn’t happen!
   
   
4. Mariette – One Day
   Number four for this heat, Mariette with her song “One Day“. It gives me vibes of Cornelia Jacobs “Hold me Closer” and Atle Pettersen “Masterpiece” (the MGP number) but that doesn’t mean it is a blatant copy. It follows a similar formula, has chord progressions and also it’s an amazing production. In my opinion, that’s the most modern version of Mariette we have ever seen. Like, ever! That’s nothing like her past entries in my opinion. Do I see a heat winner here? I don’t think so, but it’s a nice song overall, maybe it qualifies to the semi-final!
   
   
5. Emil Henrohn – Mera mera mera
   Emil Henrohn (known by going viral with “Jag är mamma” on TikTok) sings “Mera mera mera” which is catchy and super fun and makes you wanna dance, even though it’s in Swedish and most of us international fans won’t understand much. It remains to be seen how this is going to be staged and how well the crowds will receive it at the general rehearsal and the live show on Saturday! If it is staged properly, it could be a semi-finalist. Could also be not!
   
6. Axel Schylström – Gorgeous
   Axel is one of the writers of Theoz’ number “Mer Av Dig” and participates by himself too with the song “Gorgeous“. “Gorgeous” is a pop power ballad with strong choruses. Also has a vocoder part (remember how “Die Together” by Amanda Tenfjord starts?). Ends with a huge clap part! This is that kind of song that you will most likely make you hit the skip button. Would that make you tap on the heart and vote for it? I highly doubt it! For me that is a non-qualifier!
   
7. Loreen – Tattoo
   Last (but not least) Melodifestivalen queen herself Loreen with the song “Tattoo“! Starts with a very distinctive lead synth that will get stuck into your heads and ethereal vocals by Loreen. The song gives out melancholic-joy vibes. It’s that kind of song that can make you feel sad and melancholic and nostalgic and a bit happy and a bit hopeful at the same time, it is very important that it can stimulate so many emotions at the same time. At least it did for me! There are synths, strings, there’s a build up, plus the vocals that Loreen always delivers! The song is very very strong! Don’t expect a Euphoria VOL2, cause it’s nothing like it and you will be disappointed. We cannot compare it with songs from a different decade, “Tattoo” is very 2025! It might have similar elements with Euphoria but Loreen does not repeat herself, so I personally don’t see the resemblance! It sounds more like “Neon Lights” but personally I like it more! However, it is crucial for me to see how this will be staged. It all depends on the staging, I hope it’s not too dark! Let’s see how this will be received by the Swedes, will they vote for her or will they not? I have seen this happen before (ding! ding! Statements). If she’s not the winner, she will be top two for sure.
   
   

My Prediction

This is by far the strongest heat of the tour! SVT has left most of the good part at the end!

Regarding this heat, it is clear for me that Loreen and Kiana are going to be the two direct qualifiers. As for the semi-finalists, this is quite uncertain, as it depends on many factors. A guess would be Smash Into Pieces, Mariette and maybe Emil Henrohn!

Now that we have a clear view of all the songs that have already qualified to the final and the semi-final shows, previously, I thought that this was going to be a game of three. But Kiana now enters the game! Third and fourth place most likely Maria Sur and Kiana respectively. And we might have a split screen between Loreen and the Norwegian duo Marcus & Martinus!

The dates of Melodifestivalen 2023

• Heat 1: Göteborg – Saturday 4 February 2023 (Scandinavium)
• Heat 2: Linköping – Saturday 11 February 2023 (Saab Arena)
• Heat 3: Lidköping – Saturday 18 February 2023 (Sparbanken Arena)
• Heat 4: Malmö – Saturday 25 February 2023 (Malmö Arena)
• Semi-Final: Örnsköldsvik – Saturday 4 March 2023 (Hägglunds Arena)
• Final: Stockholm – Satuday 11 March 2023 (Friends Arena)

Which two of the above artists do you think will be the direct qualifiers to the finals, on the 11th of March?

Stay tuned at Eurovisionfun, for all the latest developments regarding Melodifestivalen 2023 and the Swedish entry for Eurovision 2023!

Source/Photo: SVT/Alma Bengtsson