Sweden: The general rehearsal of the Melodifestivalen 2023 Semi-Final show! (Live)

The general rehearsal of the Melodifestivalen 2023 Semi-Final has just started. EurovisionFun is at Hägglunds Arena, in Örnsköldsvik and we are happy to be watching it live from the online press centre. We will be covering this rehearsal, describing in detail what is happening during the show and all the vibes we get, for you to follow the entire process and get the feeling that you are here with us tonight!

This article is being updated in real-time, all you need to do is hit the refresh button on your browser and all the rest is on us!

We will keep you up to date with all the latest information and images off this semi-final rehearsal, allowing you to get a glimpse of what you will get to see tomorrow March 5th, at 20:00 CET, when you watch the actual semi-final show on SVT and SVT Play.

The show

Jesper Rönndahl and Farah Abadi will present Melodifestivalen 2023. The heats are following the touring concept again, after SVT had pulled back last year due to health restrictions in Sweden, with the finals being held at Friends Arena! With the next show of the contest on Saturday March the 4th, Melodifestivalen will take place in Örnsköldsvik and finally the final show in Stockholm follows on the 11th of March.

Emil Henrohn, singer of “Mera Mera Mera“ on the 4th heath, is the surprise of the day! He is back as the sidekick of Farah Abadi, as he will be featuring in all the presentation videos of this week’s show! This is a comeback, sooner than expected!

The process

As we have already informed you, the voting system of Melodifestivalen has changed following the announced changes by EBU regarding the voting format in this year’s Eurovision Song Contest in Liverpool!

The broadcaster now scraps the group division at the fifth show, known as the semi-final and all eight contestants will now have to face each other. Points will be awarded from the viewing groups and the four entries with the highest points will advance to the final!

The numbers

• Mer av dig – THEOZ

THEOZ is THEOZ as always. Very much improved vocally, his performance is all about fire and fireworks and dance moves but steady vocals too! Finalist for sure!

Photo: SVT/Alma Bengtsson

• One Day – Mariette

Mariette has also improved, she also nailed the performance in all her rehearsals yesterday! The song seems to be much better in terms of audio mix this time. For me she deserves to qualify, but what do I say? Swedes can be weird sometimes when it comes to voting! She lost her direct-finalist Queen crown. Hope she doesn’t get eliminated this time.

Photo: Andreas Papayiannakis

• Diamonds – Victor Crone

Victor Crone is fabulous as always! He might be static but he’s captivating with his voice and his staring in the camera. All the song mixes sound much better this time! Will he qualify? Maybe?

Photo: SVT/Alma Bengtsson

• Now I Know – Tennessee Tears

“Now I know” is a favourite for many Swedes. They sound amazing, more confident on stage this time. They sound more powerful. One of the wildcards for the final show goes to them? Let’s see what the night tomorrow brings them!

Photo: SVT/Alma Bengtsson

• Raggen går – Elov & Beny

The “chick” song of the year that makes the crowd move the arena like an earthquake is “Raggen går“. Elov och Beny with their “epadunk” culture, don’t do much more things than their heat performance. They’re good vocally and their stage presence is BOOM! I think that that’s it for them though. Let’s see what happens tomorrow!

Photo: SVT/Alma Bengtsson

• For The Show – Melanie Wehbe

One of my favourite songs of this years. Yet, I don’t have high expectations. I think that she will not place high this Saturday. Vocally she is amazing, she sounds like the studio version of the song, nobody can deny this!

Photo: Alma Bengtsson / SVT

• Släpp alla sorger – Nordman

Nordman might be voted a lot, especially by older age-groups. It’s a nice dance song combined with folk elements! Still not sure if I like it or not. I would not like it if it qualified!

Photo: Alma Bengtsson / SVT

• Where Did You Go – Kiana

Kiana is the youngest of the contestants that turned sixteen years old on the day of the 4th heat show, last Saturday and got her spot to the semi-final show as her birthday present! She is loveable and super-talented. Vocals spot-on, intense choreo and a dance break too, different hairstyle. She kinda holds it back when the dance break comes, maybe she is full throttle tomorrow. Maybe some changes to the camerawork too? She will definitely qualify to the finals!

Photo: Andreas Papayiannakis

A recap of all the eight numbers follows, as usual.

The intervals

In connection with the Melodifestivalen semi-final show in Örnsköldsvik, popular artist Pernilla Wahlgren is elected to the Hall of Fame for her breakthrough song “Piccadilly Circus“. The song was written by Lars Andersson and Bruno Glenmark and has become a real evergreen.

In the semi-final, TikTok star Lucianoz Axelsson pays tribute to Pernilla with a dance band version of Piccadilly Circus – the way we’ve never heard it before.

Virtual Finalists after First Voting Round

• Raggen går – Elov & Beny
• Släpp alla sorger – Nordman
• Diamonds – Victor Crone
• Now I Know – Tennessee Tears

Second Voting Round age group results

3-9 years old virtual winner: Now I Know – Tennessee Tears

10-15 years old virtual winner: Now I Know – Tennessee Tears

16-29 years old virtual winner: Now I Know – Tennessee Tears

30-44 years old virtual winner: Now I Know – Tennessee Tears

45-59 years old virtual winner: Raggen går – Elov & Beny

60-74 years old virtual winner: Raggen går – Elov & Beny

75+ years old virtual winner: Raggen går – Elov & Beny

Televoting virtual winner: Mer av dig – THEOZ

Virtual Finalists

• Now I Know – Tennessee Tears
• Raggen går – Elov & Beny
• Mer av dig – THEOZ
• Släpp alla sorger – Nordman

A prediction

My prediction is that we will get to see the youngest contestants of the year Theoz and Kiana along with Victor Crone, and Mariette or Tennessee Tears qualifying to the finals. Let’s see what is going to happen, tomorrow 20:00 CET, when you will get the chance to watch the actual semi final show live, on SVT or SVT Play. EurovisionFun will be covering it live from Örnsköldsvik at Hägglunds Arena, where you will have the chance to be informed about the results, as soon as they are announced by Jesper Rohndahl and Farah Abadi!

Which four of today’s competing artists do you think will be qualifying 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: SVT
Photos: SVT/Alma Bengtsson, Eurovisionfun/Andreas Papayiannakis