Maria Sur: “I’m an uptempo girl and we needed to do something like this.” | Exclusive Interview

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Andreas Papayiannakis and EurovisionFun is accredited by SVT to follow the Melodifestivalen tour for a third year in-a-row. In Göteborg we got the chance to meet a few people involved in this year’s Melodifestivalen. Among those was Maria Sur who had us over at Clarion Hotel Post, the appointed artist hotel in Göteborg on an extensive interview, during the Thursday welcome party.

Maria Sur is not somebody you don’t already know. She took part in last year’s Melodifestivalen with the song “Never Give Up“. This year she does a back-t0-back comeback with the song “When I’m Gone“. She feels good to be back. Her rehearsals on Thursday and Friday went quite well and even though she felt a bit overwhelmed, she though that it will be cool and things will be fine-tuned.

“There are some moments to improve, but we will fix it.”

Last year, the song she participated with was not totally her style of music. She was more trying to pass on a message to the audience, given the circumstances with her moving from Ukraine to Sweden, seeking for a better life after the – still ongoing – clash between Ukraine and Russia. She comments on her song this year:

“I definitely feel like in the right place, I think. I was saying to everyone that I’m an uptempo girl, everyone knew, and that we need to do something like this. And I think when we were writing this song, I knew more exactly what I want to do and the songwriters got to know me better. They felt me and they felt what kind of style I want. The whole team and me we just got to know each other better. And we found, my style that I really like and that I think like it’s my natural environment.”

Julie “Kill J” Aagaard, Jimmy “Joker” Thörnfeldt, Anderz Wrethov and the artist herself wrote the song. Maria is the first that she is involved in the song writing process and she is collaborating with Anderz Wrethov for a second time after last year. When and how was the song written?

“It’s actually my first song where I’m also involved in the process and where I’m also a songwriter to. So this feels also like a level up and feels like more my thing, you know. We were in a songwriting camp and it was in August, we wrote the song very fast but again it was because we knew kind of what we want, we had a vision, I had the references and the great songwriters of course helped.”

Last summer she took part in the Digiloo tour with other artists, among which LIAMOO, who is a really really close friend of hers. What are her plans for this year after Melodifestivalen?

“I’m gonna do have gigs 100 percent. And of course, we’re gonna write more music. So I hope we’re gonna work more on my own material and write in this kind of style. Because for my own tour, I have to have a lot of songs to perform with. For now we are focusing on Mello and I’ve also recently signed with Livenation. So I’m gonna have my booking agency for the gigs.”

Her song reminds me a bit of the style of Becky Hill, but her actual icon and inspiration is someone else. She tells us more about that:

“My inspiration was Rihanna, I just I feel I like her vibe and her kind of songs and they can give a lot of self-confidence. Which is which is I think great. I really wanted to have this kind of song this year to just represent myself more on stage as an artist because last year it was like more storytelling about me and presentation of me as an artist for the audience and this year I want people to see myself on stage and I think this song can really show what I can do.”

She is really good friends with LIAMOO and she tells what she thinks about his song too:

“I like LIAMOO’s song as well and we have the same songwriters and it was the same songwriting camp when his song was written. We’re really good friends with Liam and he’s such a nice guy and I really like him and his song this year. We are really supportive for each other and I hope it will go well for us.”

Lastly, she gives a heartwarming message to all her fans in Sweden and Internationally:

“I hope you like my song this year and it’s message about self-respect. Hope it can give you a boost of confidence as I was struggling this year with some insecurities and I felt like I really needed this song to boost my confidence and energy. And I hope people when they’re gonna listen to this they can also  feel this kind of powerful attitude they can feel their power they can they can be boosted by confidence. This is very important. And to stay humble.”

You can watch our exclusive interview with Maria Sur at the video down below:

Stay tuned at Eurovisionfun and don’t miss out on anything regarding this year’s Melodifestivalen!

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Sweden: The general rehearsal of the Second Heat of Melodifestivalen 2024! (Live)

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The general rehearsal of the 2nd Heat of Melodifestivalen 2024 has just started. We are happy to be watching it live, at Scandinavium in Göteborg, Sweden. We will be covering this rehearsal, describing in detail what is happening during the show, for you to follow the entire process.

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 February 10, at 20:00 CET, when you watch the actual show of the heat, on SVT and SVT Play.

The experts

New in Melodifestivalen this year is the participation of a couple of really knowledgeable music and Mello-experts – radio and TV profile Tina Mehrafzoon and Mello-oracle Ronny Larsson. During both the races and the final, they analyze the evening’s line-up and give their opinion on how they are doing.

The show

The first week of competition arrived really fast. On Saturday, February 10, Melodifestivalen 2024 starts and it starts from this year’s Eurovision city Malmö.

Carina Berg is the host of all the shows of the tour this year! With the next show of the contest on Saturday February the 10th, Melodifestivalen will take place in Göteborg, then Växjö follows and finally the final show in Stockholm on the 9th of March.

Carina is now at the arena and everything is ready to begin! It’s time to face the music!

The opening act is a band playing in the green room with the crowd dancing along as Carina enters the arena. Then Carina describes how Estonia gained their independence without bloodshed, she then connects it to Eurovision “united by music”.

After the intro, Carina presents this show’s contestants!

The numbers

  • “When I’m Gone” – Maria Sur

Totally different than “Never Give Up”. A POP Dance banger with a hint of melancholy! Amazing performance, crystal clear vocals, very much more improved than her rehearsals. The best I’ve seen from her, she totally feels true to herself with this performance. Love seeing this! Hopefully she will directly qualify!

Photo: Andreas Papayiannakis

  • “Norrland”– Engmans Kapell

If you mix Swedish folk with a beat then you got Norrland. I wouldn’t say I am impressed by this kind of song. They’re very much improved and their lead singer definitely did not forget the lyrics this time. He did on one of the rehearsals. But No-No-No-No-No-No-Norrland probably will not qualify.

Photo: Andreas Papayiannakis

  • “The Silence After You” –  Dear Sara 

A mid tempo song for Dear Sara, sounds familiar. It is sort of a ballad, could listen to it to a roadtrip. Pleasantly. That’s Sara’s best run. The crowd claps throughout her performance which is good to see. Maybe she will remain in the competition? Let’s find out tomorrow.

Photo: Andreas Papayiannakis

  • “Ahumma” – C-Joe

Aftobeat vibes are here but in a pop way to do it! C-Joe is not very stable vocally though, he had some vocal issues with his performance during her rehearsals. A feel-good song that the crowd loved though. Would he qualify now? I am not sure, probably not.

Photo: Andreas Papayiannakis

  • “Dragon” – LIAMOO

Now imagine LIAMOO’s kind of songs mixed with Imagine Dragons. This is epic. I don’t wanna hear anyone compare this performance to Andrew Lambrou’s last year’s entry with Cyprus. This is so much better. By far his best performance and it is 100% himself. Love to see this! Totally a DTF for me. Also a strong contender for the win. Best song of the contest so far.

Photo: Andreas Papayiannakis

  • “Unga & fria” – Fröken Snusk

Now mix a bit of epadunk with Swedish folk, a tiny bit of Käärijä’s “it’s crazy, it’s party” but on a female Swedish version. Too much pink. Louis Vuitton balaclava is removed for the televised program. She is quite good vocally I must admit, the crowd went nuts on her. Either second DTF or goes to second round.

Photo: Andreas Papayiannakis

These were the six numbers of this week, a recap follows to show the voting numbers for the contestants of the heat.

The Intervals

First to be inducted into the Hall of Fame this very special Melodifestivalen and Eurovision year is none other than the host Kristian Luuk, in good company with the artist and presenter Lotta Engberg – and her Fyra bugg och en Coca Cola. During the evening, we will hear the song, which was Sweden‘s entry in Eurovision 1987, in its own version signed by the artist Viktor Norén.

Björn Gustafsson is of course on stage again and explains to the audience that he cannot say what he will say tomorrow at the live show, therefore, he is now doing a 4:30 minute comedy show.

The virtual Direct Qualifiers

First voting round virtual winner: “The Silence After You” – Dear Sara

The first voting round winner moves from the green room onto an intermediate small stage in the middle of the audience and sing their song.

Second voting round virtual winner: “Dragon” – LIAMOO

The second voting round winner does exactly what the first voting round winner did. Green room, intermediate stage, main stage.

Those who virtually remain at the contest

Second voting round virtual 2nd place: “Ahumma” – C-Joe
Second voting round virtual 3rd place: “Unga & fria” – Fröken Snusk

Second voting round results

Age-band 3-9 years old virtual winner: “When I’m Gone” – Maria Sur

Age-band 10-15 years old virtual winner: “Ahumma” – C-Joe

Age-band 16-29 years old virtual winner: “Norrland”– Engmans Kapell

Age-band 30-44 years old virtual winner: “Dragon” – LIAMOO

Age-band 45-59 years old virtual winner: “Ahumma” – C-Joe

Age-band 60-74 years old virtual winner: “Ahumma” – C-Joe

Age-band 75+ years old virtual winner: “Dragon” – LIAMOO

Televoting virtual winner: “Dragon” – LIAMOO

A prediction

This week things are more clear for the direct finalists. For me the two direct finalists will be LIAMOO and Maria Sur, then Fröken Snusk and Dear Sara will remain in the competition.

The schedule for the six shows of the Melodifestivalen 2024 tour

  • Heat 1: Saturday 3 February 2024, Malmö Arena, Malmö
  • Heat 2: Saturday 10 February 2024, Scandinavium, Göteborg
  • Heat 3: Saturday 17 February 2024, Vida Arena, Växjö
  • Heat 4: Saturday 24 February 2024, Stiga Sports Arena, Eskilstuna
  • Heat 5: Saturday 2 March 2024, Löfbergs Arena, Karlstad
  • Final: Saturday 9 March 2024, Friends Arena, Stockholm – Solna

Which two of today’s competing artists do you think will be the direct qualifiers to the finals, on the 9th of March?

Stay tuned at Eurovisionfun, for all the latest developments regarding Melodifestivalen 2024 and the Swedish entry for Eurovision 2024!

Source: SVT
Photos: Andreas Papayiannakis / EurovisionFun, Stina Stjernkvist / SVT

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LIAMOO: “I am my strongest version of myself. I’m going to try to challenge the top.” | Exclusive Interview

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Andreas Papayiannakis and EurovisionFun is accredited by SVT to follow the Melodifestivalen tour for a third year in-a-row. In Göteborg we got the chance to meet a few people involved in this year’s Melodifestivalen. Among those was LIAMOO who had us over at Clarion Hotel Post, the appointed artist hotel in Göteborg on an extensive interview.

Liam or also known by his stage-name, LIAMOO, is one of the favourites of this heat but also of the entire Melfest tour this year. He had his first rehearsal yesterday at noon and he said it felt really good.

“It’s a lot of work to do, but it’s not big stuff to do. It’s more of the bits and pieces, the details that we got to work on. You know, this camera here and there and put this light on me on that part. And maybe I have some stuff and some personal stuff to work with, like the pitch and blah, blah, blah. But yeah, it feels nice. It’s really like explosive, the feeling. It’s really hot on stage.”

The arena indeed gets extremely hot, as LIAMOO’s performance is full of pyro! If I could describe it with a phrase, that would be “Yeah, yeah, fire!”. LIAMOO as an artist uses dragon a lot in his performances, two years ago on the backdrop LED screen he had a dragon, this year his song is called “Dragon“. But what does the dragon mean for him?

“The Dragon is inner strength. And I have Asian blood and the Dragon is Asian. So it started with me being very nervous during my previous performances. “Last Breath”, “Hold You”, “Bluffin”. Not so much “Bluffin”. I was pretty much secure on that. But I was very nervous. I started to cough all the time just to clear my throat. She’s one of the jury members in Idol, also a song coach, very spiritual. She said to me, you know what? It reminds me of a baby dragon who just like starts to get their fire going. And I was like, hey, I like that. I like that very much because the dragon is cool.”

LIAMOO has been to Melodifestivalen five times. Four as an artist and five in total. Now this is the time he feels he is more himself.

“For the first songs, someone else thought that I would do them good in Mello.Dragon, though, it didn’t happen on purpose. It just happened. The song just happened. But I knew that I wanted to write about the dragon because it has been with me since Bluffin. As soon as I finished the song, I was like, this needs to be in Mello. It feels so true and honest to myself. There’s not a song out that’s more LIAMOO to me than Dragon because it got the mysterious darkness and then the power.”

What is his expectation of this year’s participation though? He feels like he is the strongest version of himself this year. Not only on stage, but as a person. He feels very secure with himself. He adds:

“I feel like I found myself and I feel like before 2018 and 2019 and 2022, I was in the middle of my journey finding myself. Now I feel like I know who I am and I know what I want to do now. So I feel like I’m my strongest. I am my strongest version of myself and I feel like I’m going to try to challenge the top.”

He doesn’t have a clear favourite this year though. He explains a bit:

“Last year, I really loved air. And that was to me, that was a clear favorite. I love Tattoo also. Two hit songs. Very good songs. But now I don’t know. I haven’t heard all of them, so I don’t know yet. But and I try to not focus on everybody else. I’m just trying to focus on my number, my pitch, my clothes.”

Finally, a message to all LIAMOO’s fans in Sweden but internationally as well from the artist himself:

“What’s really important to me is that the dragon is not only for me but it’s also for you. It’s a message from me to you that you need to find your inner strength. You need to. See who you really are. Don’t be too hard on yourself. I am a professional on being too hard on myself. You just got to enjoy the moment and appreciate yourself a lot more. Appreciate the moment. Enjoy the moment.”

You can watch our exclusive interview with LIAMOO at the video down below:

Stay tuned at Eurovisionfun and don’t miss out on anything regarding this year’s Melodifestivalen!

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Sweden: Watch clips from the rehearsals of the Melodifestivalen 2024 second heat!

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As usual, a few hours before each Melodifestivalen heat, SVT published the rehearsal clips of all six competing artists of the second heat of February the 10th, taking place in Göteborg.

A while ago, the first 30 second rehearsal clips of the upcoming heat got published! You can watch the published clips, by clicking on the song title links below:

In the meantime, you can read through the lyrics of all six competing songs of this heat in our previous article.

Carina Berg is the host of all the shows of the tour this year! With the next show of the contest on Saturday February the 10th, Melodifestivalen will take place in Göteborg, then Växjö follows and finally the final show in Stockholm on the 9th of March.

The schedule for the six shows of the Melodifestivalen 2024 tour

  • Heat 1: Saturday 3 February 2024, Malmö Arena, Malmö
  • Heat 2: Saturday 10 February 2024, Scandinavium, Göteborg
  • Heat 3: Saturday 17 February 2024, Vida Arena, Växjö
  • Heat 4: Saturday 24 February 2024, Stiga Sports Arena, Eskilstuna
  • Heat 5: Saturday 2 March 2024, Löfbergs Arena, Karlstad
  • Final: Saturday 9 March 2024, Friends Arena, Stockholm – Solna

Which two of the above artists do you think will be the direct qualifiers to the finals?

Stay tuned at Eurovisionfun, for all the latest developments regarding Melodifestivalen 2024 and the Swedish entry for Eurovision 2024!

 

 

C-Joe: “What I like about Melodifestivalen is that we are together, united by music, and it’s amazing!” | Exclusive Interview

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Andreas Papayiannakis and EurovisionFun is accredited by SVT to follow the Melodifestivalen tour for a third year in-a-row. In Göteborg we got the chance to meet a few people involved in this year’s Melodifestivalen. Among those was C-Joe who had us over at Clarion Hotel Post, the appointed artist hotel in Göteborg on an extensive interview.

C-Joe is another debutant at Melodifestivalen 2024, an afrobeat/afropop artist with the song “Ahumma” that is definitely gonna keep the audience up and dancing. His rehearsals yesterday went well and he felt good, he thinks that it will look good on screen and live at the venue. He described his song for those that haven’t listened to the snippet yet:

“My song is a very, very feel-good song. And it’s about actually working on your inner peace, you know. And “Ahumma” itself, it’s inspired from the word Ahum. When you do yoga or meditation, a lot of people sit there and go -Ahum- you know. So that’s where it gets the inspiration from.”

As I previously mentioned, C-Joe is expected to be engaging the crowd in the arena. He comments on this:

“Yeah, I think my presence and the song itself and also the whole setting is going to engage the crowd, you know. And also from my previous tours and performances, for me it’s important to engage the crowd.”

As a debutant, many people in other countries will see C-Joe for the first time, from the platform of Melodifestivalen, not only Sweden but also internationally. What does he think about this?

“I want my music, my sound to make people happy and just getting a good vibe you know whether you want to relax you can play my song because I have those type of vibes as well you know. Whether you want to dance, you want to move I have those type of songs as well. And also for me I can I’m actually like versatile meaning I can do different styles and I like to fuse music. So my background it is Afrobeat, Afropop but from my previous work and my upcoming work I will definitely be doing like fusions.”

He has been around, experimenting with music, for a long time since around 2005.

“I started experimenting with music like around 2005-2006. At that time I was just doing hip-hop, just experimenting but then around 2007-2008 that’s when it got serious because that’s when I started to perform at schools and leisure centers and then at bigger stages. Melodifestivalen and Eurovision is the biggest thing I’ve done in music.”

How has he developed as an artist throughout the years, since he first started doing music a bit less than 20 years ago?

“I think every step that I’ve been taking has just prepared me for moments like this and I feel like I’ve evolved and I feel like I’m developing every day musically. It’s a constant evolvement, I never stop developing and I never feel like I’m well developed.”

But how did he decide to take part in Melodifestivalen? He explains how the process was:

“When I did the song, this is crazy, when I did the song “Ahumma”, I had the base of it already. When I was doing the song, something just told me, my intuitions were just telling me this is a song for Melodifestivalen. It sounds crazy, but it’s like I had a vision. And then just getting contact with my team and then we worked it out.”

Is there any of his songs that he has released up to now that is close to what his participating song sounds like?

“I think the closest to this sound that I have, is my song Friendzone. I think that is very close to the sound of “Ahumma”, so check it out. “

Finally C-Joe gave a message to all those that will get the chance to see him perform for the first time this Saturday:

“I just want to say shout out to you guys all for watching and traveling all over the world to come and be with us on this special day. We are together, united by music, and it’s amazing. So, shout out to you guys for doing what you do and listening and participating to create this special moment for us, the artists, and go check my stuff out.”

You can watch our exclusive interview with C-Joe at the video down below:

Stay tuned at Eurovisionfun and don’t miss out on anything regarding this year’s Melodifestivalen!

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Dear Sara: “I hope that people will find some comfort in my song!” | Exclusive Interview

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Andreas Papayiannakis and EurovisionFun is accredited by SVT to follow the Melodifestivalen tour for a third year in-a-row. In Göteborg we got the chance to meet a few people involved in this year’s Melodifestivalen. Among those was Dear Sara who had us over at Clarion Hotel Post, the appointed artist hotel in Göteborg on an extensive interview.

Sara Nutti or as she is known by her stage name Dear Sara, is a Sámi artist that made her breakthrough back in 2012 when she took part in the Swedish version of XFactor. She is debuting this year at Melodifestivalen with her song “The Silence After You“. She sometimes includes Sámi elements in her music, but what about this time?

“Sometimes, but not this time. This time it’s more of a pop song with a lot of power. It has some soft parts, but also a lot of power, it’s like a pop ballad”

Regarding her staging she confessed that she will be standing alone on stage and there aren’t any props or other dancers around her:

“I’m going to stand there alone on the stage. And that’s a little bit scary to be depending on myself but also I think that it suits the song, that it’s just me there trying to like tell you guys a story.”

Compared to herself back in 2012 when she got known by participating in X-Factor, she now thinks she is more mature, she knows what she wants.

“I think it’s good that I got the chance to grow up before I came to this Melodifestivalen world. So I think that I’m more confident now, maybe, and that I have more to tell.”

She doesn’t think too much about the outcome, she tries to live in the moment:

“Right now I’m just trying to be in the moment, just be like happy that I’m here and be, I’m very thankful about that. And yeah, but I hope that the people will find some, you know, comfort in my song, that they will feel like it can maybe, you know, give them something.”

As for her expectations about her participation in Melodifestivalen, she expects that people will get to know her and her music better and that it would be a boost to her career.

“I hope I can reach out to more people and to do this thing that I love. To Stand on stage, to write songs. So that’s what I’m hoping for right now, that more people find me and more people will want to listen to me”

A song that her new fans should listen to, in order to get to know Dear Sara better as an artist, is “Something You Should Know“.

“I think that song it really Describes me somehow and it’s also about my home village. So It means a lot to me. And there’s also a music video to that that I recorded at my hometown. My dad is a very good joiker and he recorded a joik and sent it to me. So you can actually hear him joik at the beginning and the end of the song.”

Finally she gave a heartwarming message to all her fans in Sweden and her future fans internationally:

“I hope they like the song that I’m going to perform with and by listening to it feel that even if something can be hard right now that, you can rise up and believe in yourself.”

You can watch our exclusive interview with Dear Sara at the video down below:

Stay tuned at Eurovisionfun and don’t miss out on anything regarding this year’s Melodifestivalen!

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Sweden: Listen to the song snippets of the second Heat of Melodifestivalen 2024!

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As usual, a couple of days before each Melodifestivalen heat, SVT publishes snippets of all six competing songs of the heat. A while ago, the song snippets of the second heat got released.

The competing songs of the second heat:

In the meantime, you can read through the lyrics of all six competing songs of this heat in our previous article.

Carina Berg is the host of all the shows of the tour this year! With the next show of the contest on Saturday February the 3rd, Melodifestivalen will take place in Malmö, then Göteborg follows and finally the final show in Stockholm on the 9th of March.

The schedule for the six shows of the Melodifestivalen 2024 tour

  • Heat 1: Saturday 3 February 2024, Malmö Arena, Malmö
  • Heat 2: Saturday 10 February 2024, Scandinavium, Göteborg
  • Heat 3: Saturday 17 February 2024, Vida Arena, Växjö
  • Heat 4: Saturday 24 February 2024, Stiga Sports Arena, Eskilstuna
  • Heat 5: Saturday 2 March 2024, Löfbergs Arena, Karlstad
  • Final: Saturday 9 March 2024, Friends Arena, Stockholm – Solna

Which two of the above artists do you think will be the direct qualifiers to the finals?

 

 

 

 

Sweden: Insight into the Melodifestivalen 2024 2nd heat songs! | SVT Pre-Listening Event

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Melodifestivalen 2024 second show is on the forthcoming Saturday, February the 10th, which will take place at Scandinavium, in Göteborg.

The Pre-listening Process

This year, we are invited to the pre-listening event that SVT holds every Tuesday at 10am CET, before each of the five heats of Melodifestivalen 2024, or as it is called “Förhandslyssningen“. 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?

  • “When I’m Gone” – Maria Sur

Totally different than “Never Give Up”. A POP Dance banger with a hint of melancholy! I would compare it to Adam’s song in style, but it is totally a Maria Sur song. If this is choreographed, it will be fire!

  • “Norrland” – Engmans Kapell

If you mix Swedish folk with a beat then you got Norrland. I wouldn’t say I am impressed by this kind of song, probably will not qualify.

  • “The Silence After You” – Dear Sara

A mid tempo song for Dear Sara, sounds familiar. It is sort of a ballad, could listen to it to a roadtrip. Pleasantly.

  • “Ahumma” – C-Joe

Aftobeat vibes are here but in a pop way to do it! The crowd will love it! I would compare it to last year’s “I’m on my way”! Hoping to see a staging that will keep the crowd involved and engaged!

  • “Dragon” – LIAMOO

Now imagine LIAMOO’s kind of songs mixed with Imagine Dragons. The intro sounds very familiar, kind of reminds me of Gary Jules’ “Mad World”. For me, he will DTF.

  • “Unga & fria“– Fröken Snusk

A mix of epadunk with Swedish folk, if you listen to it you will know what I mean. Fröken Snusk is very popular and will be a favourite among the younger age-bands.

Our thoughts

What I want is different from what I think will happen. I would love to see LIAMOO and Maria Sur to qualify directly to the finals and then Fröken Snusk and C-Joe to remain in the competition. But I actually think that Fröken Snusk is too popular not to directly qualify to the finals. Let’s see.

The show

Carina Berg is the host of all the shows of the tour this year! With the next show of the contest on Saturday February the 10th, Melodifestivalen will take place in Göteborg, then Växjö follows and finally the final show in Stockholm on the 9th of March.

The schedule for the six shows of the Melodifestivalen 2024 tour

  • Heat 1: Saturday 3 February 2024, Malmö Arena, Malmö
  • Heat 2: Saturday 10 February 2024, Scandinavium, Göteborg
  • Heat 3: Saturday 17 February 2024, Vida Arena, Växjö
  • Heat 4: Saturday 24 February 2024, Stiga Sports Arena, Eskilstuna
  • Heat 5: Saturday 2 March 2024, Löfbergs Arena, Karlstad
  • Final: Saturday 9 March 2024, Friends Arena, Stockholm – Solna

Which two of the above artists do you think will be the direct qualifiers to the finals? Let us know in the comments section below.

Stay tuned at Eurovisionfun, for all the latest developments regarding Melodifestivalen 2024 and the Swedish entry for Eurovision 2024!

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Sweden: The lyrics of the songs competing at the second heat of Melodifestivalen 2024!

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The upcoming heat of Melodifestivalen 2024 will take place next Saturday, February the 10th and will take place at Scandinavium in Göteborg.

A while ago, SVT, the Swedish national broadcaster released the lyrics of all six competing songs, of this upcoming heat.

You can read the lyrics of the competing songs down below:

  •  When I’m Gone – Maria Sur

You’re just like a river

Flowing through the night

Feel my body shiver

I’m so bad at goodbyes

I’ve been running all

running all

running all night

I’ve been living on

living on

living on a lie

Now I’m coming a-

coming a-

coming a-

coming alive

Coz I gave it my all

But I don’t even think of you

Now I rave on my own

And I don’t even think of you

Will you lo-o-o-o-o-o-o o-o-o-o

love me when I’m gone

Will you lo-o-o-o-o-o-o o-o-o-o

love me when I’m gone

Love me when I’m gone

I’m just like an island

Waves are rolling in

I’m aching but I’m smiling

I can’t hold it in

I’ve been running all

running all

running all night

I’ve been living on

living on

living on a lie

Now I’m coming a-

coming a-

coming a-

coming alive

Coz I gave it my all

But I don’t even think of you

Now I rave on my own

And I don’t even think of you

Will you lo-o-o-o-o-o-o o-o-o-o

love me when I’m gone

Will you lo-o-o-o-o-o-o o-o-o-o

love me when I’m gone

Love me when I’m gone

Will you love

me when I’m gone

Coz I gave it my all

But I don’t even think of you

Now I rave on my own

And I don’t even think of you

Will you lo-o-o-o-o-o-o o-o-o-o

love me when I’m gone

Will you lo-o-o-o-o-o-o o-o-o-o

love me when I’m gone

Love me when I’m gone

  • Norrland – Engmans Kapell

Jag packade min ryggsäck i så unga år

För äventyret väntade någonstans

Visst blev jag fascinerad av allt nytt jag såg

Men sökte något som kanske aldrig fanns

Jag jobbade ett tag i London på en bar

Och ägaren bad mig snälla stanna kvar

Men jag sa

No-no-no-no-no-no

Norrland

Jag saknar Norrland

Jag längtar hem

Tillbaks till

No-no-no-no-no-no

Norrland

Ta mig till Norrland

Ja, ta mig hem

I djupaste Sahara i en värld av sand

Stod jag vid en oas och längtade hem

Med vinden kom en doft ifrån ett fjärran land

Men Norrlandsvinden, inget är som den

När guiden började prata om en karavan

Då tänkte jag på älvar, berg och gran

Och jag sa

No-no-no-no-no-no

Norrland

Jag saknar Norrland

Jag längtar hem

Tillbaks till

No-no-no-no-no-no

Norrland

Ta mig till Norrland

Ja, ta mig hem

Och så en dag kom jag tillbaks till Norrland

Med tomma händer stod jag där igen

Och vinden var så skön som den kan vara ibland

Det var som om den sa välkommen hem

Tillbaks till

No-no-no-no-no-no

No-no-no-no-no-no

No-no-no-no-no-no

Norrland

Jag saknar Norrland

Jag längtar hem

Tillbaks till

No-no-no-no-no-no

Norrland

Ta mig till Norrland

Ja, ta mig hem

Ta mig till Norrland

Ja, ta mig hem

Ta mig till Norrland

Ta mig hem

  • The Silence After You – Dear Sara

Darkness came without warning

Now it’s worst in the morning

When the dreams dissolve

When the dreams dissolve

I’m still sick but I’m better

Started climbing the ladder

They say “don’t look down”

So I don’t look down

All eyes on you

Gonna rise up from this burning ground

Gonna raise my voice and shout it out

Cause I know you wanted me to drown

In the silence

The silence

I’ve been broken down by compromise

Gonna face the music in my eyes

Now I hear my voice is coming through

In the silence

The silence after you

I know fate will deliver

So I flow with the river

Let it carry me

Let it carry me

Gonna rise up from this burning ground

Gonna raise my voice and shout it out

Cause I know you wanted me to drown

In the silence

The silence

I’ve been broken down by compromise

Gonna face the music in my eyes

Now I hear my voice is coming through

In the silence

The silence after you

Oh-oh oh

Now I hear my voice is coming through

In the silence

The silence after you

Through the scars and the blisters

There’s a future that whispers

“Now you’re on your way”

“Now you’re on your way”

Gonna rise up from this burning ground

Gonna raise my voice and shout it out

Cause I know you wanted me to drown

In the silence

The silence

I’ve been broken down by compromise

Gonna face the music in my eyes

Now I hear my voice is coming through

In the silence

The silence after you

  • Ahumma – C-Joe

Ahumma ma ma ma yeah

Humma ma ma ma yeah

Ahumma ma ma ma yeah

When you wake up in the night and feeling like you’re lonely

Just wait ’til the morning light and you won’t be down

We all wanna be alright

We all have our inner fight

When you wake up in the nights now don’t be afraid, no

So be careful how you live your life

It will go better for you tomorrow

Oh tomorrow

Anything you read or see on TV

You not forget to swallow, not to swallow

Ahumma ah yeah

Ahumma ma ma ma yeah

Humma ma ma ma yeah

Ahumma ma ma ma yeah

Come on shake’a ya body

Ahumma ma ma ma yeah

Humma ma ma ma yeah

Ahumma ma ma ma yeah

Come on shake’a ya body

I wonder how life would be if we had no worries

I wonder what we would do when all sorrows go

We all wanna be okay

We all want the perfect day

I wonder how life would be if I made you smile

So be careful how you live your life

It will go better for you tomorrow

Oh tomorrow

Anything you read or see on TV

You not forget to swallow, not to swallow

Ahumma ah yeah

Ahumma ma ma ma yeah

Humma ma ma ma yeah

Ahumma ma ma ma yeah

Come on shake’a ya body

Ahumma ma ma ma yeah

Humma ma ma ma yeah

Ahumma ma ma ma yeah

Come on shake’a ya body

You (you)

and me (and me)

We need each other

Into the light

I know (know)

You know (know)

We need each other

Into the light

Ahumma ah yeaah

Ahumma ma ma ma yeah

Humma ma ma ma yeah

Ahumma ma ma ma yeah

Come on shake’a ya body

Ahumma ma ma ma yeah

Humma ma ma ma yeah

Ahumma ma ma ma yeah

Come on shake’a ya body

Ahumma ma ma ma yeah

Humma ma ma ma yeah

Ahumma ma ma ma yeah

Come on shake’a ya body

Ahumma ma ma ma yeah

Humma ma ma ma yeah

Ahumma ma ma ma yeah

Come on shake’a ya body

Ahumma ma ma ma yeah

Humma ma ma ma yeah

Ahumma ma ma ma yeah

Come on shake’a ya body

Ahumma ma ma ma yeah

  • Dragon – LIAMOO

I was my own

Worst enemy

But I made

My fear

My energy

I found him in the darkest cave

He told me that I should be brave

Showed me what I’m really about

No matter what happens

I won’t slay my dragon

No won’t run away

I’m breathing fire

And I’m spreading my wings

They take me higher

I finally found that I am

Not not my enemy

Not not my enemy

Not not my enemy

Cause I found my dragon

I don’t need

No aid

Or remedy

Cause I finally found

My melody

Yeah, found him in the darkest cave

He told me that I should be brave

Showed me what I’m really about

No matter what happens

I won’t slay my dragon

No

I’m breathing fire

And I’m spreading my wings

They take me higher

I finally found that I am

Not not my enemy

Not not my enemy

Not not my enemy

Cause I found my dragon

I’m breathing fire

And I’m spreading my wings

Not not my enemy

Not not my enemy

Not not my enemy

Cause I found my dragon

  • Unga & fria – Fröken Snusk

Sjung en låt för sommaren

För vi är back igen

Och nu går säkringen

Vi gör historia igen

På alla ängarna

Står vi på händerna

För vi ska riva hela haket

Stampa fötterna på taket

Vi ska ropa högt så alla hör

Och vi kan göra nånting naket

Bara älska att få hatet

Ta min hand och sjung i kör

För vi ska leva varje dag

Väcka liv i hela stan

Dunka plåten och känna vi är fria

Och när morgondagen kom

Vill du bara somna om

Vi dunkade plåten och kände vi var fria

Och jag sa, du där

Kom som du är

Vi ska sjunga

Vi ska sjunga

Vi är fria

Och jag kan se dig

Vad är det med dig?

Vi ska sjunga

Vi ska sjunga

Vi är fria

Ingen täckning i vår bil

Så en kassett åker i

Med samma låt på repeat

Och det är öppna vägar här

Häng med på våran färd

Och vi kan sväva iväg

För vi ska riva hela haket

Stampa fötterna på taket

Vi ska ropa högt så alla hör

Och vi kan göra nånting naket

Bara älska att få hatet

Ta min hand och sjung i kör

För vi ska leva varje dag

Väcka liv i hela stan

Dunka plåten och känna vi är fria

Och när morgondagen kom

Vill du bara somna om

Vi dunkade plåten och kände vi var fria

Och jag sa, du där

Kom som du är

Vi ska sjunga

Vi ska sjunga

Vi är fria

Och jag kan se dig

Vad är det med dig?

Vi ska sjunga

Vi ska sjunga

Vi är fria

Här har ni vilda flickan

Som tycker om att kittlas

Och masken sitter på

Hör mig flämta

Hör mig flåsa

Alltid klädd i rosa

Det är fröken ni tittar på

För vi ska leva varje dag

Väcka liv i hela stan

Dunka plåten och känna vi är fria

Och när morgondagen kom

Vill du bara somna om

Vi dunkade plåten och kände vi var fria

Och jag sa, du där

Kom som du är

Vi ska sjunga

Vi ska sjunga

Vi är fria

Och jag kan se dig

Vad är det med dig?

Vi ska sjunga

Vi ska sjunga

Vi är fria

Carina Berg is the host of all the shows of the tour this year! With the next show of the contest on Saturday February the 10rd, Melodifestivalen will take place in Göteborg, then Växjö follows and finally the final show in Stockholm on the 9th of March.

The schedule for the six shows of the Melodifestivalen 2024 tour

  • Heat 1: Saturday 3 February 2024, Malmö Arena, Malmö
  • Heat 2: Saturday 10 February 2024, Scandinavium, Göteborg
  • Heat 3: Saturday 17 February 2024, Vida Arena, Växjö
  • Heat 4: Saturday 24 February 2024, Stiga Sports Arena, Eskilstuna
  • Heat 5: Saturday 2 March 2024, Löfbergs Arena, Karlstad
  • Final: Saturday 9 March 2024, Friends Arena, Stockholm – Solna

Stay tuned at Eurovisionfun, for all the latest developments regarding Sweden’s entry for Eurovision 2024!

Source: SVT

 

 

 

 

Sweden: Smash Into Pieces and Lisa Ajax are the two direct finalists of the First Heat of Melodifestivalen 2024!

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Ninety minutes ago, the show for the First Heat of Melodifestivalen 2024, started off on SVT and SVT Play. And we are here to share the results of the night with you!

The two numbers that qualify directly to the finals are Smash Into Piecesand Lisa Ajax which we will get to see perform their songs live, on the 9th of March, when the finals will take place at Friends Arena.

But how things developed during the night?

The show

The first week of competition arrived really fast. Today, Saturday, February 3, Melodifestivalen 2024 started from this year’s Eurovision city Malmö.

Carina Berg is the host of all the shows of the tour this year! After tonights show, Göteborg follows and finally the final show in Stockholm on the 9th of March.

The show started with an intro, Carina was chilling at home, then it all became like a musical with Carina singing and changing costumes throughout the number.

The experts make an first

New in Melodifestivalen this year is the participation of a couple of really knowledgeable music and Mello-experts – radio and TV profile Tina Mehrafzoon and Mello-oracle Ronny Larsson. During both the races and the final, they analyze the evening’s line-up and give their opinion on how they are doing.

The numbers

  • “Supernatural” – Adam Woods

First up on stage Adam Woods. It’s an EDM pop, reminds me of Avicii, Alesso, Swedish House Mafia, in general Swedish dance bangers. Amazing vocals, great production, but everything is there for a reason. It is an immersive experience, Adam plays with the LED throughout his performance, on the floor and in the back LED screen. There are flowing projections on there that make you feel like you’re drowning in love, in combination to the song.

Photo: Andreas Papayiannakis

  • “Hela världen väntar” – Samir & Viktor

Typical Samir & Viktor song in Swedish, of course an “oj oj oj” part would be there. This song got the crowds involved a lot. Vocally they seemed a bit off, the chorus part was okay since there were mainly the backing vocals. The staging also reminds me of concepts of Fokas Evangelinos. Large prop with stairs and projections of cities and natures at the back. In the first two rehearsals the colours were a bit more cold, now they kind of changed the tint of the background LED  screens to more earthy colours and a more vivid turquoise. By the end, glitter got thrown in the arena and the crowd started cheering manically. Pyro and fireworks also made their appearance.

Photo: Andreas Papayiannakis

  • “Min melodi” – Melina Borglowe

It’s a guitar-based pop song with obvious indie elements. I can hear Thomas G:Son contribution to the song. Melina‘s voice is so sweet, but she sounded much more confident in her two first rehearsals, at some point she kind of lost it. It is this kind of Melfest entries, with a girl, a guitar, dark background and lights all around, very emotional and cute. A pleasant song overall. The audience clapped as they should but they didn’t go manic over this performance.

Photo: Andreas Papayiannakis

  • “Forever Yours” – Elisa Lindström

Schlager party is the theme, if you know what I mean. Lots of pink, glitter, light, glow. Elisa shines, so you’d better wear sunglasses during this performance. Elisa does what Sweden knows to do best. High notes and an ear-candy key change! The staging reminds me kind of the one that Andromachihad with Cyprus back in 2022. But make it Swedish and put it 20 levels higher than what you saw. Four silver dancers, two girls and two boys. The audience went crazy, also fireworks made an entrance! Great great great!

Photo: Andreas Papayiannakis

  • “Awful Liar” – Lisa Ajax

A love power-ballad for Lisa this year. Reminds me of a Natalie Imbruglia ballad. Guitar and strings on the plate for a hapily sad song. Beautiful song. Moon behind her, a girl and a boy doing a contemporary dance routine around her. Her vocals are on point and she makes us all get relatable and get all the feels. We’ve all been there, where we have been betrayed, lied to, cheated on. You feel all of this by listening to this song.

Photo: Andreas Papayiannakis

  • “Heroes Are Calling” – Smash Into Pieces

Their distinctive sound is there, the song in my opinion is stronger than their entry last year, expectedly with an amazing production to the last touch. Their staging now I think is a bit less than last year, I probably had more expectations since they did that great in 2023. The Apocalypse DJ is behind the led screens and can be seen in parts of their performance. A very cinematic presentation and as the guys said in their interview, the whole idea was that we are following Apoc in his own mission. Red laser beams and strobe lights add to the staging. Chris’ voice always sounds like the studio version, if not better. At the end it’s all about fireworks! Is this song a contender for the win? I think it is. Smash into Pieces make a great impact to the audience. But it is too early to say.

Photo: Andreas Papayiannakis

After the six performances, Carina‘s husband footballer Erik Berg brings this year’s trophy, the Sångfågel, which has pink tiles on it

Photo: Stina Stjernkvist / SVT

These were the six numbers of this week, a recap follows to show the voting numbers for the contestants of the heat.

The Intervals

Photo: Stina Stjernkvist / SVT

Already in this round, the first of five, there is an interval with a capital I when the successful group A-Teens reunites to celebrate their 25th anniversary. For the first time in eighteen years, Marie Serneholt, Sara Lumholdt, Dhani Lennevald and Amit Paul will perform together, and will offer a sparkling medley with both their own and some of ABBA‘s songs. First song is ABBA‘s “Mamma Mia“. “Upside Down“ followed, which was released as first single from their second album, then “Floorfiller” backed by six dancers, lots of lights and laser beams. This is very impressive. Again on ABBA mode, with the song “Gimme, gimme, gimme (A Man After Midnight)“!

The Direct Qualifiers

First voting round winner: Smash Into Pieces
Second voting round winner: Lisa Ajax

 

Semi-Finalists

Second voting round 2nd place: Elisa Lindström
Second voting round 3rd place: Adam Woods

Second voting round results

Age-band 3-9 years old winner: Adam Woods

Age-band 10-15 years old winner: Lisa Ajax

Age-band 16-29 years old winner: Lisa Ajax

Age-band 30-44 years old winner: Lisa Ajax

Age-band 45-59 years old winner: Lisa Ajax

Age-band 60-74 years old winner: Elisa Lindström

Age-band 75+ years old winner: Elisa Lindström

Televoting winner: Elisa Lindström

See you next Saturday, at the next heat, when you will have the chance to be informed in detail about the show and the next two finalists, as soon as they are announced on TV!

Stay tuned at Eurovisionfun, for all the latest developments regarding Melodifestivalen 2024 and the Swedish entry for Eurovision 2024!

Source: SVT
Photos: Andreas Papayiannakis / EurovisionFun, Stina Stjernkvist / SVT

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