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Norway: Stig Karlsen steps down as Head of Delegation!

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Stig Karlsen, one of the most prominent Eurovision figures of the past years, has announced his resignation from his roles as project manager for MGP and HoD for Noway after ten years.

Stig Karlsen made his choice in response to an offer of a new position. In particular, he will handle Jannicke Mikkelsen’s communications and media during her SpaceX mission, making history as the first female astronaut from Norway.

Regarding his choice to withdraw from the Eurovision project, Stig Karlsen mentions:

10 years is a decent length of time for a project, and now this fantastic offer came up with a Norwegian astronaut, so now the time had come.

It is because of this job offer that I got. I believe that music and culture are a bridge-builder, and I also believe that the EBU will get the event back in order.

By October 1st, Stig Karlsen will begin his new responsibilities. This implies that he will carry on working for NRK until then, and it is likely that he will choose the MGP lineup for the next edition.

Karlsen’s successor is currently being sought after, and it is a difficult task given the position’s high level of responsibility.

Only once under Karlsen’s leadership did Norway miss out on the Grand Final, while in 2019, KEiiNO and “Spirit in the Sky” won the public vote.

Stay tuned to EurovisionFun for all the news!

Source: NRK

Norway: Participation in Eurovision 2025 is confirmed!

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Since the final of this year’s Eurovision Song Contest in Malmö, questions have been aroused as to whether Norway will participate in next year’s major music competition. Now NRK has finally concluded after talks with the EBU and the new report that was published yesterday.

Now the EBU has recognized that they had problems this year and they are working to improve it. And what we’ve been told, in addition to what they’ve come out with publicly, sounds very good. So now we will work constructively and positively to get Norway into Eurovision in 2025. We will participate

says music manager for Melodi Grand Prix, Stig Karlsen.

He emphasizes that they have not received an answer to everything the EBU should do next, but that NRK’s ​​plan is now ready.

The registration deadline for next year’s competition is set for mid-September. There are so far around 16 countries registered for next year’s competition. Both Sweden and Denmark have already confirmed participation.

-We hope that the EBU ensures that the ESC is not used as a political tool, because there was quite a bit of this this year. It is also important that they become better at communicating, crisis management and security around the event.

Against the background of this year’s controversies and protests during the Eurovision Song Contest, the EBU, the organizer of the contest, promised a thorough evaluation and review of the event.

Yesterday, the EBU published a report in which they consider further measures to improve the safety of the artists. At the same time, they announced that they are creating new leadership positions in the Eurovision Song Contest, and that they have been recommended to create a crisis team that can prevent and handle crises.

We must communicate well with the artist and provide an understanding of what we do and how we handle this. It is very important that the artist has a good experience throughout.

Of the countries that are registered for next year we also find Israel. There were several demonstrations both in Norway and several other countries in Europe when they were allowed to participate in this year’s competition.

NRK has been clear that we do not engage in a cultural boycott. What is important to us is that Eurovision is not used as a platform for politics, and the EBU has not been able to follow this up as well. We cannot have countries that use the competition as a platform for propaganda.

source: nrk.no

Norway: Stig Karlsen to EBU “Stop Blaming Delegations and Artists”!

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Stig Karlsen, the Head of Delegation for Norway at Eurovision, has called on its organisers the EBU to “stop blaming” others for its own faults.

Eurovision 2024 was shrouded in controversy, with multiple countries complaining about a tense and unsafe environment at the contest. Speaking to Wiwibloggs after the Grand Final, Karlsen says that the EBU need to “be more humble and take responsibility for the damage done”.

Norway was reported to be one of several broadcasters that was threatening to withdraw from the contest this year. In an interview with Aftenposten, the guitarist of Norway’s entry for 2024, Gåte, said that “retiring was on the block until the last second”.

Karlsen, who is the man in charge of Norway’s entry for the Eurovision Song Contest each year, says that the Norwegian broadcaster NRK is “already holding discussions” about what happened. The plan is to then “carry these discussions over to the EBU” when they can.

“There is no doubt that the reputation of the Eurovision Song Contest has been significantly damaged this year, and it is now crucial that the EBU quickly takes action. The EBU needs to stop blaming the delegations and artists for the scandals that surrounded Eurovision 2024, and acknowledge the core problem.”

“The reputation of Eurovision goes hand in hand with MGP and all the other national finals. What the EBU does now is crucial for the future of Eurovision and the national selections as well. However, they need to act quickly. Time is running out for the broadcasters that conduct national selections. Right now, it’s a tough task to get artists, songwriters, partners, and team members to engage and commit to the project.”

This is not the first time that Karlsen has said strong words after the end of a Eurovision. Last year, after the controversial result of Eurovision 2023, Karlsen called for the voting system at the contest to change.

Gåte represented Norway in Eurovision 2024. They qualified for the Grand Final, but finished in last place, scoring 16 points overall.

Stay tuned to Eurovisionfun for all the news about Eurovision 2024!

source: Wiwibloggs

Norway: Stig Karlsen reveals changes in MGP 2024 combined voting ratio!

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Yesterday NRK, the Norwegian public broadcaster, revealed details on how MGP 2024 will be structured.

Stig Karlsen, Norway‘s Head of Delegation, took part in a bubble rally in the Facebook group “Grand Prix Bobla” which was streamed on YouTube, Facebook and escNorge and he revealed even more details about next year’s national selection process.

Combined voting ratio changes! | People have the power!

Karlsen revealed that after the return of the jury in MGP 2023, the jury will remain in next year’s selection proces. However, Stig has previously advocated that the jury should count somewhat less than 50% in Eurovision. In yesterday’s interview he explained that he sees MGP and Eurovision as the people’s programs, and that it is therefore important that it is the people who have the final and decisive word, and that people should therefore count more than the jury votes. He more than hinted that this will be the case in MGP 2024. Then the jury will count 40%, while the popular vote counts 60%.

He also explained that work is being done on new and better technology to handle the popular vote. The system of only being able to vote from the NRK app, or as a logged-in user, has as a weakness that no one under the age of 13 can actually vote. This is because you must be over 13 years old to be able to create a profile with NRK. Another weakness is that it is easy to create more profiles, and thus acquire more votes than you have the right to use.

Broadcast from two studios

Stig Karlsen said that there will be two studios involved in the broadcast. One studio will be used as the main stage and the other studio will act as a green room. Both studios will have audience present and people can choose whether to buy a ticket on one studio or the other.

Are any released songs competing at MGP 2024?

New this year is that all songs released after September 1st are allowed to compete. When asked if there are any songs out on the charts, on the radio or elsewhere now, and that are ready for MGP, the MGP boss answered yes.

This year, Norway was represented by Alessandra and the song “Queen of Kings”. With a total of 268 points, Alessandra came in fifth place overall and third in the televote. Will Norway be able to maintain its success and secure a third consecutive top 10 finish?

Source: escnorge.no
Photo: Mandy Pettersen/ESC Norge

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Norway: The MGP 2024 line-up is ready, according to Head of Delegation Stig Karlsen!

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Norway has confirmed that Melodi Grand Prix will remain as the country’s selection process for Eurovision 2024. The submission window closed for those interested in submitting an entry on August 31 and the process that will filter down the entrants, who will participate in the main event, is currently progressing.

As you read in one of our past articles, Stig Karlsen, the Head of the Norwegian delegation, had announced that the Grand Final of Melodi Grand Prix 2024 will take place on February 3 2024. Stig posted on instagram and now confirmed that the line-up of the acts that will take part in Melodi Grand Prix 2024 have already been selected:

“What a thrill to call up artists and their team to let them know that they have been chosen to participate on Norways biggest music show.”

The assessment of the submitted acts is still ongoing and we expect the reveal of MGP’s 2024 line-up in early January, probably on January 5. Moreover, since there was no announcement made, we are still expecting the announcement of the venue that will host MGP 2024 in early 2024.

Melodi Grand Prix 2024 timeline

As far as we are concerned, MGP 2024 will include three semi finals, with six participants each. From each semi final, probably three acts will advance to the Grand Final of February 3. Hence, bearing in mind the aforementioned MGP 2024 structure, we conclude that the dates of Melodi Grand Prix 2024 will be as following:

  • First Semi Final: January 13, 2024
  • Second Semi Final: January 20, 2024
  • Third Semi Final: January 27, 2024
  • Grand Final: February 3, 2024

Source: Stig Karlsen

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Norway’s HoD predicts that Auto-Tune will soon be allowed in Eurovision!

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Stig Karlsen, the head of the Norwegian delegation, stated in an interview with the “Euro Trip Podcast” that Auto-Tune would unavoidably be incorporated into Eurovision in the upcoming years.

This regulation was first put into effect for Melodi Grand Prix 2023, the national final through which Norway’s participation in Liverpool came about.

More specifically, he stated:

“I think it’s misunderstood and I think Eurovision will have to do it because the music industry will demand it”.

“The public think about Auto-Tune as making people who can’t sing into pop stars. That’s what you can do if you’re in a studio environment. If you’re putting someone on stage and you ask them to sing live you can’t make that person a great singer if they’re not”.

“The Auto-Tune used in MGP is optimising the sound… making it sound like a professional product like every other television show in the world”.

 

 

Do you support the inclusion of Auto-Tune in the Eurovision Song Contest?

Stay tuned on Eurovisionfun to stay up to date on all the latest news about the world’s largest music competition!

Source: The Euro Trip Podcast

Eurovision 2024: Stig Karlsen confirms that there was no decision made on reducing the jury power!

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Norway’s Head of Delegation, Stig Karlsen, who has previously defended the need to limit the power of jury in favor of the television audience, confirmed to The Euro Trip Podcast that no such decision has been made.

During the summer Stig Karlsen had revealed his plans on proposing to the EBU the alteration of the voting system, strengthening the weight of the television audience’s power on the total outcome.

The jury system at Eurovision should definitely be evaluated and the discussion is very welcome. There has been a difference (in the results) between the judges and the public vote in the past, but this year it was extremely wide. People obviously had a different winner. The fact that a jury of 185 people should have as much power as millions of viewers is questionable.

Stig Karlsen,  Norway’s head of Delegation

During the Eurovision Workshop that took place in Berlin on September 11 and 12, an Instagram story posted by Stig Karslen was enough to cause loads of comments, but also questions about whether the Head of the Norwegian Delegation finally managed to persuade with his proposal.

Eurovision 2024: Did Stig Karlsen succeed in reducing the power of juries?

Stig Karlsen does not confirm that any alteration on the 50/50 percentage has been made

Speaking on The Euro Trip Podcast, Stig Karlsen denies the rumor that he managed to convince his colleagues and especially the Reference Group of the Competition (which is in charge of deciding), to change the 50-50 system. When asked about the story in question, Karlsen said:

It was just a success of getting a schnitzel.

Nevertheless, Karlsen insists that the public should have a greater say in the final result and while he thinks that the presence of national juries is needed, he believes that a 60-40 system in favor of the television audience would be fairer.

His opinion on the voting system is strongly connected with his country’s course in the contest the previous years. Norway since 2016 has received 332 points from the jury and 826 points from the viewers.

https://youtu.be/PUHSM_vTqTI?si=4K1OLJ3OZLeVZp76

What is your opinion? Do you agree or disagree with Stig Karlsen? Stay tuned on EurovisionFun for all news!

Source: The EuroTrip Podcast

Eurovision 2024: Did Stig Karlsen succeed in reducing the power of juries?

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As we have previously informed you, the Eurovision Song Contest’s workshop took place today in Berlin.

Eurovision 2024: Eurovision Song Contest Workshop scheduled to take place tonight in Berlin!

During this workshop representatives of the -already confirmed- competing broadcasters had the opportunity to interact and discuss on new ideas regarding the contest.

The attendees of the Eurovision Song Contest Workshop in Berlin.

Stig Karlsen’s “mission”

On behalf of Norway, Stig Karlsen was present. Karlsen serves as the head of the Norwegian delegation to the Eurovision Song Contest. A month prior to the workshop, Karlsen stated that the Norwegian Television is planning on proposing a change of the voting format and specifically a change in the ratio of jury-public voting results. He suggested that a 30% or 40% percent of jury’s participation in the final result would be essential as a balancing factor and a boost for public’s interest, who often sees its favorite entry not winning or placing low.

Karlsen posted earlier on his instagram feed the following story:

Mission accomplished ✔

Does the aforementioned indicate that a discussion regarding a possible change in the voting format has been made? Well, the reduction of jury’s power in the contest for sure would benefit Norway, a country that has experienced conflicting results between jury and public vote for the past years. The highlight was in 2019, when Norway won the public vote only to finish 18th in the jury voting. We can assume that Karlsen brought this topic on today’s meeting and made his proposal among Eurovision executives.

A possible change in the jury-public vote ration is indeed a hot topic among Eurovision fans due to this year’s Finnish entry finishing second overall, regardless taking the first place on public voting with a margin of 133 points. Considering EBU’s approach on the contest, eager to try new ideas and bring changes when needed, it might be the time for this specific change.

Stay tuned on EurovisionFun for all Eurovision news!

Eurovision 2024: Which country wants less power to the Juries?

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Norway does not like at all the fact that every year the amount of points from the juries is smaller than that of the tele-voting, thus opening a big discussion on this matter. The cause of course was the huge discrepancy that occurred this year, in the voting of the television audience in relation to that of the national juries, after the latter overturned the final result and gave the victory to Loreen and Tatoo.

Stig Karlsen, head of the Norwegian delegation to the Eurovision contest, has revealed that his country’s public television is going to propose changing the scoring system, by limiting the voting of the juries.

In his interview on the Eurovíziós Podcast, Stig Karlsen justifies the above, saying that he believes that people’s interest in the contest will decrease if they see that their favorite song does not take first place.

Although he considers the existence of critical committees necessary, he suggests a change of the balance to 40% or even 30% of the final result, with the remaining percentage determined by the voting of the television audience.

“The juries system at Eurovision should definitely be evaluated and the discussion is very welcome. There has been a difference (in the results) between the jury and the public vote in the past, but this year it was extremely wide. The people obviously had a different winner. The fact that a jury of 185 people should have as much power as millions of viewers is questionable”

At this point we remind you that Finland gained 376 points in the tele-voting, with Loreen receiving respectively only 243. On the other hand Sweden received 340 points, with Finland gaining only 150 in the jury voting.

The whole jury system has had a great repercussion on Norway during the last year. The highlight was the 2019 Norwegian entry with KEiiNO who despite winning the tele-voting at the grand final, the juries allocated them only 18th!

Any change to the contest’s voting system must first be approved by the Reference Group, which is expected to convene next January to approve the regulations for Eurovision 2024.

Source: Eurovíziós Podcast

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