Iceland in the Eurovision Song Contest 2009

Iceland confirmed its presence at the Eurovision Song Contest 2009. It was held in Moscow, Russia. Ríkisútvarpið (RÚV), the Icelandic broadcaster, has decided to continue with a national final format, with members of the public being called to send in songs to RÚV.[1]

Eurovision Song Contest 2009
Country Iceland
National selection
Selection processSöngvakeppni Sjónvarpsins 2009
Selection date(s)Semi-finals
10 January 2009,
17 January 2009,
24 January 2009,
31 January 2009,
Final
14 February 2009
Selected entrantJóhanna Guðrún Jónsdóttir
Selected song"Is It True?"
Finals performance
Semi-final resultQualified (1st, 174 points)
Final result2nd, 218 points
Iceland in the Eurovision Song Contest
◄2008 • 2009 • 2010►

Before Eurovision

Söngvakeppni Sjónvarpsins 2009

The final of the Icelandic national selection, Söngvakeppni Sjónvarpsins 2009, was be held on 14 February 2009, with four semi-finals being held beforehand, on the 10, 17, 24 and 31 January 2009.[2][3] Eight songs in total competed in the final.

Competing entries

Artists and songwriters were told that they had until 13 October 2008 to submit entries to RÚV.[1] However, due to the financial crisis in Iceland, RÚV extended the deadline by one week, to 20 October 2008.[4] Sixteen songs in total competed in Söngvakeppni Sjónvarpsins 2009, selected from the 217 songs submitted to RÚV. The composers of the sixteen songs were revealed on 15 November 2008. Three of the thirteen composers revealed have composed two songs that have been accepted for the contest.[3]

Artist Song Composer(s)
Arnar, Edgar, Sverrir & Ólafur "Easy to Fool" Torfi Ólafsson, Þorkell Olgeirsson
Edgar Smári "The Kiss We Never Kissed" Heimir Sindrason, Ari Harðarson
Elektra "Got No Love" Örlygur Smári, Sigurður Örn Jónsson
Erna Hrönn Ólafsdóttir "Glópagull" Einar Oddsson
Halla Vilhjálmsdóttir "Roses" Trausti Bjarnason, Halla Vilhjálmsdóttir
Heiða Ólafs "Dagur nýr" Halldór Guðjónsson, Íris Kristinsdóttir
Hreindís Ylva Garðarsdóttir Holm "Vornótt" Erla Gígja Þorvaldsdóttir, Hilmir Jóhannesson
Ingó "Undir regnbogann" Hallgrímur Óskarsson, Eiríkur Hauksson
Jógvan Hansen "I Think The World of You" Hallgrímur Óskarsson
Jóhanna Guðrún Jónsdóttir "Is It True?" Óskar Páll Sveinsson
Kaja Halldórsdóttir "Lygin ein" Albert G. Jónsson
Kristín Ósk Wium "Close to You" Grétar Sigurbergsson
Ólöf Jara Skagfjörð "Hugur minn fylgir þér" Valgeir Skagfjörð
Páll Rósinkrans "Fósturjörð" Einar Scheving
Seth Sharp "Family" Óskar Páll Sveinsson
Unnur Birna Björnsdóttir "Cobwebs" Heimir Sindrason, Ari Harðarson

Semi-final 1

The first semi-final of Söngvakeppni Sjónvarpsins 2009 was held on 10 January, featuring four songs in total. Two songs passed to the final, while the remaining two were knocked out of the competition.

The first song of the night was "Dagur nýr" (A new day), performed by Heiða Ólafs, composed by Halldór Guðjónsson and written by Íris Kristinsdóttir. The song is a rock ballad, which Ólafs performs on stage in a black top and trousers. She was backed by a five piece band, featuring two guitarists, a bassist, a drummer and a keyboard player. The second performance of the night was by Ólöf Jara Skagfjörð with the song "Hugur minn fylgir þér" (My mind follows you), which was composed and written by Valgeir Skagfjörð. The song is a rock/pop ballad, which she performs in a red and black dress, backed by an accordion player. Edgar Smári was next on stage, performing "The Kiss We Never Kissed" which was composed by Heimir Sindrason and written by Ari Harðarson. The song is a pop ballad, which Heimir performs in a black shirt and jeans, sitting on a stool in the centre of the stage, backed by five backing singers, four female and one male, all in black. The final song of the first semi-final was "Is It True", composed by Óskar Páll Sveinsson and performed by Jóhanna Guðrún Jónsdóttir. The song is another ballad, featuring both pop and rock elements, which Guðrún performs on stage in a black dress, and is accompanied on stage by two female backing singers, a cellist and a guitarist, all in black.[5][6][7]

Edgar Smári and Jóhanna Guðrún Jónsdóttir were the two artists to qualify to the final, to be held on 14 February.[8][9]

Semi-final 1 – 10 January 2009
Draw Artist Song Result
1 Heiða Ólafs "Dagur nýr" Eliminated
2 Ólöf Jara Skagfjörð "Hugur minn fylgir þér" Eliminated
3 Edgar Smári "The Kiss We Never Kissed" Advanced
4 Jóhanna Guðrún Jónsdóttir "Is It True?" Advanced

Semi-final 2

The second semi-final of Söngvakeppni Sjónvarpsins 2009 was held on 17 January, featuring four songs in total. Two songs passed to the final, while the remaining two were knocked out of the competition.

The show was opened by Páll Rósinkrans, performing "Fósturjörð" (Motherland), composed and written by Einar Scheving. the song is a ballad, which Rósinkrans performed in a black suit and white shirt, and was joined on stage by a pianist, drummer, cellist and violinist, all in black. Second was Ingó, who performed "Undir regnbogann" (Under the rainbow), which was composed by Hallgrímur Óskarsson and written by Eiríkur Hauksson. The song is a cheerful, which Ingó performs on stage with a ukulele, and he was accompanied on stage by three male backing singers in black, as well as female trombonist and drummer, dressed in white. the penultimate performance was by Hreindís Ylva Garðarsdóttir Holm, who performed "Vornótt" (Spring night), which was composed by Erla Gígja Þorvaldsdóttir and written by Hilmir Jóhannesson. The song is a mid-tempo song, which Holm performs in a black and white polka dot dress. She is accompanied on stage by a harpist, guitarist and two female backing singers, all in black. The final performer on stage was Erna Hrönn Ólafsdóttir with "Glópagull" (Fool's gold), composed and written by Einar Oddsson. The song is more rock in nature to the other songs in this semi-final, with Hrönn performing in a black and red dress, and joined on stage by two male and two female backing singers, all in black.[10][11][12]

Ingó and Hreindís Ylva Garðarsdóttir Holm passed to the final, with Páll Rósinkrans and Erna & Lísa failing to pass through to the final.[13][14]

Semi-final 2 – 17 January 2009
Draw Artist Song Result
1 Páll Rósinkrans "Fósturjörð" Eliminated
2 Ingó "Undir regnbogann" Advanced
3 Hreindís Ylva Garðarsdóttir Holm "Vornótt" Advanced
4 Erna Hrönn Ólafsdóttir "Glópagull" Eliminated

Semi-final 3

The third semi-final of Söngvakeppni Sjónvarpsins 2009 was held on 24 January, featuring four songs in total. Two songs passed to the final, while the remaining two were knocked out of the competition.

First on stage was Seth Sharp with "Family", an up-tempo pop song. Sharp is joined on stage by three female backing singers, dressed in black, as well as a male and female backing dancers. Next on stage was Arnar, Edgar, Sverrir & Ólafur with "Easy to Fool", an up-tempo country song. The group were dressed in cowboy outfits, and were joined on stage by two female backing singers in black. The penultimate act was Kristín Ósk Wium with "Close to You", a jazz ballad. Kristín was joined on stage by a jazz band, including a pianist, bassist, trumpeter and guitarist, all in black, while Kristín performed in a black dress. The final song of the show was Kaja Halldórsdóttir's "Lygin ein" (A total lie), a modern disco song. Kaja performed the song in a black leather outfit, and was joined on stage by three male backing singers, dressed in black, as well as two female backing dancers who followed Kaja as she moved about on stage.[15][16][17]

Arnar, Edgar, Sverrir & Ólafur and Kaja Halldórsdóttir qualified to the final, while Seth Sharp and Kristín Ósk Wium left the competition.[18][19]

Semi-final 3 – 24 January 2009
Draw Artist Song Result
1 Seth Sharp "Family" Eliminated
2 Arnar, Edgar, Sverrir & Ólafur "Easy to Fool" Advanced
3 Kristín Ósk Wium "Close to You" Eliminated
4 Kaja Halldórsdóttir "Lygin ein" Advanced

Semi-final 4

The fourth semi-final of Söngvakeppni Sjónvarpsins 2009 was held on 31 January, featuring four songs in total. Two songs passed to the final, while the remaining two were knocked out of the competition.

Unnur Birna Björnsdóttir was first on stage with "Cobwebs", composed by Heimir Sindrason and written by Ari Harðarson. Birna performs the mid-tempo ballad surrounded by a string quartet, all in black, with Birna singing from a microphone stand as well as playing the violin, dressed in a black dress. Second was Jógvan Hansen with "I Think The World of You", written by Hallgrímur Óskarsson. The song is another ballad, which Hansen, dressed in a white shirt and black waistcoat, performs on stage with two male backing singers, also dressed in black. Third was Electra's "Got No Love", a rock song composed by Örlygur Smári and written by Sigurður Örn Jónsson. The two women of Electra perform the song and move about the stage, and are joined on stage by two female guitarists, who also provide backing vocals, as well as a female keyboardist and drummer. The final performance was Halla Vilhjálmsdóttir with "Roses", a mild rock song. Halla was joined on stage by two guitarists and a drummer, as well as two female backing singers, all dressed in black, while Halla was dressed in an orange top and black bottoms.[20][21]

Elektra and Jógvan Hansen passed to the final from this semi-final, and Unnur Birna Björnsdóttir and Halla Vilhjálmsdóttir left the contest.[22]

Semi-final 4 – 24 January 2009
Draw Artist Song Result
1 Unnur Birna Björnsdóttir "Cobwebs" Eliminated
2 Jógvan Hansen "I Think The World of You" Advanced
3 Elektra "Got No Love" Advanced
4 Halla Vilhjálmsdóttir "Roses" Eliminated

Final

The final of Söngvakeppni Sjónvarpsins 2009 was held on 14 February 2009, and featured two songs that qualified from each semi-final.

After each song had performed, the top two entries were revealed, being Ingó with "Undir regnbogann" and Jóhanna Guðrún Jónsdóttir with "Is It True?". The winner of the contest was Jóhanna Guðrún Jónsdóttir, who will represent Iceland at Eurovision in Moscow.[23][24] RÚV later revealed the results and televotes of the top 4 songs, with "Is It True?" winning by a landslide majority from more than 69,000 votes cast.[25]

Final – 14 February 2009
Draw Artist Song Televote Place
1 Arnar, Edgar, Sverrir & Ólafur "Easy to Fool" — —
2 Jógvan Hansen "I Think The World of You" 9,693 4
3 Kaja Halldórsdottir "Lygin ein" — —
4 Hreindís Ylva Garðarsdóttir Holm "Vornótt" — —
5 Elektra "Got No Love" 10,214 3
6 Edgar Smári "The Kiss We Never Kissed" — —
7 Ingó "Undir regnbogann" 10,696 2
8 Jóhanna Guðrún Jónsdóttir "Is It True?" 19,076 1

Promotion

Yohanna promoted her entry in various countries before competing in Moscow. Yohanna performed at both the UKeurovision Preview Party in London on 17 April and the Eurovision Promo Concert on 18 April in Amsterdam.[26][27]

At Eurovision

Iceland participated in the first semi-final of the contest on 12 May 2009. Yohanna performed 12th in the running order of the semi-final, following Bulgaria and preceding Macedonia. RÚV revealed that Yohanna was to be backed on stage by Friðrik Ómar, one half of last year's entry Euroband, and Hera Björk, runner-up in Dansk Melodi Grand Prix 2009 and backing singer for Euroband last year.[28] The song qualified for the final, scoring the highest number of points in the first semi-final with 174 points. It eventually finished 2nd with 218, equalling Iceland's best ever Eurovision performance set in 1999.

Split results
  • In the Final Iceland came 2nd with 218 points: the public awarded Iceland 4th place with 173 points and the jury awarded 2nd place with 260 points.
Split voting results from Iceland (final)
Draw Country Jury points Televoting points Scoreboard (Points)
01  Lithuania
02  Israel
03  France 10 6
04  Sweden 1 5 3
05  Croatia 5 1
06  Portugal 3 7 7
07  Iceland
08  Greece 1
09  Armenia 8 5
10  Russia
11  Azerbaijan 4
12  Bosnia and Herzegovina 6 2
13  Moldova 2
14  Malta
15  Estonia 7 8 10
16  Denmark 6 4
17  Germany
18  Turkey 2
19  Albania 3
20  Norway 12 12 12
21  Ukraine
22  Romania
23  United Kingdom 4
24  Finland 10 8
25  Spain
Points awarded to Iceland (Semi-final 1)
12 points 10 points 8 points 7 points 6 points
5 points 4 points 3 points 2 points 1 point
  •  Macedonia
Points awarded to Iceland (Final)
12 points 10 points 8 points 7 points 6 points
5 points 4 points 3 points 2 points 1 point
gollark: There's no very good justification for this. It's a stupidly overspecific rule with seemingly no useful purpose.
gollark: Don't make ridiculous arbitrary rules then.
gollark: In any case, you can spy for a country without being born there...
gollark: Fixed!
gollark: In what way?

References
  1. Wells, Simon (14 September 2008). "RUV begins quest for Moscow with changes". Oikotimes. Retrieved 14 September 2008.
  2. "Iceland: RÙV sets date for Eurovision national final". Oikotimes. 15 November 2008. Retrieved 15 November 2008.
  3. Floras, Stella (15 November 2008). "Iceland: National final on 14 February". ESCToday. Retrieved 15 November 2008.
  4. Hondal, Víctor (16 October 2008). "Iceland delays submissions". ESCToday. Retrieved 16 October 2008.
  5. Klier, Marcus (10 January 2009). "First semi final in Iceland". ESCToday. Retrieved 10 January 2009.
  6. van Tongeren, Mario (10 January 2009). "Live from Reykjavik, 'Songvakkepni Sjonvarpsins' 1st semifinal". Oikotimes. Retrieved 10 January 2009.
  7. Söngvakeppni Sjónvarpsins 2009: Semi-final 1. Ríkisútvarpið (2009-01-10). Retrieved on 2009-01-10.
  8. Klier, Marcus (10 January 2009). "Iceland: two acts qualified for the national final". ESCToday. Retrieved 10 January 2009.
  9. van Tongeren, Mario (10 January 2009). "The results of the first semifinal of 'Songvakkepni Sjonvarpsins'". oikotimes. Retrieved 10 January 2009.
  10. Fisher, Luke (17 January 2009). "Live from Reykjavík, the Second Icelandic Semifinal". Oikotimes. Retrieved 17 January 2009.
  11. Klier, Marcus (17 January 2009). "Second semi final in Iceland". ESCToday. Retrieved 17 January 2009.
  12. Söngvakeppni Sjónvarpsins 2009: Semi-final 2. Ríkisútvarpið (2009-01-17). Retrieved on 2009-01-17.
  13. Klier, Marcus (17 January 2009). "Iceland: another two acts qualified for the final". ESCToday. Retrieved 17 January 2009.
  14. van Tongeren, Mario (17 January 2009). "Results of Second Icelandic Semifinal". Oikotimes. Retrieved 17 January 2009.
  15. Klier, Marcus (24 January 2009). "Third semi final in Iceland". ESCToday. Retrieved 24 January 2009.
  16. van Tongeren, Mario (24 January 2009). "Live from Reykjavik, the third Icelandic semifinal". Oikotimes. Retrieved 24 January 2009.
  17. Söngvakeppni Sjónvarpsins 2009: Semi-final 3. Ríkisútvarpið (2009-01-24). Retrieved on 2009-01-24.
  18. van Tongeren, Mario (24 January 2009). "The results of the third Icelandic semifinal". Oikotimes. Retrieved 24 January 2009.
  19. Klier, Marcus (24 January 2009). "Iceland: another two acts for the national final". ESCToday. Retrieved 24 January 2009.
  20. Klier, Marcus (31 January 2009). "Third semi final in Iceland". ESCToday. Retrieved 31 January 2009.
  21. Söngvakeppni Sjónvarpsins 2009: Semi-final 4. Ríkisútvarpið (2009-01-31). Retrieved on 2009-01-31.
  22. Klier, Marcus (31 January 2009). "Iceland: The last two acts chosen for the final". ESCToday. Retrieved 31 January 2009.
  23. Calleja Bayliss, Marc (14 February 2009). "Söngvakeppni Sjónvarpsins - Jóhanna to Moscow". Oikotimes. Archived from the original on 18 February 2009. Retrieved 14 February 2009.
  24. Klier, Marcus (14 February 2009). "Iceland: Eurovision entrant chosen". ESCToday. Retrieved 14 February 2009.
  25. Halldorsson, Bjarni (16 February 2009). "Iceland: Is it true won by a landslide". ESCToday. Retrieved 16 February 2009.
  26. Viniker, Barry (24 March 2009). "UKeurovision Preview Party first artists". ESCToday. Retrieved 4 April 2009.
  27. Romkes, René (17 March 2009). "The Netherlands: April 18 - Eurovision Promo Concert". ESCToday. Retrieved 4 April 2009.
  28. Hondal, Victor (4 April 2009). "Iceland: Friðrik Ómar and Hera Björk join Yohanna". ESCToday. Retrieved 4 April 2009.
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