Norway in the Eurovision Song Contest 2019
Norway participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2019. The Norwegian broadcaster Norsk rikskringkasting (NRK) organised the national final Melodi Grand Prix 2019 in order to select the Norwegian entry for the 2019 contest in Tel Aviv, Israel.
| Eurovision Song Contest 2019 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Country |  | |||
| National selection | ||||
| Selection process | Melodi Grand Prix 2019 | |||
| Selection date(s) | 2 March 2019 | |||
| Selected entrant | KEiiNO | |||
| Selected song | "Spirit in the Sky" | |||
| Selected songwriter(s) |
| |||
| Finals performance | ||||
| Semi-final result | Qualified (7th, 210 points) | |||
| Final result | 6th, 331 points | |||
| Norway in the Eurovision Song Contest | ||||
| ||||
Background
Prior to the 2019 Contest, Norway had participated in the Eurovision Song Contest fifty-seven times since their first entry in 1960.[1] Norway had won the contest on three occasions: in 1985 with the song "La det swinge" performed by Bobbysocks!, in 1995 with the song "Nocturne" performed by Secret Garden and in 2009 with the song "Fairytale" performed by Alexander Rybak. Norway also had the two dubious distinctions of having finished last in the Eurovision final more than any other country and for having the most "nul points" (zero points) in the contest, the latter being a record the nation shared together with Austria. The country had finished last eleven times and had failed to score a point during four contests. Following the introduction of semi-finals in 2004, Norway has only failed to qualify on three occasions. In 2018, Norway was represented by Alexander Rybak for the second time, with the song "That's How You Write a Song". The country placed 15th in the final with 144 points.
The Norwegian national broadcaster, Norsk rikskringkasting (NRK), broadcasts the event within Norway and organises the selection process for the nation's entry. The broadcaster has traditionally organised the national final Melodi Grand Prix, which has selected the Norwegian entry for the Eurovision Song Contest in all but one of their participations.
Before Eurovision
Melodi Grand Prix 2019
Melodi Grand Prix 2019 was the 57th edition of the Norwegian national final Melodi Grand Prix, and it selected Norway's entry for the Eurovision Song Contest 2019.[2]
Competing entries
A submission period was opened by NRK on 31 January 2018 and lasted until 9 September 2018,[2] and more than 1000 entries were submitted.[3] The submitted songs were reduced to about 60 songs which were then presented to various listening groups. Then the songs were reduced down to 10 finalists published by NRK during a press conference on 25 January 2019. The final songs were released for sale and streaming the same day.[4]
Carina Dahl (2011 and 2013 entrant) and Tom Hugo (2013 and 2018 entrant) are participants in the competition for the third time, while Erlend Bratland (2015 entrant), Alexandra Rotan (2018 entrant), Hank (von Hell) (2013 entrant) and Kjetil Mørland (2015 entrant and winner) participate for the second time.
Project leader Stig Karlsen stated that he wanted a participatory field with "celebrities and artists that people know". At least two of the songs, respectively "We Try" by Chris Medina and "Mr. Unicorn" by D'Sound was asked internal to participate in the national final. Karlsen also stated that NRK would "do an even bigger job to bring forth some new talents as well".[5] NRK has on several occasions said that Melodi Grand Prix 2019 seems to be "the largest MGP final".[4]
Final
Ten songs competed during the final at the Oslo Spektrum on 2 March 2019, hosted by Heidi Ruud Ellingsen and Kåre Magnus Bergh.[6]
First voting round
In the first round, the top four entries were selected by a 50/50 combination of public votes and ten international juries to proceed to the second round, the Gold Final. The viewers and the juries each had a total of 580 points to award. Each jury group distributed their points as follows: 1–8, 10 and 12 points. The public vote was based on the percentage of votes each song achieved through SMS voting. For example, if a song gained 10% of the viewer vote, then that entry would be awarded 10% of 580 points rounded to the nearest integer: 58 points.[7]
- The Gold Final and Duel
In the Gold Final, the top two entries were selected exclusively by SMS voting to proceed to the final round, the Gold Duel. In the Gold Duel, the gold duelists takes with them the SMS votes from the Gold Final.[7][8] Both in the gold finals and the gold duel, the Norwegian viewers choose the winner alone.[7]
| Final – 2 March 2019 | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Draw | Artist | Song (English translation) | Composer(s) | Result | |||||
| 1 | Chris Medina | "We Try" | Chris Medina, Jason Gill, Tormod Løkling, Julimar Santos | Eliminated | |||||
| 2 | D'Sound | "Mr. Unicorn" | Kim Ofstad, Jonny Sjo, Mirjam Omdal, Magnus Martinsen, Tormod Martinsen | Gold Final | |||||
| 3 | Mørland | "En livredd mann" (A Terrified Man) | Kjetil Mørland | Eliminated | |||||
| 4 | Anna-Lisa Kumoji | "Holla" | Ashley Hicklin, Jeroen Swinnen, Maria Broberg | Gold Final | |||||
| 5[lower-alpha 1] | Erlend Bratland | "Sing for You" | Erlend Bratland, Arvid Solvang, Nils Egil Brandsæter | Eliminated | |||||
| 6 | Ingrid Berg Mehus | "Feel" | Ingrid Berg Mehus, Bjørnar Hopland, Anthony Modebe | Eliminated | |||||
| 7 | Hank von Hell | "Fake It" | Hans Erik Husby, Andreas Werling | Eliminated | |||||
| 8 | Carina Dahl | "Hold Me Down" | Ashley Hicklin, Jeroen Swinnen, Pele Loriano, Laurell Barker, Laura Groeseneken | Eliminated | |||||
| 9 | Adrian Jørgensen | "The Bubble" | Jonas McDonnell, Aleksander Walmann, Kjetil Mørland | Gold Final | |||||
| 10 | KEiiNO | "Spirit in the Sky" | Tom Hugo Hermansen, Fred-René Buljo, Alexandra Rotan, Henrik Tala, Alex Olsson, Rüdiger Schramm[lower-alpha 2] | Gold Final | |||||
- Due to technical difficulties in the performance, Erlend Bratland was allowed to perform again after all the performances.
- Rüdiger Schramm was later added as one of the composers of "Spirit in the Sky".
| Detailed International Jury Votes | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Draw | Song |  |
 |
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 |
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| 1 | "We Try" | ||||||||||
| 2 | "Mr. Unicorn" | X | X | X | X | ||||||
| 3 | "En livredd mann" | X | |||||||||
| 4 | "Holla" | X | |||||||||
| 5 | "Sing for You" | ||||||||||
| 6 | "Feel" | ||||||||||
| 7 | "Fake It" | ||||||||||
| 8 | "Hold Me Down" | ||||||||||
| 9 | "The Bubble" | X | X | X | |||||||
| 10 | "Spirit in the Sky" | X | |||||||||
| International Jury Spokespersons[9] | |||||||||||
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| Gold Final – 2 March 2019 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Draw | Artist | Song | Televote | Place | Result |
| 1 | D'Sound | "Mr. Unicorn" | 11,123 (7%) | 3 | Eliminated |
| 2 | Anna-Lisa Kumoji | "Holla" | 6,718 (4%) | 4 | Eliminated |
| 3 | Adrian Jørgensen | "The Bubble" | 55,794 (32%) | 2 | Gold Duel |
| 4 | KEiiNO | "Spirit in the Sky" | 98,328 (57%) | 1 | Gold Duel |
| Gold Duel – 2 March 2019 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Draw | Artist | Song | Televote | Place |
| 1 | Adrian Jørgensen | "The Bubble" | 162,608 (41%) | 2 |
| 2 | KEiiNO | "Spirit in the Sky" | 231,937 (59%) | 1 |
At Eurovision
According to Eurovision rules, all nations with the exceptions of the host country and the "Big 5" (France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom) are required to qualify from one of two semi-finals in order to compete for the final; the top ten countries from each semi-final progress to the final. The European Broadcasting Union (EBU) split up the competing countries into six different pots based on voting patterns from previous contests, with countries with favourable voting histories put into the same pot. On 28 January 2019, a special allocation draw was held which placed each country into one of the two semi-finals, as well as which half of the show they would perform in. Norway was placed into the second semi-final, to be held on 16 May 2019, and was scheduled to perform in the second half of the show.[10]
Once all the competing songs for the 2019 contest had been released, the running order for the semi-finals was decided by the shows' producers rather than through another draw, so that similar songs were not placed next to each other. Norway was set to perform in position 15, following the entry from Albania and preceding the entry from Netherlands.[11]
Semi-final
Norway performed fifteenth in the second semi-final, following the entry from Albania and preceding the entry from Netherlands. At the end of the show, Norway was announced as having finished in the top 10 and subsequently qualifying for the grand final. It was later revealed that Norway placed seventh in the semi-final, receiving a total of 210 points: 170 points from the televoting and 40 points from the juries.
Voting
Voting during the three shows involved each country awarding two sets of points from 1-8, 10 and 12: one from their professional jury and the other from televoting. Each nation's jury consisted of five music industry professionals who are citizens of the country they represent, with their names published before the contest to ensure transparency. This jury judged each entry based on: vocal capacity; the stage performance; the song's composition and originality; and the overall impression by the act. In addition, no member of a national jury was permitted to be related in any way to any of the competing acts in such a way that they cannot vote impartially and independently. The individual rankings of each jury member as well as the nation's televoting results were released shortly after the grand final.[12]
Points awarded to Norway
| Points awarded to Norway (Semi-final 2) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Televote | ||||
| 12 points | 10 points | 8 points | 7 points | 6 points |
| 5 points | 4 points | 3 points | 2 points | 1 point |
| Jury | ||||
| 12 points | 10 points | 8 points | 7 points | 6 points |
| 5 points | 4 points | 3 points | 2 points | 1 point |
| Points awarded to Norway (final) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Televote | ||||
| 12 points | 10 points | 8 points | 7 points | 6 points |
| 5 points | 4 points | 3 points | 2 points | 1 point |
| Jury | ||||
| 12 points | 10 points | 8 points | 7 points | 6 points |
| 5 points | 4 points | 3 points | 2 points | 1 point |
.svg.png){kind=small}
Points awarded by Norway
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Split voting results
The following five members comprised the Norwegian jury:[12]
- Knut Bjørnar Asphol – Chairperson – musician, music producer, songwriter
- Finn-Ulrik Berntsen – music producer
- Jenny Jenssen – artist
- Kamilla Wigestrand – artist, songwriter
- Maiken Kroken – musician, singer, vocal coach
| Split voting results from Norway (Semi-final 2) | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Draw | Country | Jury | Televote | |||||||
| F. Berntsen | K. Bjørnar Asphol | J. Jenssen | K. Wigestrand | M. Kroken | Average Rank | Points | Rank | Points | ||
| 01 |  | 9 | 17 | 7 | 17 | 16 | 14 | 16 | ||
| 02 | | 15 | 16 | 17 | 15 | 17 | 17 | 15 | ||
| 03 |  | 8 | 14 | 8 | 11 | 6 | 9 | 2 | 14 | |
| 04 | | 5 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 3 | 8 | 4 | 7 |
| 05 |  | 11 | 15 | 15 | 3 | 14 | 10 | 1 | 12 | |
| 06 |  | 14 | 11 | 11 | 7 | 9 | 11 | 13 | ||
| 07 | | 7 | 10 | 2 | 13 | 2 | 6 | 5 | 3 | 8 |
| 08 |  | 2 | 1 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 12 | 2 | 10 |
| 09 |  | 17 | 12 | 12 | 16 | 13 | 16 | 17 | ||
| 10 |  | 16 | 9 | 9 | 8 | 12 | 12 | 11 | ||
| 11 |  | 4 | 8 | 14 | 12 | 7 | 7 | 4 | 8 | 3 |
| 12 |  | 10 | 7 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 13 | 1 | 12 | |
| 13 |  | 6 | 6 | 10 | 10 | 11 | 8 | 3 | 7 | 4 |
| 14 |  | 13 | 13 | 16 | 9 | 10 | 15 | 9 | 2 | |
| 15 | | |||||||||
| 16 |  | 3 | 3 | 6 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 10 | 6 | 5 |
| 17 | | 12 | 4 | 1 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 7 | 10 | 1 |
| 18 |  | 1 | 5 | 4 | 6 | 8 | 5 | 6 | 5 | 6 |
| Split voting results from Norway (final) | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Draw | Country | Jury | Televote | |||||||
| F. Berntsen | K. Bjørnar Asphol | J. Jenssen | K. Wigestrand | M. Kroken | Average Rank | Points | Rank | Points | ||
| 01 | | 13 | 7 | 13 | 13 | 7 | 11 | 12 | ||
| 02 | | 23 | 16 | 23 | 19 | 23 | 22 | 18 | ||
| 03 |  | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 12 | 13 | |
| 04 |  | 20 | 10 | 21 | 15 | 17 | 17 | 24 | ||
| 05 | | 7 | 14 | 8 | 12 | 16 | 13 | 10 | 1 | |
| 06 | | 10 | 11 | 4 | 9 | 4 | 7 | 4 | 6 | 5 |
| 07 |  | 24 | 17 | 24 | 24 | 25 | 24 | 15 | ||
| 08 | | 12 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 10 | 17 | |
| 09 | | 3 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 1 | 3 | 8 | 1 | 12 |
| 10 |  | 16 | 19 | 22 | 14 | 21 | 20 | 16 | ||
| 11 |  | 6 | 12 | 14 | 20 | 5 | 10 | 1 | 19 | |
| 12 | | 4 | 2 | 10 | 4 | 12 | 4 | 7 | 3 | 8 |
| 13 |  | 25 | 25 | 25 | 22 | 24 | 25 | 25 | ||
| 14 | | 18 | 23 | 17 | 17 | 20 | 21 | 21 | ||
| 15 | | |||||||||
| 16 |  | 11 | 13 | 7 | 6 | 8 | 9 | 2 | 22 | |
| 17 |  | 15 | 9 | 11 | 25 | 22 | 15 | 2 | 10 | |
| 18 |  | 21 | 8 | 20 | 11 | 11 | 14 | 9 | 2 | |
| 19 |  | 22 | 18 | 18 | 16 | 15 | 19 | 23 | ||
| 20 | | 2 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 14 | 6 | 5 | 8 | 3 |
| 21 |  | 14 | 20 | 15 | 23 | 18 | 18 | 14 | ||
| 22 | | 8 | 21 | 16 | 1 | 13 | 8 | 3 | 4 | 7 |
| 23 |  | 17 | 22 | 12 | 18 | 10 | 16 | 20 | ||
| 24 | | 5 | 6 | 3 | 8 | 6 | 5 | 6 | 5 | 6 |
| 25 | .svg.png){kind=small} | 9 | 15 | 9 | 10 | 9 | 12 | 7 | 4 | |
| 26 | | 19 | 24 | 19 | 21 | 19 | 23 | 11 | ||
References
- "Norway Country Profile". EBU. Retrieved 9 November 2014.
- Granger, Anthony (31 January 2018). "Norway: Confirms Eurovision Song Contest 2019 Participation". Eurovoix. Retrieved 26 January 2019.
- Herbert, Emily (10 September 2018). "Norway: Over 1000 Entries Submitted for Melodi Grand Prix 2019". Eurovoix. Retrieved 26 January 2019.
- Hyttebakk, Jon Marius (28 September 2018). "Lover spektakulært MGP-show". NRK.no. Retrieved 29 October 2018.
- "NRK vil ha flere ukjente talenter i MGP". NTB/ABC Nyheter. 13 May 2018. Retrieved 18 July 2018.
- McCaig, Ewan (25 January 2019). "Norway: Artists And Songs For MGP 2019 Announced". Eurovoix. Retrieved 26 January 2019.
- Hansen, Tommy. "Slik blir avstemningen i årets MGP - escNorge". escnorge.net. Retrieved 21 February 2019.
- Overlegen MGP-seier til KEiiNO
- Medlemmene i den internasjonale juryen
- Jordan, Paul (28 January 2019). "Eurovision 2019: Which country takes part in which Semi-Final?". eurovision.tv. European Broadcasting Union. Retrieved 28 January 2019.
- "Exclusive: This is the Eurovision 2019 Semi-Final running order!". eurovision.tv. European Broadcasting Union. 2 April 2019. Retrieved 2 April 2019.
- Groot, Evert (30 April 2019). "Exclusive: They are the judges who will vote in Eurovision 2019!". Eurovision.tv. European Broadcasting Union. Retrieved 30 April 2019.