Norwegian public broadcaster NRK hosted the final of 'Melodi Grand Prix' tonight. Finalists from all regions of Norway that went head-to-head to battle for the country’s ticket to Eurovision 2020. After the public vote was announced, Ulrikke was crowned the winner of 'MGP 2020' and Norway's representative for Rotterdam with her song 'Attention'.

After 5 regional semi-finals, it was time for the final of Norway's Melodi Grand Prix (MGP). This year, NRK wanted to celebrate the 60-year anniversary of their first participation in the Eurovision Song Contest in 1960 through a special edition of MGP, and the semi-finals were brought back for the first time since 2014.

The final show

The final was moved from Oslo to Trondheim, where last year's MGP winners and Norway's entry in Eurovision 2019, KEiiNO, opened the show as the 10 competing acts were introduced to the audience. The presenters, Kåre Magnus Bergh (hosting MGP for the sixth time), Ingrid Gjessing Linhave and Ronny Brede Aase appeared on stage to guide the audience through the proceedings.

These were the finalists in their running order (qualifiers in bold):

Raylee - Wild

Didrik & Emil - Out Of Air

Magnus Bokn - Over The Sea

Akuvi - Som du er

Kristin Husøy - Pray For Me

Rein Alexander - One Last Time

Tone Damli - Hurts Sometimes

Sondrey - Take My Time

Ulrikke - Attention

Liza Vassilieva - I Am Gay

The Gold Final

The 10 artists were first narrowed down to 4: Raylee, Kristin Husøy, Ulrikke and Liza Vassilieva. Voting then re-opened allowing viewers a fresh chance to re-cast their votes for the next round. The 2 with the highest votes, Kristin Husøy and Ulrikke, sang again in the Gold Final, and the votes reset and online voting re-opened for the last time.

To build tension before the reveal, a representative from each region of Norway read the scores for their region. The spokespeople were KEiiNO singer Tom Hugo for the South, 2013 participant Margaret Berger for Central Norway, for the North Agnete, who represented Norway in Stockholm in 2016, Bjørn Johan Muri from the West and Wig Wam's Åge Sten Nilsen which represented Norway in 2005 for the East. In the end, Ulrikke got the highest number of votes and thus will represent Norway in Rotterdam.

About Ulrikke

Ulrikke Brandstorp (24) from Sarpsborg became well known to the Norwegian people when she came second in the TV show Stjernekamp (NRK) in 2018. Later, she was featured at Addresse: Tel Aviv (a show about Eurovision), charity show Håp i ei gryte and Idrettsgallaen, where she paid tribute to ski athletes Marit Bjørgen and Ole Einar Bjørndalen with an emotional performance.

Ulrikke is known to fans of MGP as she participated in 2017 and made it to the Gold Final with the song Places. Until March 2020, Ulrikke can be seen performing as Liesl in The Sound of Music at Folketeateret in Oslo.

Ulrikke Brandstorp won Norwegian Melodi Grand Prix Stijn Smulders

The song Attention was the pre-contest favourite and was written by former A1 member Christian Ingebrigtsen and Mørland, who represented Norway in 2015 with the song A Monster Like Me alongside Debrah Scarlett.

Norway in the Eurovision Song Contest

Norway made its debut in the Eurovision Song Contest in 1960. The country has finished last more times than any other, however, they've also won the contest three times. Norway's most recent win was in 2009 when Alexander Rybak lead by a landslide, receiving 387 points with Fairytale. Last year, KEiiNO was crowned the winner of MGP 2019 and Norway's representative in Tel Aviv with the song 'Spirit In The Sky'. They came 6th in the Grand Final.

Ulrikke will perform in the second half of the first Semi-Final of the Eurovision Song Contest 2020 on Tuesday 12 May.

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Posted 08 February 2020 at 21:25 CET

Liza Vassilieva qualifies for Norway's Melodi Grand Prix final

Melodi Grand Prix, Norway's national selection for Eurovision 2020 NRK

The 5th regional semi-final of Norway's ‘Melodi Grand Prix’ 2020 took place with 4 acts from Northern Norway. After the duels were over, Liza Vassilieva came out on top with the song 'I Am Gay'. She will continue to the final of Melodi Grand Prix 2020 in Trondheim on Saturday 15 February.

Melodi Grand Prix held its 5th regional semi-final, this time from Northern Norway. The Norwegian public, voting through Norwegian public broadcaster NRK's website, determined which of the following artists got a spot in the final:

Duel 1

Elin & The Woods - We Are As One (winner)

Jenny Jenssen - Mr. Hello

Duel 2

Liza Vassilieva - I Am Gay (winner)

Kevin Boine - Stem på mæ

“Gold Duel”

Liza Vassilieva - I Am Gay (winner)

Elin & The Woods - We Are As One

By winning the final duel of the evening, the “Gold Duel”, Liza earned a spot in the final in Trondheim on Saturday 15 February.

Liza Vassilieva performing 'I Am Gay' at Melodi Grand Prix, Norway's national selection for Eurovision 2020 NRK

Tune in on Saturday 15 February for the final of Norway's Melodi Grand Prix!

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Posted 03 February 2020 at 09:25 CET

Northern Norway semi-finalists revealed

MGP Semi-Final - Northern Norway NRK

The fifth and final 'Melodi Grand Prix' 2020 semi-final will air this Saturday 8 February. There, 4 finalists from Northern Norway will take the stage in hopes of securing their spot in the Grand Finale on 15 February. Pre-qualified artist Tone Damli will also take the stage to showcase her song.

The 4 new acts in contention will duel each other in this weekend's competition. The act that wins the Gold Duel will qualify for the Melodi Grand Prix 2020 Grand Finale and is thus one step closer to representing Norway at the Eurovision Song Contest 2020. The artists from Northern Norway are:

Elin & The Woods - We Are As One

Lyrics and Melody: Robin Lynch, Elin Koven, Ylva Persson and Linda Persson

Elin & The Woods NRK

Sámi singer-songwriter Elin Kåven (40) and songwriter and music producer Robin Mortensen Lynch started collaborating in 2015. Elin is from Karasjok in the Sámi region, while Robin grew up in Sandnessjøen and now lives in Sweden. Their musical project is about tracing our roots. They call their music "indigenous electronic pop", mixing elements of electronic music with heavy rhythms and joik.

Elin operates in what she calls the genre of Arctic folk-pop where she sings in Sámi and joiks. She has released 3 solo albums on a German record label, praised by critics. She has toured in 12 countries over the last 10 years. In 2018, she received the Sámi Music Awards award "Songwriter of the Year".

Robin is a renowned musician, songwriter and music producer who has written and produced hit songs for Pink, Jessie J and Cher, among others. In Norway, he has worked with artists such as Margaret Berger, Ida Maria and Karin Park.

Liza Vassilieva - I Am Gay

Lyrics and Melody: Audun Agnar Guldbrandsen, Stian Nyhammer Olsen and Myrtoula Røe og Liza Vassilieva

Liza Vassilieva NRK

Liza Vassilieva (30) was born in Murmansk, Russia, and moved to Norway when she was 3 years old. She has since lived in Kirkenes, except for 5 years when she studied in Trondheim. After graduating, she got a job in the Barents Secretariat where she works as an advisor for youth projects.

Music and songwriting, art and drawing have been a passion for Liza throughout her life. She was introduced to pop music by watching music videos on MTV after school. Eventually, she discovered the Magic Music Maker software and started composing her own songs, which she participated with at the youth talent show UKM.

As a 19-year-old, she moved to Trondheim where she earned a master's degree in European studies. During her time there, she became a part of the local songwriting community. Her first single, Run Run Girl was released on Trondheim Calling's compilation album. Liza has participated in the songwriting camp Song: Expo every single year since 2013. In 2017, one of the songs she co-wrote was picked up by a record label in South Korea and later released by the K-pop girl group TWICE, with the title Eye Eye Eyes. In 2018, she released the single Third Wheel.

Liza has also contributed to a couple of songs at Norwegian MGPjr.

Jenny Jenssen - Mr. Hello

Lyrics and Melody: Mats Larsson, Jørgen Andson and Jenny Jenssen

Jenny Jenssen NRK

Jenny Jenssen (55) was raised in Bjerkvik, outside Narvik in Nordland county. She has released a total of 16 albums throughout her career. Her first appearance on stage was as a 3-year-old. She won talent contests in the 1970s and appeared on national television for the first time in 1978.

Jenny Jenssen has a long and varied music career and is known for her connection with her audiences.

She has been part of Eurovision legend Elisabeth Andreassen's Dream Choir, toured and collaborated with Septimus and recorded duets with several Norwegian artists. Jenny has sold over 300,000 albums, sold to gold and double platinum. She has also been a host on both TV and radio. In 2007, she participated in the Melodi Grand Prix with the song Vil du ha svar. Jenny has also participated in the TV shows Maestro, Stjernekamp and Norwegian version of Dancing with the Stars.

Kevin Boine - Stem på mæ

Lyrics and Melody: Henning Olerud and Stanley Ferdinandez

Kevin Boine NRK

Kevin Boine (26) is from Tana in Finnmark. With 70 million streams, Kevin has become one of Norway's largest Norwegian-language artists, even if he’s still under the radar for many. Kevin has been the headliner at festivals around Scandinavia and is one of the few artists that cross national borders in his genre. Kevin made it to platinum in 2017, even without being signed by a record label. After that, he signed with Universal Music. In 2019, his popularity exploded in Sweden.

As Finnmark's self-proclaimed party king, he will do everything to make you get those dance moves going. He says he also has a serious message behind his MGP participation. Kevin dislikes the so-called Norwegian “Jantelov” (law of jante), a phenomenon where people tell you that you can’t do what you want to do, or that you’re not good or special enough. With Stem på mæ (Vote for Me), Kevin wants to encourage everyone to follow their dreams no matter how much adversity they encounter, and he wants to tell people to believe in themselves and enjoy successes, whichever way they choose to go.

Tune in to the Northern Norway semi-final on Saturday 8 February!

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Posted 01 February 2020 at 22:11 CET

The fourth regional semi-final of Norway's ‘Melodi Grand Prix’ 2020 took place with 4 acts from Western Norway performing. After the duel competitions were completed, the winner was Magnus Bokn with the song 'Over The Sea', who gets the ticket for the final in Trondheim on 15 February.

Melodi Grand Prix held its fourth regional semi-final, this time with artists from Western Norway. The Norwegian public, voting through the broadcaster’s website, nrk.no, determined which of the following artists got a spot in the final:

Duel 1

Magnus Bokn - Over The Sea (winner)

Oda Loves You - Love Who We Love

Duel 2

Nordic Tenors - In A Special Place (winner)

Hege Bjerk - Pang

“Gold Duel”

Magnus Bokn - Over The Sea (winner)

Nordic Tenors - In A Special Place

By winning the final duel of the evening, the “Gold Duel”, Magnus Bokn earned a spot in the final in Trondheim on Saturday 15 February.

Magnus Bokn goes to the final in Norway NRK

The interval act consisted of one of the 5 songs pre-qualified for the final, Attention, performed by Ulrikke.

MGP 2020 Participant NRK

Stay tuned next week for Norway's next semi-final on 8 February!

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Posted 27 January 2020 at 15:00 CET

Western Norway semi-finalists revealed!

Participant Melodi Grand Prix semi-final 4 Western Norway NRK

Four new artists are ready for Norwegian Melodi Grand Prix! The semi-final for Western Norway will air this on Saturday 1 February where Hege Bjerk, Magnus Bokn, Oda Loves You and Nordic Tenors will take the stage in the hopes of securing a place in the next round.

Pre-qualified candidate Ulrikke will perform her song Attention on stage this Saturday as well. Attention will be released on Friday 31 January.

The 4 acts in contention this Saturday will duel each other in the competition. The act that wins the "Gold Duel" will qualify for the Melodi Grand Prix 2020 final on 15 February, and thus has a shot at representing Norway at the Eurovision Song Contest 2020. They are:

Hege Bjerk - Pang

Lyrics and Melody: Martin Bjerkreim, Trygve Stakkeland and Hege Bjerkreim.

Participant Melodi Grand Prix semi-final 4 Western Norway NRK

Hege Bjerkreim (28) creates dream-like, honest and soulful pop music in Jæren. Her songs are wrapped in a colourful blanket of synthesizers, guitars, string instruments and beats. Her texts come from the heart and are about body pressure, anxiety, the grief of what is lost in life as well as the joy of what lies ahead of us.

Hege is educated at The Norwegian College of Musical History in Oslo and the Complete Vocal Institute in Copenhagen. Her debut album 'Alt med drømme om' was released in 2016, receiving praise from among others NRK Rogaland and NRK P1 radio. They claimed Hege Bjerk is an artist with good lyrics and a lot of passion.

Before Christmas of 2019, she released a cover of her favourite Christmas song, 'Holy Night'. She is now completing her second album, produced by Ruben Dalen, Martin Bjerkreim, Espen Tappel and Ole Børud.

The song she will be performing at Melodi Grand Prix is about how an eating disorder ultimately controls your life. The text and melody are created by Hege. The song is produced together with her husband, Martin Bjerkreim, and his friend Trygve Stakkeland.

Magnus Bokn - Over The Sea

Lyrics and Melody: Alexander Rybak, Joakim With Steen and Magnus Bokn.

Participant Melodi Grand Prix semi-final 4 Western Norway NRK

Magnus Bokn (24) had already as a 13-year-old started his musical career. In his hometown of Stavanger, he became well known as a vocalist in the band Royal Oil, and later in the band Adopting Peter.

In the years that followed, Magnus attracted a larger audience through his participation in Norwegian Idol in 2011 and 2013. This led to nationwide touring together with artists such as Tommy Fredvang, Izabell and the Stavangerkameratene.

In 2017, he joined The Voice where he impressed through several rounds. His audition song Girls Just Want To Have Fun achieved over 3,500,000 streams on Spotify and Youtube. The recording of this was also awarded 19th place in the 'Olympics of Singing'.

Magnus studies popular music and is now focusing on a career as a singer-songwriter. In MGP, he has teamed up with Eurovision legend Alexander Rybak and songwriter/producer JOWST who is also very well-known for the Eurovision audience.

Oda Loves You - Love Who We Love

Lyrics and Melody: Magnus Bertelsen and Oda Evjen Gjøvåg.

Participant Melodi Grand Prix semi-final 4 Western Norway NRK

If you wandered the streets of downtown Bergen in the mid-1990s, you may have heard the voice of Oda Evjen Gjøvåg (31). She loved to stand on the doorstep of her home to sing and entertain those passing by, hoping to earn an extra penny. This way, she quickly learned that the road to becoming an artist and songwriter would be long. She devoted much of her childhood and teenage years to attend cultural schools, talent competitions, songwriting, dance training and vocal training.

At the age of 19, she moved to the pop metropolis of Los Angeles. She juggled her studied, a job as an Au Pair and vocalist gigs. Over time, she formed a solid base in the big city. She returned to Norway after 7 years and brought back with her a copywriting education and a large amount of lyrics.

Since then, Oda has been writing songs for artists like Marcus and Martinus and Alan Walker, which have been streamed over 120 million times around the world. She has taken the artist name “Oda Loves You”. She says that choice reflects her desire to spread love through music.

Nordic Tenors - In A Special Place

Lyrics and Melody: Einar Kristiansen Five and Jan-Tore Saltnes.

Participant Melodi Grand Prix semi-final 4 Western Norway NRK

Nordic Tenors is a Norwegian vocal group that was established in 2003 in Bergen. The members are Sveinung Hølmebakk (Karmøy), Jan-Tore Saltnes (Holmestrand) and Roald Haarr (Vigrestad, Jæren). The idea behind Nordic Tenors was to create a musical group that combines classical music and opera, with more pop musical expressions and humour.

In 2005, Nordic Tenors premiered with their first full-night performance at the Logen Theatre in Bergen, and the following year they won the award "best newcomer" at Komprisen together with pianist Sjur Hjeltnes. Many will remember Nordic Tenors as singing toastmasters for His Majesty King Harald's 70th birthday as well as their performance at the opening of the new Opera House in Oslo in 2008. In 2010, they were again nominated for an award at Komiprisen, this time for the song Joddlermelodi.

In recent years, the tenor trio has focused more on external musical organizers and also newly written music by composers such as Stefan Nilson and Henning Sommero. Although the humour element is still an important part of the concerts, it no longer takes up as much space as before. In terms of genres, the tenors tend to include opera, musicals, crossovers, vocal pops, 1960s music and yodelling at their concerts.

From 2003 on, the group has performed over 900 concerts and performances at private parties in Norway, Sweden, Denmark and the United States. The Christmas concert tour, Christmas with the Nordic Tenors, has become one of the most successful Christmas concert tours in Norway. The Nordic Tenors has released eight albums and one DVD in addition to various singles.

Stay tuned this Saturday to see which one of these artists go through!

Kristin Husøy to the MGP final in Norway

Kristin Husøy, winner of the 3rd semi-final in Norway NRK

The third regional semi-final of Norway's ‘Melodi Grand Prix’ 2020 took place tonight. In the show, 4 acts from Central Norway competed in duels with the aim to qualify for the Norwegian final on 15 February. After all duels were completed, the winner was Kristin Husøy who gets a ticket for the final in Trondheim with the song 'Pray For Me'.

Norway’s national selection held its third regional semi-final, this time travelling to Mid-Norway. The 4 acts took to the stage to battle in 3 duels for a place in the final. Public voting through the broadcaster’s website, nrk.no, determined which of the following artists got a spot in the final:

Duel 1

Alexandru - Pink Jacket

Sie Gubba - Kære Du (winner)

Duel 2

Thomas Løseth - Vertigo

Kristin Husøy - Pray For Me (winner)

“Gold Duel”

Sie Gubba - Kære Du

Kristin Husøy - Pray For Me (winner)

By winning the final duel of the evening, the “Gold Duel”, Kristin Husøy earned a spot in the final in Trondheim on Saturday 15 February. The interval act consisted of one of the 5 songs pre-qualified for the final, Som Du Er, performed by Akuvi.

Akuvi one of the finalists of Norway's MGP 2020 NRK

On Monday 27 January, the 4 participants in semi-final 4 of the Norwegian Melodi Grand Prix 2020, the 'Western Norway' semi-final, will be announced and their songs revealed.

The 'Western Norway' semi-final will take place on Saturday 1 February at 19:50 CET.

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Posted 20 January 2020 at 17:14 CET

Norway presents the 4 acts for this Saturday's MGP semi-final

Participant Melodi Grand Prix semi-final 3 Central Norway NRK

The 4 artists who will be competing in the semi-final for Central Norway on Saturday 25 January are Alexandru, Kristin Husøy, SIE GUBBA and Thomas Løseth. Also performing: pre-qualified artist Akuvi, and he will sing in Norwegian.

Just like in semi-final 1 of Norway's Melodi Grand Prix 2020 there will be 2 duels with 2 artists battling against each other. From each duel, the winner will go on to the so-called "Gold Duel". The act that wins the "Gold Duel" will qualify for the Melodi Grand Prix 2020 final on 15 February, and thus has a shot at representing Norway at the Eurovision Song Contest 2020.

Alexandru - Pink Jacket

Lyrics and Music: Ruben Markussen

Participant Melodi Grand Prix semi-final 3 Central Norway NRK

Alexandru Gros Grindvoll (19) from Rennebu was previously one of the members of the boy band Suite 16. The group released the song Who I Wanna Be which went double platinum. They participated in MGP in 2016 where they came in third with the song Anna Lee.

Now Alexandru is pursuing a career as a solo artist. Since he was twelve years old, he has interpreted famous songs on YouTube, and several of his videos have 100,000 views.

In addition to singing, Alexandru plays the guitar and the drums. Despite his young age, he has experience from many areas of the music industry. He has already appeared on a large Chinese TV show with millions of viewers.

Alexandru says his Spotify playlists are full of punk and death metal, and to calm down in the evening he prefers to put on one of the albums of the band Bring Me The Horizon. Although Alexandru has learned the technique of "growling", he himself will not create death metal music. Going forward, he wants to show people more of his identity in the rock genre, still with a hint of today's pop sound.

Kristin Husøy - Pray For Me

Lyrics and Music: Neil Hollyn and Kristin Husøy

Participant Melodi Grand Prix semi-final 3 Central Norway NRK

Kristin Husøy (18) grew up in Trondheim where she still lives. She has been playing the piano since first grade and plays at least 30 minutes every single day. Kristin chose music as an elective subject in junior high and went on to study music in high school. She took a year off to participate in The Voice on TV2. Now she’s back in school.

Kristin says she loves soul, jazz and R&B, especially from the second half of the 20th century. She is particularly inspired by musicians such as Amy Winehouse, Stevie Wonder, Lauryn Hill and Ella Fitzgerald.

When Kristin heard Pray For Me for the first time, she immediately thought it was a great song and absolutely her style, a sort of modern pop music mixed with gospel soul.

Since then, she collaborated with Neil Hollyn on the lyrics and went to the Netherlands for the recording. She says the collaboration has been incredibly inspiring and has given her new experiences and new friends.

SIE GUBBA - Kjære du

Lyrics and music: Petter Øien and Magne Almås

Participant Melodi Grand Prix semi-final 3 Central Norway NRK

The band SIE GUBBA celebrates its 25th anniversary in 2020. They celebrate by going on a nationwide anniversary tour, and not least by being back in Melodi Grand Prix. These country rockers from Central Norway have been among the country's busiest bands for 25 years. With their combination of folk lyrics, fiddle and singalong friendly texts, they have played in almost every town and city across Norway. They have released 12 albums and several singles and held first place on the VG hit list with three different albums. In 2006, the album Sie Gubba became the band's big breakthrough, in part because of the song Sånn e livet which was on the Norwegian hit lists for many weeks.

SIE GUBBA participated in MGP in 2011 where they made it to the final with the song Alt du vil ha.

The band members today are Magne Almås, Tommy Folstadli, Petter Øien, Tore Dalsaune, Morten Hølås and Reidulf Wormdal.

Thomas Løseth - Vertigo

Lyrics and music: Idar Sørensen. Vocal: Erika Norwich

Participant Melodi Grand Prix semi-final 3 Central Norway NRK

Thomas Løseth (33) comes from Fannrem in Orkdal. He won The Voice on TV2 in 2017 and has since been praised for his silky voice and his stage presence. The Norwegian artist Lene Marlin was his mentor during the TV show.

Thomas has dedicated his life to music at a young age. And as he himself puts it: "the hard, long way". He has been a vocalist in several bands, had countless playing jobs, been a studio musician and now works as a solo artist.

He is currently working on his debut album, and several singles are planned to be released this year.

And the one pre-qualified artist performing Saturday:

Akuvi - Som du er

Lyrics and melody: Beatrice Akuvi Kumordzie, Andreas Stone, Costa Leon and Amin Zana

The song will be released on 24 January.

Beatrice Akuvi Hosen Kumordzie (25) is a singer-songwriter artist and entertainer with Norwegian-Ghanaian background. She grew up in Asker outside Oslo in a home filled with music. Sister Anna-Lisa participated in the Melodi Grand Prix in 2019 where she made it to the gold final. The two sisters joined their father on music assignments early on, at events where traditional African music was at the centre.

Akuvi describes her lyrics as pages taken from her diary, which she then adds a melody to. She found her sound on a four-year journey in South Africa, where she attended peace, conflict and religion studies. On her musical journey, she picked up elements from traditional South African gospel, West African afro-pop and American hip hop and R&B. The result is what she calls "reggae-infused neo-soul."

In 2019 Akuvi participated in the TV show Beat for Beat, performed at festivals and released two singles.

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Posted 18 January 2020 at 21:39 CET

Norway: Rein Alexander to the MGP Final!

Rein Alexander NRK

Tonight, it was time for the second regional semi-final of Norway's ‘Melodi Grand Prix’ 2020. During the show, four acts from the East of Norway fought in duels with the goal to qualify for the Norwegian final. The winner of all duels was Rein Alexander who earned a spot the final with the song 'One Last Time'.

Norway’s national selection for the Eurovision Song Contest, Melodi Grand Prix, held its second regional semi-final, this time with artists from the East of Norway. They took to the stage to battle in three duels for a place in the final. Public voting through the broadcaster’s website, nrk.no, determined which of the following artists got a spot in the final:

Duel 1

Tore Petterson - Start Of Something New

Kim & Maria - Fool For Love (winner)

Duel 2

Jæger - How About Mars

Rein Alexander - One Last Time (winner)

“Gold Duel”

Kim & Maria - Fool For Love

Rein Alexander - One Last Time (winner)

Participants Melodi Grand Prix semi-final 2 East Norway NRK

As the winner of the so-called “Gold Duel”, Rein Alexander secured the ticket for the final in Trondheim on Saturday 15 February. The interval act consisted of another of the 5 songs pre-qualified for the final, Out Of Air, performed by Didrik and Emil.

On Monday 20 January, the 4 competing acts in semi-final 3 of the Norwegian Melodi Grand Prix, the 'Central Norway' semi-final, will be announced and their songs will be revealed. The third semi-final will take place on Saturday 25 January at 19:50 CET.

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Posted 13 January 2020 at 17:33 CET

New group of 4 semi-finalists for Norway's national selection announced!

Participants Melodi Grand Prix semi-final 2 east Norway NRK

Semi-final 2 of Norway's Melodi Grand Prix 2020 will feature Tore Petterson, JÆGER, Rein Alexander and Kim Wigaard & Maria Mohn. The 4 artists will compete to conquer a spot in the national selection's final on 15 February 2020.

Just like in semi-final 1 of Norway's Melodi Grand Prix 2020 there will be 2 duels with 2 artists battling against each other. From each duel, the winner will go on to the so-called "Gold Duel". The act that wins the "Gold Duel" will qualify for the Melodi Grand Prix 2020 final on 15 February, and thus has a shot at representing Norway at the Eurovision Song Contest 2020.

Tore Petterson - Start of Something New

Lyrics and melody: Tore Petterson and Knut Bjørnar Asphol

Tore Petterson (40) was born in Drammen, a city not far from Oslo. He is known from the NRK series Sofa and has been a judge in the Norwegian version of Dancing With The Stars on Norwegian TV2. He is also a comedian in the humour duo Adam and Tore with his friend Adam Schjølberg.

In this year’s MGP, he will participate with the song The Start of Something New. It is written and produced with Knut Bjørnar Asphol, who among other things has produced Alexander Rybak's Eurovision 2018 track That’s How You Write a Song.

Participants Melodi Grand Prix semi-final 2 east Norway NRK

Tore has played with jazz legend Ola Calmeyer for 8 years, and more recently with his own band Tore Petterson Trio with pianist Torbjørn Kvamme and Frøydis Grorud on saxophone and flute.

JÆGER - How About Mars

Lyrics and melody: Roel Rats, Synne Vorkinn, Chris Wortley and Sindre T. Jenssen

Anna Jæger (26) is from Oslo and Asker, but spent her childhood years in Canada and the USA with her diplomate family. JÆGER has been a musician since she was a kid, and as an adult, she has found her way into "electro-pop rock". JÆGER combines inspiration from her upbringing in North America with experiences from Norway. Some of the artists who inspire her most are Tove Lo, Elle King, Billie Eilish, Robyn and Halsey.

As a teenager, she played in rock bands in the United States and performed in small venues and nightclubs in Virginia and Washington DC and various nightclubs in Oslo, Norway.

Participants Melodi Grand Prix semi-final 2 east Norway NRK

The "School of Rock" became very influential in JÆGER’s coming-of-age. It is a place where young talents learn to play rock music in bands and perform on a variety of venues.

JÆGER participated in The Voice on TV2 in 2017 where a-ha legend Morten Harket was her mentor.

Kim Wigaard & Maria Mohn - Fool For Love

Lyrics and music: Torbjørn Raae, Arve Furset, Kim Wigaard Johansen and Maria Mohn

Kim Wigaard (31) from Oslo and Maria Mohn (36) from Fredrikstad are both vocal coaches in addition to their own careers as artists.

Kim has worked for many years in Norway and abroad, and has participated in musicals, operas and cabarets. He has sung in the Norwegian Opera and Ballet, worked in New York and performed a solo concert at a sold-out Oslo Concert Hall. He studied at the Norwegian Academy of Music, the Oslo Academy of the Arts and the Manhattan School of Music in New York. Kim was a semi-finalist in Norwegian Idol, participated in the Norwegian The Voice and was most recently a judge in the Norwegian TV show All Together Now.

Participants Melodi Grand Prix semi-final 2 east Norway NRK

Maria graduated from the Norwegian Academy of Music and works as a singer, songwriter, pianist, comedian and actor. She sang in the group PUST who was nominated for a Spellemann (Norwegian Grammy), in the Norwegian Soloist Choir. She has been a vocalist in various bands and orchestras. Maria released her debut album Bli med meg in September 2010. The album received great reviews and was sold-out after just over a week. Her second album was released in 2014 and also charted.

Rein Alexander - One Last Time

Lyrics and melody: Erik Småland, Kristoffer Tømmerbakke and Rein Alexander.

Music was an important part of Rein Alexander Hauge Korshman’s (48) upbringing. He sang in the legendary Norwegian boys' choir Sølvguttene and travelled around Norway and worldwide. Today he is a trained and self-taught, experienced musician in many genres.

Rein Alexander has lived in Norway, the United States, Iceland, London, Italy and Sweden, both as a student and as a professional. He has received awards at schools such as the Royal Academy of Music and The Reykjavik Academy of Singing and Vocal Arts. In 2003, the Norwegian people voted him all the way to victory in the NRK TV show Kjempesjansen.

Participants Melodi Grand Prix semi-final 2 east Norway NRK

Rein Alexander has performed countless concerts for large audiences. He has also played roles such as Jean Valjean in Les Miserables, Anatoly in Chess, Terje Vigen, Caston in Beauty and the Beast, Shere Kahn in The Jungle Book and Anton Fugger in Which Witch.

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Posted 11 January 2020 at 21:36 CET

Raylee joins the final of Melodi Grand Prix 2020 in Norway

Raylee wins first semi-final of Norwegian MGP NRK

Before we know who will represent Norway at the Eurovision Song Contest 2020 on Saturday 15 February, there will be 5 regional semi-finals of ‘Melodi Grand Prix’. During the first semi-final, 4 artists from the South of Norway gave their all to qualify for the Norwegian final, but the ultimate winner was Raylee who earned a place in the final with her song 'Wild'.

Norway’s national selection for the Eurovision Song Contest, Melodi Grand Prix, 4 artists took to the stage to battle in 3 duels for a place in the final. Public voting through the broadcaster’s website, nrk.no, decided which of the following artists got a spot in the final:

Duel 1

Geirmund - Come Alive

Lisa Børud - Talking About Us (winner)

Duel 2

Kim Rysstad - Rainbow

Raylee - Wild (winner)

“Gold Duel”

Lisa Børud - Talking About Us

Raylee - Wild (winner)

As the winner of the so-called “Gold Duel”, Raylee gets the ticket for the final in Trondheim on Saturday 15 February. The interval act consisted of one of the 5 songs pre-qualified for the final, Take My Time, performed by Sondrey.

On Monday 13 January, the 4 competing acts in semi-final 2 of the Norwegian Melodi Grand Prix, the "East Norway" semi-final, will be announced and their songs will be revealed. The second semi-final will take place on Saturday 18 February 19:50 CET.

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Posted 06 January 2020 at 12:48 CET

First artists for Norway's Melodi Grand Prix 2020 announced

Melodi Grand Prix 2020 Pre-qualified Finalists NRK

NRK has revealed the first 9 of the 25 artists participating in Melodi Grand Prix 2020. At a press conference at NRK’s headquarters in Oslo, the 3 MGP hosts presented the 5 artists who have pre-qualified for the Grand Final as well as the other 4 artists from Southern Norway who will compete in the first semi-final on January 11.

The 9 Melodi Grand Prix 2020 artists were announced along with their songs by MGP hosts Kåre Magnus Bergh, Ingrid Gjessing Linhave and Ronny Brede Aase. The 5 pre-qualified finalists include:

Didrik & Emil - Out Of Air

The Solli-Tangen brothers grew up outside Porsgrunn in Telemark. They have had great success with concerts and summer shows, and in recent years they have worked together on the performance En broderlig aften.

Didrik (32) is educated as a classical singer from the Barratt Due Music Conservatory, where he graduated in 2010. That same year he made his national breakthrough when he won the Melodi Grand Prix with the song My Heart Is Yours and represented Norway when the Eurovision Song Contest was held in Norway. Following his participation in Eurovision, he has performed both at home and abroad and sung a duet with José Carreras.

As a 19-year-old, Emil (now 28) was admitted to the bachelor's program for performing singers at the Barratt-Due Music Conservatory in Oslo. Already 2 years later he was admitted to the State Opera Academy in Oslo, as one of the youngest to ever be admitted. In 2013 he participated in Melodi Grand Prix with the metal band Gromth. He has since been featured in several TV shows, held concerts and performed in opera roles across the country.

Ulrikke Brandstorp - Attention

Ulrikke Brandstorp (24) from Sarpsborg became well known to the Norwegian people when she came second in the TV show Stjernekamp (NRK) in 2018. Later, she has been featured at Addresse: Tel Aviv (a show about Eurovision), the charity show Håp i ei gryte and Idrettsgallaen where she paid tribute to ski athletes Marit Bjørgen and Ole Einar Bjørndalen with an emotional performance. Ulrikke is known to many fans of Melodi Grand Prix. She participated in 2017 and made it to the gold final with the song Places. Throughout the fall of 2019 and until March 2020, Ulrikke can be seen performing at Folketeateret in Oslo. She plays Liesl who is one of the lead roles in Sound of Music.

MGP 2020 Participant NRK

Akuvi - Som du er

Beatrice Akuvi Hosen Kumordzie (25) is a singer-songwriter artist and entertainer with Norwegian-Ghanaian background. She grew up in Asker outside Oslo in a home filled with music. Sister Anna-Lisa participated in the Melodi Grand Prix in 2019 where she made it to the gold final. The 2 sisters joined their father on music assignments early on, at events where traditional African music was at the centre. Akuvi describes her lyrics as pages taken from her diary, which she then adds a melody to. She found her sound on a 4-year journey in South Africa, where she attended peace, conflict and religion studies. On her musical journey, she picked up elements from traditional South African gospel, West African afro-pop and American hip hop and R&B. The result is what she calls "reggae-infused neo-soul."

Sondrey - Take My Time

R&B and soul artist Sondrey, or Sondre Mulongo Nystrøm, (25) is participating in MGP for the first time. In 2016 he got a record contract with a record label after participating in the TV show The Stream on TV 2. In 2019 he came in third place in the TV show Stjernekamp (NRK). His most-streamed song is Fordi jeg elsker deg. Sondrey grew up in Øyer near Lillehammer. He is a 100- and 200-meter sprinter and has participated in several national championships.

MGP 2020 Participant NRK

Tone Damli - Hurts Sometimes

Tone Damli (31) entered the Norwegian music scene when she, as a 16-year-old, participated in Norwegian Idol in 2005. Later that year she released her debut album Bliss, which went gold. She has released 5 albums and achieved platinum several times. Tone participated in Melodi Grand Prix with the song Butterflies in 2009. She came second in the final, beaten only by Alexander Rybak who won with Fairytale. Tone's song sold to platinum and was on the Norwegian hit chart for 17 weeks. In 2013, she participated in the Swedish Melodifestivalen with Erik Segerstedt. They performed the song Hello Goodbye.

MGP 2020 Participant NRK

The 4 remaining hopefuls who will go to battle in the first semi-final for Southern Norway are:

Kim Rysstad - Rainbow

Kim Rysstad (38) is from Valle in Setesdal and is an artist deeply rooted in Norwegian folk music traditions. In the fall and winter of 2019, he became known to a large audience through his participation in the Norwegian TV show Stjernekamp (NRK) where he made it to the final. Kim participated in Melodi Grand Prix 2012 with the song Så vidunderleg. He collaborated with the London Philharmonic Orchestra to create the Christmas album Snøen laver ned.

Raylee - Wild

Raylee Charlotte Kristiansen (22) from Tromøy in Arendal released her first record as an 11-year-old. Her song Hvem eier has been streamed over 1.2 million times on YouTube. Raylee is both a singer and a dancer. In 2008, she starred in the musical Annie. As an adult, Raylee has released several songs. Her first self-written song in English, Love Me, came out in 2017. Raylee participated in Stjernekamp at NRK in 2014, and in 2015 she participated in the Melodi Grand Prix with the song Louder. In 2016 she came third at the Norwegian version of Dancing With The Stars.

Geirmund - Come Alive

Geirmund Hansen (31) is from Stavanger, but moved to Kristiansand in 2013. He is educated at the University of Agder at the Department of Rhythmic Music. Geirmund works both as a songwriter and an artist, and as a vocal educator at KV Vennesla and at the University of Agder. His first TV performance was during the opening of the Kilden Concert Hall in Kristiansand where he performed his own song, Theatre with Kristiansand Symphony Orchestra. The breakthrough as an artist came when he participated in Norwegian The Voice in 2013.

Lisa Børud - Talking About U

Lisa Børud recorded her first album as a 5-year-old and from then on a significant child star with over 120,000 albums sold. She grew up in the highly musical Børud family, and together they toured all over Norway. Over the course of 12 years, she released 8 albums, 2 DVDs and 2 compilation albums. After completing the hip hop dance education at the Bårdar academy in Oslo, her career took off in when she participated in the TV show Stjernekamp (NRK). She was praised for a number of fantastic song and dance acts. In 2018, Lisa was one of Alexander Rybak’s dancers and backup singers at Eurovision Song Contest in Portugal.

About Melodi Grand Prix 2020

The 5 artists pre-qualified for the Grand Final were chosen by a jury led by Stig Karlsen. For the remaining hopefuls, Melodi Grand Prix 2020 will consist of 5 semi-finals before the national final, one for each region of Norway (North, Central, West, South, East). The semifinal will be broadcasted in front of live audiences from the H3 Arena in Fornebu. Semi-finalists will compete in a cup and it will be up to the televoters to decide which of them will qualify for the national final in Trondheim. The 2020 competition will not include a European jury. The winner of MGP 2020 will be strictly in the hands of the Norwegian viewers.

Are you excited about the first participants of MGP 2020? Let us know in the comments below!