As reported last month, Norway’s Head of Delegation Stig Karlsen revealed on Grand Prix Podkasten (Grand Prix Podcast) that two big changes would be happening at MGP 2023. The first would be that the multi-show national final would now consist of only three semi-finals and a grand final on February 14th, with the second announcing the return of the international jury. And as of this morning, NRK has announced that MGP viewers will notice three more changes to the selection’s format.
Pre-qualified entries and duels no more
The first format change sees the elimination of the pre-qualified entry system that saw 5-6 entries move directly to the show’s final and skipped the semi-final qualification process that other artists and entries had to use. It is important to indicate that a pre-qualified act has won MGP every year since this system was introduced in 2020.
Speaking on the decision, Karlsen noted that it was the viewers who informed the change: “There were several good reasons for the solution with pre-qualified acts, but MGP is in constant development. We are now going for a competition model that is easier to understand, and where all the artists compete with the same starting point. More is at stake for everyone from day one.”
Another change reported by NRK is that the three semi-finals will feature seven artists per show, which means the duels structure also introduced in 2020 will no longer be utilized. Across the three semi-finals all seven artists will compete head to head, and the top 3 will move on the final show on February 4th. There was no comment about a second-chance or wildcard process for 2023.
Trondheim set to host MGP final again
Finally, NRK confirmed that the MGP Final will move back to Trondheim, where the 2020 Grand Final was held. This seems to indicate that NRK will reintroduce a live audience for the final show. “We are ready to make a Grand Final again from the middle of the country to the whole of Norway” said Karlsen about the decision. There was no indication of audience presence at the semi-final shows or confirmed locations in the broadcaster’s announcement.
The 2023 edition of Melodi Grand Prix is set to begin on January 14th, with the roster of participants being revealed on January 4th via an online press conference. The full list of dates for MGP is as follows:
- Participant reveal – January 4
- Semi-Final One songs released – January 9
- Semi-Final One – January 14
- Semi-Final Two songs released – January 16
- Semi-Final Two – January 21
- Semi-Final Three songs released – January 23
- Semi-Final Three – January 28
- Final – February 4
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Source: NRK
