Ríkisútvarpið (RÚV) announced the newest crop of songs in Söngvakeppnin today in between the national finals currently taking place in Norway, Lithuania, and Moldova. The competition will compose of two semi-finals on 18 February and 25 February of five songs each, and all songs in the semi-finals will be performed in the Icelandic language. Songs that qualify to the final on 4 March will perform using their preferred Eurovision version. The shows will be hosted by a trio; veterans Unnsteinn Manuel and Ragnhildur Steinunn, with newcomer Siggi Gunnars.
Typically only the two songs determined by televote from each semi-final will qualify for the final, but an optional wildcard could be added to up the roster for the final by the organizers. The final will consist of two voting rounds, the first round consisting of a 50/50 jury and televote round to determine the two songs competing in the second round. The second round of voting is 100% televoting, with the results being added together from the first round to determine the winner.
RÚV released the entries to this year’s Söngvakeppnin on YouTube. There are two different playlists you can listen to, one with all of the entries sung in Icelandic, and the other playlist featuring all of the songs sung in English. With the announcement of the songs, the semi-final participants have also been decided.
Competing in Semi-Final One on 18 February are:
“Stundum snýst heimurinn gegn þér ”/ “Sometimes the World’s Against You”
Performer: BRAGI
Music: Bragi Bergsson, Joy Deb, Rasmus Palmgren og Aniela Eklund
Icelandic Lyrics: Bragi Bergsson
English Lyrics: Bragi Bergsson og Aniela Eklund
“Glötuð ást” / “Loose[sic] this dream”
Performer: MÓA
Music: Móeiður Júníusdóttir
Icelandic Lyrics: Móeiður Júníusdóttir og Guðrún Guðlaugsdóttir
English Lyrics: Móeiður Júníusdóttir
(Editor’s Note: ‘[sic]’ was added by the editor.)
“Þora” / “Brave Face”
Performer: Benedikt
Music: Benedikt Gylfason og Hildur Kristín Stefánsdóttir
Icelandic Lyrics: Benedikt Gylfason, Hildur Kristín Stefánsdóttir og Una Torfadóttir
English Lyrics: Benedikt Gylfason og Hildur Kristín Stefánsdóttir
“Dómsdagsdans” / “Doomsday Dancing”
Performer: Celebs
Music, Icelandic Lyrics, and English Lyrics: Celebs
“Lifandi inni í mér” / “Power”
Performer: Diljá
Music, Icelandic Lyrics, and English Lyrics: Pálmi Ragnar Ásgeirsson og Diljá Pétursdóttir
Competing in Semi-Final Two on 25 February are:
“Óbyggðir” / “Terrified”
Performer: Kristín Sesselja
Music: Kristín Sesselja Einarsdóttir, Tiril Beisland og Vetle Sigmundstad
Icelandic Lyrics: Kristín Sesselja Einarsdóttir og Guðrún Helga Jónasdóttir
Englihs Lyrics: Kristín Sesselja Einarsdóttir og Tiril Beisland
“OK”
Performer: Langi Seli og Skuggarnir
Music: Langi Seli, Jón Skuggi og Erik Qvick
Icelandic Lyrics: Langi Seli og Jón Skuggi
“Ég styð þína braut” / “Together we grow”
Performer: Silja Rós & Kjalar
Music: Silja Rós og Rasmus Olsen
Icelandic Lyrics: Silja Rós
English Lyrics: Silja Rós og Rasmus Olsen
“Betri maður” / “Impossible”
Performer: Úlfar
Music: Rob Price og Úlfar Viktor Björnsson
Icelandic Lyrics: Elín Sif Hall
English Lyrics: Rob Price
“Gleyma þér og dansa” / “Dancing Lonely”
Performer: Sigga Ózk
Music: Klara Elias, Alma Goodman, David Mørup og James Gladius Wong
Icelandic Lyrics: Klara Elias og Alma Goodman
English Lyrics: Klara Elias og Alma Goodman og David Mørup
Iceland was last represented by Systur at Turin last year with the song “Með hækkandi sól”. Iceland finished 23rd in the Grand Final with 20 points. Systur qualified from the first semi-final in 10th place with 103 points. Will the winner of Söngvakeppnin continue the qualifying streak? Will this be the year the last non-winning Nordic country takes the crown?
Are #YOU excited for Söngvakeppnin? Who do you think will represent Iceland in Liverpool? Let us know on social media @ESCUnited, on our discord, or on our forum page!
