Malmö, 3 Fabruary 2024
Tonight marked the first heat of Sweden’s national selection Melodifestivalen. Organised by Swedish state broadcaster SVT, the upcoming Melodifestivalen contest will choose the act to represent Sweden at the upcoming Eurovision Song Contest, in Malmö. As defending champions and incumbent hosts, Sweden have earned a pass to the finale on 11 May 2024, with their act getting to skip semifinals.
Melodifestivalen, which has been a prestigious music festival since 1966 and has functioned as Sweden’s selection method since, is held in venues all over the country. The first live show took place in Malmö, at the same Malmö Arena that will host the upcoming Eurovision Song Contest.
The show which was hosted by Carina Berg, saw the following artists compete for a spot in the Melodifestivalen Final on 9 March 2024:
- Adam Woods – “Supernatural”
- Samir & Victor – “Hela världen väntar”
- Melina Borglowe – “Minn melodi”
- Elisa Lindström – “Forever yours”
- Lisa Ajax – “Awful liar”
- Smash Into Pieces – “Heroes are calling”
The songs that place 1st and 2nd at the end of the night will advance to the final. In a departure from recent editions, Melodifestivalen no longer has a proper Second Chance Round (refered to by fans as “Andra Chansen” although that name had been discontinued since 2022). Instead, it will hold a “run-off vote” between the 3rd and 4th placers in the other semifinals after the results of the fifth heat have been made public, picking the last two finalists. The songs that finish in 5th and 6th place are eliminated from the process with no chance at redemption.
At the end of the first round of voting, rock band Smash Into Pieces were declared Direkt Til Finalen: They had won the televote in the first round, earning them a spot in the final with their song “Heroes are calling”.
After their reprise, a second round of voting opened to determine the second finalist: Lisa Ajax emerged on top with 74 points from the different app vote categories, while Elisa Lindström (61 points) and Adam Woods (53 points) finished 3rd and 4th respectively.
That means that Lisa Ajax is the second finalist, while Elisa and Adam get a second chance in the run-off vote (to be held at the fifth heat). Melina Borglow and Samir & Victor were eliminated.
Do #YOU agree with the Swedish choices? Which acts would #YOU have advanced to the final? Let us know in the comments, or join the discussion on our Forum or in our Discord!
