Awesome! 28 artists to obsess over. Well actually, no. Just the 9.
Va? SVT are doing the artist announcement a little differently this year. 9 artists today, 9 artists tomorrow, and 10 on Friday.
Why on earth would they do that? COVID restrictions have made the traditional press conference impossible. And hey – we’re all stuck at home with things being a little light on entertainment, so why not drag it out for three days?
Fair. Right, who have we got today, then? Let’s take a look shall we!
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Danny Saucedo – ‘Dandi Dansa’
(Danny Saucedo, Karl-Johan Råsmark)
This is – a surprise, actually? Quite. But in recent months Danny has been very vocal in the press about his frustrations over his gigs and shows being cancelled – due to the current pandemic. He says that he’s here for the ability to channel his creativity into something.
And to win, of course? Actually, he’s also said that he’s not particularly here to win, either. He wants to show Sweden who he is as an artist right now. And hopes they like it. He’ll be performing a song in Swedish. He was originally asked to host one of the heats, and initially said yes. But then decided to go one further – with a song that he says has good vibes and a great message, something he really believes in.
Current form? In truth, his most recent two singles have not been to our taste at all. And were the first of his we’ve not featured on the site. But he’s Danny Saucedo – he’s got it in him. And then some.
Eva Rydberg & Ewa Roos – ‘Rena Rama Ding Dong’
(Göran Sparrdahl, Kalle Rydberg, Ari Lehtonen)
I’m sorry, did you just say Ding Dong? Ja Ja!
Things are looking up. And even more so when you look at the songwriters on board. Göran, who was behind Arja Saijonmaa’s most recent Melodifestivalen entry – the iconic ‘Mina Fyra Årstider’ in 2019. And Ari Lehtonen, who has been behind a whole host of cheesy Eurodance in the ’90s and ’00s, and who was most recently involved in the criminally short-lived A*Base.
And the ladies themselves? Life-long friends Eva and Ewa – the former of whom is most famous as a comedian/entertainer, and the latter of which is a singer/actress/entertainer.
And the song? A humourous parody of social media influencers. Naturally.
Tess Merkel – ‘Good Life’
(Tony Malm, Tess Merkel, Palle Hammarlund, Mats Tärnfors)
An Alcastar?! We’re actually surprised it’s taken her this long. But now Tess ‘The Goddess of Success’ Merkel makes her solo debut in Melodifestivalen.
What’s the song about? A self-reflective number about looking at where you are in life, and taking a positive step forward into the ‘Good Life’.
And what’s it like? It’s been described as “a Studio 54-flavoured, glittering, luxury, dancefloor filler with Donna Summer vibes”.
Dead. Dead.
Written by? Palle has been behind pretty much every Dolly Style song you’ve ever heard, Mats penned ‘Out Of Air’ for the Solli-Tangen brothers in last year’s Norwegian Melodi Grand Prix, and Tony was partly responsible for Jon Henrik Fjällgren almost winning Melodifestivalen in 2015.
Arvingarna – ‘Tänker Inte Alls Gå Hem’
(Stefan Brunzell, Nanne Grönvall, Thomas G:son, Bobby Ljunggren)
Dansband royalty! We bow before thee.
How nice to see them back. And how just, too. After a very successful comeback in 2019, which saw them reach (and close) the final with ‘I Do’, the four gents are back to have another stab at things.
Please don’t be a ballad. Please don’t be a ballad. Please don’t be a ballad. On the contrary, Arvingarna have promised a song that will stir up plenty of movement in your body (mercy me!), and spread happiness to the whole of Sweden, just when they need it the most.
And us everywhere else too, please. There’s plenty of Arvingarna to go around, we’re sure.
And they aren’t the only exciting names in this song? The cast of Taylor Swift’s ‘Bad Blood’ video is shaking. Arvingarna are bringing with them to the contest three names that need no introduction – Nanne Grönvall, Thomas G:son, Bobby Ljunggren – plus Stefan Brunzell, who co-wrote ‘Listen To Your Heartbeat’ for Friends to win Melodifestivalen with in 2001.
Paul Rey – ‘The Missing Piece’
(Fredrik Sonefors, Laurell Barker, Paul Rey)
Back for more? After scoring one of the biggest streaming hits from the 2020 contest with ‘Talking In Your Sleep’, Paul Rey is indeed back for another bite of the Globen-shaped apple.
What’s he back with? A whole new perspective on life – in the last couple of week’s he’s become a Daddy!
What can we expect from the song? Paul likens the song to a journey. It starts intimate, but continues to build throughout.
Kadiatou – ‘One Touch’
(Joy Deb, Linnea Deb, Jimmy ‘Joker’ Thörnfeldt, Anderz Wrethov)
Who? Runner-up in Swedish Idol in 2018. We recently raved about her on these very pages thanks to her gorgeous single ‘Best I’ve Had‘.
What’s her Melodifestivalen song like? She describes it as something quite lovely, very positive, and undeniably happy. Something which is going to put the whole family into the mood for dancing.
And OMG at them songwriters? Right?! Kadiatou actually has already released a song with the first three names in that list – the festive schlager banger ‘Christmas Night With You‘.
Mustasch – ‘Contagious’
(Ralf Gyllenhammar, David Johannesson)
This ain’t no Scandirock dot co dot uk! Look. We see the token rock entry as precisely that too – a token. But Mustasch singer Ralf Gyllenhammar does have past form in this contest. His song ‘Bed Of Fire’ ended up being the best in the line-up that was the final of Melodifestivalen 2013, after all.
Fair. What’s ‘Contagious’ gonna be like? Well according to Ralf, it’s not just rock, it’s HARD rock. And he boasts that the song comes with an extremely infectious chorus – hence the song title!
Lovad – ‘Allting Är Precis Likadant’
(Mattias Andréasson, Alexander Nivek, Lova Drevstam, Albin Johnsén)
Who? Lovad recently enjoyed big streaming success on a duet with one of the writers on this song, Albin Johnsén, on their duet ‘Vi Gjorde Vårt Bästa’. Now, the indie-pop darling is taking the Melodifestivalen route to elevate her name that bit higher.
With what? A song that she says is so emotional to her, that she fears she may even end up shedding a few tears on stage. It’s about often needing to be broken before you can truly feel whole again.
Emil Assergård – ‘Om Allting Skiter Sig’
(Emil Assergård, Jimmy Jansson, Jimmy ‘Joker’ Thörnfeldt, Anderz Wrethov, Johanna Wrethov)
Another debut? New to Melodifestivalen, but he’s actually been releasing music for most of the last decade. His addition to the list of this year’s artists will be quite the coup for SVT, given that his most recent album – released only last year – was his most successful to date, with over 70 million streams thus far.
And what’s he got planned for Melodifestivalen? A lot! He’s already planned out an extra special performance which he believes is going to surprise a lot of people. And Emil is certainly no stranger to performing live to a big crowd.
And look! Our first Jimmy Jansson kalxon! And hopefully not our last.
