Iceland in the Eurovision Song Contest 2022
| Eurovision Song Contest 2022 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Country |  Iceland | |||
| National selection | ||||
| Selection process | Söngvakeppnin 2022 | |||
| Selection date(s) | Semi-finals: 26 February 2022 5 March 2022 Final: 12 March 2022 | |||
| Selected artist(s) | Sigga, Beta and Elín | |||
| Selected song | "Með hækkandi sól" | |||
| Selected songwriter(s) | Lovísa Elísabet Sigrúnardóttir | |||
| Iceland in the Eurovision Song Contest | ||||
| ||||
Iceland is set to participate in the Eurovision Song Contest 2022 in Turin, Italy. The Icelandic broadcaster Ríkisútvarpið (RÚV) organised the national final Söngvakeppnin 2022 in order to select the Icelandic entry for the contest. The national final consists of three shows: two semi-finals on 26 February and 5 March 2022 and a final on 12 March 2022.
Background
Prior to the 2022 contest, Iceland has participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 37 times since its first entry in 1986.[1] Iceland's best placing in the contest to this point was second, which it achieved on two occasions: in 1999 with the song "All Out of Luck" performed by Selma and in 2009 with the song "Is It True?" performed by Yohanna. Since the introduction of a semi-final to the format of the Eurovision Song Contest in 2004, Iceland has failed to qualify to the final seven times. In 2021, Iceland placed fourth in the grand final with the song "10 Years" performed by Daði og Gagnamagnið.
The Icelandic national broadcaster, Ríkisútvarpið (RÚV), broadcasts the event within Iceland and organises the selection process for the nation's entry. From 2006 to 2020, Iceland's competitor has been selected by Söngvakeppnin, a televised national competition. Daði og Gagnamagnið won Söngvakeppnin 2020 with "Think About Things". The song was considered one of the favourites to win,[2] however the contest was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Daði og Gagnamagnið were subsequently internally re-selected to compete in 2021 with the song "10 Years", finishing in fourth place with 378 points.
Before Eurovision
Söngvakeppnin 2022
Söngvakeppnin 2022 is the national final format developed by RÚV in order to select Iceland's entry for the Eurovision Song Contest 2022. It consists of two semi-finals on 26 February and 5 March 2022 and a final on 12 March 2022.[3] Contrary to the previous editions, for which the host venues were the Háskólabíó conference hall and the Laugardalshöll for the semi-finals and final respectively, both located in the capital city Reykjavík, all shows of the 2022 edition are being held at the RVK Studios, located also in the city of Reykjavík,[4] and are being hosted by Björg Magnúsdóttir, Jón Jónsson and Ragnhildur Steinunn Jónsdóttir.[5]
Competing entries
Between 3 September and 6 October 2021, RÚV opened the period for interested songwriters to submit their entries. Songwriters did not have any particular requirement to meet, and the process was open to all.[6] At the close of submissions, 158 songs had been entered.[4] A selection committee formed under consultation with the Association of Composers (FTT) and the Icelandic Musicians' Union (FÍH) selected the ten competing entries, all of which were revealed on 5 February 2022.[3][6]
| Artist | Song | Songwriter(s) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Icelandic title | English title | ||
| Amarosis | —[a] | "Don't You Know" | Már Gunnarsson, Ísold Wilberg |
| Haffi Haff | "Gía" | "Volcano" | Hafsteinn Þór Guðjónsson, Steinar Jónsson, Sigurður Ásgeir Árnason |
| Hanna Mia and The Astrotourists | "Séns með þér" | "Gemini" | Hanna Mia Brekkan, Sakaris Emil Joensen, Nína Richter |
| Katla | "Þaðan af" | "Then Again" | Jóhannes Damian Patreksson, Kristinn Óli S. Haraldsson, Hafsteinn Þráinsson, Snorri Beck |
| Markéta Irglová | "Mögulegt" | "Possible" | Markéta Irglová, Sturla Mio Þórisson |
| Reykjavíkurdætur (Daughters of Reykjavík) | "Tökum af stað" | "Turn This Around" | Ragnhildur Jónasdóttir, Salka Valsdóttir, Steinunn Jónsdóttir, Þuríður Blær Jóhannsdóttir, Þuríður Kr Kristleifsdóttir |
| Sigga, Beta and Elín | "Með hækkandi sól" | — | Lovísa Elísabet Sigrúnardóttir |
| Stefán Óli | "Ljósið" | "All I Know" | Andri Þór Jónsson, Birgir Steinn Stefánsson, Stefán Hilmarsson |
| Stefanía Svavarsdóttir | "Hjartað mitt" | "Heart of Mine" | Halldór Gunnar Pálsson, Magnús Þór Sigmundsson |
| Suncity and Sanna | "Hækkum í botn" | "Keep It Cool" | Sveinn Rúnar Sigurðsson, Valgeir Magnússon, Davíð Guðbrandsson, Sanna Martinez, Anders Eriksson, Marc Caplice |
Shows
Semi-finals
Two semi-finals took place on 26 February 2022 and 5 March 2022. In each semi-final, five of the ten competing acts performed, and two entries determined solely by the viewing public through telephone voting progressed to the final. As per the rules of the competition, an additional optional qualifier could be selected by the contest organisers from among the non-qualifying acts, which would also progress to the final. This option was subsequently invoked by the organisers, meaning that a total of five acts qualified for the final.[8]
In addition to the performances of the competing entries, a number of guest performances also featured during the two shows. The first semi-final featured a performance from the Icelandic electronic rock band GusGus and Margrét Rán, who performed a rendition of the 2009 Icelandic Eurovision entry "Is It True?".[9] The second semi-final featured a performance from Icelandic singer and actress GDRN, who performed the 2003 Icelandic Eurovision entry "Open Your Heart".[10]
| Draw | Artist | Song | Votes | Place | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Amarosis | "Don’t You Know" | TBA | Wildcard | |
| 2 | Stefán Óli | "Ljósið" | Finalist | ||
| 3 | Haffi Haff | "Gía" | Eliminated | ||
| 4 | Stefanía Svavarsdóttir | "Hjartað mitt" | Eliminated | ||
| 5 | Sigga, Beta and Elín | "Með hækkandi sól" | Finalist | ||
| Draw | Artist | Song | Votes | Place | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Markéta Irglová | "Mögulegt" | TBA | Eliminated | |
| 2 | Suncity and Sanna | "Hækkum í botn" | Eliminated | ||
| 3 | Reykjavíkurdætur | "Tökum af stað" | Finalist | ||
| 4 | Katla | "Þaðan af" | Finalist | ||
| 5 | Hanna Mia and The Astrotourists | "Séns með þér" | Eliminated | ||
Final
The final is being held on 12 March 2022. 2021 Ukrainian representatives Go_A were set to feature as guest performers,[5] however, due to the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine resulting in the band's inability to travel to Iceland, it was announced that 2021 Swedish representative Tusse would perform in the final instead.[13] It was later revealed that the songs in the final would be performed in the language they would be performing in case they represent the country in Eurovision. Thus, three of the finalists, namely Stefan Oli, Sigga, Beta & Elín, and Katla, decided to perform the Icelandic version of their entries, while Reykjavíkurdætur and Amarosis decided to perform their entries in English.[14]
In addition to the competing entries, Daði Freyr, who represented Iceland in the Eurovision Song Contest 2021 together with Gagnamagnið, also performed as an interval act.
| Draw | Artist | Song | Jury | Public | Total | Place | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Katla | "Þaðan af" | TBD | Eliminated | |||
| 2 | Amarosis | "Don't You Know" | Eliminated | ||||
| 3 | Reykjavíkurdætur | "Turn This Around" | Advanced | ||||
| 4 | Stefán Óli | "Ljósið" | Eliminated | ||||
| 5 | Sigga, Beta and Elín | "Með hækkandi sól" | Advanced | ||||
|
| Draw | Artist | Song | Votes | Place | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| First round | Second round | Total | ||||
| 1 | Reykjavíkurdætur | "Turn This Around" | TBA | 2 | ||
| 2 | Sigga, Beta and Elín | "Með hækkandi sól" | 1 | |||
At Eurovision
According to Eurovision rules, all nations with the exceptions of the host country and the "Big Five" (France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom) are required to qualify from one of two semi-finals in order to compete for the final; the top ten countries from each semi-final progress to the final. The European Broadcasting Union (EBU) split up the competing countries into six different pots based on voting patterns from previous contests, with countries with favourable voting histories put into the same pot. On 25 January 2022, an allocation draw was held which placed each country into one of the two semi-finals, as well as which half of the show they would perform in. Iceland has been placed into the first semi-final, to be held on 10 May 2022, and has been scheduled to perform in the second half of the show.[17]
Notes and references
Notes
- ^ Although all participants must submit an Icelandic version of their song, "Don't You Know" does not have an Icelandic language title.
References
- ^ "Iceland Country Profile". European Broadcasting Union (EBU). Retrieved 3 October 2014.
- ^ Hendryk, Tom (10 March 2020). "Eurovision 2020 Odds: Bulgaria Favourite To Win". Wiwibloggs. Retrieved 19 April 2020.
- ^ a b "Söngvakeppninni á RÚV frestað um eina viku" [Söngvakeppnin on RÚV postponed by one week]. ruv.is (in Icelandic). RÚV. 13 January 2022. Retrieved 13 January 2022.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ a b "Söngvakeppnin haldin í kvikmyndaverinu í Gufunesi". ruv.is (in Icelandic). RÚV. 15 December 2021. Retrieved 13 January 2022.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ a b Granger, Anthony (16 February 2022). "🇮🇸 Iceland: Go_A to Perform in Söngvakeppnin 2022 Final". Eurovoix. Retrieved 16 February 2022.
- ^ a b "Nú er hægt að senda lög í Söngvakeppnina 2022". ruv.is (in Icelandic). RÚV. 3 September 2021. Retrieved 30 October 2021.
- ^ "Iceland: 'Söngvakeppnin' 2022 songs revealed 🇮🇸". Eurovision.tv. European Broadcasting Union (EBU). 5 February 2022. Retrieved 6 February 2022.
- ^ Kristiansen, Wivian Renee (5 March 2022). "Two more qualifiers and a wildcard qualify for the final of Söngvakeppnin". ESCXtra. Retrieved 6 March 2022.
- ^ Einarsdóttir, Júlía Margrét (27 February 2022). "Mögnuð ábreiða hjá Gus Gus á laginu Is it true". RÚV (in Icelandic). Retrieved 1 March 2022.
- ^ Björnsdóttir, Anna María (27 February 2022). "Frábær ábreiða GDRN á Open your heart". RÚV (in Icelandic). Retrieved 6 March 2022.
- ^ Terry, Connor (26 February 2022). "The first semi-final of Iceland's Söngvakeppnin has concluded, two artists off to the final on March 12th". ESCUnited. Retrieved 26 February 2022.
- ^ Terry, Connor (5 March 2022). "The second semi-final of Söngvakeppnin concludes with Daughters of Reykjavík and Katla advancing to the final!". ESCUnited. Retrieved 6 March 2022.
- ^ "Go_A unable to make it to the Iceland, Tusse to perform at the Söngvakeppnin 2022 final". ESCXTRA.com. 5 March 2022. Retrieved 6 March 2022.
- ^ Þórðarson, Oddur (9 March 2022). "Þrír af fimm halda sig við íslenskuna". RÚV (in Icelandic). Retrieved 10 March 2022.
- ^ a b Terry, Connor (12 March 2022). "Iceland has decided – Sigga, Beta, and Elín will represent them in Eurovision 2022!!". ESCUnited. Retrieved 12 March 2022.
- ^ "Alþjóðleg dómnefnd í Söngvakeppninni tilkynnt". RÚV (in Icelandic). 12 March 2022. Retrieved 12 March 2022.
- ^ "Eurovision 2022: Which Semi-Final is your country performing in? 🇮🇹". Eurovision.tv. European Broadcasting Union (EBU). 25 January 2022. Retrieved 25 January 2022.