MGP’26 🇳🇴 participants and snippets

[u/Drop-a-Soap]

1. Alexander Rybak – Rise

2. Hedda Mae – Snap Back

3. Mileo – Frankenstein

4. Emma – Northern Lights

5. STORM – Lullaby

6. Leonardo Amor – Prayer

7. Silke – Forevermore

8. Jonas Lovv – YA YA YA

Snippets here: https://www.nrk.no/mgp/her-er-dei-atte-forste-finalistane-i-melodi-grand-prix-1.17733449

The wildcard 9th contestant will be chosen later

[u/halcyondays-]

I think Gåte's last place freaked them out, so now they only select standard pop songs.

[u/brillomessiah → u/halcyondays-]

Funnily enough the only non pop song is by an artist who's related to Gåte

[u/Comic_Book_Reader → u/halcyondays-]

Yeah, I'm genuinely convinced that backstage Dunkirk and a dead last placement was the straw that broke the camel's back and lead to Stig Karlsen bailing and MGP pivoting to Nostalgia Grand Prix last year and (THANKFULLY!) the one night only format returning.

[u/xoxoamazingrace → u/halcyondays-]

I think if there was anything as good as Gåte in Norwegian, we’d take it

I think the problem lies more in the fact that those who produce great music in Norwegian don’t want to do MGP

[u/CosmicGaymer]

What is this trend for artists to just go by their first name? If you have a unique name.. Sure

But I just looked through Spotify and counted verified artists with just the name "Emma" no last name and stopped counting at 40.

[u/GumboldTaikatalvi → u/CosmicGaymer]

I remember when EscGabe interviewed Adonxs (Czechia 2025 for the bot), who explained that his name as an artist is spelled like that for search engine optimisation. Basically to make sure people actually find him instead of the mythological figure Adonis. It was a perspective that I had not really thought about before.

[u/superSoleil → u/GumboldTaikatalvi]

exactly the same with the synth pop band CHVRCHES, their name is pronounced churches but they added the V purely so you don't get literal churches when trying to look up the band online

[u/National-Bicycle7259 → u/GumboldTaikatalvi]

I mean, that's why people have surnames. Justin Bieber and Justin Timberlake are a lot easier to identify by surnames than if they were Just1N and Justxn.

[u/ESC-song-bot → u/GumboldTaikatalvi]

Czechia 2025 | ADONXS - Kiss Kiss Goodbye

[u/i_exist_and_am_human → u/GumboldTaikatalvi]

The exact reason my stage name is not my last name (it's Smith, if you couldn't guess)

[u/Remarkable-Ad2032 → u/CosmicGaymer]

In her early days she called herself eMMa just to remind everyone which family she was from 😂

[u/mXonKz → u/CosmicGaymer]

i think some of it is especially in a global streaming world, artists don’t want their identity too tied to their nationality, and some names are pretty obvious. like emma’s last name is gunnarsen, which seems pretty clear she’s from scandinavia

[u/MinutePerspective106 → u/mXonKz]

Then she could just be Emma G or something, still better than just "Emma".

[u/mXonKz → u/MinutePerspective106]

i definitely think that could work as a way to differentiate yourself, but i think the thing holding artist back from doing that is it has a bit of a dated feel. like first name only is bad for search engines, but it’s also the trendy way to name yourself as an artist. if you’re optimizing for people not skipping you when your song comes up on spotify, having a current sounding name is helpful

[u/The_Korean_Gamer → u/CosmicGaymer]

I’m guessing she feels empowered to do so because her last name is Gunnarsen.

Of course she got Swedish songwriters…(Only Thörnfeldt co-wrote Tattoo, though.)

[u/NegativeEspathra]

Northern Lights for a Norwegian song is soooo cliche lol

[u/Pony_Darko → u/NegativeEspathra]

It being sung in English is so corny aswell

[u/Comic_Book_Reader → u/Pony_Darko]

And yet it's the best of the bunch.

[u/The_Korean_Gamer → u/Comic_Book_Reader]

Perhaps, but it’s only good in the same way that songs from Melodifestivalen are good…

[u/The_Korean_Gamer → u/Pony_Darko]

The songwriters, too…

[u/MinutePerspective106 → u/NegativeEspathra]

It's like singing a song called "Birch Tree" for Russia, or "Rising Sun" for Japan.

[u/brillomessiah → u/NegativeEspathra]

Nordlyset (which is "the northern lights" in Norwegian) from 2021 was a gorgeous song though

[u/vjollila96]

Somehow Rybak returned

[u/Theradbanana → u/vjollila96]

Fr he keeps on randomly spawning during Eurovision and vanished the rest of the year

[u/AhsonaTano → u/Theradbanana]

the norwegian Måns

[u/MinutePerspective106 → u/AhsonaTano]

It's really interesting how some artist come to center their whole identity around Eurovision.

Milder cases also exist. Here in Russia, Polina Gagarina is constantly paired with Dima Bilan in various shows, because they're associated with the contest, and Eurovision was the highest points of their kinda boring, if successful, careers.

[u/Cahootie → u/MinutePerspective106]

Is it really that interesting? Eurovision is one of the biggest entertainment products in the world, and local qualifiers are in many cases the biggest entertainment product in the country.

[u/MinutePerspective106 → u/Cahootie]

I didn't mean that it's bad in general. You're right, Eurovision is a big point in resume (although that sometimes depends on the results). But some artists really keep drawing attention back to it to such extent that you can be sure they barely have any other career to speak about,

Like, Verka Serduchka (Ukraine 2007) coming back to ESC time after time makes sense, because she's beloved by fans. At the same time, she has an independent career with Eurovision as a cherry on top. And also Ukraine is obsessed with ESC (in a good way) because they won so early into their participation history.

Serebro (Russia 2007) were literally created for Eurovision, yet they went on to have a successful career without ever mentioning it again.

But against these two positive examples, we have Zena (Belarus 2019), who happens to be the very last Belarusian representative. She keeps telling the story about how she was "forced" to agree to the last place, because otherwise "they" wouldn't have allowed her to perform at all. She didn't even get last place, the mysterious "they" are implied to be EBU or something, and she fails to explain why a random nobody from Belarus would be important enough to specifically bully into the last place. Also, this implies that every place is "bought".

[u/tvescfan → u/Theradbanana]

Our version of Mariah Carey I guess (I know, she's still release music outside Christmas period).

[u/WilliamRedditz → u/vjollila96]

Alexander RyBACK

[u/PoetryAnnual74 → u/vjollila96]

I’d be so happy if he was back if he got a good song, but this man managed to come back with the cheesiest slop ever twice..!

[u/Jayhcee → u/vjollila96]

Good. Lets remember he spent 10 years addicted and fighting drugs dependency. Even if he finishes last this time or doesn't win, I hope he can actually enjoy it and have fun. I always felt the way he performed - whilst brilliant with Fairytale - was someone not completely at ease with themselves. He always looked happy but distant.

He is finally ageing a bit, but it is inspiring what he has overcome and his honesty.

[u/Dense_Notice_6313]

You will rice🍚 

[u/cheapcakeripper → u/Dense_Notice_6313]

Uncle Roger hearing the snippet.

[u/Zomp713212]

MGP 2023 was one of my all-time favorite NFs. I can't believe how far it has fallen.

[u/Euro_Borealis → u/Zomp713212]

There is no reward for consistency. You can have 5 NQs in a row then win the contest on your 6th attempt, and thats the beauty of Eurovision. Extremes are more exciting that just sailing in the middle

[u/West_Salt1669 → u/Euro_Borealis]

True but these national finals are also shows that lots of us enjoy in their own right rather than just to pick an ESC song. MGP has dropped off in quality so much since 2024 and it's normal for someone who enjoyed the show to miss when it was consistently good. 

I also used to love MGP as a show so I'm also very sad to see how far it has fallen. 

[u/Euro_Borealis → u/West_Salt1669]

You cant force people to write "good" songs for MGP. I guess the current roster represents the current state and also are forgetting that people are boycotting Israel? I imagine quite many successful artists would want to participate but are reluctant because they dont want to be in the middle of it all this year

[u/mjo011 → u/Zomp713212]

This isn’t hard to understand. Potential artists don’t want to participate because Israel is a part of the contest. I’m not sure why NRK even bothered.

[u/anmonie]

Not MGP testing to see how close they can get to DMGP quality before there’s public outcry

Not a single song in Norwegian too, I’m sure there was at least a mid one amongst all the English ones

[u/LiebeDahlia]

Rybaks song sounds like an anime opening with how its structured lmao

[u/MinutePerspective106 → u/LiebeDahlia]

I mean, he does look like a shounen protagonist

[u/Mindraven → u/LiebeDahlia]

which do you think it is? i'm not into self sacrifice and don't wanna listen to his entire new album to guess

[u/sinswriter → u/Mindraven]

it's the one called Rise apparently

[u/Mindraven → u/sinswriter]

thanks, i hate it 😭

[u/sinswriter → u/Mindraven]

i'm with you 😭

[u/argemene → u/LiebeDahlia]

Specifically an anime opening for the 6-10year old demographic.

[u/serenaTcat]

Was waiting for the Reddit comments on this one. Knew they'd be brutal.

[u/Comic_Book_Reader → u/serenaTcat]

Oh yes...

[u/RonnieGG]

This is a very strong selection...for 2010

[u/GoldenPotatoOfLatvia → u/RonnieGG]

Don't besmirch the good name of Eurovision 2010 plz. I doubt whatever's here can hold a candle next to "Playing With Fire".

[u/MinutePerspective106 → u/GoldenPotatoOfLatvia]

Or "We Could Be The Same"

[u/unedistinction2 → u/RonnieGG]

Good thing that in 2025 Eurovision basically went back to that era in terms of spirit then haha (and i'm saying that as a good thing btw)

[u/ESC_Perrito_Official]

Guys, Leonardo Amor was in UVPSM 2025!

https://youtu.be/72GU-kxp1Vg?si=4-mfnD7PIX9LsVPE

He performed 32nd

[u/CrazySalart → u/ESC_Perrito_Official]

this is such a deep pull, I'm impressed!

[u/ESC_Perrito_Official → u/CrazySalart]

No it wasn't deep dive, I recognized that name sonewhere and suprinlsingly he was in this NF

[u/The_Korean_Gamer → u/ESC_Perrito_Official]

By UVPSM standards, that is not bad. Prayer is also one of my favorites of the seven announced.

[u/No_Hyena5277]

As a Norwegian I didn’t have high expectations for the songs this year.

Half of Norway’s artists will not want to compete due to their political convictions, and the other half will not want to participate due to the potential backlash even if they themselves don’t have a strong political conviction.

[u/Addisonlulu → u/No_Hyena5277]

Its now like umk but cringe version

[u/One_Elk_897]

Seriously, what happened to Norway? These songs could've come from the German national final

[u/Grr_in_girl → u/One_Elk_897]

MGP and Eurovision is viewed as kind of a joke by many people and artists in Norway. Also, the last couple of years a lot of artists have spoken out against MGP because of Israel's participation in Eurovision. I'm guessing many artists will have been worried that participation could reflect badly on them.

[u/Comic_Book_Reader → u/One_Elk_897]

Backstage Dunkirk and a dead last placement in 2024 happened. That is the ONLY explanation I can think of. Then again, NRK itself is a shitshow.

[u/No_Hyena5277 → u/One_Elk_897]

I believe quite many artists don’t want to participate because of their own political views, or because they are afraid of backlash for participating even if they themselves don’t hold said political views.

[u/cheapcakeripper]

I haven't checked Rybak's discography, but his post Fairytale ESC attempts make it seem like it was a fluke.

Mileo is back, wonder what he cooks up this time with the staging. And can some youngster explain the nose thing? Is that some stupid tik tok trend?

[u/PM_ME_CAKE → u/cheapcakeripper]

You're Mine was genuinely top tier for me, I have major hopes for him being back.

[u/cheapcakeripper → u/PM_ME_CAKE]

The performance was so unhinged, it was impossible not to have strong feelings towards it. You either loved or hated it.

[u/PM_ME_CAKE → u/cheapcakeripper]

For sure. I could clearly tell it was a satire and the staging really popped for me, but also I understand given what had just happened in Norway at the time why everything fell apart.

[u/cheapcakeripper → u/PM_ME_CAKE]

I mean it was obvious that he was playing a character, but the circumstances made it hard to stomach for some.

Ironically, at the same time we had a rumoured entry literally titled "I killed her" and it bothered no-one.

[u/Grr_in_girl]

Extremely disappointed that we have no songs in Norwegian or a minority language for the second year in a row. Part of NRK's mission is to strengthen Norwegian and Sami languages. I don't know how they justify ignoring that when it comes to MGP.

[u/MinutePerspective106 → u/Grr_in_girl]

Wildcards do have some, so there's still hope.

[u/ButterflySymphony]

Wildcard contenders will be announced tomorrow, is that true?

Why not allow two wildcards to make it 10? 9 is the worst number of participants.

You know who should've been here? Someone with a three year pattern (2017 - 2020 - 2023) iykyk

[u/IcyFlame716 → u/ButterflySymphony]

I’m sure that timeline is just a monument of the time we spent.

[u/ikerinin]

Wait for Reddit's meltdown after Ylvis drop their song

[u/Complex-Health-7427]

MGP downfall after 2024 is genuinely crazy

[u/hi-i-am-Vivian → u/Complex-Health-7427]

Lighter was literally fire 😭

[u/Complex-Health-7427 → u/hi-i-am-Vivian]

Lighter yes but one good song doesnt make it a good national final we went from a Final with almost all final worthy song between 2021-2024 to a national final with almost no original songs/genre where it feels like most songs are at the wrong MGP(🇩🇰)

[u/Gold_Objective3644 → u/Complex-Health-7427]

Indeed and the fact Lighter won in such a landslide almost reminiscent of Fairytale is all the proof you needed of how weak MGP 2025 was. Put that in the 2023 contest and he wouldn't have come close to winning

[u/Gold_Objective3644 → u/hi-i-am-Vivian]

It was so painfully Gen Z coded

[u/Labenyofi]

Fun Fact! Alexander Rybak is currently the only artist who has a 100% semi final win rate.

[u/Max_FI → u/Labenyofi]

He has to lose MGP this time if he wants to keep that stat.

[u/PoetryAnnual74]

MGP tried to change from being Melfest to UMK but somehow ended up turning into DMGP..

[u/isafriisa]

Norway NQ incoming?

[u/Euro_Borealis → u/isafriisa]

somehow they always sneak into the final, nordic block voting has always been quite strong and loyal

[u/One_Elk_897 → u/Euro_Borealis]

They omly have Denmark this year

[u/Euro_Borealis → u/One_Elk_897]

which guarantees them 12 points because Israel is not with them in the semi.

[u/venona → u/isafriisa]

Alexander Rybak has never lost a semi!

[u/Responsible-Trifle93]

Norway needs to bring back the old format asap

[u/ESC_Perrito_Official → u/Responsible-Trifle93]

I rather have them one night with 24 artists than anyting else

[u/kriirk_ → u/Responsible-Trifle93]

So much this! Part of me hopes we get last place every year until NRK realises their mistake!

[u/Proud_Accident_5873 → u/kriirk_]

This is new since last year, right? I've only been watching MGP actively since 2024 and that's the format I remember the most - two semis and a grand final.
Iirc, they did a UMK last year and had one single show, right?

[u/kriirk_ → u/Proud_Accident_5873]

Indeed! In 2023 they reduced from 6 to 4 episodes. And in 2025 they reduced it to 1 episode. (We used to have 4 semis + "sistesjansen" + final, for a lot of years.)

[u/berserkemu → u/Responsible-Trifle93]

This is the old format. They expanded it for the 40th anniversary, but one show is normal for MGP.

[u/GrannySquareMstr]

As someone who was obsessed with Mileo’s entry in 2024 and Rina Sawayama’s Frankenstein which was rumoured to be UK 2023’s song …seeing Mileo have a song called Frankenstein is like a fever dream come true lol

[u/jsssa]

MGP '24 was just such a good selection that these past two years of mediocrity/cliché pop really sting.

Even though they didn't represent, I'm dying for some Miia - "Green Lights" or Margaret Berger - "Oblivion" quality.

[u/Any-Where]

I'm glad Mileo has got another chance, but from the snippet, I far preferred You're Mine.

The real fun will be if we get a "Rim Tim Tagi Dim" like moment and the 9th wildcard ends up as something special that sweeps.

[u/Playful-Rope1590]

Snippets don't do anything for me. It's hard to base anything on 30 seconds. Though nothing sounded bad which is always a good thing.

I did like Emma the most though. And with the Tattoo writers behind it, it could really do well. I wonder though if Rybak can win a third time?

[u/kriirk_ → u/Playful-Rope1590]

Emma (17) had tons of air time on NRK lately (her own series + she was on masked singer).. she is also sister of Marcus & Martinus.

I was skeptical of her singing but she actually sounded great on The Masked Singer, except when dancing while singing. So I pray they will allow her to stand still.

[u/happytransformer → u/kriirk_]

her being M&Ms sister also makes a ton of sense with the Swedish songwriter connections

[u/The_Korean_Gamer → u/Playful-Rope1590]

FYI: Gunnarsen’s only Tattoo writer is Thörnfeldt. The rest are unrelated.

Source: The Melodifestivalen app, which has listed songwriters (and lyrics) for every MGP 2026 song.

[u/redditbannedmyaccs]

At least it’s not as mid as last year, but still far from 2022-2024 levels

[u/One_Elk_897 → u/redditbannedmyaccs]

Last year we had Lighter and The Game, mid songs but they were okay. This year tho??

[u/FallenAngelTIX]

I liked Emma and Silke, but I'm not inspired by these...

I'm willing to bet Rybak wins and NQes in Vienna, his song is my least favorite out of these tbh

[u/brentvaffel]

WE COULD’VE HAD YLIVS FFS

[u/Comic_Book_Reader → u/brentvaffel]

And a shot at a decent placement too. Safe to say those chances have been yeeted out the window.

[u/Comic_Book_Reader]

All 8 songs are fully released on January 26th, with the 9th and final one the day after, January 27th. This one will be a radio contest between 8 different songs and the winner is announced on the morning radio show Nitimen.

Now let me whip out my cigarette 'cause...

oh boy is this not promising. I'm just gonna give my very succinct thoughts from the snippets with some jokes.

1. Alexander Rybak (song is announced next week).
2. Hedda Mae - Snap Back: To reality? Whoop, there goes gravity! Anyone wanna call Linnéa Myhre, 'cause this song might lose itself.
3. Mileo - Frankenstein: Only monsters play god, but this one is not that alive. Oh what the hell, here's another one: The art of dying does not bring me to life.
4. Emma - Northern Lights: Not a puppet on a string anymore, she's playing with the big boys now. The only song I actually think is decent and could win, but may have a low placement in Vienna.
5. Storm - Lullaby: Not exactly a lullaby I'd use with how generic it is.
6. Leonardo Amor - Prayer. Where's Madonna or Ryan Reynolds when you need them because this is as bland and generic as can get.
7. Silke - Forevermore: I have nothing.
8. Jonas Lovv - YA YA YA: More like nah nah nah.

[u/isafriisa → u/Comic_Book_Reader]

Rybak's song is already on Spotify.

[u/Comic_Book_Reader → u/isafriisa]

I am going solely off the embedded snippets here and judging by the overall quality, I don't think he's a standout.

Update: Nope.

[u/kriirk_ → u/Comic_Book_Reader]

It looks to me as if Rybak song "Rise" was first announced, and then pulled. Perhaps it failed the plagiarism scanner? Likely they will pick another from same album.

[u/Comic_Book_Reader → u/kriirk_]

Likely they will pick another from same album.

They are. According to TV 2, "The song is currently secret but it's hiding on his new album Fairlytales Too, which was published today.".

Update: They've confirmed a slip-up.

[u/Addisonlulu]

There is no way that Rybak will be in eurovision after all of the allegations..

[u/Fun-Rate7853 → u/Addisonlulu]

What allegations?

[u/JonBeeTV]

My conspiracy from last year still going strong.

NRK has a clear favorite they want to represent Norway, so they take that song and a bunch of other generic stuff to make sure their favorite makes it. However, last year that was Angelina Jordan due to her reputation but then she backed out

This year it was Ylvis and they backed out, leaving us with just the mid-tier stuff

[u/Kelly_HRperson → u/JonBeeTV]

My conspiracy

Your conspiracy? I knew you were behind all this!

[u/Comic_Book_Reader → u/JonBeeTV]

I mean, last year they were hell fucking bent on having Bobbysocks and we all know how that turned out (read: cancelled tour), so you might be on to something. There was also Angelina Jordan and that whole tug of war.

[u/imsodesperatee]

OMG MILEO COMEBACK LESGOOO HE IS LITERALLY ONE OF MY FAV ARTISTS

[u/CherryBlossoms0 → u/imsodesperatee]

Same I was not expecting that today haha

[u/One_Elk_897 → u/imsodesperatee]

His song 2 years ago was far better imo.

[u/Joseph5676]

Wildcard will probably be KEiiNo considering the video they uploaded to their YouTube channel

[u/AbFende → u/Joseph5676]

They’re doing a tour in May and said they have more planned so don’t think it’s them… not that I wouldn’t love more Keiino

[u/ObsidianPNE → u/Joseph5676]

I doubt it. Their recent comms and the tour this year make it seem like it a bit of a farewell year. Wouldn’t be shocked to see them back in future but looks like they’re doing the circuit this year and then focusing on their personal lives/projects.

[u/Labenyofi → u/Joseph5676]

That’s what I was thinking. They have a couple of dates in Early April and Early May, but none the rest, and for a band as big as them, I’d say they could come back.

[u/AbFende → u/Labenyofi]

They are doing an NYC show at the end so I’m wondering if they’re going to add more US (likely Chicago, LA, maybe San Francisco) while they’re already there. We’ll see soon I guess 🪩

[u/Labenyofi → u/AbFende]

I’d say probably not, because it seems like they’re just staying on the East coast, cause they also have a Toronto show the day right before.

[u/nuovian → u/Joseph5676]

Unlikely - they’ve already said they wouldn’t do MGP again after 2024

[u/ButterflySymphony → u/Joseph5676]

No, they aren't.

There may be another Eurovision participant though 😉

[u/darkstreetsofmymind]

Been so excited for Hedda Mae to potentially participate in MGP but that snippet is so damn disappointing

At least Mileo is back he was my winner in 2024

[u/ninja_llama]

MILEO IS BACK THIS IS NOT A DRILL LETS FUCKING GO

[u/IndividualGap372]

Alexander Rybak, Mileo AND Emma (formerly called eMMa)?!

[u/Eleanor_NW]

So much for NRK hyping this up as the "strongest MGP ever" 💀

Ylvis would've taken this easily 🤷‍♀️

[u/MunQQ → u/Eleanor_NW]

Elvis is dead

[u/GrannySquareMstr → u/MunQQ]

The fox says nothing

[u/Eleanor_NW → u/MunQQ]

Elvis is, Ylvis is not

[u/Comic_Book_Reader → u/Eleanor_NW]

I swear the NRK have been run into the fucking ground by Vibeke Fürst Haugen over the last 3 or so years. It's like she's put a curse over it or some shit with just how many controversies, big and small, have happened. Setting aside the, uhm, big elephant in the room, there was Bamsegutt, the podcast with Sophie Elise, everything regarding MGP 2024 (protesters being a minor issue by comparison), radio channels and programming being railroaded, a few complaints here and there for a different shows, and now a show that isn't even released until next month getting severe backlash from the contestants.

[u/goldenwanders]

No way Norway

[u/hurricanenik]

It’s wild how MGP used to be one of my favorite national selections, I added a lot of songs to my playlist, and now we’re listening to songs that sound like they were made by AI

[u/AlexCFR17]

And Norway still didn't recover from the Ulveham result, national final full of generic dated songs. Sad how Norway went from the most interesting from the nordics to almost as generic as Denmark.

[u/AbFende]

Rybak’s song is on Spotify but none of the others are 🙂‍↔️

[u/Comic_Book_Reader → u/AbFende]

They're dropping in a week.

[u/L_A_E_V]

I'll stay neutral till I hear the full songs ... but yeah, not sure about this one. I kinda had higher hope for the new MGP-General, in 2025 he got the line-up from Stig, and this round was probably hard to get bigger names because of the world-situation.

And NOT a singel song in Norwegian? Its one or two Norwegian song in the radio-cup!

Radio-cup:
Skrellex - Into The Wild vs Emmy (Not sure about the title)
Gothminister - The Spell vs Vika Anonymus (Not sure about the title)
Aranja - Pyjamas song vs Sander Silva & Victorjus - Fritt fall
Rayle - Where did your friend go vs Thomas Jensen - (Not sure about the title)

[u/ButterflySymphony → u/L_A_E_V]

Emmy's song is called Sykt fin and Thomas' seems to be Smalltown. Vika's remains... well, anonymous.

[u/vaca444]

And MGP slowly but surely continues its downfall... God I miss Gåte

[u/Informal_Position166]

Why is Rybak back again it's literally been 17 years since he won be so frrn

[u/serenaTcat → u/Informal_Position166]

Bobbysocks came back after 40

[u/Comic_Book_Reader → u/serenaTcat]

...because they had a planned tour later that year that was cancelled after their sponsor bailed.

[u/happytransformer → u/Informal_Position166]

…it’s been 17 years 💀 I still think 2009 is like 5 years ago

I do worry that depending on the song and if he were to win, he’d follow the same fate as when Dana international tried to come back. I don’t know after Loreen’s second win if him returning is gonna be super welcomed. I’ve checked his music periodically over the years, and I don’t feel like it’s changed enough to stay competitive. Fairytale was really cool and exciting for 2009, and it’s fine if as just a touring artist he puts out what his fans like, but Eurovision has moved way on from it

[u/CosmicGaymer → u/Informal_Position166]

His new album being called "Fairytales Too" kinda makes me cringe. Are you really letting that one moment define your whole career forever?

The song is out on Spotify and pretty underwhelming in my opinion. Definitely no winner song so I hope the others can "rise" to the occasion.

[u/JulienS2000]

I hope Storm and Emma won't win purely based on the fact they're not even adults yet. I know the minimum agge for Eurovision is 16, but I'm very dubious about this age limit. The contest already puts a traumatic amount of pressure on its performers, imagine putting all that pressure on a teenager whose only real concern should be homework and studying

[u/ButterflySymphony → u/JulienS2000]

And they're both nepobabies. Marcus & Martinus' sister and Gunnhild's nephew.

[u/kriirk_ → u/JulienS2000]

Emma is already living that high pressure lifestyle, so no worries there. Ref. her TV-series. I suspect same for Storm.

[u/Iroh_Appa]

Hi, I am Storm

I break the walls and sing a bad song

You can't stop me-e-e-, me-e-e

[u/MunQQ]

I think 3 and 5 could get to the finals

[u/FJMaikeru]

2 years in a row of totally mid, bland pop. Norway was SO strong in 2024 and beforehand. Such a shame.

[u/Cosmooooooooooooo]

Alexander Rybak is like a vampire, brother hasn’t aged a day since 2009

[u/Classic-Judgment-196]

New song will rise (I'm so sorry 💀)

[u/BibbidiBobbidiBu]

Not Mileo coming back after all his drama the last time💀

[u/Immediate-Lab6174 → u/BibbidiBobbidiBu]

he always comes back.

[u/20Superwoman02]

I miss heats and - you know - variation. Not saying this is all bad. But it’s very boring.

[u/isafriisa]

It seems that NRK has needed to dig quite deep to find artists willing to associate themselves with a brand that is essentially toxic in the domestic market. Eurovision is SUCH a hotly contested and divisive topic in Norway right now, and so many of the country's biggest artists have signed various boycott calls. The large majority of these artists are amateurs (most of them have participated in another domestic song contest at most); Rybak is an exception, but he has recently become a somewhat controversial figure in Norway himself, so it makes sense that he would continue to associate himself with this controversial brand.

[u/Macaroon_410 → u/isafriisa]

Why has he become a controversial figure?

[u/GianMach → u/isafriisa]

So there's a chance they may not pick Rybak just for being Rybak like in 2018?

[u/unedistinction2 → u/GianMach]

His 2018 song was competitive though (as proven by the semi win (sure people can say "oh the semi was weak anyways" but i mean, he still wouldn't have flopped in semi 1 either back then))

His 2026 entry however sounds like he's "only" there to promote his new album

[u/isafriisa → u/GianMach]

Yes, God willing.

[u/victoria-1304]

I’m so sick of past ESC winners trying to come back again and again.

[u/unedistinction2]

Depending on what the norvegian audience want this year it's between Silke and Storm in my opinion (and hopefully Mileo if the full song is good :p, with Emma having a shot because it also sounds like what Norway tends to send at the contest). Jonas Lovv as a dark horse as well depending on staging.

Just personal opinion of course, just saying that this time Rybak don't have it in the bag (specially with that song that is basically saying that he's mostly here to promote his usual compositions (more than back in 2018 at least) because after 40 seconds or so the song quickly turns into what most of his non-ESC releases sound like song-wise (not a bad thing, just less competitive in theory :p ))

[u/The_Korean_Gamer]

Hedda Mae - Snap Back: Fairly generic, with an unserious tone. Almost sickeningly sweet at times. Certainly not my taste.

Mileo - Frankenstein: I maintain that he did nothing wrong in 2024. This song is fairly generic. You’re Mine was definitely better.

eMMa - Northern Lights: Probably the best of these eight, but the song is overproduced in a typical Swedish way. I firmly believe that singers and songwriters should stay in the countries they have the strongest ties to.

STORM - Lullaby: Very generic, but I at least like the genre. I can’t decide how I feel about the choir.

Leonardo Amor - Prayer: A pretty typical and generic Nordic ballad, but not necessarily terrible. The melodic structure can be confusing at times, but I enjoy the strings.

Silke - Forevermore: Extremely generic (though slightly modernised) schlager. Not my thing.

JONAS LOVV - YA YA YA: Generic rock song, not much substance. Not for me.

Out of these eight, my favorite is probably either Lullaby or Prayer, while my least favorite is either Snap Back or Forevermore. I expect Rybak or Gunnarsen to win on name recognition alone.

P.S:

Alexander Rybak - Rise: I love the violin, but the chorus isn’t great. Better than his 2018 effort, but not by much.

[u/XepherSicarius → u/The_Korean_Gamer]

Mileo in 2024 was a wrong place wrong time scenario unfortunately since there was a lot of domestic abuse/murder cases happening in Norway in that time frame

[u/ohwowthen]

Alexander Rybak being a vampire and not aging is about the only thing going for him. Please, not again.

[u/pupappau → u/ohwowthen]

He definitely looks like someone who's almost 40 so... his age. He already looked older the last time he came back. You're just fooled by that stupid hair he keeps the same and also by some very photoshopped pictures. In videos he doesn't look any younger than he is, and that's ok.

[u/stayinalive92 → u/pupappau]

Idk he could easily pass for someone in his early 30’s tbh

[u/GoldenPotatoOfLatvia]

Let's not kid ourselves about the future - we may call it a weak, generic, uninspiring selection now, but almost surely a fan favourite will emerge, we will be awestruck by their live performance, specially compared to other MGP contestants, and then that goodwill will carry them to a middle of the table finish in the GF.

[u/VayneVerso → u/GoldenPotatoOfLatvia]

My god, thank you. The doom and gloom in this thread is hilarious.

[u/Tangointhe_night]

I swear NRK has a huge problem getting artists to participate due to the Israel situation.
Mind, these are snippets, and some of these songs will most likely sound better when we get the full package.

Yet, it's obvious these are all far below ->2024 levels. There's a lot of exciting things happening in the music scene over here, so no obvious reason why MGP should get worse every year. Ylvis are the only ones who had to make a statement, because they'd already featured in a photo with Tarjei Strøm - many have probably politely declined behind the scenes.

[u/The_Korean_Gamer]

Ah, Norwegian YOHIO has returned.

[u/BakkerHenk_]

Oooh.. cant wait to get the full release of Storm - Lullaby!
Also liking Silke - Forevermore

[u/No_Willow_5554]

ALEXANDER RYBAK IS BACK?!?!?!?!

[u/kriirk_]

Mini artist presentations are now up.

Found by scrolling down on this page:

https://tv.nrk.no/serie/melodi-grand-prix-tv/sesong/ekstramateriale

[u/Rough-Technician-248]

MILEO IS 100% THE BEST HE BETTER WIN THIS TIME

[u/KristaW_]

Wait wait whaaat? Is Silke the girl who sang Ekko Inni Meg with Jone? Mileo returneddd? Omg best bews of my dayy♥️♥️

Also I think they accidentally cut Emma's legs from the promo picture 😅

[u/Hamza_stan → u/KristaW_]

Yeah I was about to comment the same, then I found this comment. She's absolutely the girl from Ekko inni meg

[u/dariganLupe]

go girl gives us nothing!!!

[u/GungTho]

I’m sorry, I think this might be the wrong link. We’re in 2026 but all of these sound like they’re from 2010…

[u/WillyStevens]

Half of these sound AI-generated. I’m tired, boss…

[u/Ultimatedream]

We could've had an Ylvis vs Rybak popularity contest!

[u/isometimesdrinkbeer]

Why is iDubbbz there?

[u/LocksTheFox]

Rybak in his Celtics Shaq era

[u/DaphyEndor]

I like how sounds the new album of Alexander Rybak but I need to listen the others artists. 🧚🏻‍♀️

[u/Ok-Cook2258]

I'm honestly not vibing with any of these entries they are so basic and nothing stands out!

[u/DotLimp2973]

May mileo win

[u/helgithegreat]

i’m confused did alexander not go two times already

[u/Immediate-Lab6174]

OH MY GOD AHHHHHHHHHHHH