Things might have been a little less epic due to pandemic precautions, but the announcement of the competing acts in Melodi Grand Prix 2022 was no less exciting. Broadcaster NRK today announced the 21 acts who will compete in Norway’s national final for Eurovision 2022.

The announcement process was different this year. Last year, the acts were revealed a few days prior to the semi-final they were performing in. But this year, NRK has shown their full hand, presenting all the competing acts of MGP 2022.

All the competing songs have also been released today. From 14:00 CET fans can get their first listen to the songs vying to be Norway’s entry for Turin.

Last month Melodi Grand Prix boss Stig Karlsen confirmed that the four semi-finals and the second-chance show would not have a live audience due to pandemic precautions. However, there is still hope that the show’s grand final on 19 February can have a live audience.

Melodi Grand Prix kicks off with the first semi-final this Saturday, 15 January at 19:50 CET.

Melodi Grand Prix 2022: Competing artists and songs

Semi-final 1 (15 January)

Mira Craig – “We Still Here”

Frode Vassel – “Black Flowers”

Trollfest – “Dance Like a Pink Flamingo”

Eline Noelia – “Ecstasy”

Semi-final 2 (22 January)

Lily Löwe – “Bad Baby”

Steffen Jakobsen – “With Me Tonight”

Farida – “Dangerous”

Daniel Lukas – “Kvelertak”

Semi-final 3 (29 January)

Mari Bølla – “Your Loss”

Oda Gondrosen – “Hammer of Thor”

Sturla – “Skår i hjertet”

Vilde – “Titans”

Semi-final 4 (5 February)

Alexandra Joner – “Hasta la vista”

Maria Mohn – “Fly”

Kim Wigaard – “La Melodia”

Sofie Fjellvang – “Made of Glass”

Final (19 February)

The pre-qualified artists are….

NorthKid – “Someone”

Subwoolfer – “Give That Wolf a Banana”

Christian Ingebrigtsen – “Wonder of the World”

Anna-Lisa Kumoji – “Queen Bees”

Elsie Bay – “Death of Us”

 

MGP 2022: Full artist bios, as supplied by NRK

Semifinal 1 – Saturday 15th of January

Elsie Bay: «Death of Us» (pre-qualified to the final)

Lyrics and music: Elsa Søllesvik, Jonas Holteberg Jensen and Andreas Stone Johansson

Elsa Søllesvik (25) got her breakthrough already as a 17-year-old with the pop success Elsa & Emilie. This was the start of a journey that involved singing on the music festival by:Larm, the talkshow Lindmo and high rankings on VG-lista. As an artist, Elsa writes all her songs by herself, in addition to writing songs for others. Elsa has written and sung the intro song to the Korean TV series “The Queens House”, which was released last autumn. In 2014, Elsa was nominated for the Norwegian music award “Spellemann” with the album “Endless Optimism”, which has provided sound for the TV series SKAM. This album, including the album “Kill Your Darlings”, has been streamed over 30 million times on Spotify. She has also written the song “Witch Woods”, which went to the final of the MGP in 2021, and “Hammer of Thor”, which is in this year’s contest. Elsa is now launching her band new solo project in Melodi Grand Prix: Elsie Bay.

Mira Craig: «We Still Here»

Lyrics and music: Mira Craig and Bård Berg

Mira Craig (39) is an established artist and songwriter from Oslo. Among other things, she has written the Norwegian winning song from the Melodi Grand Prix in 2008, “Hold On Be Strong”, which was sung by Maria Haukaas Mittet. It was the very first song Mira wrote as a 15-year-old, and it got a strong 5th place in Eurovision. Mira herself debuted as an artist with the single “Boogeyman” in 2005 and has since had several hits on VG-lista in Norway. Snoop Dogg was interested in the Norwegian musician at Quartfestivalen in 2005 and has used her “Dinner in Bed” on the album “Welcome to tha Chuuch: The Album”. Mira has been nominated for several Spellemann Awards in Norway, the Alarm Award, and the MTV Europe Music Awards. Throughout her career, she has worked with major international artists and producers, and has played for over 100,000 people at home and abroad. “We Still Here” is the first single on her upcoming album number seven.

Frode Vassel: «Black Flowers»

Lyrics and music: Frode Vassel, Benjamin Larsen, Niklas Rosström and Celine Alette Pedersen Breivoll

Frode Vassel (40) was born and raised outside Bergen on the west coast of Norway but has lived in Oslo half of his life. He has travelled around Europe and been on the Eurovision stage with JOWST in Kiev (2017), Rybak in Lisbon (2018) and helped KEIINO to victory among the audience votes in Tel Aviv 2019. Now it’s Frode’s turn to be in the spotlight. Frode Vassel is a very experienced artist who has performed with many well-known Norwegian artists such as Ylvis, Maria Mena and Åge Sten Nilsen, and has solid solo experience and musical background. In the spring of 2021, he was participating in The Voice. As a father of three in a time of climate crisis, Frode will now put all his energy into the song “Black Flowers”.

Trollfest: «Dance Like a Pink Flamingo»

Lyrics and music: Eirik Renton and Jostein Austvik

TrollfesT came to the world in 2003 when a group of men got tired of available party music. They really wanted to do something about it themselves, and the rest is history. With a love of metal and music from the Balkans, they use instruments such as saxophone, accordion and synth that are mixed with an extreme expression. The last crucial ingredient is a great dose of madness and humor, and the result is something they call “True Norwegian Balkan Metal”. With this formula, TrollfesT has toured over large parts of the world since 2007 and released eight albums. The band delivers terrific concerts with lots of audience interaction, where everything is allowed if it’s fun. Now the folk metal octet is ready for the Melodi Grand Prix with a new concept, where the flamingos are about to take over the world.

Eline Noelia: «Ecstasy»

Lyrics and music: Eline Noelia Myreng, Audun Agnar Guldbrandsen and Tea Megaard

Eline Noelia Myreng is a 22-year-old artist and songwriter from Tønsberg. She comes from a very musical family, which naturally has left its mark on her own dreams. It started with Christian pop and children’s albums, but she eventually moved into regular pop. As an artist, Eline is inspired by the catchy pop from the 2010s, but also legends from the 90s. Eline has worked with music full time for several years, including as a singer in the event industry. She has also spent considerable time in the studio. When the Tønsberg girl studied pop music at Limpi, her career as a singer really begun and she became acquainted with the producer Audun Agnar Gulbrandsen. “Ecstasy” is the result of their first studio session together and was the start of a major project.

Semifinal 2 – Saturday 22nd of January

Christian Ingebrigtsen: «Wonder Of The World» (pre-qualified to the final)

Lyrics and music: Christian Ingebrigtsen, Michael Hunter Ochs and Henrik Tala

Christian Ingebrigtsen is a popular artist with a long career. He has topped the charts with his own projects but is best known for his eventful career as part of the world-famous pop group A1. Together they have won a Brit Award, an MTV Award, had ten singles in the top 10 in the UK and sold over 10 million albums. Alongside his artist career, Christian is a busy songwriter and producer for several artists. Among other things, he was involved in writing the winner song of MGP 2020, “Attention” with Ulrikke Brandstorp. In addition, Christian has been a songwriter on no less than four songs that have finished in 2nd place in the Norwegian and Finnish finals. Christian has also experience as an actor and lecturer. In 2021, he released the album «Wings», his first album in Norwegian.

Farida: «Dangerous»

Lyrics and music: Farida Bolseth Benounis, Rasmus Simon Vedvik Thallaug, Atle Pettersen, Peter Newman and Hannah Dorothy Bistow

Farida Bolseth Benounis (31) has achieved a lot since her career started in 2016. She received good reviews from Billboard and MTV when she released her first two singles “Three Weeks” and “Solo Ride”. Farida has played at the music festival by:Larm twice and won the award «Model of the Year» in 2016. She has also played at Øyafestivalen in Oslo. Other highlights in her career are that she has been on tour with the world star Dua Lipa and performed at festivals such as South by Southwest in Texas. In 2020, she was listed on the Norwegian radio station NRK P3 five times, and the single “Do About It” was highlighted as the week’s best on the same channel. In September 2021, she became a finalist in “The John Lennon Songwriting Contest” in New York with the same song.

Steffen Jakobsen: «With Me Tonight»

Lyrics and music: Mats William Wennerberg and Nicolai Herwell

Steffen Jakobsen (31) is a country artist and songwriter from Grimstad. He has been involved with music since he was little and performed for the first time at a prayer house. Steffen became a known face to the viewers when he came in 3rd place in Idol in Norway in 2013. His performance of “Your Man” was named the best “Idol moment of the year”. Steffen Jakobsen released his first album “My beginning” in 2009 which sold for gold. He released his second album in 2013, “Six Strings Love Affair”, with famous songs like “Music Man” and “What She Wants”. His biggest dream is to perform on the radio program “Grand Ole Opry” in Nashville. But first, Steffen Jakobsen is ready to use his deep voice on the Melodi Grand Prix stage.

Lily Löwe: «Bad Baby»

Lyrics and music: Lill Sofie Wilsberg, Trond Holter and Victoria Land

Lily Löwe (Lill Sofie Wilsberg) is a 26-year-old artist, songwriter, and stylist from Eidskog. In recent years she has lived in Oslo. Her music is rooted in melodic hard rock but extends over several genres such as metal with elements of pop and punk. Lily wants to challenge the expectations everyone have to the genre, and creates her own unique universe. Lily Löwe’s musical role models include Rammstein and Lady Gaga. She also works as a costume designer and makeup artist on several productions, and is, among other things, a Gullrute nominee for her work with the NRK series Rådebank. Now, she is ready for her debut on the big stage in the Melodi Grand Prix and is currently releasing her first album. With her on stage are Trond Holter, Marius Viken and Bernt Jensen.

Daniel Lukas: «Kvelertak»

Lyrics and music: Daniel Lukas Kalelic and Are Næsset

Daniel Lukas Kalelic is a 23-year-old artist and songwriter from Ellingsrud in Oslo. He comes from a musical family and has been interested in music for as long as he can remember. He was on stage for the first time during MGPjr in 2013 with the song «Tiden går fort». In 2018, he was ready to try his luck in Idol, where he impressed the judges with a self-composed song. The following year he won the talent competition H&M Loves Music and performed at Vulkan in Oslo together with several established Norwegian artists. Music means a lot to him and has helped him through difficult times in his life. Daniel has previously worked as a swimming instructor and is working today as a salesman. His big dream is to be able to work with music full time. Now he is more than ready for the big MGP scene with a song in Norwegian.

Semifinal 3 – Saturday 29th of January

Subwoolfer: «Give That Wolf a Banana» (pre-qualified to the final)

Lyrics and music: Keith and Jim

Subwoolfer – The biggest band in the Galaxy, first formed 4.5 billion years ago on their home planet, the moon. Since then, the brothers, Keith and Jim, have conquered the music scene on every planet, making them the most successful pop group ever. On 20th June 1969, a prophet named Neil appeared to them, and was soon hailed ‘the man with the strongest arms’. He promised to return telling them he would help them become the biggest band on his planet too, but only once they had written the greatest song in the universe, sung in his native tongue – English. Neil never returned however, and so now armed with the greatest song in existence, «Give That Wolf a Banana», they have come to earth in search of him, and to claim their musical throne by performing at the most important and prestigious musical event in the history of the world – MGP Norway 2022.

VILDE: «Titans»

Lyrics and music: Vilde Johannessen, Ben Adams and Sindre Timberlid Jenssen

Vilde Johannessen is a 26-year-old artist and songwriter from the summer island of Tjøme in Vestfold. After finishing a bachelor’s degree in music at the music school LIPA in England, she moved to Oslo in 2018 to pursue an artist career. At the same time, she released her first single, “Get You”, and has since released seven songs on her own record label. In recent years, Vilde has also written for other artists at home and abroad. Among the highlights of her own artist career, she has warmed up for Matoma, Röyksopp and Julie Bergan, sung at the opening ceremony of the Norway Cup, a sold-out Rockefeller, and Gullruten on TV 2. In the beginning of 2021, Vilde released the single «Never Said Enough», and was rewarded as the “Untouched artist of the month” by the Norwegian radio station NRK P3. Shortly afterwards, the song “Motions” became “Song of the Week” on the same radio station and went straight into the Top 200 on Spotify.

Sturla: «Skår i hjertet»

Lyrics and music: Sturla Fagerli Larsen

Sturla Fargerli Larsen is a 27-year-old artist from Trøndelag. He has released pop songs on his own dialect for the last ten years. The journey started during the cultural evenings at the secondary school in Orkdal culture house, to several sold out houses in Norway in recent years. In 2020, he released the song “Som Ingen Andre” together with Hanne Mjøen. The single “Kanskje Du Kan Vær Mitt Paradis” was A-listed on the radio station NRK P1 for several months, while the remaining songs on the EP rotated on NRK P3.

Sturla works daily at the smelter in Orkdal. He enjoys doing different things in life and believes that his work leaves positive traces in the music. Now Sturla is ready to enter the biggest stage of music in Norway.

Oda Gondrosen: «Hammer Of Thor»

Lyrics and music: Morten Franck, Elsa Søllesvik, Torgeir Ryssevik and Oda Kristine Gondrosen

Oda Gondrosen is a 25-year-old artist and songwriter from Gressvik outside Fredrikstad. As a 16-year-old, she signed up for Idol, followed by The Voice in 2015, but she felt too young and found it difficult to get anywhere with the music after her participations. Therefore, Oda put the music dream on the shelf for four years and studied to become a nurse. After working for a few years with people in the last phase of life, Oda decided to focus on the artist dream again while she still had the opportunity. In the spring of 2020, Oda gave music competitions a second chance and agreed to participate in Idol again. After giving the judges goosebumps week after week, Oda reached the final and finished in third place. Now there is no going back for Oda who is fully committed to music. Participating in the Melodi Grand Prix has been one of her dreams for many years, and now she got the chance. She will be competing with the song “Hammer Of Thor”.

Mari Bølla: «Your Loss»

Lyrics and music: Lars Horn Lavik, Morten Franck and Mari Eriksen Bølla

Mari Eriksen Bølla (17) was in the spotlight for the first time when she as a 10-year-old came 3rd in the only season of Idol Junior on TV 2. After this, she got the opportunity to sing on small and large stages, alone and together with other artists.

But the real breakthrough came a few years later. In 2020, Mari took the Norwegian viewers by storm when she – as the youngest of all time – won Idol, only 15 years old. She has been active in singing, dance, theatre, and creative activities her whole life. Music has always been important for her, a place to express all emotions. Mari is also a songwriting and has found her distinctive style as an artist, where songs with strong and personal messages are in focus.

After the victory in Idol 2020, she released the winning song “Now That I Found You”. After that she has released both a Christmas song and the catchy pop song “Not That Girl”. Mari has moved to Oslo to focus fully on her artist career.

Semifinal 4 – Saturday 5th of February

NorthKid: «Someone» (pre-qualified to the final)

Lyrics and music: Helge Moen, Alex Charles, Sandra Lyng and Jim Bergsted

NorthKid is a pop band from the Northern part of Norway, fronted by Bilal Saab. He charmed into many Norwegian hearts when he won the television show Stjernekamp in 2019. With their origins from Alta and Hasvik, NorthKid is possibly the world’s northernmost boy band. Now they go all-in to take Norway by storm and prove worthy of a place in the Eurovision Song Contest in May. Next to Bilal, the other members of the band are Helge Moen, Håkon Guttormsen, Sebastian Willassen and Vegard Olaussen.

Musical joy, playfulness and acceptance are important values for the band in everything they do. That’s something they also want to show through their participation in the Melodi Grand Prix.

Alexandra Joner: «Hasta la vista»

Lyrics and music: Henrik Sæter and Jazara Aden Hutton

Alexandra Joner (31) is a Norwegian-Cuban singer, dancer, and actress, raised in Oslo. She entered the Norwegian TV screens when she as a 16-year-old participated in the dance competition “Dansefeber” on TVNorge. She has worked with dance, music, and social media for many years. In 2012, she released the song “Sunrise” with Madcon, which sold for triple platinum. In 2015, she participated in MGP for the first time, then with the song «Cinderella». In recent years, she has been seen in various TV shows such as “Camp Kulinaris”, “71 grader nord”, and most recently as one of the profiles in the TV 2 show “Bloggerne”. In addition to being an artist, she is also a profile in the makeup and beauty industry. She participates in this year’s MGP with the song “Hasta la vista”, a goodbye to boring and bad boys.

Kim Wigaard: «La Melodia»

Lyrics and music: Kim Wigaard Johansen, Marius Hagen, Karianne Sissener Amundsen and Ronny Janssen

Kim Wigaard (33) is a well-established artist in the Norwegian music industry. He has been working for a long time, nationally and internationally, with music, revues, and opera. He has sung at the Norwegian Opera and Ballet, Off-Broadway in New York and been a soloist for a sold-out Oslo Concert Hall. Kim has a broad education from the Norwegian Academy of Music, the Oslo National Academy of the Arts, and the Manhattan School of Music in New York. Kim is still up to date with new self-written music, and together with Sandra Lyng he has toured Norway with the Christmas tour «Julefantasi». He participated in the Melodi Grand Prix in 2020 with the duet “Fool for Love” together with Maria Mohn.

Maria Mohn: «Fly»

Lyrics and music: Maria Mohn and Einar Kristiansen Five

Maria Mohn is a 38-year-old artist, songwriter, entertainer, and vocal coach. She is a graduate of the Norwegian Academy of Music and has received a lot of positive reviews for her great voice. She has sung in the prestigious award nominated vocal group PUST, in the Norwegian Soloist Choir and has been a leading figure in several other contexts. She has participated in Idol and sung on Beat for Beat, Popstokk and performed her own song “Hope” in connection with the July 22 memorial at the Government Quarter. In 2020, she participated in the Melodi Grand Prix with the duet “Fool for Love” together with Kim Wigaard. Maria has written this year’s contribution, “Fly”, for her three children.

Sofie Fjellvang: «Made Of Glass»

Lyrics and music: Sofie Fjellvang and Kjetil Mørland

Sofie Fjellvang is a 21-year-old singer and songwriter from Kristiansand. Her big breakthrough came when she came all the way to the final of The Voice in 2021. She has always had a dream of making a living of music and started in a children’s choir in her congregation at a very young age. When she studied in Leesville, North Carolina in the USA in 2017, she won a singing competition in an agency she was part of. Now she is well underway with her debut EP with the help of an old acquaintance in the Melodi Grand Prix family, and one she has been a fan of for many years. Sofie is collaborating with Kjetil Mørland on her EP. Kjetil came in a strong 8th place in Eurovision in 2015 together with Debrah Scarlett with the song «A Monster Like Me». Kjetil and Sofie have written the song «Made Of Glass» together.

The Second ChanceSaturday 12th of February

The twelve artists who didn’t make it through the four semi-finals gets a second chance to secure a ticket to the final through “The Second Chance”. The first round will take place on Monday 7 February. This will be a studio-based live broadcast based on the semi-finals, so the artists will not perform live. On this broadcast, twelve artists will become four. On Saturday 12 February, the four artists with the most televotes from Monday’s broadcast will perform again during a live broadcast from H3 Arena. This last Saturday, before the big final, pre-qualified Anna-Lisa Kumoji will showcase her song.

Anna-Lisa Kumoji: «Queen Bees» (pre-qualified to the final)

Lyrics and music: Olli Äkräs, Alan Roy Scott, Elsbeth Rehder and Anna-Lisa Kumoji

Anna-Lisa Kumoji (31) from Asker / Drammen outside Oslo is educated at the Bårdar Academy and has many years of experience as a professional singer, actress, dubber and musical artist. Among other things, she’s had roles in “The Book of Mormon”, “Flashdance” and now lately she played the role of Anita in “West Side Story”. She has done several film and TV roles as well and is the voice in a number of films. In 2019, she became a finalist in “All Together Now” on TVNorge, and not least she became a gold finalist in the Melodi Grand Prix with the song “Holla” the same year. Last year, Anna-Lisa was seen in Stjernekamp and aroused great enthusiasm among the reviewers. Now she is ready for the MGP stage again, the same stage that gave her the big breakthrough as an solo artist in 2019.

 

What do you think about the Melodi Grand Prix 2022 lineup? Who should represent Norway in Turin? Tell us your thoughts below!

171 Comments
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Andi
Andi
2 years ago

After 2 weeks of listening to all the songs I now have my Top 3:

  1. Maria Mohn – Fly
  2. Vilde – Titans
  3. Oda – Hammer of Thor
ingeborg
ingeborg
2 years ago

The lead singer of Northkid is well known and loved in norway. A few years ago he won a really big singing competition show where artists have to sing in many different genres. He was unknown then and won over some big artists. People voted for him for 10 weeks. so he already has alot of love from the public. He has an amazing voice live and good stage presence, but based on the song the staging might be forgettable compared to some of the others. Look up Bilal stjernekamp.

Emkay
Emkay
2 years ago

This is a pretty good selection, but I don’t hear a clear winner. Still, can’t wait to see the live performances.

Leenchen
Leenchen
2 years ago

Give that wolf a banana and give me Subwoolfer for Eurovision!!

Fer
Fer
2 years ago

I do not see here a top10 in Torino. Last year the selection was muche better…

Yana
Yana
2 years ago
Reply to  Fer

Totally agree. I would pick Black Flowers, La Melodia or Fly but I’m not in love with any song for this edition.

Addie
Addie
2 years ago

I have quite a lot to say about MGP this year: First of all, there are only two songs in Norwegian! Well, there’s that La Melodia song, but it has like, one line in Italian. That is so annoying, I don’t know why NRK isn’t doing something about this. Next, on what basis is NRK choosing the pre-qualified songs? I don’t understand why Northkid or Christian Ingebrigtsen are qualified already. It would be better if they would tell why, but that doesn’t seem like happening. This process is so non-transparent. The semi-finalists are better. (But I do have to admit… Read more »

Addie
Addie
2 years ago
Reply to  Addie

I’m sorry if I offended anyone. No offense to NRK, they have actually done a really good job this year! I guess I got carried away…

Kosey
Kosey
2 years ago

Can I just say that Bad Baby is so bad, in the 80s/early 90s sort of way.

Colin
Colin
2 years ago
Reply to  Kosey

Not among my favorites here, but not that bad IMHO. 🙂 Although I do see a throwback aspect of it. In a Wig Wam tribute sort of way. 🙂

What I find fascinating is that we have a fourth ESC-related song called Hasta la Vista, and so far, ALL of them are incapable of having semi-decent lyrics. What’s up with that? 😉

Last edited 2 years ago by Colin
Kosey
Kosey
2 years ago
Reply to  Colin

I think I am on the lookout for something that feels a bit different this year, and yes, even the title of that song feels lazy and the actual song itself doesn’t do much to dissuade me, although it is a perfectly reasonable effort. I haven’t found a potential ESC winner in any of the selections so far – I feel like it is still out there yearning to be found.

Colin
Colin
2 years ago
Reply to  Kosey

I get it. I feel like a lot of people here are trying to find that *special one* on time. There were times I tried to do so myself. So far, I have a couple of songs *I* personally absolutely love – Home (Estonia), Jezinky (Czechia), Terra (Spain), Kui vaid (Estonia), and most likely at least 3 or 4 from Norway. I’m not bothering whether they’d win ESC, but they could win my ranking, or get dangerously close. 🙂 I hope you’ll find something you’ll think of as your winner soon. There’s still so many selections to go through. Can’t… Read more »

Kosey
Kosey
2 years ago
Reply to  Colin

Yes, still early days, I am slightly upset that Norway didn’t deliver a song to fall in love with as they have done really well on my lists in recent years (KEiiNO, Ulrikke and TIX were all top 5 and I don’t think any will get top 5 for me this year) but I’m sure there’s something out there that will be right up my street!

I am also not convinced we’ve found an ESC winner yet either – there hasn’t been anything that deserves the hype train just yet i don’t think. There are exciting times ahead!

Sabrina
Sabrina
2 years ago
Reply to  Colin

Eurovision 2021 was so good that I feel many people are putting huge expectation on the next edition. But I guess we always had this kind of division in the fandom. There are people that are only interested in finding the winner. Fair enough, nothing wrong with that, but I couldn’t be like that, because I would be frustrated almost all the time. For example, I haven’t felt a “this could win Eurovision yet”, though I can see some songs already released reaching top 10, maybe even top 5 depending on the rest of the lineup and how well they… Read more »

Colin
Colin
2 years ago
Reply to  Colin

That one surprisingly has slightly better lyrics. Slightly. 🙂

Anita
Anita
2 years ago

“I really like your teeth”!

Alex
Alex
2 years ago

“Someone” made the highest debut On Spotify in Norway.
I expected Give that wolf a a banana.. Still was the 2nd.
“Death of us” being the 3rd.
Could be a close race

Colin
Colin
2 years ago
Reply to  Alex

Interesting. I only shows that Norway will, for the third year in a row, likely pick a direct finalist over a semifinalist. Personally, I really like all three of these songs, but I do see Someone to be in a biggest risk to be left in the semi out of these three. Then again, it has really sentimental lyrics and a really lovely melody, which could make it a spiritual successor of Fallen Angel. It may do well. However, I’d say that Give That Wolf a Banana and Death of Us could be Norway’s ticked to a top ten result.

Alex
Alex
2 years ago
Reply to  Colin

I see Someone as the typical song that is overlooked by fandom but.. that it has an easy appeal for locals and just gets voted thanks to lovely and sentimental melody as you said. Very pleasant and easy to relate . Similar to Germany 2018/2012 or the same Norway in 2003. Fandom for whatever reason never pay attention to this kind of songs but they can really surprise with locals. And juries would vote for it as well I guess. It’s safe enough. I don’t see any danger in qualifying even tho It’s very early. Live performance will be very… Read more »

Last edited 2 years ago by Alex
KLINE
KLINE
2 years ago

Digesting it all – “Fly” is by far the best entry in MGP this year. Let’s hope Norway doesn’t get caught up in Elsie and Death of Us = copy Bulgaria’s entry of last year!

Last edited 2 years ago by KLINE
Andi
Andi
2 years ago
Reply to  KLINE

I agree with “Fly”. I just love it!

Leendert Jan
Leendert Jan
2 years ago

I would probably pick “Death of us”, but overall I’m not really impressed with Norway’s selection of songs this year.

Ronan
Ronan
2 years ago

Nice entries, but I need to listen to them fully as they’re performed live. As of now, I see many potential winners for MGP.

Azaad
Azaad
2 years ago

I don’t think Norway can sustain a semi final based selection. Frankly, it’s a huge shift from 10 songs which is reflected in the increased number of mediocre to poor songs selected to fill spots. Sorry to sound rude, and there are still great songs here. However, 5 good songs out of 10 is better than having 6 good songs out of 21, for instance. Anyway, barring a huge upset or her flopping live, this is probably Elsie’s to lose. Norway trends towards songs with elements of edge and darkness in them regardless of genre, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2019… Read more »

ESCnorwegian
ESCnorwegian
2 years ago
Reply to  Azaad

I’m actually suprised there weren’t so many bad songs as the previous years. We usually had like only 1 in each semi that was good, even sometimes not, also many were so poorly produced and sung. And I feel most of them this year has some good stuff. What i want to say is that these semis are even better than the pre-qualified. There’s only 2 of them that are nice, which is Elsie and Subwoolfer. The other ones don’t stand a chance in the final. At least northkid and christian should have been changed with maybe Oda and Sofie.… Read more »

Pasadena
Pasadena
2 years ago

Death of Us > Give That Wolf a Banana

Jamie
Jamie
2 years ago

“Death of Us” is epic. Literally could win Eurovision

ESCnorwegian
ESCnorwegian
2 years ago
Reply to  Jamie

I don’t think so. It is really risky tho, which is great! But I was waiting for something really big cuz it builds up well. I felt we didn’t get it, or not even a high note. Only on display. Anyways, With good staging and vocals I think it can get a high result in esc! I get kind of a Lana Del Rey mix with billie eillish vibe from it tho! It’s kind of similar to 2016, which had this shifting in the song. Like 2 different songs. it didn’t even qualify and i’m still not over it. And… Read more »

Azaad
Azaad
2 years ago
Reply to  ESCnorwegian

I think if the instrumentation is changed to make it more epic and haunting Norway could be onto a dark horse 1944 style winner. How Elsie sings live is also an important factor.

Jacob
Jacob
2 years ago

Hammer of Thor, Queen Bees and Death of Us are among my top 3. Great songs

Last edited 2 years ago by Jacob
lasse braun
lasse braun
2 years ago
Reply to  Jacob

i take the hammer from it.
🙂

ArvinRoido Atienza
ArvinRoido Atienza
2 years ago

ESC Fans: Oh my god, these guys had already won this natl final/represented their country in the past. Should they give other artists a chance?
Norway: Say goodbye to returnees!
Raylee fans: (a la Fallen Angel) Nooooooooooooooo!

lasse braun
lasse braun
2 years ago

this year i swing the hammer of thor.

😀

shira
shira
2 years ago

Seems like MGP wants to send a ballad this year. I really like Dangerous.

ESCnorwegian
ESCnorwegian
2 years ago
Reply to  shira

Me too!! It’s really good. I HOPE it is a dark horse, cuz already the odds has it at the bottomZ

Young At Heart in Austin
Young At Heart in Austin
2 years ago

Sofia’s songs is good and I love anything penned by Morland.

ete sech
ete sech
2 years ago

Nice entries mostly, but I’ve always felt it’s unfair to have already qualified acts for the final

Azaad
Azaad
2 years ago
Reply to  ete sech

In 2020 it seemed fair as a one off concept as the pre qualified acts were veterans of the contest/more famous (it also helped that Attention was miles ahead of the other songs in terms of quality). But this year and the last the determination of who gets to the final automatically seems arbitrary and thus problematic.

ESCnorwegian
ESCnorwegian
2 years ago
Reply to  Azaad

There’s possible dark horses in the semis, which is sad. Cuz it’s gonna be a blood bath if only one dark horse can make it through.

Sabrina
Sabrina
2 years ago
Reply to  ESCnorwegian

I think the whole format for MGP is flawed. The duels for example, they tend to be harmful to riskier entries. But yeah, the biggest problem is to have pre-qualified acts that aren’t as good as semifinalists. It lacks transparency, since they don’t acknowledge why those were the pre-qualified (if that’s because you invited those specific people while the others submitted entries, why not telling it?). And if they put all the best songs direct to final (as it would be fair), they would risk having weak semis that nobody would care about. Plus, this year they basically let it… Read more »

Colin
Colin
2 years ago
Reply to  Sabrina

For me, this year I have no major issues with how they picked five automatic qualifiers. I’m not saying that these would be my exact top 5 (even if my winner is likely here), but all of these songs are pretty good, and will help with the quality of the final if the semi winners aren’t as strong. However, last year I didn’t find all of the automatic qualifiers to be better than a lot of the semifinalists.

Sabrina
Sabrina
2 years ago
Reply to  Colin

I’m not a fan of Anna-Lisa’s and Christian’s entries. But that’s why I say there’s a lack of transparency. They’re probably there for being seasoned performers with a history in MGP (he wrote a winner song, she did well in a recent edition). If you let clear they’re automatic qualifiers because they were invited or handpicked for their experience, some people won’t still don’t like it, but we won’t have the discussion about what if those songs are better than the ones disputing semis. One possible solution: do something like EMA Fres. If they really want 6 weeks of MGP,… Read more »

Colin
Colin
2 years ago
Reply to  Sabrina

I agree that picking more seasoned performers ahead can seem a bit unfair, but I’ve heard it’s their way of convincing more bigger names to give it a try. EMA Freš style could be okay if it were handled better than EMA Freš itself (I mean, I’ve listened to one recap, and almost all of them, apart from maybe two, feel like demos to a point of being impossible to actually assess them.) But if they’d be able to have a pre-selection like Sanremo Giovani, it would be cool. Personally, I enjoy this multi-semi system for the fact that the… Read more »

Last edited 2 years ago by Colin
Sabrina
Sabrina
2 years ago
Reply to  Colin

When I mentioned EMA Fres was more like in an idea to have a pre-MGP sort of competition. Sanremo Giovani would be a better example, but they keep changing how they use it. I also shouldn’t had used “newcomers”, because it seems many of the acts in MGP’s semis are actually experienced, even if not under the spotlights. They also have structure to produce their entries accordingly. In the end, having pre-qualifiers will always look unfair, especially when one disagree with the quality of their entries. But if having them is the only way to have KEiiNO and TIX or… Read more »

Colin
Colin
2 years ago
Reply to  Sabrina

By now, you already know I’m quite selective with bangers (maybe as a reaction to a huge part of the fandom being not selective at all with them)” I know, as well as you know that I am pretty much the same. That’s why I said that Queen Bees is (perhaps surprisingly) the only ”banger” that’s high on my preliminary MGP list. It applies even more for Romania. People would likely really dislike my top 46, as many of the fan-favorites don’t really fare well there (even if the overall quality of the two selections is very different in general).

Sabrina
Sabrina
2 years ago
Reply to  Colin

In Romania, I can understand a so-so banger topping lists, because I don’t think they have terrific options. I guess the best banger of the season so far is “Sekret”, even more considering the potential it has with a good revamp.

Colin
Colin
2 years ago
Reply to  Sabrina

The thing with Romanian selection process is that it doesn’t even matter which songs are the best, it only matters which ones stand out the most. Unlike Estonia, they weren’t prudent enough to doze such a lenghty selection, and most people just don’t have my patience (or masochism, lol) to give every song a try in their own time. I absolutely understand why the catchiest songs top the lists.

Sebastián
Sebastián
2 years ago

I love the linguistic diversity HAHAHHAHAHA

Addie
Addie
2 years ago
Reply to  Sebastián

I totally get your sarcasm! But, actually, when I noticed there were like, only two songs in Norwegian, I was kinda frustrated ?

Colin
Colin
2 years ago

This was a long evening, but it paid off. I knew I could count on Norway to bring quality and diversity! Just like last year, I found a lot of songs I immediately liked. There are a few songs I can see among my overall NF favorites. Death of Us is really haunting and beautiful! Give That Wolf a Banana is everything I want in a comedic act – It’s clever, funny, layered, and with a big staging potential. The other three songs which are pre-qualified are pre-qualified for a reason. Anna-Lisa, Maria Mohn, Steffen, Sofie all have songs very… Read more »

Lolek
Lolek
2 years ago
Reply to  Colin

Its available on Spotify here in Canada, and personally, its my favourite so far!! Truly epic!

Jessica Folcker
Jessica Folcker
2 years ago
Reply to  Lolek

I listened to it 3 times already. Goofy lyrics aside, it is amazing. Would love to see it at Eurovision. Let’s hope she can pull off those vocals live.

ESCnorwegian
ESCnorwegian
2 years ago

I will tell u, Oda came 2nd on Idol in 2020. She is a very good performer. So I think she’s gonna pull off the song. It’s a potential winner of mgp if the staging and vocals are good!

Colin
Colin
2 years ago
Reply to  Colin

Read between the lines. The song isn’t as straight-forward as it appears to be.

Sabrina
Sabrina
2 years ago
Reply to  Colin

In my defense, I used “sophisticated” in a comparison sentence! But I guess this may applies to Colin too. I mean, I don’t believe he thinks the banana song is clever in the same way like the lyrics for “Non mi avete fatto niente”, but for a joke act. I think the song is silly, but silly in a cute way. And I appreciate the cheekiness behind the line “That hairy coat of yours with nothing underneath”. I must say “Eat My Sallad” made me laugh more because of its totally casual bluntness, but EBU would never let that opening… Read more »

Colin
Colin
2 years ago
Reply to  Sabrina

Exactly. 🙂 I wouldn’t go as far as ”No me avete fatto niente”, but this is a really smart metaphor for a certain disease and the way it has to be treated for it to stop. It is packaged in a catchy wolf story. Sometimes, comedy is a way to deal with bigger issues in a way that seems unassuming. A big plus for me! 🙂
Out of four comedic acts in Latvia, I do find the salad song to be the best one (even if I’m not vegan myself).

Last edited 2 years ago by Colin
Colin
Colin
2 years ago
Reply to  Colin

It’s most likely about Covid. Wolf = disease, banana = vaccine, eating a grandma = old people dying if the disease spreads, call you ”Keith or Jim” cause it doesn’t even matter = who cares if it’s delta, omicron or whatever… 🙂
It’s okay. Joke entries aren’t for everyone. Personally, for me they are varying to significant degrees. I love the wolf song, I am okay with the salad one, I physically cringe at ”He She You and Me.” 😉

Colin
Colin
2 years ago
Reply to  Colin

The salad song is more funny than actually good for me, but at least it stands out in the topic it covers, and could pass as actually entertaining if done right on stage. It’s far from being my Supernova winner (that would likely be between Aminata and Patriks). Consider yourself lucky for forgetting the third song. It’s so painfully cringe (probably the cringiest one out of everything released so far for me), even if it sadly is kinda catchy. Ouch! 😉 🙁

Last edited 2 years ago by Colin
Sabrina
Sabrina
2 years ago
Reply to  Colin

I’m normally not a fan of joke entries either, but I can appreciate them when the joke is elaborated (for example, I love the whole Sylvia Night thing and it gets better when so many people couldn’t handle it) or when there’s genuine musical effort behind it (“We Are the Winners” comes to my mind). And I feel the banana song has a bit of both. On the other hand, I wouldn’t pick the salad song (I’m between Aminata and Raum so far), but that opening line is such a punch on the listeners’ face, that I laughed with an… Read more »

Colin
Colin
2 years ago
Reply to  Sabrina

Raum is my third. These three are the ones I think Latvia could qualify with. Perhaps the salad song too, but only if it pulls off a Serhat-style televoting. There’s no way that juries would reward it much. 🙂 It takes a lot of effort to pull a really good ”joke entry” – Verka and Little Big immediately come to mind of how to perfect the job. Also, when you look at it, there were a lot of great subtly comedic acts that weren’t as obviously ”in your face” with the funny aspect, but were still hilarious! Hatari, Dadi &… Read more »

Last edited 2 years ago by Colin
Sabrina
Sabrina
2 years ago
Reply to  Sabrina

I got it, but I regret the use of “sophisticated” even in a comparion fashion haha Still think it’s a fun entry though.

Ethan1994
Ethan1994
2 years ago

I remember them saying months ago that they were considering using a 50/50 jury-televote somehow either this year or next year. They didn’t say how they would use it, though.

Last edited 2 years ago by Ethan1994
Alexander Gunnarsson
Alexander Gunnarsson
2 years ago
Reply to  Ethan1994

It’s changing into 50/50 format I read some time ago, confirmed

Eurovision fan
Eurovision fan
2 years ago

Give That Wolf a Banana sounds interesting and promising, but somehow it fails to impress me and make me truly love it. I will be ok if they win.

Last edited 2 years ago by Eurovision fan
Rob
Rob
2 years ago

Death of us is a mess.. its like 5 different songs in one… but i cant stop lstening to it haha
tbh i didnt like the rest of the songs

BTW PLEAAAASE SPAIN SEND TERRA TO TURIN… dont do the mistake and choose another song.. pls pls pls

Alex
Alex
2 years ago

Very disappointing. Last year’s MGP was amazing, had great songs and performances while this year’s songs are rubbish and unoriginal. Disappointing! You’d think that after TIX taking part and Maneskin having success, there would be stronger entries..

Moonstar
Moonstar
2 years ago
Reply to  Alex

I know…

Alex
Alex
2 years ago
Reply to  Alex

lol at the downvotes, seems like you can’t even express your opinion respectfully here.

Roodi
Roodi
2 years ago

Oslo 2023 if Elsie is gonna win MGP

ESCnorwegian
ESCnorwegian
2 years ago
Reply to  Roodi

I don’t think so

Teddie
Teddie
2 years ago

Frankly, overall a slight disappointment after the absolutely stellar last year’s MGP (which was, dare I say, on par with Eurovision itself). However, I understand we can’t get that level of brilliance on a regular basis. Hopefully Subwoolfer wins this fair & square and we’ll move on

Stian F
Stian F
2 years ago

So many good songs, but only 2 stand out songs and those are Elsie Bye’s “Death of Us” and Farida’s “Dangerous” – many more very good songs as well and ALL of these songs are better than at least 10-12 songs from last years MGP, so overall a very good year. When looking back at 2021 i cant believe how many bad songs that took part compared to 2022!

Ukraine stan
Ukraine stan
2 years ago

I think they only use televoting, but maybe some instance of jury in the final exists

PaulS
PaulS
2 years ago

100 % public vote

Tom
Tom
2 years ago

Subwoolfer is the only good option for them

Moonstar
Moonstar
2 years ago

There is not a single original song in this year’s MGP. They mostly sound the same and most are too americanised. I am underwhelmed. The Latvian line-up is a 1000 times better!

Last edited 2 years ago by Moonstar
Europotato
Europotato
2 years ago
Reply to  Moonstar

Didn’t hear anything at all I would love.

Moonstar
Moonstar
2 years ago
Reply to  Europotato

If you like MGP this year, then you wouldn’t.

Stian F
Stian F
2 years ago
Reply to  Moonstar

Really? Get some new pair of ears then or just go bake a cake!

Addie
Addie
2 years ago
Reply to  Stian F

Was that pun intended?

Apollo
Apollo
2 years ago

The standard has dropped considerably compared to the previous 2 editions of MGP.

Death of Us obviously stands out the most but I wouldn’t be surprised if the wolf song won.

Roro31
2 years ago

I love :

  • Alexandra Joner
  • Elsie Bay (WINNER alert !!)
  • Lily Lowe
  • Mari Bolla
  • Maria Mohn
  • NorthKid
  • Oda Gondrosen
  • Sofie Fjellvang
  • Subwoolfer
  • Vilde

I hope the lives will be good !!! But I can say that it is a very good selection for Norway, and I also find that Latvia and Romania have good songs, we must stop saying that Eurovision 2022 is weak !!

Roro31
2 years ago
Reply to  Roro31

For me, not weak !

ete sech
ete sech
2 years ago
Reply to  Roro31

I had the feeling that it’s gonna be even a stronger year than 2021. And now that many NF are taking shape, it looks like that’s gonna happen

Oy oy
Oy oy
2 years ago

After listening to all the songs, and without knowing what us the general opinion, I think «Kvelertak» with Daniel Lykas stands out the most I think the youth of Norway will give this alot of votes if he can deliver live. My very good nr.2 is, Elsie Bay, like many other mentiones. It’s reminds me of Billie Eilish. I think the real fight for the victory will be beteewn these two.

mark dowd
mark dowd
2 years ago

I think Death of Us, Someone and Fly stand out. It’s Elsie’s to lose…what if she sings live like Roxen?

Ricky
Ricky
2 years ago

Elsie Bay, Sofie Fjellvang, NorthKid and Eline Noelia delivered such QUALITY! Any of these songs could easily be TOP 10 at Eurovision!!! Whats with all the negativity in the comments?
WELL DONE NORWAY ??!!!

ete sech
ete sech
2 years ago
Reply to  Ricky

Knowing that Norwegians chose Tix, I feel the fandom’s concerned about them choosing Subwoolfers

Addie
Addie
2 years ago
Reply to  ete sech

Really??

Tommy Ø.
2 years ago

I’ve waited so long for this day and I’m so glad NRK decided to release all songs at the same time this year. After listening through all the songs five of them stand out for me personally, in alphabetical order; Christian Ingebrigtsen / Elsie Bay / Maria Mohn / NorthKid / SubWoolfer. I don’t think Maria Mohn (had some adult radio hits) got high changes, even though I love the song. Christian I. is well known here for his time in A1 etc, but I don’t think his song stand out, and maybe it’s a tad old fashioned for winning.… Read more »

Jack
Jack
2 years ago

I honestly can’t stop listening to Subwoolfer’s song. I can’t wait to see the live performance!

Jesper Hjellnes
Jesper Hjellnes
2 years ago

It’s true. Can’t stop thinking about Jan Fredrik Karlsen (MGP head at that time) claiming in 2016 that one of the MGP entries could win ESC, and then we got 13th in semifinal (though I believe he could have thought about Afterglow instead of Icebreaker)

Jessica Folcker
Jessica Folcker
2 years ago

Hammer Of Thor has a great melody. If it was sung in Norwegian it would have been a perfect song.

GojoSatoru
GojoSatoru
2 years ago

Great melody, but terrible lyrics to be honest.

lasse braun
lasse braun
2 years ago
Reply to  GojoSatoru

who cares about lyrics!

moldova
moldova
2 years ago

All the songs are very middle of the road. Disappointed.

Sabrina
Sabrina
2 years ago

Another professional and diverse lineup in MGP. Maybe disappointing for those looking for an Eurovision winner, but I enjoyed listening to the playlist. I’ll echo many people here by saying so far my favorite is “Death of Us”. Elsie has a really cute voice (it reminds me of Marit Larsen) and in terms of songwriting, I believe this is by far the most creative one. If it sounds like that when performed live, it’s a done deal to me. But I also liked “Bad Baby”, which is sort of a Bon Jovi song with a metal edge and bad ass… Read more »

Sabrina
Sabrina
2 years ago
Reply to  Sabrina

What can I say? I think “Bad Baby” is highly entertaining. And part of the appeal to me is that I wasn’t expecting something like a Norwegian version of ANNABELLE singing a song that could be the odd love child of Wig Wam and Jorn. 😀 I didn’t pay attention to the lyrics yet though, after all, I’ve listened to 31 (10 from Latvia) Eurovision hopefuls in the space of 2 hours. I’m firmly on Team Elsie so far anyway, considering she can sing like that live. And hey, you can’t judge me, you liked “La Melodia”! That’s one I… Read more »

Last edited 2 years ago by Sabrina
Sabrina
Sabrina
2 years ago
Reply to  Sabrina

We were on the peak years of the Game of Thrones fever (with the show Vikings on the side), of course the televote would love that. And it wasn’t a bad song, from time to time I catch myself humming the chorus. I guess “Made of Glass” and “Fly” can still be surprise contenders, because these are the kind of songs that can be elevated by the performers. At the same time I wouldn’t mind it, I guess the fandom would riot if this happens. I also like “Skar i hjertet” and have nothing against “Titans”, I may even start… Read more »

mi7kel
mi7kel
2 years ago

So… I like ecstasy :$.

musica
musica
2 years ago

Death of Us is the kind of depressed Valley girl ballad that we get a lot of nowadays. I mean, it’s cool if you actually are a depressed Valley girl, but if you’re not it rarely works.

GojoSatoru
GojoSatoru
2 years ago

My favorite of each heat: Heat 1: Black Flowers (6/10) Heat 2: With Me Tonight (8/10) Heat 3: Titans (6.5/10) Heat 4: Fly (10/10) Ratings for each pre-qualified song: Queen Bees: 7/10 Wonder Of The World: 4/10 Death of Us: 9/10 Someone: 7/10 Give That Wolf A Banana: 9/10 My top 5: Maria Mohn – Fly Subwoolfer – Give That Wolf A Banana Elsie Bay – Death of Us Steffen Jakobsen – With Me Tonight Sofie Fjellvang – Made of Glass Notes: Fly, With Me Tonight and Made of Glass are the only good semifinal songs in my opinion. Despite… Read more »

GojoSatoru
GojoSatoru
2 years ago
Reply to  GojoSatoru

Considering Fly has less than 1% to win according to the betting odds, Fly feels like a hidden gem.

Eurovision98
Eurovision98
2 years ago

12 Points go to Titans by Vilde!

Addie
Addie
2 years ago
Reply to  Eurovision98

Yes!!! I hope it will qualify!

Alo
Alo
2 years ago

“death of us” is definitely the frontrunner.
The thing is-Greece seems to go with a very similar direction with a Norwegian girl as well!

BadWoolfGirl
BadWoolfGirl
2 years ago
Reply to  Alo

Uh Oh, a head-to-head battle