Júlí Heiðar is one of the names debuting at this year’s Söngvakeppnin. He has been making a name for himself in the Icelandic hip-hop scene, but the general public may not be particularly familiar with him. His song “Spring yfir heiminn”, performed by Þórdís Birna and Guðmundur Snorri, will compete in the second semifinal. He co-wrote the lyrics with Guðmundur.
We got the chance to have a little talk with Júlí himself and asked him a little bit about the song.
Þórdís Birna & Guðmundur Snorri “Spring Yfir Heiminn”
This is the first time that you’ve participated in Söngvakeppnin, what was it that made you want to take part this year?
The reason is simple: I just wanted to be a part of it all.
Have you (Júlí Heiðar and Guðmundur Snorri) sent in a song before?
I have sent a few songs to the preselection, but this is the first time that Guðmundur has been a part of a song in Söngvakeppnin.
What initiated the collaboration?
Me and Guðmundur have known each other for years and worked on music together before. Funny enough I met Þórdísi through Tinder, and find out later that she actually is a great singer. The song was originally written for a male voice, but after the song got through I decided to get Þórdís to sing it.
“Ready to Break Free” (Spring yfir heiminn) – English version
Have you decided anything when it comes to the staging?
We have been throwing a lot of ideas back and forth, but we don’t really don’t want to say too much, as we haven’t quite come to a decision about the staging.
Rap songs haven’t made much of an impact in Söngvakeppnin, do you think that’s going to have some effect on your place in the competition, if so then what?
Songs that are not written after the typical Eurovision formula tend to get a lot of attention, and it sure doesn’t hurt when the song is good. Plus hip hop music has been getting some real attention in Icelandic popular culture, so we hope that that’s gonna have some positive outcome for our song.
Finally, do you have a message for the readers of wiwibloggs.
We sincerely hope that you’ll enjoy our song and a merry Eurovision.
