She’s the Melodifestivalen legend who was expecting a place in Melfest 2017 after being disqualified from the competition earlier this year. But when the 2017 line-up was announced on Wednesday, Anna Book‘s name was not on the list. And she’s spoken out, saying she’s extremely upset at missing out.
At Melodifestivalen 2016, Anna Book’s entry “Himmel för två” was dramatically disqualified. Eurovision fans identified the song as having been based on Felicia Dunaf’s entry in the 2014 Moldovan national final. However, Anna Book was still able to perform the song out of competition at her Melfest semi-final.
SVT reportedly said that Anna would be welcome back at Melodifestivalen 2017, and prolific Melfest songwriter Fredrik Kempe offered to write her an entry. But as Anna told Expressen in October, she was still waiting to hear from both SVT and Kempe.
In a recent interview with Aftonbladet, a tearful Anna revealed that the Melfest team had not approached her regarding 2017. She said she felt betrayed by the Melfest team, especially boss Christer Björkman and project manager Anette Helenius.
Anna told the newspaper, “I’m incredibly disappointed that it is so easy for them to get out of a lot of promises and statements about “this will not happen” and “we will compensate for this”, but you hear nothing.”
Anna says she asked her manager to contact SVT to ask what was happening but did not receive a response.
However, SVT says they have not heard anything from Anna Book. An SVT representative stated: “We have not received any request about Anna Book’s participation in Melodifestivalen 2017 and we have not promised her a place in Melodifestivalen.”
Prolific Melodifestivalen songwriter Fredrik Kempe has been busy this year as a judge on Swedish Idol. He does not have any songs in Melodifestivalen 2017, his first time away from the competition in 11 years.
It does not appear that Anna Book made any effort to organise a song as her potential Melfest entry.
What do you think? Was Anna Book unfairly overlooked? Or should she have been more proactive in organising her entry? Share your thoughts below.
@ Pollaski – lol! spot on comment 🙂
#Justice4Book
You know what? I’m upset now.
I didn’t make the Top 24 of Melodifestivalen either, and I really wanted to. Why should the mere technicality that I DIDNT ENTER ANYTHING be holding me back.
SVT, I demand restitution for this! Who’s with me?
LOL you can’t just be promised a place in the semis if there are 2500 songs to pick from. Especially not if you don’t manage to write a song obviously. What was she doing all year? Sitting next to her phone waiting for Björkman to call?
@Purple Mask: Not a bad idea. I hear they’re looking for someone. But I’ll bet Serhat has a better chance of representing San Marino (again) than she does, and that’s because…
@Denis: …Your statement is quite probably true. She probably spent the next 7 months (March to September) doing nothing, instead of sitting down and writing new material, or seeking out writers and/or producers to work with her on ESC-worthy songs, WITH EXTENSIVE CHECKS ON THE LYRICS/MUSIC, of course.
Alex, from Spain, SVT didn’t actually promise her anything. That’s not how the rules go. SVT can’t promise anyone they will compete, that would be breaking the rules and accusing them of favouring acts.
If Anna wanted to take part she should have actively seek out producers to work with, not just sit and doing nothing
Tears over doing nothing, it seems.
Maybe she could sing for San Marino instead. 😀
#aintnobodygottimeforthisbsbookbook Can anyone tell Miss Book that she has an alphabet back in the 80s that she can revive and resing every damn time she wants in case of nostalgia … cause this is 2016 and we have more relevant musical moments to focus on .. Plus … can anyone also explain to this lady that MF and ESC have always been a song contest regardless of the singer and his or her popularity? It’s about the best or the most popular/loved SONG and not about the SINGER … and REAL the problem was not her but the song she… Read more »
@Robyn: Just a thought: Why didn’t she make her intention of competing in MF 2017 the sooner the 2016 contest ended? She could have got started on putting together material for ESC-worthy songs back then, and put in storage whatever songs she had prepared, before going into the recording studio in September, and submitted her songs soon after recording them. Did she think it would be a foregone conclusion that THEY would come to HER, after what happened at MF this past February?
They promised her a come-back in 2017, after being suddenly disqualified, which wasn’t her fault, so I can understand how she feels. Maybe her song wouldn’t have been the super hit of the year or composed by herself, but other things are more important, I think.
She should put into her mind that approaching SVT in the first place is also part of competing so she can win them over. Now that this happened, she could simply wait and fight back in 2018 and just get it over with. Her publicity is unnecessary as M I H A I’s.
Doesn’t she realise Sweden makes fun of her all the time? Crying out in media about every small thing that happens to her?
This is her way of staying in the spotlight, whining for attention.
Anna should play by the rules. Don’t expect any special treatment cause you were “robbed” last year.
if you want to compete send in an entry, don’t sit around wait for it!
No loss at all musically. Another poor dated MF schlager. And rules are rules…
If there is someone I do feel sorry for – it is ovidiu Anton! MF is nothing compared to esc. And his song was great. Unlike hers. Brilliant hard rock. And an actual musical loss
This is the laziest attempt of being part of anything that I have ever heard of, LMAO.
Anna should read a book
She’s quite annoying, everytime she comes to the newspapers she cries about that big injustice, get over it.
Can’t she write her own song?
She is desperate for attention. Everyone knows it and are making fun of her atm. People are just tired of her. She should give up now.
She’s complaining because that’s what she does. She always cries about everything in media, she’s a dramaqueen.
I don’t really understand what she is complaining about. Last year was unfortunate but her song already existed , it’s a competition and it didn’t comply with the rules – end of story. They were very gracious letting her perform it. Of course she can go back another year because entering a non-valid song doesn’t ban you for life, but why was she waiting to hear from them? Just get a song and enter it like everyone else. Life doesn’t come to you. If you want to enter a song, contact a composer yourself (and don’t rely on one person),… Read more »
I feel sorry fir her but she should have contacted other composers. As an artist you can’t just wait for people to contact you for deals/songs etc.
@marcus, correction. She did not write or enter the song herself. Songwriters wrote it and her label entered the song. MF accepted her song into the competition… If anyone is not at fault here it is Anna.
@Marcus (day one)
Then again, Anna had no idea that the song was even released anywhere else, plus the same songwriters that wrote that song also wrote the song that was made in 2014. In short, it’s more the songwriters fault that this happened than Anna Books, as she had no idea that the song was made anywhere else but at that time.
So she enters a song that had already been entered to a Eurovision selection before.
So she clearly didn’t follow the rules and they let her perform as a nicecity.
And all they did was not ban her from entering a song next year.
I mean really she’s gotten more than she most would have.
If she couldn’t be bothered getting a song together or doing anything then why should she have people falling over heels because she never bothered to do a background check on her song.
Why should she get special treatment for breaking the rules?