Melodifestivalen 2014 - Sanna Nielsen won!

The problem when I delay these posts is that I forget what I wanted to write about. Up until last year I was blogging as soon as the semis and the final were over. But not this year. So many things happened this year that I kinda abandoned the blog. But here I am, 5 days after the final.

Sanna did it! 7th time's the charm in her case! Her dream finally came true! She will represent Sweden in Copenhagen! And I'm so happy for her! Even happier coz she won mello with only 2 points above Ace Wilder! Thank God! 3 more points for Ace and we would have the worst Swedish entry ever! I have no problem with Ace. I don't even know her. But I hate her song.

So, Sanna first, Ace second and my Alcazar finished 3rd! Both in juries and televoting! So proud for them! :') And that top 3 got actually the biggest response in the arena! The audience went crazy during and right after Alcazar's performance! It was insane! They also cheered for them during the voting numbers' announcement. And that happened only during Alcazar's and Ace's numbers! However I knew that Sanna was going to win as soon as she stepped on Friends' stage. The second the playback kicked in the audience started cheering. It was too obvious she'd win. In the televoting at least.

And then we have Helena Paparizou who finished 4th! Amazing Helena! I saw her after the final and she was so happy. Her comeback in Sweden was great. And now we wait for the album on March 26th.

About the rest of the acts, I don't really care. I'm just happy that Yohio did so bad. He should change that "I'm a star" attitude. I was waiting at the after party entrance (as always) for the artists and Yohio arrived with about 10 others who made a circle around him so that nobody would go near him. Such a diva! Honey, you're nobody so stop acting like you are.

And then we also have Anton Ewald who came last both in juries and televoting! Hahaha! Sooo happy about that! Even happier coz Sanna won. That "do people want a popstar (refering to himself) or a Sanna Nielsen?" ate him alive! And after the final he blamed the media for his last place! LOL

Unfortunately I didn't get to see Alcazar after the final. I went behind the green room after the final was over and when they were done with the interviews, Tess saw me and screamed a "Heeeey Ifiiiiiii!" on her way out. At least they knew I was there to cheer for them haha. Ah an EP is on its way so I will have chances to see them somewhere. And they should definitely keep coming back to Melodifestivalen. If Sanna could do it so can them!

The rest of the night was good. I liked the opening and interval acts but really there's nothing more to say. Only that the final needs to return to Globen. Asap.

So, Sweden 12 points! :D

Melodifestivalen 2014 - Songs we will miss in the final

I'm kinda ok with the final's line up but I will miss some songs and I'd rather have them in Friends Arena instead of some finalists. So, just a quick post!

Alvaro Estrella instead of Yohio!
JEM instead of Ellen Benediktson!
Martin Stenmarck instead of Linus Svenning!
EKO instead of Ace Wilder! (One of this year's best songs!! How on earth did it came last in the semi?)
Jessica Folcker & Dr Alban instead of Oscar Zia! (I'm ok with Oscar but I'd rather have Jessica and Dr Alban in the final. I adore Jessica's vocals and I think it would have been better if she had sung this by herself)
Linda Bengtzing instead of Anton Ewald!
Janet Leon... I want to fit this in the final but there's no room. So we can have the "jury's choice" like in 2009. 11 songs in the final!

So the ideal 2014 final is like this (random order):
Alcazar
Helena Paparizou
Sanna Nielsen
Panetoz
Alvaro Estrella
JEM
Martin Stenmarck
EKO
Jessica Folcker & Dr Alban
Linda Bengtzing
Janet Leon

Ah I wish!

Melodifestivalen 2014 - Final's running order revealed

This is so sad! :(

1. Anton Ewald – Natural
2. Ellen Benediktson – Songbird
3. Alcazar – Blame It On The Disco
4. Oscar Zia – Yes We Can
5. Linus Svenning – Bröder
6. Helena Paparizou – Survivor
7. YOHIO – To the End
8. Sanna Nielsen – Undo
9. Panetoz – Efter solsken
10. Ace Wilder – Busy Doin’ Nothin’

3? 3?! 3?!?!??!?! Goodbye Copenhagen! :'(

Melodifestivalen 2014 - First semi - Results

Photo: Lindwall Sven

I don't know what's wrong with me this year... :S The truth is that there is a lot of work to do with Paparizou's interviews. I need to translate them from Swedish to Greek for the official fan club. I had promised a post about Friday's dress rehearsal but I got back home at 3am, slept at 5am and was at work from 11am to 7pm so there was no point and no time to blog about it. Anyway...

Oh Sweden... You never get it right (except for 2012). To the final made it Ellen Benediktson ("Songbird") and Yohio ("To The End Of The World"). Really? Ok Yohio's place to the final was more than expected but Ellen? The song is too boring for my taste.

To andra chansen we have Helena Paparizou ("Survivor") and Linus Svenning ("Bröder"). Are you deaf Sweden? What on earth is Helena doing in andra chansen? She should have easily sailed to the final! By far the best song, vocals and performance! I don't get how you guys are thinking when it comes to voting! Linus was fine. I still don't like the song but whatever.

5. Elisa Lindström – ”Casanova”
6. Alvaro Estrella – ”Bedroom”
7. Mahan Moin – ”Aleo”
8. Sylvester Schlegel – ”Bygdens son”

What is Alvaro doing in the 6th place? The catchiest song of the night. Yes, pretty bad lyrics but the melody is catchy as hell! Had "Bedroom" been sung by a guy like Saade or Ewald, it would have been to the final before we even got to listen to it!

My ideal results would have been like this: Helena and Alvaro to Friends, Elisa and Mahan to andra chansen.

The rest of the night was ok. I liked the intro and there were some funny moments. Nour seemed to be very nervous during the entire evening. I don't know if it was because of the first dress rehearsal on Friday coz they had a lot of technical problems! But they should have fixed them in the second dress rehearsal on Saturday...

Let's see what will happen this week. Hopefully I will blog about it later tonight...

Melodifestivalen 2014 - Rehearsals of the first semi

I'm so unfaithful to my blog this year... And it's gonna be a hectic mello for me!

Rehearsal-day today and we have officially kicked off! All the rehearsals' clips are here.

Yohio - To The End
Yohio is so freaking fake. On everything. It's all about the image. Without it he's really nothing special. The song is average. It has nothing to do with his Japan material and yes, this might be Melodifestivalen but shouldn't he stay true to "his music"? Hopefully I won't see him in Friends Arena.

Mahan Moin - Aleo
Hm... ok... I don't know. Not a big fun of it... Sometimes I find some vocals annoying, sometimes I don't. It's a 50-50 for that 1 minute.

Linus Svenning - Bröder
It's really hard when you lose a family member. But I'm sorry. I think it's too much putting all these photos on the LED screens. People should vote for the song itself and not for story behind the song. I don't like it.

Elisa Lindström - Casanova
Schlager-ish but kinda old-ish too. It's fun but that's all. I won't get bored though. That's for sure.

Alvaro Estrella - Bedroom
I like it! Great music! But I'm not a big fan of the lyrics... And I wonder if he will able to pull it live...

Ellen Benediktson - Songbird
Nope. Not my cup of tea. I'm not a ballad fan unless it's a super wow ballad. Don't like this.

Sylvester Schlegel - Bygdens Son
Hey there 8th place! On my ranking at least!

Helena Paparizou - Survivor
How can I be objective here? "Objective"... that word doesn't exist in my vocabulary! Helena to Friends Arena! Now! The song is amazing! Smash hit! Can't wait until tomorrow! Love it love it love it! The more I listen to it the more I love it!

I'm off to Malmö for the general rehearsal. Once again! And it's Helena's birthday after all. How could I not be there? There will be a full post about this just like last year but I don't know when...

Melodifestivalen 2014: The artists, the songs, the composers - Heats 1 & 2

Here we are! The artists of the first two semis are revealed! And of course Helena Paparizou was one of them. ;) Also, the expected Yohio and Sanna Nielsen. And many unknown artists (to me).

Photo: Lina Siksjö

Semi-final 1: Malmö 1/2

• Aleo
Artist: Mahan Moin
Composers: Mahan Moin, Anderz Wrethov

• Bedroom
Artist: Alvaro Estrella
Composers: Jakke Erixson, Jon Bordon, Lauren Francis, Kristofer Östergren

• Bröder
Artist: Linus Svenning
Composer: Fredrik Kempe

• Bygdens son
 Artist: Sylvester Schlegel
Composer: Sylvester Schlegel

• Casanova
Artist: Elisa Lindström
Composers: Ingela ”Pling” Forsman, Bobby Ljunggren, Jimmy Jansson

• Songbird
Artist: Ellen Benediktson
Composers: Sharon Vaughn, Johan Fransson, Tim Larsson, Tobias Lundgren

• Survivor
Artist: Helena Paparizou
Composers: Bobby Ljunggren, Henrik Wikström, Karl-Ola Kjellholm, Sharon Vaughn

• To the End
Artist: YOHIO
Composers: Andreas Johnson, Johan Lyander, Peter Kvint, YOHIO

Yeah, apart from Helena and Yohio I have no idea who the rest are! And if I just stick to the names then it's Helena and Yohio to the final! It's all about the songs though so I can't be sure about anything. It's the Swedes who vote after all. If you know what I mean. ;) I'm sad that Helena competes in Malmö and not in Linköping. But I totally expected it right after I found out (last night) that she'd be in today's press conference. Now she will either open the semi or perform last. She and Yohio will be the ones who'll share the spots 1 and 8. Who knows... I might repeat last year's craziness... Love Malmö!

Photo: Lina Siksjö

Semi-final 2, Linköping 8/2

• Efter solsken
Artist: Panetoz
Composers: Johan Hirvi, Mats Lie Skåre, Nebeyu Baheru, Njol Badjie, Pa Modou Badjie

• Glow
 Artist: Manda
Composers: Joy Deb, Linnéa Deb, Melanie Wehbe, Charlie Mason

• I Am Somebody
Artist: Pink Pistols
Composers: Joakim Törnqvist, Nestor Geli, Per Ivar Hed, Susie Päivärinta, Tord Bäckström

• Love Trigger
 Artist: JEM
Composers: Thomas G:son, Peter Boström, Julimar ”J-Son” Santos

• När änglarna går hem
Artist: Martin Stenmarck
Composers: Andreas Öhrn, Alexander Bard, Martin Stenmarck, Peter Boström

• Set Yourself Free
 Artist: Little Great Things
Composers: Charlie Grönvall, Cristoffer Wernqvist, Felix Grönvall, Adam Dahlström

• Hallelujah
Artist: The Refreshments
Composer: Joakim Arnell

• Undo
Artist: Sanna Nielsen
Composers: Fredrik Kempe, David Kreuger, Hamed "K-One” Pirouzpanah

Ok I didn't get Helena in "my" semi but I got Sanna Nielsen! And Martin Stenmarck! Funny that the last time I got to see Sanna was in April 2011, with Martin in Kvällen Är Din! Now I'll get to see them again! What can I say about the second semi? Again, I only know Sanna and Martin! And I've just heard of Panetoz... I'd say it's Sanna and Martin to the final. Based on my taste, that is. :P Sanna's song seems to be a ballad. That's the vibe I get by the title. But then I see Fredrik Kempe's name there and it screams schlager. We'll see...

EDIT: I just watched a video from TV4 and Sanna confirms it's a ballad!

Generally I'm not too excited about the names. 16 artists are revealed and I only care about 3 of them. Hopefully the songs will be good.

On Thursday we'll know the rest of the contestants. Expressen and Aftonbladet are sure that Alcazar are in. I'm not. At all. Tess is supposed to be in Thailand for two months during the mello season. I doubt she'll be going back and forth for Melodifestivalen. And I've posted this on many groups on fb and on escunited.com. Imagine if they're actually in! xD That would be awesome but I'll also be pissed coz they'll definitely be in Gothenburg's semi (again!). And neither Helena or my Alcazar will be in "my" semi! Grrr!

Melodifestivalen 2014: Artists to be announced next week

Next Tuesday, 26th of November and Thursday, 28th of November at 9:50 CET, SVT will announce the artists that will compete at Melodifestivalen 2014! There will be a live webcast (here).

On Tuesday, we have the press conference of the artists that will compete in Malmö and Linköping! Fingers crossed that Helena Paparizou will compete in Linköping's semi! I got my ticket (first row!) so I really want her to compete in Lkpg but I doubt it. I bet they put her in Gothenburg's semi! And yes, I am 100% sure that she's in. I know it. I can bet my life on it. ;)

I'm also pretty sure that YOHIO (meh), Sanna Nielsen (yay!) and Linda Bengtzing (yay!!) are in. But I don't bet my life on these 3. I don't know it for fact. ;)

And on Thursday, we have the press conference of the artists that will compete in Gothenburg and Örnsköldsvik.

Tick tock, tick tock...

Melodifestivalen 2013 - Robin Stjernberg won!

So yeah, I was supposed to blog last night but I was too tired. So many things I had to fix before I can start blogging. Photos, videos… And I know you're waiting for the phrase. Here it is: I don't know where to start! Nah, not really.

When I heard the songs of the 4th semi and especially after the end of the 4th semi I started regretting buying a ticket to the final. I still believe it was the worst Melodifestivalen we ever had. Even though I'm only familiar with the years after 2000. But if I had the chance to give the ticket back and take my money I wouldn't do it. The feeling of being inside the arena worth every single crown I paid. It's an amazing experience!

On my way to the arena

First of all I need to say that I feel really lucky that I got to be in two finals that were held in Globen! And to be honest I missed Globen… I love Globen. I can't really say why. I just love it! Everything about it. Especially the name (no I NEVER call it Ericsson Globe Arena!). Friends Arena is cool alright. It's huge. And I mean HUGE. They didn't use the entire arena. It would be impossible to see the stage had they used all the space. I don't know but I think Melodifestivalen's final belongs to Globen. But I don't think we're going back there. Like, ever.

Inside the arena

In position!

Dååå kör viiiiii! I liked the opening act! Previous hosts of the ESC and Petra Mede! Pretty good! 

Ulrik Munther - I liked him. I mean I had seen him in Malmö's first general rehearsal so it wasn't the first time I heard his song in an arena.

David Lindgren - Yeah, the hype stopped already from the second semi. And then comes Christer Björkman and gives spot number 2 to David! This is the cursed one! No wonder why David was last in the televoting! I was really surprised! I didn't expect him high in the final but definitely not last in the televoting! He was really good though...

State of Drama - I was expecting them to finish last. Not because they have a bad song but because they're so forgettable. It's something we've heard many times before. Yeah we've heard David's song before. But I mean all the other artists had something! Some of them returned to mello and others had that something. I was close about their final place. 9th.

Anton Ewald - I hate his pants! I really do! There, I had to say this! The song grew on me a lot so I really enjoyed it. The cheerings for Anton inside the arena were hysterical...

And somewhere at this point my parents called me! I mean SERIOUSLY?? They're doing it on purpose! They called me 10 minutes before the DMGP's final and 15 minutes before the 4th semi in Malmö asking me to video-call them in Skype! And yesterday they called me while I was IN the arena! SERIOUSLY?? Respect to the eurofan please!

 

Getting ready for Louise

Louise Hoffsten - The only woman in this mello final! All I'm gonna say here is that her song is definitely one of my favourite in this Melodifestivalen! I would be totally fine if she was the winner! It was pretty great when she was on stage.

Ralf Gyllenhammar - Many people in the ESC forums wanted him as the winner. Me? I don't know. His song is not my cup of tea but I didn't mind listening to it in the arena...

Ravaillacz - They got what they deserved. Although, not really. They shouldn't have even been in the final! The song is horrible. And I'll say it again, it's far from "en riktig jävla schlager"! Light-years away!

Sean Banan - I still dislike him. I still find him disgusting. There was no way he'd win. But yeah. Inside the arena everything is enjoyable! And so was his show. Song's melody isn't original. It's catchy and sticks in your head but it's not something we haven't heard before. People say it's "Dragostea Din Tei". I say "Can-Can".

Robin Stjernberg - Thank you Sweden! When I first heard the song, I said that his voice annoys me. It was ok in Malmö's rehearsal. Even better in andra chansen and now it's totally fine! It doesn't annoy me at all! The same happened with Salem al Fakir in 2010! The song? I liked it from the beginning (now I totally love it!) and in this final, it was the best choice for me! I'm so glad that Sweden sends a decent entry! He just needs to work on his vocals! It's a difficult song and he needs to be perfect! Especially for the juries!

It took me a while to realise that those two sitting in front of me were YOHIO's fans...

YOHIO - I'm so glad he didn't win! Well technically he did win. He won the televoting. But just for that night, thank God we had the juries! I don't like his song. And I don't like him. Not because he's different. I don't like his "attitude". He is so full of himself because he's the only one in Sweden doing something like this. Oh and I totally hated the way he ended his song! My ears! 

Lynda Woodruff! That accent! That voice! I LOVE Sarah Dawn Finer!! "The home of the eurOWvision song contest 2013!" Hahahahahaha 

Then came Loreen! That version of "Euphoria" was amazing! And it was so Loreen! I got serious goosebumps when she got on stage! It brought back the 2012 memories in Globen!                 

One question. Why did Gina present the ukrainian votes again? Hm... 

CAROLA

CAROLA

Yup. Carola! Carola Häggkvist! You can say whatever you want about her as a person. I will even agree about all the stuff you're gonna say when it comes to her relationship with God and religion. I believe in God (most of the times. I won't discuss that topic though) but she should keep all this to herself. She's a public figure but that doesn't mean she has to "promote" God like this coz honestly, most of the times she comes across as crazy. BUT, Carola the artist... That Carola, I love! And I loved her performance even though her vocals weren't perfect. I liked the remix of "Främling" but I was expecting to hear the original version. No matter what, I got to see Carola in such a big arena! And this moment was magical! We "rehearsed" this part a few minutes before the live began and even without Carola it felt amazing. Imagine singing along with her! 

Photo: Olle Kirchmeier SVT

Yes. Results! It's old news that Robin won but the (tele)voting was a nail-biting moment! Especially when it was between Anton, Robin and YOHIO. That's when I was scared that YOHIO was going to win! Robin got the 75 points, he had a total of 166 and I immediately started making calculations in my head trying to figure out if YOHIO's points are enough to top Robin's. What calculations? At that point we didn't know how many points YOHIO was supposed to get. I didn't have the time to count the points that were already given in order to find out how many had left to be given from the 473. But as soon as Gina said it's 103 points (plus the 30 he had from the jury voting) I jumped off my chair (again!)! Robin won! My favourite won! Second year in a row! And then it hit me. Robin is the first Melodifestivalen winner that made it to the final via andra chansen! 

 

Reprise of "You" and the cameras went off. But it's not over for me. Yet. I stayed in the arena. I always do that until the security personnel ask us to leave. I went to the catwalk. Just to see it. And in a few seconds I saw Loreen passing by right in front of me! I stopped her to ask for a photo. She didn't say no. Damn she is so thankful! I don't even know how many times she said "thank you", "take care" and stuff like that. Of course by that point there were many people around her. Especially kids. Loreen was with one of her people. She told him to let her know when she had to leave (she would give an interview with Robin for SVT's "Eftersnack") because she wanted to stay there and take photos with the kids! 

 

Haters, hate her as much as you want. You won't change the fact that she's an amazing person!

Then I saw Edward af Sillén. The man behind the scripts of Melodifestivalen and most likely, Eurovision 2013! Then the security "kicked us out". lol 

You know, when they announced that the final would be held in Friends Arena I was like "oh no! where are they gonna have the efterfest?". It wasn't difficult to find the entrance. Right next to the door that I entered the building earlier. But seriously Mr Weather. All week the temperature was above zero but no! On Saturday it had to be -8! -.- I froze to death (once again!) But I saw a lot of artists. Got a photo with Camilla Henemark (La Camilla of Army of Lovers), the father of schlager Thomas G:son, Nanne (and one of her friends who didn't step aside LOL) and Alcazar's Tess! Tess told me that Andreas wasn't coming. I knew that. He was in Gävle (gotta love instagram! xD). But neither was Lina. :( 

Many other artists walked by but I didn't really care. Under other circumstances (temperature!) I would have asked for a photo but I was freezing. I was waiting for Carola. Nope, I didn't see her. 2 and a half years in Sweden and I still haven't met her! -.- :P I couldn't wait any longer. I couldn't feel anything. So I left. A few hundred meters from the arena I ran into 3 of the Timoteij girls. Or they ran into me. Actually one of them almost ran over me! And she did it in a way "hey! look who you're crossing paths with! I'm a Timoteij girl". Yeah yeah I know who you are (I actaully saw who she was just because she almost blocked my way) but I-am-freezing-and-I-wanna-go-home. 

Oh! I almost forgot. Ok I didn't, I just wanted to tell you about this in the end. Lena Philipsson's fans are probably gonna hate me but I don't care. It's their idol's fault. I met Lena in 2011. Right after the mello final in Globen. And I was pretty shocked to see her right in front of me coz she kinda was "the wrong time in the wrong place". I asked her to take a photo. She said yes but she was like "oh come on hurry up! I don't have all day! get over with it!". Really grumpy. Last night I saw her again and asked for a photo. She had the exact same attitude! She just looked at me without saying anything. She turned around to "look for her friend", she told her something and then she just left! Like I never talked to her! She totally snubbed me! And then they call Carola a diva. Yeah I didn't meet her, but when and if I ever meet her I'd be the first to admit that she is one. That is, if she actually acts like a diva. But for now, congratulations Lena Ph for making it to the top of the Divas list! I will keep listening to her mello songs (and not only) but as a person she gets a big X! And I'm not saying all this just to badmouth her or because I didn't take a photo with her. As I said, I already have a photo with her. I just ignore people I don't like. Besides, if I didn't like her, I wouldn't even ask for a photo. 

So, Melodifestivalen 2013 is officially over! 

The leftovers...

        

 See you next year and good luck to Robin!

PS1 I keep writing "yesterday" but it's actually 3:30am, on March 11th... Oh well. xD

PS2 No mello next Saturday and the only thing I'm glad for is that we won't get to see Danny looking at the script instead of the camera all night long.

Melodifestivalen 2013 - First semi - Results

Photo: Lindwall Sven

First semi is over. Yup. It was the worst mello semi ever! I can't believe that the songs were that bad! Out of 2549 songs that were sent to SVT this year, these 8 were what? The best? Those that can do great in ESC? Are you kidding me? Obviously they're not picking the songs with that criteria! The thought of switching to another preselection round crossed my mind. Too many times. But I didn't do it. Because it's Melodifestivalen! 

Well let's go to the results... David Lindgren with "Skyline" and Yohio with "Heartbreak Hotel" are the two finalists! I was 100% sure about David. I had no clue about the rest.

To andra chansen: Cookies N Beans with "Burning Flags" and Eric Gadd with "Vi kommer aldrig att förlora".

5. "Gosa" – Mary N'diaye
6. "We’re Still Kids" – Michael Feiner & Caisa
7. "Porslin" – Anna Järvinen
8. "Paris" – Jay-Jay Johanson

Really I can't say anything here. About the interval acts, well I was chatting at the same time so I missed a few frames. I can't say I was a big fan. Oh and Danny, please, come out already!

I really really hope that the next semi will have some nice songs. We really need them!