Norway's Melodi Grand Prix continues its 60th edition this weekend with semi-final 3.
Each semi-final consists of four artists competing in multiple duels that will result with one act advancing direct to the final. These four songs will be joined in the Grand Final by the five pre-qualified entries as well as the second chance act that will be selected from the 12 songs that didn't advance from their respective semi-finals.
Semi-final 3 lineup is:
Mari Bølla - 'Your Loss'
Mari kickstarted her career at the age of just 10 as a participant of Norwegian Idol Junior in 2014. She returned to the Idol stage in 2020 and became the youngest winner in the show's history. The singer-songwriter is bringing the self empowerment pop-punk track, 'Your Loss' to the MGP stage.
Oda Gondrosen - 'Hammer of Thor'
Oda put her dreams of performing to the side to focus on study but after four years she returned the Norwegian music industry and took it by storm. She wowed the judges on Idol back in 2020 and made it all the way to the final. Performing at Melodi Grand Prix is a dream for Oda and she will be competing with the song 'Hammer of Thor' which was co-written by fellow competitor Elsie Bay.
Sturla - 'Skår i hjertet'
Sturla is a 27-year-old artist hailing from Trøndelag. He has been releasing music in his local dialect for the past 10 years. After his song 'Kanskje Du Kan Vær Mitt Paradis' became a certified hit in Norway, Sturla is now stepping up to the nation's biggest stage. His track, 'Skår I hjertet' is one of only two songs in this year's Melodi Grand Prix that is in performed in Norwegian.
Vilde - 'Titans'
Vilde is a singer-songwriter now based in Oslo. She has a music degree from the music school LIPA located in Liverpool, England. Landing gigs supporting Matoma, Röyksopp and Julie Bergan, Vilde continues to make a name for herself in the Norwegian music scene. Vilde's competing entry 'Titans' is a soaring pop anthem which topped the Aussievision rankings of semi-final 3.
NorthKid - 'Someone' [pre-qualified to the final]
The original schedule for Melodi Grand Prix had Subwoolfer presenting their song during semi-final 3, but the wolves from the moon tested positive for Covid-19 and were unable to perform this weekend. Instead, the Northern Norwegian boyband, NorthKid will now perform their pre-qualified entry a week early. The group's frontman, Bilal Saab won over the hearts of the nation when he won the singing show Stjernekamp (Battle of the Stars) back in 2019. Alongside Bilal is Helge Moen, Håkon Guttormsen, Sebastian Willassen and Vegard Olaussen. The group hopes their entry, 'Someone' conveys the value of joy and acceptence during their time at Melodi Grand Prix.
How to watch
You can watch 'Melodi Grand Prix' live on the NRK website https://www.nrk.no/mgp/
Semi-final 3 will take place this weekend:
European time - 7:50 pm (CET) on Saturday January 29
Australian time - 5:50 am (AEDT) on Sunday January 30