As we have already seen, the draws for the halves of each semi-final have taken place. We know vaguely where in the running order they are but the producers of the show will ultimately make the final decision... But if I was in charge, what would I do....?
I think that the producers are going to have a hard time creating a fair and balanced programme as the semis themselves are not balanced in terms of act type and genre. The other main concern, that we are not yet privy to, is the consideration of certain acts' staging. Larger and more intricate props may need more time to get off and on: prompting the producers to give them a start/end slot, or one near a break (again we don't know when or how many there will be)
The Azerbaijani song was revealed on March 15th - the music video premiere was made on the official youtube channel. A week earlier, ITV (the Azerbaijani broadcaster) announced details about their act and that the song would be released to the public in due course. Their act for Malmö is Fahree featuring Ilkin Dovlatov with the song "Özünlə Apar" (Take Me with You)
Fakhri Ismayilov (aka Fahree) was born in 1995 in Baku. He came from an artistic family; his father being a jazz drummer and his grandfather being an actor. However, he followed a more academic path and gained a Bachelor's and Master's degree in law. Then, during the COVID lockdowns, he devoted more time to msic releasing his first song "Dance" in 2022. Late October 2023, Fahree was revealed as one of the sixteen shortlisted candidates in the 2024 Azerbaijani selection. He will be accompanied on stage by İlkin Dövlətov. He was born in 1990 and has been singing since he was four. His big break came in 2023 when he came second in a special native songs edition of "The Voice of Azerbaijan". İlkin was also of the other finalists of the country's selection process and is primarily a mughram style singer.
The song is an ethnic ballad containing English and - for the first time in the adult contest - the Azerbaijani language. We start with a softly spoken intro before a longer verse - and what turns out to be the only verse in the whole song. The pre-chorus is where the song really starts to take shape. The off beat rhythm - which is replicated in many songs this year - comes in but doesn't really effect the song as it says firmly in ballad territory This flow is then maintained in the chorus although the language changes to Azerbaijani. This is followed by a short break accompanied by some mughram singing by both Fahree and İlkin. We then go straight into the pre-chorus but this time the beat kicks in after it has finished and İlkin enjoys the limelight once again. The beat continues under one last version of the chorus before fading out after more of the two guys' vocal gymnastics.
The video is rather basic and one will hope the delegation has something more memorable up their sleeve in May. Fahree is backed by two violinists, an electric guitarist and somebody on a soundboard/laptop type set up. İlkin's sections are filmed separately and spliced into the video. It might be nice to see how they interact on stage or how İlkin's parts are identified during the song. Bright coloured lighting is simplistically used. İlkin is highlighted by being bathed in a warm yellow light. As the song progresses, Fahree's stage goes from a dusky violet to a raspberry reddish-pink. On first listen I was a little underwhelmed: I was hoping the song would get much bigger and create a more dramatic crescendo. However on further listening this is a rather low-key ethnic ballad that has a sound and feel like nothing else this year. The shift from English to Azerbaijani is not clunky at all although I would have liked to have heard more of the melisma at the end of every line of the chorus not just the first line. Staging will absolutely effect how this is judged and being a less 'in-your-face' number means the impact needs to be strong. The song is interesting, but not immediate, and in a semi-final with very few slow ballads, it could unfortunately fall fowl of the 100% televote in the semis.
ARTIST - Fahree featuring Ilkin Dovlatov
SONG - Özünlə Apar
WRITING/PRODUCTION CREDITS - Hasan Haydar, Fakhri Ismayilov, Mila Miles, Edgar Ravin, Mado Salikh
The Armenian song was revealed on March 13th - the music video premiere was made on the official youtube channel. A few days earlier, Armenian broadcaster AMPTV announced their act and that the song would be revealed soon after. Going to Malmö is Ladaniva with the song "Jako".
Ladaniva (named after a type of vehicle) is a duo that was formed in Lille in 2019. Singer, Jaklin Baghdasaryan, was born in Armenia, grew up Belarus and emigrated to France in 2014 enrolling at the Conservatoire de Lille. French instrumentalist Louis Thomas makes up the other half of the duo. He is from Lille and also studied at the same conservatory. The two met by chance during a jam session in the old part of Lille. They have released 5 singles, and accompanying video,s and in 2023 they released their self-titled album. Their musical style is inspired by traditional songs and singers from Eastern Europe and, but also Latin America, Africa and Reunion Island - a department of France in the Indian Ocean.
The song is wholly in Armenian, which I believe is a first for the language in the adult contest, although the refrain is mostly a chorus of 'la la las'. The song talks about 'Jako' which is the nickname of the singer. The build into the song starts mainly with the trumpet which is a very prominent instrument in the track. This then feeds into the chorus refrain before the first verse. The verses are quite short and have a clear, almost spoken, quality and are followed almost immediately by the chorus again. After two verses and choruses, we a have a slight change in direction where the instrumentai trumpet is replaced with a more light hearted pipe/flute. Then follows a call and response part before a final reprieve of the la-la-las.
For the video, the two members seem to be in a typical rural Armenian village and Jaklin is dressed in ethic style clothing and has braided hair. The setting really reflects the ethic nature of the song and obviously reflects the language choice. There is a lot of movement and interaction which also reflects the pace of the song.They seem to have a good connection with each other and Jaklin really plays to the camera. For me, the backing track here is the absolet star. It has juch an infectious and ear-catching rhythm. Jaklins voice is so clear in the verses but seems part of the mix vocally and instrumentally in the chorus. I am intrigued as to how this might sound live for many reasons. Firstly, I feel like this might need some staging to come alive on stage. Just having these two on stage will feel very bare. Some dancers, some props, some background screens might be needs to either inhibit the stage or make it slightly more compact. I am hoping that the crowd will lift this performance, especially during the call and response part. I am hesitant but have high hopes on an interesting and individual show.
ARTIST - Ladaniva
SONG - Jako
WRITING/PRODUCTION CREDITS - Jaklin Baghdasaryan, Audrey Leclercq, Louis Thomas
The Georgian song was revealed on March 11th - the official video was also available on the official Eurovision youtube channel. Early January, GPB announced their act and that the chosen song would be revealed in March. The Georgian act for Malmö is Nutsa Buzaladze singing the song "Firefighter".
Nutsa Buzaladze was born in Tbilisi but grew up in Turkey. As a child she sang as part of a children's choir and also played the guitar and piano. In 2011, she took part in "Georgia's Got Talent", where she reached the semi-finals. In fact, Nutsa also taken part in many reality talent shows including the Georgian versions of "The Voice" and "Your Face Sounds Familiar. In 2014 she was the Georgian representative at the New Wave song festival and became only the third Georgian to win the contest. In 2017 she submitted the song "White Horses Run" to the Georgian national final coming second place. Her biggest international breakthrough happened last year. She participated in American Idol 2023 making it all the way to the final 12. She currently lives in Dubai.
Firefighter has a middle eastern/eastern European quality to it - it also contains a slight dancehall off beat to it that is reminiscent of so many style of song.The song starts with an ethereal intro before going into a much pacier chorus and pre-shirus. During the start of the chorus the backing track quietens and slows down which really affects the flow of he song the slowly builds up into the instrumental/dance break section. We then have verse two and the pre-chorus. This time about the chorus is slightly elongated with the first repeat being sung under a gentle string accompaniment. The second repeat the backing track combined the beat and strings and during the third and final part the strings and choir are prominent behind Nutsa's lead vocal to a big finish.
The video has a number of different settings; sometimes on her own, sometimes with a number of dancers. The dancing is very commercial most of the time and rather repetitive.The music video shows that Nutsa moves very well and has a good connection down the camera. I feel like the show will need dancers but I hope that the choreography is a little more imaginative than what is seen in the video. Her looks are quite diverse but I personally prefer her with her hair down. I also hope she is wearing something a little more exciting on the night as most the outfits seem to give off an interesting silhouette but don't lend themselves to dancing or to be memorable. Overall I am slightly underwhelmed by this entry. The verses and pre-chorus both have impact and really build the song up. The way the chorus stops dead at the start and builds up again loses all the momentum gained in the verses and feels a bit like a lost opportunity. Also, the elongated ending just goes on that little bit too long and, again, could have been made into something a bit less typical. If this entry can gain a better and more visual identity, it might just tip it over the edge. Right now, this just feels a tad safe and lacklustre.
ARTIST - Nutsa Buzaladze
SONG - Firefighter
WRITING/PRODUCTION CREDITS - Darko Dimitrov, Ada Skitka
The Portuguese act and song was chosen on March 9th through their established selection process "Festival da Canção". Before the final there were two semi-finals. Each semi consisted of two rounds of voting: in round one 5 songs qualified through a mixture of public voting (50%) and jury voting (50%) then an extra finalist was voted for solely by public televoting. In the final the winner was selecting by a 50/50 mix of jury and public votes. The winning act was Iolanda singing "Grito" (Shout)
Iolanda Costa showed a great passion for music as a young child and as a result her parents sent her to study music at Tecnimúsica, a school in Pombal. She then moved to Lisbon where she graduated in Communication Sciences from ISCSP then moved to London, where she studied songwriting at the British and Irish Institute of Modern Music, at the University of Sussex. She also participated in a number of talent shows including the Portuguese versions of Pop Idol and The Voice. In 2022, she took part in Festival da Canção as the co-author/composer of the song "Mar no fim", performed by Blacci. Then last year she unveiled her debut EP "Cura" which was mostly written during the COVID pandemic lockdown.
The song starts acapella with the first two lines just voice alone. It very much grabs your ears but also your eyes. Iolanda is all in white, as are her dancers whose faces are also obscured by white lacy head coverings. The backing track overall is rather minimal and apart from some guitar parts and strings most of the song is driven by the drumming. The song flows nicely from verse to pre chorus to chorus and back again. The final chorus is elongated with the main refrain being repeated before a final reprieve. Just like the start, the backing track fades out so all you can hear is voice. Curiously, the title of the song does not appear in the song text. I guess the name "Grito" (Shout) reflects the anger or release of stress that the song deals with. There is also a moment when Iolanda elongates the end of one of the words to sound like a shout.
Out of all the songs in the national final this one probably had the most interesting, artistic and visual staging. The dancers' movements are rather exaggerated - almost mimelike - and the tableaux they make behind Iolande are almost reminiscent of songs like "Rhythm Inside". The backdrop pulsates from white to black and back again: sometimes fast, sometimes slow, sometimes very slow. The song itself is very Portuguese, and that isn't just to do with the language. This kind of folky, artistic ballad is the kind of thing we have become accustomed to during "Festival da Canção". This song definitely tells a story and Iolanda has an amazing connections down the camera. I might have been tempted - in past years - to suggest this song may have had almost no chance of qualification. However, between all the brashness and weirdness, songs like this could well stand a chance. I also feel that if it were to qualify, this would be another song whose points would probably increase with the jury score.
ARTIST - Iolande
SONG - Grito
WRITING/PRODUCTION CREDITS - Iolanda Costa, Alberto Hernández
The Swedish act and song was chosen on March 9th through their annual extravaganza "Melodifestivalen". Before the final there were 5 heats with the 2 most popular entries qualifying from each. There was also a second chance round where the 3rd and 4th placed entries from each heat were re-polled and the top 2 were then forwarded into the final. In the heats, qualification was solely based on app/phone votes but in the final app/phone votes only accounted for 50% and an international jury had the other 50%. Representing the host country are Marcus and Martinus with "Unforgettable".
Marcus and Martinus Gunnarsen are identical twin brothers who are also known as M&M Although they are representing Sweden, they are both actually Norwegian! They may just 22 years old but already have a steadfast music career and a track record with Eurovision. When they were 10 years old the pair won Melodi Grand Prix Junior in Norway and the song reached number 8 in the Norwegian charts in 2015 they released "Hei" their debut album reaching number 1. In 2016 they joined up with Madcon to release "Girls" which came from the duo's first English language album "Together" reaching number 1 in Norway and Sweden and number 6 in Finland. Their third album "Moments"was successful and many countries across Europe, The duo then announced the Jury points for Norway in the Eurovision Song Contest 2017. Last year they entered Melodifestivalen 2023 with the song "Air" finishing in second place behind Loreen's "Tattoo".
The song has a straight forward pop song structure. There is a verse-pre chorus-chorus flow which is repeated - although verse two is 2 lines long rather than 4.The last 20 seconds or so it taken up by an almost spoken outro which ends with the name of the song. The tone of the singing does not change much but the backing track is what gives the song its peaks and troughs. The two of them are very active throughout the whole song either doing gestural singing at the camera or doing mirror images between the two of them. During the instrumental parts the dancing is much more involved although not particularly cardiovascular.
The stage show, as you would expect from Melfest, is really impressive. The use of the side panels to create a strobing effect with the digital backdrop makes it busy but in a sort of ordered way. The duo are dressed in shiny black and blue suits which look a little drab within the confines of the studio, and actually looked better when just sat in the green room. I feel like the visuals need a little bit of fine tuning, especially in conjunction with the outfits. Maybe an addition such an neon/reflective trim on the edges might make everyone on stage a little more visible during the darker parts of the show. They are joined on stage by four dancers, also dressed in black. The backing track to this really is the star of the show. This, like many Eurovision songs his year, has a nostalgic feel to it. for me there is something of the Faithless about it, especially in the instrumental parts. The twins' vocals are rather low in the mix and I feel that this needs to be turned up for Eurovision. It just so happens that during the delegations meeting this song drew place 1 meaning they will be opening the grand final! This will be an epic moment in the hall and make for a great opening spectacle. It will certainly have its fans but I don't think this will be leading to a back-to-back win.
ARTIST - Marcus and Martinus
SONG - Unforgettable
WRITING/PRODUCTION CREDITS - Joy Deb, Linnea Deb, Marcus Gunnarsen, Martinus Gunnarsen, Jimmy Thörnfeldt
The Greek song was revealed on March 7th - the reveal was made during a special show on ERT called "Eurovision Se Eidon". The official video was also available to watch soon after on youtube. Back in October, the Greek broadcaster announced their act and that song submissions would be welcomed. The Greek act for Malmö is Marina Satti. singing the song "Zari" (Dice)
Marina Satti was born in Athens to a Sudanese Arab father and a Greek mother from Heraklion, where Marina herself grew up. As a result, her music combines traditional Greek, Arab and Balkan sounds with urban elements, rhythms, and production techniques. She learned classical piano at an early age and had classical vocal training in high school. She went on to to study architecture without graduating - but earned a first degree in lyrical monody (a style of Greek tragic ode) and then a second degree in advanced classical studies, In addition she also studied jazz at the Nakas Conservatory and at the Berklee College of Music. Her jazz prowess grew as she formed part of the EBU's European Jazz Orchestra. In 2016, Satti released her debut single "Koupes", and her follow up single, "Mantissa" charted in the European Union's Official Top 100.
Like many songs this year, the structure of the song is not what one may have expected. According to the lyric text, there are 5 verses, however some of these run into each other and others have a totally different tune and rhythm to the others. The beginning perks your ears up straight away as Marina begins in a rather high part of her vocal register. Here there are two verses using the same structure followed by a third verse with a totally different rhythm. There is a main earworm/refrain which has the 'ta-ta-ta' repetition with sang lines in between. This part is also repeated at the end of the song as a dance break refrain. During this last refrain the backing track is beefed up by extra instruments, mostly of Greek origin, which really cements that new/old synthesis.
The video for this song is rather fun; it is a take on a stereotypical tourism videos, blogs, vlogs and TikTok style shorts. They take in the stereotypical tourist traps of Greece as well as adding more urban and modern scenes of the country. You can see that Marina is trying to merge - in the audio and the video - the ancient and modern feelings and sounds of Greece. The message at the end of the video also sums up what she is trying to achieve. From what I have also seen, this song has received very positive reviews from the Greek press and many people seem to be behind this, which is a good sign! The song its seems rather unpredictable and, unless they make this their schtick, many watching at home might find this just too complex and strange. With the song sounding rather Greek, and being almost entirely in the Greek language, it could equally make this amusing, entertaining or rather unhospitable to the semi-final televoters. I quite like the start of the song, and I enjoy the main refrain, but the placing of everything is just too unconstructed for my brain to contend with. As much as the video is trying to help the the song into our consciousness, I feel like a more ordered and stage specific performance could hone and narrow the possibilities and give it a real presence. All in all this is an interesting listen (for all its messiness) but I feel you either get this or you don't - especially on first listen.
ARTIST - Marina Satti
SONG - Zari
WRITING/PRODUCTION CREDITS - K. Beshkov, G. Borri, N Kodonas, Oge, J. Palmer, M. Satti, M. Solidakis, J. Stolar, Vlospa
The Australian song and act was revealed on March 6th (Australia time) - with the première of the song on the Eurovision Song Contest youtube channel. Little information was known, or leaked, about the song or representative until the official presentation. The Australian song for Malmö is "One Milkali (One Blood)" by Electric Fields.
The duo Electric Fields is made up of Zaachariaha Fielding and Michael Ross. Their music style is mainly electronic with soul qualities, integrating many aspects of Aboriginal culture and sing in a mixture of Pitjantjatjara, Yankunytjatjara and English. The pair have been performing as Electric Fields since 2015. Singer Zaachariaha Fielding grew up in Mimili, in the APY lands of South Australia.He has an academic background in Indigenous Australian music and is also a prize winning visual artist. The other half of the duo is Michael Ross; singer, songwriter, pianist and producer from Adelaide. Both were contestants on X Factor Australia albeit it on different editions of the show. Although their discography is not extensive - considering they have been around for almost a decade - they are a prolific live band and have been nominated many times for numerous National Indigenous Music Awards, National Live Music Awards and ARIAS for their live performances. February 2019, they attempted to represent Australia in the Eurovision Song Contest with their song "2000 and Whatever". Although they were a solid fan favourite, they came second in both the jury and audience vote and were second overall behind Kate Miller-Heidke.
This song is very much in the Electric Fields signature style. The song begins with a short verse which has very minimal backing. The track then starts to grow during the pre-chorus and then the chorus proper. The outro part of the chorus is where the beat and the vocal really soars into something anthemic. During verse two the vocals are taken over by Michael which gives the song a slightly different feel but keeps the energy going forward. This time round, the outro of the chorus fades out and is replaced by some digeridoo which actually adds to the earthy, grounded feel of the song. The outro here is much extended and goes on until the end of the song.
The accompanying music video is very plain and doesn't reflect the outstanding live performances they are known for. Some have commented it is rather intense, bordering on intrusive, and slightly boring. Having the words on screen slightly helps driving the beat but isn't really needed as Zaachariaha's voice is so clear. On first listen I found this a little bit plodding and I had to concentrate quite a lot on what was happening. One second listen, however, I enjoyed the song much more and got into the vibe much easier. I feel like this is a song that just needs to listened to (and hopefully also watched) and not overly critiqued. This is all about the feels and the atmosphere. I can really imagine the last minute being all about the crowd waving their hands in the air - and their flags too. Most times when an act unveils a music video for their song, I feel reserved as I would really love to know how this can be performed live. In this case, though, I feel very sure about their live ability - in particular their vocal reliability. I would suspect there will be some kind of Aboriginal aspect to the backdrop, their clothing and potential dancers/musicians. I imagine that this stage show will look and feel very Australian and I think that this will have little problem qualifying. I might even suggest this song will do better in the final than the semis as I would hope the juries would reward their live credentials.
ARTIST - Electric Fields
SONG - One Milkali (One Blood)"
WRITING/PRODUCTION CREDITS - Zaachariaha Fielding, Michael Ross
The Serbian act and song was chosen on March 2nd through their process "Pesma za Evroviziju". There were two semi-finals of 14 songs each with eight qualifying from each one. During the semis and the final, the qualifiers and eventual winner was determined by using a 50-50 mix of televoting and jury score. The Serbian act for Malmö is Teya Dora performing the song "Ramonda".
Teodora Pavlovska was born in 1992 in Bor, which at that time was in FR Yugoslavia. After studying in the capital of Serbia, Belgrade, she received a scholarship to study at the Berklee College of Music in Boston. After graduating she stayed in America, working as a songwriter. She returned to her homeland in 2018 writing songs for other Serbian artists as well as making her debut record "Da na meni je", released in July 2019. Her big breakthrough came last year with her song "Džanum". In Serbia, this gained fame for being recorded for the TV series "Južni vetar: Na granici" However the song then gained momentum worldwide as it became the protest anthem for the Belgrade school shooting and was then used on many of the accompanying videos on youtube and TikTok. The single peaked at number 4 on the Spotify's Top Songs Global chart, becoming only the third Serbian artist to have over a million monthly listeners (the first two being Eurovision competitors Konstrakta and Luke Black).
This song is a very gentle and emotional ballad with lots of harmonies and Balkan qualities. The backdrop has a dreamlike quality, soaring through the clouds. This is also reflected on the floor which floods with smoke during the song. Teya Dora is sat on a rock type feature at the back of the stage from which she starts then moves off later in the song, She is wearing a black-grey outfit with slightly wet hair. The whole set up looks a little bedraggled and possibly needs some refining. The song begins with two verses in quick succession although neither are lengthy. The pre-chorus builds up to the chorus which has a very ethereal quality. After a short break, the pre-chorus is revived and then the chorus continues until the end. The song ends with Teya Dora back on the rock singing a short outro while a stylised purple flower is shown on the back wall. Teya is alone on stage but the camera work is clever and she never looks engulfed by, or lonely on, the stage.
The ramonda is a flower and is an important flower in Serbian culture. It is also known as the "phoenix flower” due to its ability to flower again in atrocious conditions. This flower became a symbol to the Serbians during First World War and has a similar importance/resonance as British people would have to the poppy. The song has a solid grounding in Serbian culture but I am not sure this message gets through at all to the non-Serbian speakers at home. Luckily they are in a semi-final with other ex-Yugoslav nation that might understand the symbolisms more than most. The chorus is very ear-catching and memorable but is does sound like somebody mumbling along rather than having actual meaning. The whole staging is rather minimal and I think Teya Dora could do more physically and gesturally to get through the meaning of the words. Alternatively, there could be scope for dancers on stage or projected on the backdrop. This is a nice enough song which definitely stands out against so many up-tempo entries but this doesn't necessarily mean people will vote for it.
ARTIST - Teya Dora
SONG - Ramonda
WRITING/PRODUCTION CREDITS - Luka Jovanović, Andrijano Kadović, Teodora Pavlovska
The Icelandic act and song was chosen on March 2nd through their long running selection process "Söngvakeppnin". There were two semi-finals of 5 songs each and all songs in this part of the competition had to be performed in Icelandic. Two entries from each semi - plus a wildcard - got a place in the final where songs could be performed in any language. There were two rounds of voting in the final; first a combination of jury (50%) and televoting (50%) selected a top two. The televoting reopened and votes from both rounds were added together - the act with the most combined votes being the winner. The overall winner was selected solely by a jury vote. Going to Malmö is their 2010 representative Hera Björk performing the song "Scared of heights".
Hera Björk Þórhallsdóttir started singing at a young age: singing in commercials, as part of a children's choir and taking part in local competitions. She has had a varied musical background having taken part in musicals, recording her own material, collaborating with other Icelandic artists but also providing background vocals. In particular she participated on Björk’s a cappella album Medúlla. Outside of music she has hosted many TV musical galas, comedy shows and radio shows. As well as Iceland, she has worked and studied in Copenhagen and has worked a lot as a vocal coach. Hera Björk is a veteran of Eurovision selections having been involved in the 2007, 2008, 2009, 2015 and 2019 Söngvakeppnin shows - and winning the 2010 edition. She also participated in Dansk Melodi Grand Prix in 2009, placing second. However her competing song "Someday" was a clear fan favourite winning the subsequent OGAE Second Chance Contest.
This is a slow build pop song with dance influences. the song starts with anthemic bridge which is repeated throughout the song. The first verse is more subdued and the beat on the backing track is not that prominent. During the bridge the backing singers come in which starts the sligh gospel/choral feel on the song. The lyrics here also have a much quicker and memorable rhythm to that verse. The chorus also has a choral feel but the beat here is also strong. There are, however, some odd harmonies and tune pitches which sound a little off at first because it doesn't quite go where you expect - or maybe Hera Björk was singing an alternate tune due to confidence, nerves or illness. This cycle repeats again finishing with the opening bridge. We then have one final chorus and outro which finishes with the backing track completely dying out and the song ending on an almost a capella title of the song.
The performance of this includes pre-recorded video elements acting as faux on/off stage cameras. At times during the live shows this worked but at other times the video started out of sync and looked slightly amateurish and slightly cheap but this is more about the technicals than her. On stage there is a small plinth which Hera Björk gets up and down while the background flashes up words from the text and has a searching spotlight effect. She is wearing a red wrapped jump suit which really suits her and the colour is also slightly reminiscent of her 2010 outfit. This is a very middle of the road number and there is not much about the song or performance that makes this stand out. Most of the time, Hera Björk sings the song well although I have issues with the harmonies and tune of the pre-chorus. which I do not enjoy. Overall I much preferred the Icelandic version "Við förum hærra" to the version the final. The song's verses are slightly reminiscent of "Symphony" by Clean Bandit and,in an unfortunate turn, the song also has similarities to double zero scoring "Embers" by James Newman, a comparison one would want to stay away from.
Lastly, Iceland was one of the countries considering boycotting ESC due to the attacks in Gaza. Although the national final is now over, the broadcaster RUV has neither confirmed Hera Björk as their representative or Iceland's participation in Eurovision 2024.
ARTIST - Hera Björk
SONG - Scared of heights
WRITING/PRODUCTION CREDITS - Ferras Alqaisi, Michael Burek, Jaro Omar, Ásdís María Viðarsdóttir
