Finland: National final “UMK 2020” to see some changes
After this year’s disappoiting results that left Finland out of the final , the Finnish national broadcaster, YLE, has decided to launch some changes to the country’s national final of UMK 2020.
YLE music director Tapio Hakasen, who is also involved in the national final of UMK, has stated that next year’s national final will consist of one show where will we see 4- 10 contestants participate. Furthermore he outlined the sgnificance of diversity among the candidates. A prefinal TV show is an option and can be brodcasted before the final so as the audience gets to know the contestants better.
The submission period will kick off on November 1 and interested act will be able to send in their applications until November 8.
UMK has been used as the mechanism to select the Finnish Eurovision representative since 2012. Through this format the country has selected three acts that made it to the grand final while the best placing came in 2014 with Softengine and their song Something Better, which finished 11th.
The Eurovision Story so far
Finland made its debut in the contest back in 191 and has once the contest, in 2006 , when the country was represented by Lordi and their entry Hard Rock Hallelujah. The country’s best result before then was achieved by Marion Rung with the song “Tom Tom Tom” in 1973, which placed sixth.
Finland has finished last in the contest ten times, receiving “nul points” in 1963, 1965 and 1982. Since the introduction of the semi-finals in 2004, Finland has failed to reach the final seven times. In 2014, the country had its best result in eight years when Softengine finished 11th. In 2015, Finland finished last in the first semi-final with the shortest-ever Eurovision entry, “Aina mun pitää” performed by Pertti Kurikan Nimipäivät.
In 2018 Saara Aalto represented the country with her entry Monsters but she finished second last in the Grand final. This year the country was represented by Darude and Sebastian Rejman and their entry Look Away, without making it to the final as they finished in the last place of the semi final with only 23 points.
