Norway: NRK reveals the second semi-final MGP 2021 participants
The Norwegian national broadcaster, NRK, has revealed the 2nd semi-final acts of Melodi Grand Prix, the show that will select the Norway’s ESC 2021 hopeful.
During a press conference at the NRK headquarters in Oslo, the acts of the second semi final were unveiled along witt the song titles of their entires.
According to the NRK schedule the competing entries of the semi finals will go public every Monday ahead of each one of the semi finals while during the semi final one prequalified act will perform its Grand final entry.
Second Semi final acts
The four acts that will compete in next Saturday semi final two are the following:
1. Daniel Owen: “Psycho”
(Music and lyrics: Daniel Elmrhari, Paria Ahmadzade, Marius Hongve, Henrik Høven, Patrick Brizard, Jørgen Troøyen, Leif Inge Fosen og Marcus Nilsen Ulstad )
The 21-year-old artist Daniel Johansen Elmrhari with the stage name Daniel Owen was born and raised in Ellingsrud, Oslo. At an early age he took a great interest in dance, and not long after he became interested in singing.
Many Norwegian TV viewers remember Daniel as the 11-year-old who won “Norske talenter” (“Norway’s got talent”) on TV2. Since then, he has performed on large and smaller venues around the country. Performing on the enormous stage outside of Oslo’s City Hall at the “VG-lista Pop chart show” at the age of 11 is something that stands out as a highlight in his career as an artist.
In 2015 he released his first song. The R&B genre is closest to his hear, and Daniel Owen is now fully committed to combining studies with a career in music.
2. Raylee: “Hero”
(Music and lyrics: Andreas Stone Johansson, Anderz Wrethov, Laurell Barker, Thomas Stengaard og Frazer Mac )
Raylee Charlotte Kristiansen (23) from Tromøya outside Arendal on the South Coast had great success with the song “Wild” during MGP 2020 where she made it to the Grand Finale in Trondheim. The song has been streamed over 6 million times on Spotify and she was praised by MGP and Eurovision fans.
Raylee released her first album as an 11-year-old. She was known as the child star “Lotta”. In 2008, she starred in the musical «Annie».
In recent years, she has continued to establish herself as an artist under the stage name Raylee and has released several songs. She released the song “Unspoken” last fall and had several appearances on events and venues, such as “Allsang på grensen” on TV2 and Palmesus Classic’s livestream on VG, followed by her own Christmas tour.
Raylee participated in “Stjernekamp” on NRK in 2014, and in Melodi Grand Prix for the first time back in 2015 with the song «Louder». In 2016, she made it to a third place in Norwegian “Dancing with the stars” on TV 2.
Everyone who followed MGP last year understood that this is an artist who has both a talent for singing and dancing.
3. Ketil Stokkan: “My life is OK”
(Music and lyrics: Ketil Stokkan)
Ketil Stokkan (64) was born and raised in Harstad in Northern Norway, and lives in Nordkjosbotn. He works as a teacher in primary school, but as the established artist he is, he still plays many concerts every year.
He has participated in the MGP three times before: the first time was in 1983 with “Samme charmeur” which took him to a second place. In 1986, Ketil Stokkan won Melodi Grand Prix with the immortal «Romeo», and got a 12th place in the ESC in Bergen. In 1990 he won the Norwegian final once again with “Brandenburg Tor” but was placed last in the competition in Zagreb.
Stokkan began his musical career by being part of various bands already in middle school. In 1977 he became a member of the band “ZOO” in Stokmarknes, and released 6 albums with them, 2 of which sold to gold. The most famous songs from the period with ZOO are “Evig Ung” and “Vent, ikkje legg på”.
He later initiated various dance band projects and released solo records.
Stokkan has released four albums and several singles between 2011 and 2017. The latest album, “Nu kjør vi”, was recorded live in Trondheim in 2017. Like so many artists, Ketil and his band “Funky Ducks”, are waiting for the Covid-19 pandemic to be over, so they can go back to performing at concert venues.
4. Maria Solheim: “Nordlyset”
(Music and Lyrics: Andreas Gjone, Camilla North, Elsbeth Rehder, Torgeir Ryssevik og Maria Solheim)
Maria Solheim (38) grew up in Øksnes, a small fishing village in Nordland, but now lives in Svelvik in South-Eastern Norway.
Maria got a record contract as a 17-year-old and moved to Oslo after finishing school. The debut album “Barefoot” was released in 2001 and received very good reviews in the press.
Both Maria’s second and third albums received “Spellemann” nominations (Norwegian Grammy), and by the time of her fourth release in 2006, she had toured, released music, and played concerts around Asia, the United States and Europe. Maria has performed at several public Royal Family events.
In 2008, she participated in Crown Princess Mette Marit’s album «Sorgen og gleden». In 2009 she released the single “Rom For Alle” which sold to platinum and was on the VG Chart for several weeks.
Maria Solheim started working with NRK Super (NRK’s children’s channel) in 2012, and wrote several songs for them. The collaboration led to a permanent collaboration with former NRK Super host Silje Sirnes Winje. The duo received a Spellemann award in 2020 for their second release «Bråkebøttebaluba».
Maria Solheim is currently working on her seventh solo album with an expected release in 2021.
Prequalified act’s performance
During the second semi final the pre-qualified group Stavangerkameratene will showcase their song “Let Loose“.The winner of the 2nd semi final will join the six prequalified acts and the winner of the 1st semi final winner
MGP 2021 dates
The Norwegian national selection will commence on January 16 with the first semi final show and will continue to unfold over six weeks, concluding on February 20 with the Grand final.
This is the Melodi Grand Prix schedule:
Semi-final 1 – January 16
Semi-final 2 – January 23
Semi-final 3 – January 30
Semi-final 4 – February 6
Semi-final 5 – February 13
Second Chance Round – February 14
Grand final – February 20
News Source: NRK
