Sweden: SVT kicks off Melodifestivalen 2020 submissions ; Dates and cities confirmed
The Swedish broadcaster, SVT has opened the Melodifestivalen 2020 song submission window. Interested composers and lyricists can send in their music proposals from August 26th and until September 13th.
With the first competing acts been determined through F4 Nasta and Amanda Aasa earning the first spot in the Melodifestivalen 2020 semi finals, SVT unwinds the process by opening the submission period for the 2020 Swedish national selection.
However this year the Swedish broadcaster seems to be making a turn, seeking for a 50% of female composers in the selected songs or at least in the teams to participate. A total of 28 entries will be making it to the live shows of the competition, with half of them to be determined through a jury and the other half invited from SVT itself. More details on Melodifestivalen terms one can find here
The dates and cities of the 60th edition
The dates and cities of the Melodifestivalen 2020 have been revealed . The 60th edition of the Swedish festival will unfold as following:
- Linköping – Semi Final 1 – February 1
- Gothenburg – Semi Final 2 – February 8
- Luleå – Semi Final 3 – February 15
- Malmö – Semi Final 4 – February 22
- Eskilstuna – Second Chance – February 29
- Stockholm – Final – March 7
As we can see Malmö and Gothenburg are back on board while the grand final will once again take place in the capital city of Stockholm. Tickets for the shows and the rehearsals will be released on October 31 .
The Eurovision Story so far
Sweden has participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 58 times since making its debut in 1958, missing only three contests (1964, 1970 and 1976). Since 1959, the Swedish entry has been chosen through the annual televised competition, named since 1967 as Melodifestivalen. At the 1997 contest, Sweden was one of the first five countries to adopt televoting. Sweden is the only country to have hosted the event in five different decades, three times in Stockholm (1975, 2000, 2016), twice in Malmö (1992, 2013) and once in Gothenburg (1985).
Sweden is one of the most successful competing nations at the Eurovision Song Contest, with a total of six victories, just one win behind Ireland. The country has the most top five results of the 21st century, with thirteen. In total, Sweden has achieved 24 top five results in the contest. After finishing second with Lill Lindfors and Svante Thuresson in 1966, Sweden went on to achieve its six victories with ABBA (1974), Herreys (1984), Carola (1991), Charlotte Nilsson(1999), Loreen (2012) and Måns Zelmerlöw (2015).
In 2019 John Lundvik represented the country with his song “Too Late For Love”,achieving another top 5 placing for Sweden as he finished 5th overall with 334 points.
