Emotions running high backstage after first Semi-Final

There were many ecstatic winners backstage after the first Semi-Final on Tuesday night. But also many gracious losers. Several of the non-qualifying artists quickly recovered after the disappointment and attended the after-show party at the EuroClub in downtown Oslo.

In the full-packed EuroClub, not only the qualifiers, but also the non-qualifiers from countries like Finland, Malta and Poland partied all night long. The Finnish artists happily posed together with their numerous fans, and Poland's Marcin made clear that he would stay in Oslo and celebrate the contest all the way until Sunday.

Grand non-qualifiers

Eurovision.tv spoke with several of the non-qualifiers backstage immediately after the broadcast. Despite the despondency, they were grand and were cheerful for the great show.

Kuunkuiskaajat, Finland

“We're going to the after-show party, and we are enjoying it so much! We heard the audience, and they gave us so much energy. We really shared that moment with the audience, and we have met so many nice contestants here. Nothing went wrong, it feels like 100 points for Finland!”

Marcin Mroziński, Poland

“We knew that this could happen, so we're not crying and aren't devastated. We enjoyed our time on stage and we had fun all the time. And you know what? I'll stay 'till the end! So I will party until Sunday here with everyone. But of course, this is sad. We worked with our performance for eight months. And I invested money personally. Now, I'm going to cross my fingers for Niamh from Ireland, that's a big song.”

Aisha, Latvia

“I think only God knows why it turned out like this. This was still a very nice experience for me, and I'm very proud of myself and my girls. I was crying when I came off stage, I was so emotional. We were strong, and I  will have other chances. Now I will go in to do my job and sing for everybody.”

Gjoko Taneski, FYR Macedonia

“I feel okay. I had a feeling we wouldn't go through to the Final. I guess I'll go home now on  Wednesday. But the performance was wonderful, I'm very satisfied with that.”

Kristina Pelakova, Slovakia

“I just accept the result, and now I'm moving on. I have to get a little rest now. I've had a great experience here. When I went off stage, I had a good feeling and felt a good energy from the people. I wouldn't have changed anything in my preparations if I got to do it again.”

Joyous qualifiers for the Final

The artist's qualifying for the Final celebrated backstage, before quickly moving on to the winners' press conference.

Sunstroke Project, Moldova

“This is a miracle. This is the best day of my life. Tonight, I just want all people of the world to get to be as happy as I am. We felt very good when we went off stage. We will have more time for the work now. Tonight we party!”

Juliana Pasha, Albania

“This is wonderful. The audience gave me energy, it's such a different thing from the rehearsal. I just want to thank everyone that voted for Albania tonight and made us go to the Final. We're a small country, and this is important for us. We want to share out culture and heart with all of Europe. I saw so many Albanians in the audience tonight, it was amazing.”

Robert Wells, Belarus

“I didn't think that it would be this exciting, but it was an amazing feeling. I'm so proud of the group, they were a bit tense this afternoon, but we focussed, and when they went on stage they were completely calm. I've acted like a bit of a mentor here, but this is great for me as well.”

Tom Dice, Belgium

“It was so exciting. I was so stressed, and I was exploding when they called up Belgium for the Final. The performance was wonderful. There is a silent part in the song, and when that came, I heard that the crowd was yelling, and that gave me a lot of energy. I was relaxed on stage.”

Giorgos Alkaios, Greece

“I never saw or heard the atmosphere in the arena, because I had the light in my eyes and the in ear devices in my ears. This is a big thing for Greece, because this is the fist time in a long time that Greece has a song in Greek.”

Hera Björk, Iceland

“I didn't think anything when I got the result, I just screamed and cried like a beauty queen! But I do have voice left, it's a strong voice. I was really happy with the performance right afterwards, it felt great with the audience. I felt good and safe.”

Filipa Azevedo, Portugal

“I was very happy when I got the result, I was thinking of my family in Portugal. I thought of my father when I walked off stage after the performance.”

Milan Stanković, Serbia

“I expected people to understand our energy and trust in our performance – not the press. This song is not written to listen to just one time, and now we get to perform it once more: in the Final! I was really happy when we got the result, and before that I was really nervous. I got energy from the crowd.”