Ten finalists for Norway's Melodi Grand Prix announced

The 2019 edition of Melodi Grand Prix (MGP), the Norwegian national selection for the Eurovision Song Contest will take place on Saturday 2nd March. The show will see 10 acts battle for the right to represent Norway at the 2019 Eurovision Song Contest in Tel Aviv. The acts were revealed at a press conference which was held in Oslo.

Adrian Jørgensen - The Bubble (LISTEN)

Adrian Jørgensen is a native of the northern Norwegian village of Bindal. Since he was 16, he has lived a double-life: working as a fisherman and a singer-songwriter, traveling around Norway playing concerts.  

Adrian’s breakthrough came in 2013 when he was runner-up on The Voice. In 2016, he released the single Baby It’s Time. The 26-year-old is no newcomer to the Melodi Grand Prix and Eurovision stage — he performed as a backup singer both for JOWST in Kiev in 2017 and for Aleksander Walmann in last year’s national selection.  

His biggest hit to date is the Norwegian cover version of Despacito, for which he teamed up with fellow Melodi Grand Prix 2019 contestant Carina Dahl.

Anna-Lisa Kumoji - Holla (LISTEN)

Anna-Lisa grew up in Asker outside of Oslo. The 28-year-old describes her childhood home as being full of music and life. Her father Kofi Kumoji migrated from Ghana after starting a musical career in his native country. One of Anna-Lisa’s earliest memories is dancing in her father’s arms to the song he named after her.  

She studied music in high school before attending the Baardar Academy in Oslo. After graduating, she pursued a career as a singer, voiceover and musical artist. Among the highlights of her career are parts in The Book of Mormon in Copenhagen and Flashdance in Oslo.

Carina Dahl - Hold Me Down (LISTEN)

Carina is competing in her third Melodi Grand Prix. The 33-year-old Trondheim native performed Guns and Boys in 2011 and returned to the contest in 2013 with the song Sleepwalking. She released her debut album Hot Child in 2010 while living in Stockholm. Her most-streamed song is the Norwegian cover of Despacito, which she recorded together with fellow Melodi Grand Prix 2019 contestant Adrian Jørgensen.

Chris Medina - We Try (LISTEN)

Chris had his breakthrough on American Idol in 2010. He released his single What Are Words shortly thereafter, and watched as the song cracked the Billboard Top 100 list and went platinum in a number of countries. Norway was no exception, and Medina performed at concerts around the country. The 35-year-old was born and raised in Chicago, but has spent the past few years living in Oslo with his Norwegian girlfriend and their two-year-old daughter.

D'Sound - Mr. Unicorn (LISTEN)

D’Sound have been an important part of the Norwegian pop music industry since the 1990’s. The three original band members released six albums and many hits together, in addition to contributing to other artists’ hits as producers and songwriters. Kim and Jonny produced Madcon’s European hit Beggin. Kim wrote and produced Glow, the song that Madcon performed to rave reviews during the intermission at Eurovision in Oslo in 2010.  

Erlend Bratland - Sing For You (LISTEN)

Erlend took Norway by storm in 2008 when he won Norway’s Got Talent with his cover of Lost. His album True Colors went gold virtually overnight, and the following year he was nominated for a Spelleman award, the Norwegian take on the Grammies. Bratland returned to the scene in 2015 in a big way when his song Thunderstruck earned him second place in Melodi Grand Prix.

Hank Von Hell - Fake It (LISTEN)

Hank von Hell was the lead singer in the Norwegian rock band Turbonegro from the early 1990’s until 2010. Many would go so far as to call von Hell one of the most legendary figures in contemporary rock music. Since the last time he stood on stage and declared that his performing days were over, fans from all over the world have hoped for a comeback. That comeback is now a reality, and it is happening at this year’s MGP.

Ingrid Berg Mehus - Feel (LISTEN)

Ingrid Berg Mehus was born and raised in Jessheim just outside of Oslo. The 31-year-old and her husband composed Feel together with their friend Anthony Modebe. 

She got her first violin when she was seven years old, and started playing in a local traditional music group. Ingrid studied music in high school before undergoing classical training at the Barratt Due Institute and further music studies at the University of Oslo.  She soon became Norway’s first-ever nightclub violinist. She played at events all over Norway and abroad and was the supporting act for David Guetta when he played Oslo’s biggest venue in 2010. 

KEiiNO - Spirit In The Sky (LISTEN)

KEiiNO is the name of a Norwegian-Sami collaboration between artists Fred Buljo, Alexandra Rotan and Tom Hugo. The collaboration began with Tom Hugo and his husband Alex Olsson composing the outline of a song inspired by struggles for equal rights regardless of ethnicity, gender identity and sexuality. Given their long struggle in pursuit of equal rights, including a Sami songwriter in this emerging project made eminent sense. Buljo jumped at the opportunity and Spirit in the Sky was the result.

Mørland - En livredd mann (LISTEN)

Kjetil Mørland is a Norwegian artist, songwriter and producer. He is originally from Grimstad in southern Norway, but the 38-year-old has lived in the UK for most of his adult life.  

With his British band Absent Elk, Mørland has released the singles Sun & Water and Emily which both got rotation on national British radio. Kjetil won Melodi Grand Prix in 2015 with his song A Monster Like Me, representing Norway together with Debrah Scarlett. They earned a respectable 8th place finish in the international final in Vienna. The song was listed on several national radio stations around Europe and went platinum in Norway.

Voting

Norwegian viewers will cast their votes via televoting, while an international jury will weigh in on the outcome as well. The winner of Melodi Grand Prix, and Norway's representative for Eurovision 2019, will be selected using public and jury votes. Visit the Melodi Grand Prix website for more information.

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